CHAPTER 2

THE ORIGIN OF HUMANITY

 Chapter Content

The Meaning of Human Origin

The Status of Adam and Eve
Five Views of Human Beginning
Naturalistic Evolution
Fiat Creationism
Deistic Evolution
Theistic Evolution
Progressive Creationism
The Age of the Human Race
The Theological Meaning of Human Creation
 The Meaning of Human Origin

Beginning of Human: The fact of coming into being. It has

a scientific ring to it i.e. the beginning of a person which
occurs when a male’s sperm joins with a female’s ovum.

Origin of Human: Something more than merely its

beginning. It carries the connotation of the purpose of the
coming into being of humans.

Some births are results of actual planning and desire of a

couple; Some births are results of mistake/carelessness.

Purpose: “The biblical picture of humanity’s origin is that

an all-wise, all-powerful, and good God created the
human race to love and serve him, and to enjoy a
relationship with him.”
 The Status of Adam and Eve

Different interpretations of the Status of Adam & Eve:

Actual historical persons or merely symbolic.

Traditional View: Actual persons & that events in the

biblical account took place in space and time.

Alternative View: Adam & Eve are symbolic.

Emil Brunner: Swiss Reformed theologian; known for Neo-

orthodoxy with Karl Barth; The story of Adam & Eve must
be given up on external & internal grounds.

External Reasons: Empirical

Natural science (biological evolution, paleontology) &
history conflicts with the traditional view.

Traditional View: Adam & Eve were originally perfect

and innocent before the fall. However, scientific
evidence indicates an ever more primitive form of
humanity the further one goes back to the past.
Internal Reasons: No loss in abandoning traditional view
but is a necessary purification of the doctrine of humanity.

Biblical account of human origins is not about Adam & Eve

of long ago, but about everyone in the world.

Brunner’s approach likens the creation account to a

parable: Prodigal Son. If it is a historical account, it is only
an interesting story. If it is a parable, it is applicable and
relevant to us today.

So, the story of Adam & Eve should not be considered as

actual historical account. Adam is named so. However, it
actually means “human.” The creation of Adam & Eve is
not about two persons who lived long ago but is about
everyone who lives today.
How do we resolve this difficulty?

Adam may be taken as a general or class term “human”

rather than a proper name. However, Romans 5 & 1 Corinth
15 favor the traditional view.

Sin, guilt, and death are universal facts of human existence

(essential parts of Paul’s doctrine of humanity).

All humans die because sin came into the world through
one person. Death is a manifestation of the condemnation
resulting from one man’s sin.

New Testament authors: Adam & Eve were historical

figures and the events in the biblical account actually
occurred historically. Such an understanding is also an
indispensable part of their doctrine of humanity.
 Different Views of Human Beginning
Cataclysmic or Processive

Conservative Orthodoxy: Emphasis on Instantaneity & supernatural occurrences. God’s work is thought to
be almost always characterized by immediacy and discontinuity, or sharp breaks in natural processes.

Borden Parker Bowne: The story of an Eastern king asking his counselors about sign of the wonderful
works of God. Ask to plan four acorns; saw them full-grown. The king thought: a miracle. Counselor: 80
years. King angry and said that it was not a miracle. Counselor: Oh, yes, it is. It is God’s work whether he do
it in one second or in eighty years.”

Fundamentalism: Sometimes, require immediacy of action because instantaneity seems inherently more
supernatural in character.
Liberalism: Stresses process. God is working within and through nature. Directs the
process to its intended goal.

The stake: Our understanding of God and his relationship to the world.

Fundamentalism: God is transcendent & works in a direct or discontinuous fashion.

Liberalism: God is immanent and works through natural channels.

The Right View: God is both transcendent and immanent.

Naturalistic Evolution

Immanent processes within nature produced humans

& all the things that exist.

No involvement by any divine person, either at the

beginning or during the process.

Combination of atoms, motion, time, and chance

responsible for what we have today.

Our world is the result of chance or random

combination of atoms.

Natural Selection at the higher levels or later stages of

the process.

Nature is extremely prolific: Produces many more

offspring of any given species than can possibly survive.
Competition: The best, the strongest, and the most
adaptive survive; Darwin’s “Survival of the fittest.”

Gradual upgrading of the species; Mutations;

Sudden variations, novel features.

“At the end of a long process of natural selection

and useful mutations humans arrived on the scene.
They are organisms of great complexity and
superior abilities, not because someone planned and
made them that way, but because these features
enabled them to survive.”

Biology, anthropology, or paleontology do not seem

to contradict it absolutely; However, these
disciplines do not offer material to support its every
contention either.

Question: Can we prove evolution?

