I've been chatting online off and on with a college student whose chosen area of study is biological science. His main interest is in the sub-field of evolutionary biology. He's a very bright young guy. While he has stated that he is not a Christian, he can articulate the gospel better, sadly, than many young believers I have spoken with. He also seems to know his Bible better than most.

His position is slightly different than most that I've met who believe in evolution. I will try to be brief. If evolutionary theory runs from beginning to end, he chops off the beginning, saves the middle and chops off the end. That may be a slight oversimplification, but essentially he believes that evolution does not diminish God's role in creation, or God in any way. I will venture further to say that he believes evolutionary biology to be separate from cosmic evolution (the big bang) somehow. I know certainly, that he thinks I have no idea how any of it works.

However, he insists that transitionary fossils have been found and documented. That is telling, because proof of macro-evolution needs to be the backbone of the Theory of Evolution, and nobody has found any. Oh there have been claims that have made news, but they have all been debunked, and debunked by evolutionary scientists. Evolutionists have been searching the fossil record all over the world since the theory was founded, only to find nothing that can substantiate a transitionary claim. The first time he told me that he had transitionary evidence, I told him that he must be the only one who knows about it because they have all been rejected by his colleages.

Even to me, that came off sounding snarky, and I didn't want it to, so I try to avoid discusssions online about evolution with him, even though he's keenly interested in it, because I have seen such interaction degrade into free-for-all verbal brawls where other people just start telling each other that they are idiots when they disagree. Not long ago I had a man (who had only met me online minutes before) tell my that I was a blind fanatic because I believe in creation, rather than evolution. (laughing here)

The young man I have been chatting with is polite, and I believe, really would like to have God accept him through His Son. His staunch belief in evolution is not the problem though. I just found out that he is gay, and he does not want to give up that lifestyle. If there were a wide range of people reading this blog, I know that some would take offense at the mere fact that I even broach the subject of this young man's homosexuality, but he himself has acknowledged on his own that his lifestyle is a sin, and that if he doesn't repent of it, he will not see heaven.

His understanding is as follows-- if he continues in the homosexual lifestyle, he will not go to heaven. However, even if he retains homosexual tendecies, but repents of the lifestyle, turns to Jesus and does not act on those tendencies, he can have salvation. I agree with him basically. Christians struggle with sin, but because in their hearts, Jesus is precious to them, they forsake wallowing in sin and from their heart live instead for Him. Are they still sinners? Sure.

I am not diminishing sinful lifestyle here. I am trying to articulate the difference between living for sin and living for God. I have told lies. That makes me a liar. Someone might be saying, "But you live for Jesus now, and you don't go around lying to people now." That's fine, but I am still a liar. Why do I say that? Well, (and this is a harsh example) if a man raped a woman and then admitted to it, no one would have trouble calling him a rapist. How many women does he need to rape and admit to before he becomes a rapist? He became a rapist the first time he committed that sin. What matters to society is that he does not rape women, because it is criminal, violent, and an offense to everyone.

Our sin likewise, is lawbreaking, and an offense to God. I will say that in my thinking, because of the way that Jesus broadened our understanding of the sixth and seventh Commanments in His Sermon on the Mount, that a man can be a rapist in his heart, even if he never commits the physical act. God is infinitely good, and His justice demands punishment for our sins, even the ones that take place in our hearts, unless of course, we appropriate the gift of salvation that He offers us. Jesus forgave me from the Cross. Can I do any less for this young man? I am not his judge, and that is why I will not bring up his homosexuality to him as we chat together. I believe that would be unwise, and probably drive a wedge between us.

What I will do, is talk with him, when the opportunity is presented, about man's sinfulness, which he understands, and God's character, which I believe he honestly sees, and I will let him think about the constrast between the ugliness of sin and the goodness of God. If anyone reading this has anything to add, I invite your comments.