Can Knowledge Save Us?

“For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” – I Corinthians 1:19

Present day evolutionary prophets are predicting a rosy future for mankind. Just give the human race a few more years, and time coupled with natural selection will do its magic. Eventually all the kinks will be round out. Two thousand years ago the Apostle Paul predicted a different scenario in II Timothy 3:1-5:

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

Six hundred years before that, Jeremiah the prophet said, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Eighteen hundred years before that Moses said, “…for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth…” (Genesis 8:21). The fact that each of these men predicted a gloomy future for man is not what’s so amazing. What is amazing is that such a prediction makes no logical sense. It goes against the grain of human reason. Anyone who has ever lived knows that man is increasing in knowledge and is building upon past knowledge. Since knowledge is designed to make life better by solving human problems, then it is only sensible to predict a more perfect future. Had the humanistic philosophy of evolution been around 4,000 years ago or 2,000 years ago, it would have painted a picture of a future life with most if not all problems solved. The Scriptures go out on a limb and take a gamble, if you will, by forecasting a future that denies what logic demands. However, if the Scriptures are inspired by an all knowing God then there is no gamble, but what Las Vegas would call a sure bet. So what does history tell us about what Scripture prophesied? What does our present day tell us? What is the future starting to look like? Had Scripture been wrong and man’s wisdom been right, then we could all fall back on human wisdom and reject the notion of God. But man’s wishful thinking turned out to be a fairy tail and the real story is found in the inspired Word of God proven by history and present experience. Maybe that’s why we call the Word inspired. That’s the way I see things.