I was listening to an interesting debate the other day.  It was between an atheist and an evangelical.  One of the atheists defenses for social evolution apart from God was his belief that our society has grown beyond the violence of past centuries.  He went on to say that the 20th century was the most peaceful century in history.  I guess he was sleeping in History 101 when they covered WWI, WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the other 27 Major conflicts of the 1900’s.  Historian Eric Hobsbawn said in his book on the 1900’s, “the 20th century was the most murderous in recorded history. The total number of deaths caused by or associated with its wars has been estimated at 187 million, the equivalent of more than 10 per cent of the world’s population in 1913.”  He went on to say that the century experienced very few periods of worldwide peace.  It seems to me that the twentieth century isn’t the best time period to reference while extolling the peaceful progress of humanity.

In fact, as I examine history, I see not the progress of humankind, but the plight of humankind and that is just another reason why I believe the Word of God.  History portrays more realistically the Bible’s explanations of man and the world around him than any atheistic philosophy I have ever read.  The idea that this world, life, and culture are evolving for the better in any way is a pipe dream. Peace on this earth can only be found in one place, and that is in the Lord Jesus Christ.  All other peace is fragile, fleeting, and in the long run, fake.  In Jeremiah 17:9 we are told,  “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?”  Later in Matthew 15:19 we see that man has a heart problem, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.”  These comments on man seem to match what I see in the news a lot more than an atheistic view that we are building societies of peace and justice.

It seems to me that atheists are caught in the middle of their own beliefs.  They assume that Godlessness will lead to more order, more peace, more ethical societies, but why should it?  If we are just organic with no real moral compass, why shouldn’t we press for power?  Why shouldn’t the biggest, strongest, most powerful be in charge.  If the meanings of such words as life, murder, rights, and more are allowed to change from generation to generation, culture to culture, place to place, then there is no standard of right and wrong and everyone can make his own rules.  If everyone can make his own rules, why wouldn’t he make rules that benefit himself.  

On the other hand, if there is some kind of altruism that sometimes is found in humans, why should it be there?  Would we, people just made of matter, without spirits, without souls, without a creator, ever choose to be decent in this survival-of-the-fittest world we live in. Conscience does not evolve but is part of our inborn knowledge that there is something, no, Someone greater than we.  Either we are a soulless part of the animal kingdom and have excuse to be selfish because we rightfully fight for power (see Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, etc), or we are separated from the animal kingdom by a conscience not found in any other creature because we are “fearfully and wonderfully” made.  Sidney Harris, prolific reader and writer once said, “Once we assuage our conscience by calling something a “necessary evil,” it begins to look more and more necessary and less and less evil.”  We are evil by nature, but we try to live in a state of denial. 

There is a sign on a fence out on a Texas plain.  It says, “STOP. I know you’re thinking about crossing this gate. What you should know is that if the Coyotes, Cactus, Mesquite, Heat, Dust or Rattlers don’t get you, I will.”  There is a fence at the edge of our bad behavior.   Before we start to step over that fence there are warnings.  Satan knows that our indiscretions  will lead to dangers on their own. Broken hearts, broken spirits, and broken lives await like dangers in the desert.  Beyond those dangers Satan and his minions await if they are needed to finish us off.  They allow our own sins to destroy us and wait to add the finishing touches if necessary.   We do most of satan’s work for him by just being ourselves.

Romans 10:3 is right: “There are none who are righteous, no, not one.”  That is pretty plain.  Romans also tells us that,  “All have sinned and have come short of the glory of God” and “the wages of sin is death” but the good news is-  “The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  We will not evolve into “good” people and we will not evolve into a “good” society.  We can only replace the bad nature with a good one, and that only comes through Christ.  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, all things have become new.”  Until all things become new through Christ, this world will not get better.  The bottom line is this: We are created with a knowledge of right and wrong but without the power within ourselves to enforce it.  We will continue to ignore what is right until we are filled with the. Spirit of the One Who is right. That is not evolution of our world, but revolution in our souls.  We must go against our natural tendencies for evil and be filled with that which is good.  Until then our world’s progression is nothing more than regression.