Is Mankind Always Progressing?

Yesterday's post was actually brought about by a discussion with family a couple of weeks ago. Mankind thinks that we are at the current peak of human development, but we are really at the peak of human degeneracy.

It is tough to think that we really aren't the smartest we have ever been, with all of our computing power, rapid transit to any spot on the globe, etc. You could sum up the difference between progressive thought and Christian thought in this: progressives think man is always improving, and Christians (should) think that man has been degenerating since Adam's fall in the Garden of Eden.

Think about this idea: God created man in perfection! Let it sink in for a while. Perfection! Man was originally created to be perfect, and with a free will. Man was never destined to die, get sick or weak, or work with exhausting labor. Adam's intelligence had to have been off the charts when compared to any modern man. Consider that God gave him the task of naming the animals, and it would have been a logical, orderly system of naming, not just a random thought process. Then take into account that after Adam sinned, he eventually died at the age of 930. Think about how much you learn from infant to senior citizen during our current lifespans. Now multiply that by a factor of 10+, which is being conservative since learning isn't a linear process, but more exponential.

It is quite possible that Adam's descendants had the strength, skill and intelligence to create things that would blow our minds. As the generations passed and life spans became shorter, especially after the Flood, we became "stupider". You can see a small example of this in just the past 1500-2000 years. The Roman and Greek empires were technologically advanced for their time, but when the "Dark Ages" appeared, people could barely figure out how to survive day to day. This was the time when the Black Death and other epidemics wiped out masses of people. Superstition and an apparent lack of intelligence was holding back much progress. Yes, I am making a simplified analogy, but you get my point.

I remember, from Art History classes in college, our discussion about Egyptian art and technology. The pyramids of Giza are built so precisely that no modern technology could reproduce it that accurately. How did they do it? We still don't know for sure, except that slaves were used for laborers. There may have been a continuing knowledge of mathematics and construction that has been forgotten since then. Maybe the knowledge was lost when the Library at Alexandria was destroyed. It was said to have contained the combined human knowledge of millenia and it was all destroyed. I have a feeling that God had a direct hand in its destruction to keep man from getting too prideful again. It happened at the Flood and Babel. It is a recurring theme of ups and downs in man's history, but it is still a steady progression downhill.

Simple Definition of a Cult

Cult: A group that masquerades as Christianity while denying the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith.

Foundational doctrines of Christianity:

1. There is Only One God
2. Deity of Christ
3. The Resurrection of Christ
4. Salvation by Grace, not Works
5. The Bible is the Inerrant Word of God

In The Days of Noah

I was reading a post by Jack Kelley about Matthew 24:37 and the days before Jesus returns.


As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man (Matt 24:37). The time leading up to the Great Flood was a lot like our time today in that it was characterized by a deliberate and escalating disregard for the ways of God. Finally “the Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on earth had become and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” (Gen. 6:5).


When I would think about how man behaved in Noah's day, I remember history lessons on the extreme barbarism of those times. The rampant sexually deviancy, sacrificing children, murder, etc. However, I imagine I am not alone when I would naturally think to myself, "we aren't that bad right now". Is that true though?

Living in my safe and secure middle-class, middle-America home, I don't have any idea what the rest of the world is really doing. I can hear of it in the news and on the internet, but can't really grasp the depravity of mankind. I mean, who would sacrifice their child to a false god? Then it dawned on me, or more accurately, God reminded me of what is going on in America.  1.37 million abortions were performed in 2006 in America, 47 million worldwide. All for our god of convenience and money.

I can't say for certain, but I think it would be safe to say that old "barbaric" cultures can't hold a candle to what our society is doing to children in the name of our gods. If we then throw in the countries that are being run by evil men who slaughter people by the tens of thousands just for having a different political view or being of a different ethnic descent, I think we have the title covered for worst behaviour in man's brief history. Don't forget the millions that were killed by Stalin and Hitler.

Yep, I think we are definitely living on a razor thin wire and God is about to cut it.

Mr. Mises has it partly correct

It is obvious that in a perfect state of human affairs there cannot be any history. History is the record of changes. But the very concept of perfection implies the absence of any change, as a perfect state can only be transformed into a less perfect state — i.e., can only be impaired by any alteration. If one places the state of perfection only at the supposed beginning of history, one asserts that the age of history was preceded by an age in which there was no history and that one day some events which disturbed the perfection of this original age inaugurated the age of history. If one assumes that history tends toward the realization of a perfect state, one asserts that history will one day come to an end.

I read this paragraph on a blog posting at Mises.org. This analysis can be viewed as a excellent analogy of created perfection that was destroyed by man's sin. If you consider Mr. Mises' definition of history, can we not apply that definition to God?

God's perfection is what makes Him ageless and beyond history. He always was, always will be and will never change, so he is the epitome of perfection according to Mr. Mises' definition. Maybe we can't really grasp that concept because our view is only through the lens of history. We can't look past history or even fully grasp it. We are bound by the view from our infinitesimally small period of life here on Earth.

Mankind longs for perfection because that is what we were originally created for, to live in a perfect world in perfect fellowship with God. We screwed it up and instinctively long for the return of that world. It is coming because God said He will make things right in His word. We will only see that world if we are saved from the destruction necessary to rebuild perfection. If not, you will see the worst possible existence–eternal imperfection and pure suffering, completely apart from God forever.