Christian kids in public school typically respond to evolution teaching in one of four ways, or a blend in-between. These start at the “worst” outcome and move to the “best.”
1-Lose their faith: The evolution teaching talks them out of their Christian faith.
2-Apathy: They lose the benefit of knowing they are created in the image of God, and with purpose and intent.
3-Integration: They become theistic evolutionists. Their “god” is one who creates through “experimental cruelty” in a “hands off” fashion.
4-Defense: They hold strong personally, but don’t help others out of the cloud of dissolution.
5-Evangelism: They are so strong in their faith that they dismantle evolution teaching and help convince others of the truth.
First, it is God’s hope and desire that we know who we are, Whose we are, how we got here, how special we are in the scope of His creation, why we’re here, and what His purpose is for our lives.
The secular world, and public school system, cannot answer these questions. In fact, not only does the world not teach these things, the world gives an opposite message, namely: we are the result of “slime through time,” we do not belong to a God who made us with intention, we will not have to give an account for our lives, and that our purpose and significance is left only to us.
Why is developing a defense against evolution teaching so important for Christian students? The answer is simple, but scary: Young students cannot easily dismiss evolution teaching. This is because, from kindergarten on, kids are conditioned by both their parents and teachers to listen, learn, obey, and even be judged and graded by mastering what teachers say is “truth.” When they are taught evolution in school, they are typically met with strong “evidence” in school, presented “by scientists” as “scientific fact.” And unfortunately, many kids are not provided with ample training at home to rebut this teaching, so it sinks in and shapes their worldview. As a result, many kids end up dismissing their Christian faith along with Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny and adopt evolution teaching in its place. The result is a life lived without the authority of God, a belief that they will not be accountable for how they live this life, and that their moral choices are of no consequence.
What is the solution? At Genesis Apologetics, we believe that kids should be taught Creation v. Evolution at a 2-to-1 ratio. That is, for every hour of instruction they receive in public schools, the bare minimum is to counter this with at least two of sound Biblical Creation instruction.
