Spiritual evolution through theological selection

Faith & Science Conversation
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Our knowledge of life is biased because we perceive everything from our viewpoint rather than that of the creator. We consider human lives central to the creator although our importance lies not in our lives, but in the role we play as spirits in spiritual evolution.

Note that God created man in his image. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27.

As God is spiritual in form, man should be spiritual. The physical form of man is in a state of transition to spiritual dimension through human life. This is spiritual evolution. We evolve into spiritual form through life. This transition consummates in human death. Thus, spiritual evolution takes us to the end-point of physical existence. What is important is not our lives, but how we evolve into spiritual form.

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‘As the purpose of human life is that of the creator—and not of the created—man has no specific purpose in life other than subjecting himself to the purpose of the creator, that is, spiritual evolution.’

I think youre spiritualising too much. God made us physical beings, and the renewed earth will be physical too, but perhaps with an added dimension. A good, physical day’s work can sometimes be the best ‘purpose’ man can have. He was after all told to develop the garden and oversee it all. His purpose and ours is so much more than being ‘spiritual’ whatever that means.

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43

Our view of life is half-baked, because we perceive everything from our viewpoint rather than that of the creator. We consider our lives central to the creator although our importance lies not in our lives, but in the role we play in spiritual evolution.

Note that God created man in his image. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27.

As God is spiritual in form, man should be spiritual. The physical form of man is in transition to the spiritual dimension through human life. This is spiritual evolution. We evolve into spiritual form through life. This transition consummates in human death. Thus, spiritual evolution takes us to the end-point of physical existence. What is important is not our lives, but how we evolve into spiritual existence through life.

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You seem to focus on individual growth and change, not evolution.

I get the impression that you do not value our bodies much. Your focus on spiritual side without giving our physical side much value reminds me of the philosophy of Plato, or perhaps gnostic teachings. At least your thinking seems to be far from the way how hebrews viewed life.

How do you know the viewpoint of the creator? I believe that God has a great plan that will happen but I cannot say that I know it, except what has been revealed in the biblical scriptures.

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Evolution means change to a higher level. Here physical man is a work -in-progress moving toward spiritual form.

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It seems you are still perceiving ‘a half-baked viewpoint perceiving the role we play’ rather than that of the creator.
 

It started because of his desire to increase his joy and subsequently ours. The focus belongs on him and Jesus, the Christ, and not on ‘the role we play in spiritual evolution’.

47

You are trying to sell Gnosticism.

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48

Our resurrection bodies will be ‘spiritual bodies’ which I take to mean extra-dimensional as Jesus’ resurrected body was, no evolution involved.

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The word ‘evolution’ has been used in many ways, which adds confusion. As a biologist, I would like to reserve the word for heritable changes that happen from generation to generation. In this sense, evolution does not mean change to a higher level. Development towards simplicity or stupidity are possible as well as the other directions of change.
Changes within an individual are not evolution, so please use another word for it.

For believing Christians, the teachings of biblical scriptures are important. Can you justify your idea with the Bible? A vague reference to Genesis 1:27 is not enough.

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50

The O.P does not understand the concept that our efforts to overcome sin are but filthy rags. There is no possibility of spiritual evolution to a higher being. We are only saved by the acceptance that we cannot improve ourselves. We must lay at the feet of Jesus and surrender to him.
That is the ONLY way to be saved. Evolution is incompatible with this truth.

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‘Spiritual evolution’ (as opposed to growing in faith) maybe, but not scientific biological evolution.

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The problem I have is the claim that through evolution mankind is improving…that is antibiblical. According to ALL Bible doctrine, man of His own according is absolutely not improving physically or spiritually.
That is where evolution and the Bible diverge.
For me, that divergence starts the second a person attempts to suggest that evolutionary changes such as mutations for example, are an improvement on the original. I don’t mind the idea of adapting to specific environments, I see these changes as predesigned in nature by our creator in order to foresee the need to survive the consequences of sin on our world…I have no problem with this concept.

I am exploring the idea however, that at the time of the flood or in the few years before it, God implanted change in the natural world both to restrict the uncontrolled spread of evil, and also to help nature cope with the dramatic change that occured during and after that catastrophic event.

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The rerouting of a vein or artery (which was discovered fairly recently in some population) is not antibiblical, nor is it related to morality, which is all that the Bible speaks to, I think you should agree.

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Good luck with that – ‘the flood’ being global does not comport with the reality of God’s creation nor is it the the only faithful way of understanding the account in Genesis.

