The Differing Gods of Creation & Theistic Evolution

Theistic evolution is more than just adding God to the theory of evolution. The picture of God presented by theistic evolution turns out to be very different than the God presented by the creationist view of creation. In fact, at many crucial points the picture of God presented by theistic evolution is quite the opposite of the God understood by creationism. How well each picture fits with the rest of the Biblical self-portrait of God will help us to see which is the true Biblical picture of God.

In general (there is some diversity of belief), theistic evolution accepts the evolutionary timetable for the universe and earth. God’s creative activity is restricted to making use of the laws that He placed into matter at the beginning. Various theistic evolutionists accept the possibility that at crucial limited points in the process God became personally involved in injecting Himself into the process—the creation of the first living cell being one of these points. But once the hurdle of originating life was jumped, God allowed genetics, mutations, environment and survival to provide the pattern for future development. Many theistic evolutionists also theorize an additional invasion of God into the creation at the point, perhaps 3 or 5 million years ago, when some apelike creatures were given a soul and thus made into man. Theistic evolution sees uncompleted creatures forming according to assumed evolutionary principles over billions of years, the business of life and death going on long before man, all within a very limited personal intervention by God. Obviously theistic evolutionists understand Genesis 1 in an allegorical way.

Now contrast this with the creationist view. If we understand Genesis 1 to be a historical narrative of actual events reported in real time, we see the picture of a God Who carefully and deliberately created matter and energy and then, according to careful plan, formed that matter and energy into the completed creation over a period of five additional days. Each creature was finished in completed and perfect form (“God saw all that He had made and, behold, it was very good.”) There was no creature, no matter how small and seemingly unimportant, which was left unfinished or deemed worthy of anything less than the perfection that God could provide.

But most telling between the two views is the Biblical nature of God’s involvement with man. While theistic evolution offers man as the product of only limited intrusion of God into the creation (as when the apelike creatures were given a soul), the Bible reveals a much more personal origin for man. Man was handmade by God’s personal action—not from another creature but uniquely formed. 

The God of the Bible is so big that He can give His undivided attention to countless details all at once. In this respect the viewpoint of theistic evolution limits God in the creation by attributing the same limitations we humans have to our great and loving God. And in practice the Gospel offered by many theistic evolutionists is one in which God is not as intimately involved with us as the Bible would lead us to believe.

The view of God offered by theistic evolution is one of spiritual poverty compared to the personal and intimate involvement of God in His creation, the lives of His creatures, and most especially, by His grace, in our lives making us new creations in Christ Jesus! God has never limited the intimacy of His involvement with the creation because He is love.

https://www.creationmoments.com/article/the-differing-gods-of-creation-theistic-evolution/