Mention the word "evolution" and immediately one's thoughts begin to picture a knock down drag out conflict over whether apes are indeed our very ancient ancestors or there is an impassable chasm between what is ape and what is human. Public education is the arena in which such battles have raged and continue so at the present time.

But there have been evolutionary trends in our culture which involve far more significant issues than the question as to whether a chimpanzee or silverback gorilla may be lurking in one of the branches of our family tree in some distant generation.

Ephraim has mixed himself among the peoples; Ephraim is a cake unturned. Aliens have devoured his strength, but he does not know it; yes, gray hairs are here and there on him, yet he does not know it. Hosea 7:8,9 NKJV

United States culture is a modern day counterpart of ancient Ephraim with critical changes taking place as a result of an evolutionary process and except for a few "voices crying in the wilderness" no one is paying much attention, nor could most persons care less as to the direction in which such changes are pointing!

Consider evolutionary trends which have eroded the basic values upon which the republic of the United States was originally established.

Government: from statesmanship to petty self serving politics!

Sacrifices were made which few if any can really comprehend as some heroic individuals banded together, drafted written statements, and in the ensuing military conflict broke free from the domination of the British Empire during the latter part of the 18th Century. Out of this a republic was formed and a government organized which would preside over the affairs of that republic. The key to success in this venture was electing persons whose primary concern was to serve the interests of the constituents whom they represented. For the most part this was done and the republic prospered. There were conflicts as the decades passed but for quite some time one thing remained rather consistent - those elected to public office put the interests of their constituents ahead of personal goals of power and financial gain.

Times changed - it's like the spread of rabies with one and then another getting infected - before you know it, just about the whole bunch has become infected. If one is elected who has made what seems to be statements of noble intention prior to his/her being elected, it doesn't seem to be very long before the new rep is practicing the obnoxious "To get along, go along!" philosophy which has dominated Washington DC for not a few years!

The evolutionary shift results in our elected reps concentrating more on themselves than on their constituents whom they are supposed to represent. This is done by focusing on insuring their incumbency and by continually increasing their salary, retirement, perk, staff packages, etc. Yes there will be some rhetoric about doing something for the people, but it comes down to something like this - picture an overly obese guy who has just gorged himself on T-bone steaks and all the lush trimmings which are part of such a meal. After he has crammed all that stuff into his enlarged belly, he picks up a meat free bone and tosses it to a skinny, scrawny little dog sitting on the floor licking its chops. The little dog wags its tail and starts gnawing furiously on the bone seemingly grateful for such a generous gift. Get the picture? You and I - the taxpayers are the dog - I leave it to you to identify Mr. Obesity!

In case you are inclined to make the vain attempt to defend these people, just who are the persons you think are responsible for the fact that it now takes the average taxpayer nearly 6 months to pay the grand total of all federal, state, local, and "hidden" taxes before that taxpayer begins to take home money he/she has worked for? Do you recall any referendums in which the voters made a conscious decision to agree to give up nearly 50 per cent of their annual incomes to pay ALL taxes at all levels in this nation known as "the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

Nor do you really want to itemize and detail the salary, perk, retirement, health care and staff packages these people get - it would not be good for your blood pressure! Just remember, they continually gorge at a trough which has the label, "Tax Payers' Contributions," on it!

Just chalk it up to the fact that we are victims of evolution - we have evolved from a republic where statesmanship with citizens first was the order of the day to a republic dominated by petty "me and my party first" politicians!

NOTE: It must also be said that there are a very few in the U.S. Congress that take their responsibilities very seriously, attempting to submit and support legislation that is good for the well being of the people! But for these it is always an uphill battle every time!

Religion: from God to gods!!

The colonial history of the republic testifies in numerous ways of a shared belief in one God as made known in Judeo/Christian revelation.

Likewise there was shared agreement that this God is One Who is the Author of spiritual, moral, and ethical laws which humans are expected to honor and practice.

It was not absolute perfection in that every single citizen of the young republic shared the belief that there was one God Who had given a revelation of Himself and His laws through the holy Scriptures but there was a vast majority which exhibited a spirit of recognition and reverence for God and His standards.

However, through time the view of God and the authority of His special revelation evolved into a twisted and perverted view that one would have considered an impossibility!