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How is humanity supposed to be improving through evolution? Science makes no such claim.

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I think the term spiritual evolution makes more sense if you think of the other meaning of evolution which essentially equates evolution with progress, or change over time in a specific direction. This would make spiritual evolution different from biological evolution which does not have a direction per se. For example, Pierre Teilhard believed that the universe was “evolving” spiritually over time towards an “Omega point” of consciousness. What he meant by spiritual evolution was the universe becoming more conscious with increasingly complex interconnected relationships over time.

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I think that one of the fundamental entanglements here is that we debate Evolution in the broad sense of the word without considering that there are theological constraints that in fact may or may not agree with aspects of the broad sense of the word.

For example, when we look at the historical model for human evolution, Science has clearly portrayed an improvement from apes walking on all fours to upright humans with a significantly improved mental capacity.

It is very clear here that the human evolutionary model is not a theologically consistent position one can take.

Now to the why of my above statement given what one of the respondents here has said a few posts back…

contrary to the humanism model, mankind is not improving either physically or spiritually. Even our environment is not on the improve…it is getting significantly worse. Many scientists in fact now claim that despite human influences, the environment is headed towards its own ultimate demise! Humans are only accelerating the process…they are not solely responsible for it!

Now that I have established this, how then do I theologically rationalise what I should and/or can do about it?

The true is, beyond the biblical statements… God placed man in the garden to tend it, and … your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, there is ultimately nothing mankind can do to prevent the inevitable. This earth is going to become uninhabitable…that is I believe both a scientific and theological outcome.

My personal opinion on why the “kaput” outcome is inevitable differs from the humanism one in that i accept that its because of the introduction of sin and that God will rebuild it, a humanist says “its cyclical”. Either way, the ultimate end to life as we know it today is coming no matter what world view one holds!

So that is why I do not see it reconcilable that there is Spiritual Evolution in the broader sense of the word Evolution. We are not getting better, nothing is. Eventually, adaptation will become impossible then its kaput…humans will cease to exist and we will become extinct if there is no God

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It also isn’t scientific. Biological evolution doesn’t “aim for ‘higher’ goals” - what would ‘higher’ even mean? All it does is continuously (over long eons of time and with populations - not individuals) differentiate between more and less reproductively advantageous traits as adapted to current environs (which themselves are in constant flux). To look back comparatively at various organisms and declare “this is better than that” is a later value judgment imposed by a mind with its own received criteria and standards for thinking as it does. Evolution was and always is just doing what it does, so far as science can see.

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I’m not sure what it is you believe you’ve established. But it appears you’re trying to put more weight on a biological evolutionary model than it will bear. It isn’t claiming to be a theology or even a means for improvement (contrary to your statements), and certainly doesn’t inform anyone what they ought to do. We look to many other facets of life and mind (including religious considerations) to approach these important questions. Evolution only tells us something of our biological past and something of the mediated methods God used to let an amazing diversity of life spring forth from the earth.

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False…perhaps you may choose to remind yourself of the accepted evolutionary image of humans.

Are you honestly telling me that this image below is not depicting an improvement?

image

Sorry but those are most definitely NOT my statements and nor is the image shown above, which is also presented throughout school curriculums across the world, contrary to my statements!

The point is, how do YOU reconcile the need for salvation with your evolutionary model…

  1. why did God enact a plan of salvation that, following the OT Sanctuary Service model, see his own Son die on the cross?
  2. Do you believe in the Second Coming and according to your theology, what is the point of the Second Coming (the following is accepted as having been written by John about AD 90…60 years after Jesus death)

Revelation 22:7 7 “Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of prophecy in this book.b”

  1. When John the Revelator says “and I saw a new Heavens and a new earth, for the former have passed away”…how do you reconcile this also considering Revelation 21?

Perhaps I need to simplify the dilemma you face…when referencing the ape-human image above…

I say we started as humans and fell into sin. As a result of sin, we are degenerating and slowly getting worse.

You say, no, we are evolving and, when referencing the above image, its plainly obvious the accepted humanism model of evolution says quite clearly, we are evolving into a more advanced species with better abilities.

Your model here is unbiblical…and there is no way to reconcile that problem! Jesus died a physical death on the cross in order to save mankind from the consequences of sin…death! The Bible very plainly states that fact over and over and over again. It is the fundamental theme across the entire bible. I don’t understand how it is that you can be blind to such self-explanatory and very obvious theology when you read the bible.