Creation, Evolution, and the hypocrisy of James Watson

It always has amazed me how otherwise intelligent people don't seem to realize that evolution leads directly to, and is totally consistent with, racism. This issue goes both ways, too - I personally know Christians who reject evolution, supposedly believing all human beings are made in God's image, and embrace racist ideas toward African Americans, for example. This is complete foolishness. But I'm running ahead of myself here. It recently was reported via several news outlets that the renowned molecular biologist/geneticist, James Watson, has gotten himself into hot water over remarks he recently made about the intelligence of blacks. One of his quotes was : "(I am) inherently gloomy about the prospect for Africa because all of our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours - whereas all of our testing says not really..." For those who might not know who Mr. Watson is, he shared the 1962 Nobel prize with the late Francis Crick for their work on the structure of the DNA molecule. He is a committed atheistic materialist who believes (and has said so on numerous occasions) that human beings are nothing more than their genes - which he believes determines every single thing about us. For someone like Mr. Watson, racism is logical. After all, if we are all here simply as the result of completely random, mechanistic processes which happen in a completely material, uncaring, meaningless universe, with no Creator, why shouldn't there be races which have evolved to be superior than others ? And why should we condemn racism ? If no God exists, no real basis for right or wrong exist either. How could anyone say then that racism is wrong ? The problem with these staunch believers in atheistic evolution is that they can't live in the real universe and be consistent with their own beliefs. The reason for this is simple: In the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth. To try to live as though this isn't true is to live a lie constantly. James Watson is a hypocrite beyond belief. When confronted with the public outcry over his statements he backtracked furiously. He stated that: "I cannot understand how I could have said what I am quoted as having said." But Mr. Watson, I understand how all too well - you are an atheist, an evolutionist, and as a result, a racist. Mr. Watson later said that he does not believe that there is any scientific reason to believe that Africa is genetically inferior. In this he contradicts himself and once again reinforces his hypocrisy.
Why am I not a racist? Simple - I believe that God has created humanity in His image, after His likeness. I don't believe in evolution. Human beings of any origin ethnically trace their lineage ultimately back to Adam. It is ridiculous for a Christian who believes that God is the Creator, to embrace racist ideology. But there is an even deeper issue here. Reality only makes sense and is only consistent with the truth of God as revealed in the scripture. It is God's word that accurately describes the world.

Why Are We Here ?

It seems that in recent years there has been an attempt on the part of Christian leaders and writers to define what the goal of being a Christian should be. Hence books with titles like The Purpose Driven Life, for example. I believe many of these writers do mean well, and they at least are insightful enough to see that American Christians are spiritually ill, very ill. However, I always get a little bit anxious when someone comes along with a new plan or method designed to revitalize the Church, and I get even more uncomfortable when the word relevance begins to pop up. So, why are we here ? Well, some believers say that we are here to take dominion over this world and bring it into submission to Christ. This idea is popular with the more militant because it gives an opportunity for believers to join the CAUSE. It also, unfortunately, leads to attempts to politicise the Church, i.e., Christians need to allign themselves with a particular political party, etc. But I always have this nagging feeling that such an outlook becomes a dangerous distraction; and I seem to recall someone important say that His Kingdom is not of this world, I believe it was Jesus who said so, remember Him?
Then there are those that believe that our main goal must be the evangelism of the lost. I respect these believers much more because they can at least show me scripture like the great commission, for example. But my question is - is that why we are here? Ultimately, while evangelism is important (and we are commanded to do it) it ought to flow out of something greater; namely the contemplation and worship of the Lord Jesus. Why are we here - simply to bring glory to, and to worship The Lord. A.P. Gibbs called it the Christian's highest occupation. It seems that we have a tendency to want to rush out and do a bunch of things for God; when God wants our hearts, our affections, our love, our worship. Show me someone who is in love with the Lord and who can't get enough of spending time with Him, and I'll show you someone who in all likelihood will be living a godly life and sharing the gospel with others. Its really not that complicated.

Daily Bible Reading

Right now, my wife and I are reading through the Bible, on a schedule to complete it in six months. We are currently in week number three. Along with another couple (our accountability partners, if you will), we decided to read through a different Bible translation every six months. To start off with, we are reading the New Living Translation. So far I have read all of Genesis, all of Job (we are doing a chronological schedule), and the first 15 chapters of Exodus. (I'm also running a little behind, but I'll catch up.) My thoughts on the NLT, so far - pretty happy with it, especially for straight reading of the Bible. Its a bit of a cross between an actual translation and a paraphrase, but as long as the reader knows this going in, I really don't have a problem with it. For study purposes I would always reference a more literal translation like the KJV or NASB, for example. As I read more of the Bible in this translation over the next few months, I'll let everyone know how I liked it.

How a Rush Concert Honors God

On Saturday, August 24, my wife and I attended the Rush concert here in St. Louis. Once again, this Canadian power trio put on a fine show, highlighted (at least to me) by the playing of a lot of new material from their current album Snakes and Arrows. Every time I see them play, I am struck by their abundant musical gifts and genius. I sometimes think to myself, "I wish they were Christians who honored God with their music." For those who don't know the band, or much about them, Rush has been around for over 30 years, as a progressive rock band characterized by vituoso musicianship, complex musical signatures, and philosophical subject matter. The band's drummer, Neil Peart, is also their main lyricist. Neil is an agnostic, if not an atheist. His views do come out in several songs. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that God still ultimately gets the glory whenever human beings produce creations of beauty, whether they acknowledge God or not. Or to put it another way, who ultimately gave rush the ability to play music so well? GOD DID! Just because they don't acknowledge that doesn't mean it isn't true. But, they are missing out on the very purpose of their existence - to bring glory to God. It makes me think about the words of Eric Liddell, in the film Chariots of Fire. He stated "God made me for a purpose, to go to China. But He also made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure..." That's the great paradox, if you will. When we become more concerned with God's glory than with our own, we put ourselves in a place where we also receive true, pure, pleasure in the knowledge of pleasing Him.

Well, since this is my first post, I think I'll go ahead and explain the title of this blog,
"the light is on." It goes back several years to when a couple of very good friends and I would periodically get together, simply to talk over coffee. In our caffeine induced buzz, we would generally discuss philosophy/theology, and apply to whichever current issue resonated with us at the time. As time went on, we went our separate ways and because of geography, could only get together one or two times a year (now its even less than that :( ). But we found these discussions so invigorating, and at times even profitable, that we decided we would continue them when and where time and circumstances allowed. My friend Steve then said that it was kind of like a small esoteric order which met infrequently in a mighty tower. When people looked at the tower, it was dark. But every so often, pretty rarely in fact, the light in the tower would come on. This meant that the three were back, to discuss deep and important truths. Hence "the light is on". Let me be clear, neither me, nor my two comrades consider ourselves quite that important! But let me also add that my friend Steve's point was that it is a good thing to come aside to talk about eternal things, the things that are really important. But we don't spend our live in the tower. We leave the tower to engage the world with the mighty truths of the love and revelation of God in his Son, Jesus Christ. Indeed, HE is the Light of the world - still.