faith, in part or entirely, due to the wholesale teaching of the
theory of evolution. No other doctrine of the day is as ubiq-
uitously, aggressively, and persuasively taught as the idea of
evolution, and it is now viewed and taught as a fact instead
of a theory. This is evident in nearly every textbook, muse-
um, science-based TV program, and even in the movies,
such as Jurassic Park and Star Wars, where various alien
life forms are pictured having evolved on their own planets
just as humans evolved on Earth (e.g., Yoda, Ewoks, Jar Jar
Binks, Wookies, Jabba the Hutt, and many others).
Understanding the debate between religion (Creation)
and science (Big Bang/Evolution) requires an examination
of the underlying assumptions made by each belief. Both
aim to explain the origin of the universe (energy, matter,
and life), one by invoking a creator God and the other by
rendering a creator unnecessary. In the latter case, all things
come into existence spontaneously without a creator or
cause. A supernatural agent like God is not required but
is a matter of opinion or personal preference. The philos-
ophy of naturalism is at the heart of evolution, postulating
that there need not be a creator and that nature itself is all
there is. As a result, atheism is the dominant belief system or
“faith” arising from naturalistic evolution, since no creator is
required. Atheism is a hard sell without evolution to explain
the existence of the universe and life, but as atheist Richard
Dawkins said, “Although atheism might have been logically
tenable before Darwin, Darwin made it possible to be an
intellectually fulfilled atheist.” 9
Creation, on the other hand, assumes the existence of a
transcendent, all-powerful, creative, intelligent God who
spoke energy, matter, and life into existence. Note that each
system is based on a non-empirical, untestable assumption
which must be believed and accepted by faith. By faith,
creation says God is. By faith, evolution says God is not,
or God is not necessary. Proponents of evolution, especial-
ly atheists, do not like admitting this distinction because
it recognizes their position as a faith just like that of the
theist who believes in God. Instead, they prefer to set up the
argument as science/facts versus religion/faith, supposedly
giving them the upper hand, since facts trump faith every
time. This is a specious and disingenuous tactic since the
facts about the created order are the same for both sides.
They both observe the same fossil record, finch beaks,
vestigial organs, rock layers, and pharyngeal pouches. It is
not the facts and evidence that separate the two but how
they each interpret what they observe through their respec-
tive worldview lenses. One sees only nature; the other sees
the hand of God.
Over the years, I have asked many pastors their thoughts
about having a Christian school or homeschool network at
their church, in light of the required secularism in public
schools. A frequent reply was, “We don’t really need a
Christian school. We have really good public schools in our
community, and many of the teachers in our system are
Christians.” So how much poison does it take to render the
water in a good well unfit to drink? In my personal experi-
ence, it does not take much. The truth of Jesus’ caveat that our
children will look like their teachers is regrettably obvious in
the growing number of youth leaving their church and faith
and the mounting antipathy of our culture for truth about
God, Scripture, the church, sexuality and gender, marriage,
the sanctity of life, and many other issues addressed clear-
ly in God’s Word. Yet ninety percent of Christian students
still spend 16,000 hours over 13 years of schooling in secular
schools which purport to be neutral toward God and reli-
gion. However, as theologian and philosopher Gordon H.
Clark observed, “The school system that ignores God teach-
es its pupils to ignore God, and this is not neutrality. It is the
worst form of antagonism, for it judges God to be unimport-
ant and irrelevant in human affairs. This is atheism.” 10
I have always supported VBS (Vacation Bible School) as a
way to reach children for Christ, and I took my grandsons
to a week of VBS this summer. Since VBS is such a good
idea for one week out of each year, what would happen
if churches offered Christ-centered education for K-12
students forty weeks each year? I believe it is time for a
new “public” school system, one that is open to the public
but owned and operated by the body of Christ instead of
the government, staffed by carefully vetted Christian teach-
ers, focused on biblical worldview formation and academ-
ic rigor, supplied with the best Christian worldview books
and materials, and underwritten by the Church. What a
world- and culture-changing adventure! Do we dare ask this
of God? Do we dare ask for a kingdom education for every
American child? Do we dare ask God to give us America’s
children to teach? ■
Ed Gamble is a native of Memphis, TN and graduated at the University of Memphis with
a BS in Zoology/Chemistry and an MAT in Secondary Education. Ed is a life-long teacher
and Christian school leader. During a calling that spans five decades, he has served as a
teacher and headmaster in four private and Christian schools. From January 2003 until his
retirement in July 2016, he served as Executive Director of the Southern Baptist Association
of Christian Schools (SBACS). He now serves on the SBACS board and as a senior consultant.
Ed and his wife, Wanda, enjoy spending time with their grandchildren and traveling. Ed also
loves teaching, fly fishing, gardening, and restoring broken things.
ENDNOTES
1. “Percentage of high school graduates who completed selected mathematics and
science courses in high school: 1990 and 2009,” NCES, accessed June 4, 2018, https://nces.
ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=97.
2. Kenneth R. Miller and Joseph S. Levine, Biology (Boston: Pearson, 2012), 466.
3. David M. Hillis, David Sadava, Richard W. Hill, and Mary V. Price, Principles of Life, Second
Edition (Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, McMillan, 2014), 2.
4. David M. Hillis, David Sadava, Richard W. Hill, and Mary V. Price, Principles of Life, Second
Edition (Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, McMillan, 2014), 2.
5. David M. Hillis, David Sadava, Richard W. Hill, and Mary V. Price, Principles of Life, Second
Edition (Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, McMillan, 2014), 11.
6. Hillis et al., 11.
7. Stephen Nowicki, Biology (Orlando, FL: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), 435.
8. Miller and Levine, 770.
9. Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watchmaker (New York: Norton, 1986).
10. Gordon H. Clark, “A Christian Philosophy of Education,” Trinity Review, May/June 1988.
11