Educational television is rarely without an agenda.
In May 25th of this year, The History Channel broadcast a primetime program entitled The Link. Advertisements for the premier stated, “Missing link found! An incredible 95 percent complete fossil of a 47-million-year-old human ancestor has been discovered and, after two years of secret study, an international team of scientists has revealed it to the world. The fossil’s remarkable state of preservation allows an unprecedented glimpse into early human evolution.”
A byline included with the story tried to humanize the supposed 47-million-year-old fossil: “Ida was only a child when she died, but she’ll change history forever.”1
The fossil had not only been given the name “Ida,” but also was identified as being a child at the time of her death. To say that such a campaign is clever would be an understatement. The History Channel is one of my favorites, and they do know how to produce interesting programs!
It is an amazing coincidence that such an important find would be made known to the world in the same year as the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth. The cynic in me could not help wondering if the program’s airing had more to do with this than it did with any new scientific data. The History Channel and its ilk (Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, and The Learning Channel) do produce some very good programs. But accuracy and historical analysis may not always be the prime motivation. After all, one of the more popular shows on The History Channel is Monster Quest2. The producers traipse around the globe in search of Big Foot, Yeti, the Loch Ness monster, and even Chupacabra. If you don’t know what Chupacabra is, don’t worry—you’re probably better off.
The uninitiated might miss something else that is bothersome. Notice that the ad mentions a secret study that has been going on for two years. Science is not supposed to work this way! Whatever happened to sound scientific practice that calls for results to be published and for peer review to take place?
Even more troubling is the impression given that this is a recent discovery—that we now have found the “Missing Link”! Ida was uncovered in Germany back in 1983.3 The amateur fossil hunter who located it kept it in uncertain conditions for more than 20 years!
My main purpose in this article is not to rebut the claims some are making about Ida. A quick search for “Ida Fossil” on sites such as Answers in Genesis (www.answersingenesis.org) or the Institute for Creation Research (www.icr.org) reveals the mounting evidence against Ida. Some have already come to the conclusion that she is nothing more than a species of extinct lemur.
My primary purpose is to say that most people will never hear the evidence against Ida’s being a human ancestor. Ida is just the latest in a long line of supposed missing links that have been put forth by those holding a strictly naturalistic worldview. Others include Java Man, Piltdown Man, Archaeopteryx, and Australopithecus Afarensis (like Ida, this fossil was given a girl’s name, “Lucy”). Each of these either proved itself to be false or gave rise to more questions than were supposedly answered.
On a number of occasions, Chuck Colson has said, “Culture is religion incarnate.”4 We live in a culture whose religion is based on secularism and whose viewpoint is that truth is relative. As such, any evidence that challenges this worldview is simply not going to be brought to light apart from the church.
As believers, it is important to be armed with the knowledge that there has already been a number of “missing links” espoused by evolutionists that were subsequently proven wrong. We are commanded in Scripture to be ready to give a defense of the faith.
“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.” (1 Pet. 3:15f)
This means we are to be prepared with an explanation for our faith. Since our faith stands in total on what is found in the Bible, we should be informed enough to defend it.
Christianity has always been a rational faith and one that is built on facts. When Thomas asked for evidence of Christ’s resurrection, the Lord provided it to him (Jn. 20). When the two disciples were on the road to Emmaus, they questioned how Jesus could be the Messiah and yet have such an ignoble death. In response, the Lord reasoned with them from the Scriptures and demonstrated that the Messiah had to suffer these things (Lk. 24). The Lord’s pattern was to provide evidence and to reason with people.
The evidence for the reliability of the Bible is overwhelming! We also ought to be about the task of sharing that evidence with others. After all, the heart of being a witness is to testify to that which is true.
Today, the overall public discourse concerning the Bible is one that is rife with error. The Scriptures are assailed by our culture on every front. It’s not just the media outlets. Our educational institutions are presumptuous when it comes to Holy Writ! Worse, much of Christendom itself has a bent against God’s Word. Most mainline denominations now teach in their seminaries and universities that the Bible is something less than the inspired and inerrant Word of God. Having attended the University of Notre Dame, I know this first hand.
With the advancement of science and the development of archeological techniques, we have more information available to us than ever before. The more we learn, the more proof we have that the Bible is a supernaturally engineered book whose Author is outside of our time-space-matter universe.
Today, there is a wealth of material available to equip believers with the evidence. Any good library should include works such as:
• Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell
• Know Why You Believe by Paul Little
• When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties by Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe
• When Skeptics Ask: A Handbook on Christian Evidences by Norman Geisler and Ronald Brooks
Dr. Dave Reid of Growing Christians Ministries (www.growingchristians.org) has put together as good a series as you can find in this area. His courses entitled Christian Evidences I and Christian Evidences II are invaluable. In fact, his coursework inspired some of us to found Christian Evidences Ministries. The entire website (www.christianevidences.org) and ministry is dedicated to providing evidence that shows the reliability of the Bible.
So be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you!
1 http://www.history.com/content/the-link
2 http://www.history.com/content/monsterquest
3 http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/05/19/ida-missing-link
4 Chuck Colson, “BreakPoint” radio broadcast, 11/19/07