Aging: Evolution or Creation
by Owen Borville
All living things age, deteriorate, and eventually die. How does evolution and mainstream science explain this? If evolution causes living things to improve and become more complex and live longer periods, why is this not observed in living things today? Living things certainly do not live longer today than in the past. In fact, there is strong evidence that living things lived much longer periods in the ancient past than today. How does evolution explain this? The fossil record gives many examples of animal species living long lives and producing large sizes. For example, many ancient reptiles grew to very large sizes, much larger than today as recorded in the fossil record. Many of these reptile species have since become extinct and those that are living today do not live as long as their ancestors. This reduction in life spans does not support theories of macroevolution where living things gradually evolve into superior bodies that live longer life spans. Ancient fossilized turtles have been found to extend 15 feet in length, while the largest crocodile was found to extend over 30 feet in length. The longest dinosaur fossil was recorded at over 130 feet in length. Many factors can be attributed to the reduction in live spans, including changing environmental conditions.
Creationists believe that there was a time on Earth when living things lived much longer life spans. About 5,000 years ago, environmental conditions allowed these longer life spans but a catastrophic event known as the Genesis Flood completely changed the environmental characteristics of the Earth. After this Flood, living things had much shorter life spans. Even humans once had a much longer life span that was greatly reduced after the Flood. The Book of Genesis (chapters 5-6) records that men could live up to a maximum of nearly 1,000 years of age before the Flood and afterward this maximum life span was quickly reduced to less than 120, as is observed today. The Book of Genesis is clear that this reduction in lifespan was a result of the disobedience of man and that much more pleasant life of the past was taken away by God as a result of this disobedience. The result was a life that was not as pleasant as before the Flood or before the Judgement of God.
We cannot confirm the ancient life spans of humans with modern science and we only have historical and scriptural records that record these long life spans. However, even with the advances in technology and in medicine, the human lifespan has not increased within the last 5,000 years since the Flood. How can one support macro-evolution of living things if the lifespans of humans and other living things have not increased from the past and in most cases has greatly decreased? The common theme of the Creation Model is one of deterioration of living conditions on Earth, which is in stark contrast to the concepts of macro-evolution, and is a consequence of the disobedience of man. In the beginning, man was created by God with all of the other living things during the creation week 6,000 years ago. Man and living things were originally created "very good" to live forever, as recorded in the Book of Genesis, however because of the disobedience of man, a curse was installed on the Earth and all living things have a limited life span as a result.
by Owen Borville
All living things age, deteriorate, and eventually die. How does evolution and mainstream science explain this? If evolution causes living things to improve and become more complex and live longer periods, why is this not observed in living things today? Living things certainly do not live longer today than in the past. In fact, there is strong evidence that living things lived much longer periods in the ancient past than today. How does evolution explain this? The fossil record gives many examples of animal species living long lives and producing large sizes. For example, many ancient reptiles grew to very large sizes, much larger than today as recorded in the fossil record. Many of these reptile species have since become extinct and those that are living today do not live as long as their ancestors. This reduction in life spans does not support theories of macroevolution where living things gradually evolve into superior bodies that live longer life spans. Ancient fossilized turtles have been found to extend 15 feet in length, while the largest crocodile was found to extend over 30 feet in length. The longest dinosaur fossil was recorded at over 130 feet in length. Many factors can be attributed to the reduction in live spans, including changing environmental conditions.
Creationists believe that there was a time on Earth when living things lived much longer life spans. About 5,000 years ago, environmental conditions allowed these longer life spans but a catastrophic event known as the Genesis Flood completely changed the environmental characteristics of the Earth. After this Flood, living things had much shorter life spans. Even humans once had a much longer life span that was greatly reduced after the Flood. The Book of Genesis (chapters 5-6) records that men could live up to a maximum of nearly 1,000 years of age before the Flood and afterward this maximum life span was quickly reduced to less than 120, as is observed today. The Book of Genesis is clear that this reduction in lifespan was a result of the disobedience of man and that much more pleasant life of the past was taken away by God as a result of this disobedience. The result was a life that was not as pleasant as before the Flood or before the Judgement of God.
We cannot confirm the ancient life spans of humans with modern science and we only have historical and scriptural records that record these long life spans. However, even with the advances in technology and in medicine, the human lifespan has not increased within the last 5,000 years since the Flood. How can one support macro-evolution of living things if the lifespans of humans and other living things have not increased from the past and in most cases has greatly decreased? The common theme of the Creation Model is one of deterioration of living conditions on Earth, which is in stark contrast to the concepts of macro-evolution, and is a consequence of the disobedience of man. In the beginning, man was created by God with all of the other living things during the creation week 6,000 years ago. Man and living things were originally created "very good" to live forever, as recorded in the Book of Genesis, however because of the disobedience of man, a curse was installed on the Earth and all living things have a limited life span as a result.