 Fiat Creationism
Opposite End of the Spectrum

God, by a direct act, created everything

instantaneously.

Various stages of creation; yet, short period of

time (a calendar week or so).

Ex Nihilo (Creation out of nothing).

New species did not arise as modifications of

existing species but were created by God, distinct
from the others (including man).

Based on the literal understanding of the biblical

account in Genesis; general understanding for
centuries in the history of the church.
 Deistic Evolution God began the process of evolution, producing the first matter
A variety of theistic evolution and implanting within the creation the laws of development.

He programmed the process and then withdrew from active

involvement with the world (Creator emeritus).

The progress of the created order is free of direct influence by

God. He is the Creator of everything, but only the first
component in the process was directly created. All the rest of
God’s creation came indirectly.

God is the Creator, the ultimate cause, but He used evolution.

Deistic evolution is identical to naturalistic evolution except for

its view of the beginning.

This deistic view of an absentee God in conflict with the biblical

picture of God (directly involved in all creative acts) and the
biblical doctrine of providence (God is personally and intimately
concerned with and involved in the events within creation).
Theistic Evolution
God began the process of creation by bringing the
first organism to life; then, continued by working
internally to create the rest.

He modified the process by employing already

existing materials.

God created the first human being by utilizing an

existing creature: He created a human soul and
infused it into one of the higher primates,
transforming it into the first human.

So, while God created the spiritual nature of Adam,

his physical nature was a product of evolution.

Dust: interpreted as a symbolic reference to some

already existing creature, a lower form than human.
Progressive Creationism God’s creative work as a combination of a series of de novo
(created afresh) creative acts and an immanent or processive
operation; God at several points widely separated in time,
created de novo; Product of his work was completely new.

Between the special creative acts of God, development

occurred through evolution.

God created the first member of the cat family & the various
species of the cat family developed through evolution--
Intrakind development (microevolution).

The word “yom” interpreted quite freely.

Creation of the first Human: God made him directly and

completely and not out of some lower creature. His physical
and spiritual nature created by God.

“Dust” not really physical soil but some elementary pictorial

representation.
 The Age of the Human Race
(Four Conservative Views)

First View: Not an important issue. Either we cannot

determine the age of the human race, or even if we could,
it would make no difference.

Second View: Tool-making is the mark of humanity. The

ability of humans to fashion and utilize tools separates
them from other creatures. Based on this criterion, the
human race is 500,000 to 2 million years.
Third View: The burial of the dead
sets humans apart from other
creatures. Based on this criterion, the
first human can be identified with
Neanderthal man and dated about
50,000 years ago.
Fourth View: Human is distinguished by
the presence and use of complex
symbolism or more specially, of
language. Language makes relationship
with God possible. Based on this
criterion, the first human is to be
identified with the Cro-Magnon Man
some 30,000-40,000 years ago.
 The Theological Meaning of Human Creation

Humans have no independent existence: Created by God.

Why? For Stewardship. Our purpose also identifies our
identity. Created by an intelligent Being.

Humans are part of the creation: Created with the other

creatures on the same day. Humans must be humane
and care for other creatures.

Humans have a unique place in creation: Created in the

image and likeness of God and to have dominion over
other creatures.

Brotherhood among humans: We are all related to one

another, distant cousins. This understanding should
produce a concern and empathy for other humans.
Tendency to feel more strongly the needs and hurts of
our close friends and relatives than of strangers.
 The Theological Meaning of Human Creation

Humanity is not the highest object in the universe: We

must never elevate our respect for humans to the point of
virtually worshipping them. Worship is only for God.

Limitations for Humanity: Humans do not know

everything. Our knowledge is incomplete and subject to
error. A sense of humility needs to be exercised. Subject
to death or created with conditional immortality.

Limitation is not inherently bad: Some say that human

finiteness is the cause of sin. However, it is our improper
response to that limitation that either constitute or result
in sin. Some people: Human sinfulness is a carry-over
from earlier stages of evolution is gradually being left
behind. More knowledge, less sinful. However, reality is
different. More sinful.
 The Theological Meaning of Human Creation

Proper adjustment in life can be achieved only on the basis

of acceptance of one’s own finiteness: Adam & Eve wanted
to become like God, knowing good and evil. We cannot and
need not be God.

College Bible department and application for teaching

position. Faculty: “Oh! I don’t think we have a position
worthy of this man. In fact, I don’t think there is any
position anywhere that is worthy of him. There hasn’t been
an opening in the Trinity for almost two thousand years.”

Humanity is something wonderful: Designed by God.

Sometimes, Christians tend to minimize human ability and
accomplishments to give greater glory to God. Human
greatness can glorify God the more. Humans are great
because God created them.