THE SPIRITUAL EFFECT OF EVOLUTION.
It is apparent that the adoption of such a theory as Evolution must affect the spiritual state of the person receiving it. Man's mental and spiritual natures are intimately connected. While those in a settled previous spiritual experience may carry Evolution as "a working theory" only, those in an immature state will be vitally affected. Especially is this true of youthful minds. It is indeed a fact that many young men have started with high purposes to prepare for the ministry, and even for foreign missions, and have, after adopting these modern theories, abandoned their purpose, and thousands have abandoned all personal religion. Pastors can tell of many such instances.
Some have said that the adoption of Evolution has helped their faith. They fail to see that bringing the Bible down to their faith is not bringing their faith up to the Bible. It is a weakening of faith and not a strengthening of it. This apparent increase of faith simply prepares the way for its utter ruin. The first step leads to a wider divergence, as many have shown, that leads to wreck of all faith in a supernatural God or world or Bible. The mind will follow its natural workings. Loss of faith in the facts of the Bible leads to loss of faith in its truths. The acceptance of this theory still further leads to a lessening of the sense of our need of Christ that the Bible teaches and man should feel. And further the acceptance of this theory, while it may not affect materially the minds of experienced Christians, will through them affect others.
There is also a latent unconscious loss of faith that is realized only in some great emergency, when in "the storm and stress" of life the soul looks out for something to hold to. It is then that the rotting platform of unbelief goes down in wreck. The other extreme is also a cause of ruin. In the time of great prosperity when all the allurements of life and time and sense present themselves, it requires all the purpose one has to stem the tide of temptations. It is here that a false belief will work havoc. The mind conceives that after all sin is not so hateful or salvation so needed or doom so fearful.
The effect on experimental personal experience is evident. Instead of looking for a regeneration, a revolution of the inner state, the believer in Evolution necessarily looks for a change from education or other form of development. Such a thing as conversion or a baptism of the Holy Ghost he will cease to look for or desire. There will come declining feeling, lessening devotion, prayer will become perfunctory and there will come increasing occupation with and love for other things. Evolution as a belief makes right many things that were before held to be wrong. It is an easy religion to hold. It strikes the world at the angle of least resistance and enables the holder to accept almost anything that the natural man desires. The conflict of "the flesh and the spirit" ceases; the flesh, that is the natural man, has conquered.
These theories in many seem to be but evidences of a previous wrong state of heart. The wish is father to the thought. The theory is accepted because it allows the laying aside of views that restrain the desires. Such persons are willing to admit the existence of God and his contact with man at Creation if relieved from any nearer relationship. It is therefore worse than unbelief. It is antagonism. It is enmity. Christ said, "Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil." The heart and life are the basis of their opinions. It is evident that argument here fails. "A man convinced against his will remains an unbeliever still."
Evolution is a comfortable theory to the world. It elevates man. It hides the presence of God. It calls for no repentance or consecration. It boasts of human progress and claims merit therefor. In short it is the worship of man rather than the worship of God. It deifies man and it ignores Christ. Once committed to this theory, there is no extreme the person may not reach. Some have abandoned Christ and Christianity because of it. It is in fact in doctrine and experience and conduct, the antithesis of Christianity.
Such a theory as Evolution and its vaporizing method of Bible interpretation, prepares the way for "isms" of every kind. It is to this we are indebted for the swarm of these that afflicts the church to-day. Once allow that the Bible may be interpreted to suit such theories and any heresy or absurdity can prove its position from the Bible as all of them by this same process do.
It is already weakening the power of the pulpit, and this in turn is one great reason for the declining effect of the preached word. Once received into a minister's heart the edge of his sword is dulled if indeed the sword is not itself sheathed. He may not preach Evolution either as a method of creation or a method of salvation, but his own inner faith is weakened in the old truth which had such power to convert the souls of hearers. When openly advocated and taught, it is useless to seek revivals among those so taught. So it is the fact that conversions to-day are mainly confined to the young and others not affected by the error.
All the indications point to the further weakening of the hold upon men of the supernatural and the eternal. To eliminate the former and, while acknowledging the latter, to disparage all reference to the future life, seems to be the tendency of the day. As already cited, one of its chief advocates tells us, "Heaven is no longer the center of the Christian's hope." The consequence is the material and intellectual interests receive chief attention and other agencies take the chief place religion should have. Education received in the United States over $200,000,000 in gifts during the last few years, to say nothing of the many fold more received from incomes and public funds. Meanwhile the causes of Christ are languishing, missions are dwarfed, small churches in great masses of the population are struggling for existence against fearful odds, while the money of professed Christians pours in these mighty streams for all other purposes. No sensible person will disparage education, but "Religion is the chief concern of mortals here below."
Further it is the few who can take advantage of the higher education for which these millions are given. But five per cent of the common school scholars can attend college. The many must toil for existence. It is to the poor the gospel was preached by its Founder. It is to the poor it means most. To those who have little else it is the all in all. It is to these it should be preached in its freedom and fullness. The principles of natural selection of the fittest which sends millions to higher institutions and neglects the masses of the people is the opposite of the gospel.
Cardinal Newman wrote: "There is a special effort made almost all over the world, but most visibly and formidably in its most civilized and powerful part, to do without religion.... Truly there is at this time a confederacy of evil marshalling its hosts from all parts of the world, organizing itself and taking measures enclosing the church of Christ as in a net and preparing the way for a general apostasy." (Quoted in "Christianity and Anti-Christianity." S. J. Andrews, p. 4.) Whether this is the final form of unbelief is difficult to say. It bears the marks of anti-christianity the apostle speaks of. The unbelief of the latter days will rest on belief in the unvarying stability of nature. (2 Peter 3:4.) The coming of this theory is aimed to dissipate any looking for supernatural changes such as the Scriptures teach are coming to earth, such as the last day, the coming of Christ, the resurrection and all the vast series of changes therein declared. Hence that wholesome fear of God so operative in deterring evil and stimulating good is removed. Based on this unbelief, the enemy of God and man can advance to the accomplishment of his purposes as never before. All satanic methods before this have been crude and coarse compared with this last invention. It is the most subtle and sweeping of all evil methods to ensnare the mind of man. Based on what is called science, promoted by the scholars of the day, taught in the fountains of learning and preached from pulpit and platform, it must have a widespread effect. Heretofore attacks on Christianity have been made from without. This is from within. It is the trusted leaders who are now undermining the fortress in which they live.
But revivals always begin at the bottom. It was a few poor fishermen who commenced the gospel age. It is their successors to whom we must look as we have in the past for return of apostolic power. "God chose the foolish things of the world that He might put to shame them that are wise; and God chose the weak things of the world that He might put to shame the things that are strong; and the base things of the world, and the things that are despised did God choose, yea and the things that are not, that he might bring to naught the things that are: that no flesh should glory before God." (1 Cor. 1:27, 28, R. V.) So we look hopefully to God for that only which will deliver the church from this and all other pestilent evils, theoretical and practical, a revival of true religion by the power of the Holy Spirit, and the preaching of the old gospel of the cross of Christ.