As can be verified in Israelite history at the point where those people drifted away from God with disastrous consequences taking place, so United States society is treading an identical path.

Mass rejection of the living God Who visited this planet personally through His Son Jesus Christ has unleashed more chaos throughout our land in the last 40 years than in all the previous decades of U. S. history combined! Specifically this expanding chaos is the direct result of:

• Defiance of God's clearly defined laws and standards for human behavior and relationships!

• Turning the day set apart to acknowledge and worship the God Who makes our life and existence possible into a day of business, pleasure pursuits, entertainment and sporting events!

• Adoption and recognition of religious expressions and whatever deities are a part of them thus demoting the living God to a level where He is but one of many deities in a scenario which resembles a celestial buffet - just wander through, look over the deities on display, and pick out a god or goddess that strikes your fancy!

• Unique American ability to fashion idols in a way such as other cultures haven't done, with the true God left behind in the dust! The American variety of gods/goddesses isn't cast in metal, chiseled out of stone, nor carved out of wood.

Any person with even minute sensitivity to spiritual reality is forced to admit that United States culture has been playing the deadly game of what could be called "Musical Deities!" However, there is One Who is black balled from a majority of U.S. citizens' lifestyles -- the living God Who created the heavens and the earth for His high and holy purposes. You think not? Then how do YOU explain the "graveyard spiral" in which this nation presently finds itself?

Life: from very special to very disposable!

The American view of life has clearly evolved into something more heinous than even a playwright in his wildest imagination could produce.

There was a time when unborn human life was held in high regard and to intentionally destroy that life was considered to be nothing less than a criminal act of the most horrifying kind!

But then came January 1973 and a Supreme Court ruling which basically said that an unborn child can be exterminated upon the whimsical choice of its mother because it is the "constitutional right" of the mother to nullify the inconvenience of her pregnancy.

Supreme Court justices in their blindness and stupidity have yet to learn that their rulings do not set aside the moral laws of Almighty God -- and no one, including Supreme Court justices, will be dead more than one second until they face the fact that God's laws and His identification of humans as persons before conception and birth turn the idiotic court decisions of human judges into worthless dust and ashes! But that's not the end -- then comes a detailed accounting to the Creator of this mighty universe and all appeals on His judgment are instantly denied. Actually the revelation God has given us clearly suggests that every tongue will be completely silenced -- uh, "tongue tied" is a most appropriate word to describe this moment! By the way, how about taking about 60 to 90 seconds and just gaze at the number below and see what happens -- are you at least a little bit bothered by those numbers that keep changing every few seconds?

Millions of unborn children have been intentionally murdered all over
the world over time and the United States has contributed tens of millions
to the total - see latest tally at Number of Abortions

Education: from theism to humanism!

The republic's citizens felt constrained in the early years to arrange for the education of their young.

Permeating the educational system for quite a number of years was the fundamental reality of the living God in Whom "we live, and move, and have our being." (Acts 17).

For decades our schools practiced reading a portion of Scripture and praying the Lord's Prayer at the beginning of each school day. In the one room school which I attended we sang a stanza of "America the Beautiful" before lunch each day -- daily we were reminded that God had shed His grace on our nation.

The curriculum incorporated a value system which was in total agreement with those values revealed in holy Scriptures. The good thing about it all was that this was accepted for a long time without objection.

But times eventually changed -- an evolutionary process kicked in and we begin to hear voices clamoring about something called "separation of church and state." Then court decisions were handed down which essentially kicked God out of the education system and threw Him into a garbage can secured by chain and padlock!

The curriculum began to reflect the deceptive theme that humans are the measure and judge of all things rather than God. We humans set our own system of values, and in setting such a system we are quick as a culture to reject the notion that an eternal unchanging code of values designed by an all powerful and holy Creator God is binding upon every human being and the society of which he/she is a part!

Has the evolutionary shift from theism to humanism enhanced our educational institutions and ushered in a higher quality of life for the citizens -- and especially our children -- throughout the "land of the free and the home of the brave?"

We all know the answer to that one don't we?

Entertainment: from the respectability of the stage into the cesspool!

Entertainment in the young republic for the most part reflected a value system as revealed in the Judeo/Christian revelation of values. There may have been some few exceptions but usually one could expect a story line free from vulgarity, nudity, and excessive violence. One could also expect to see a clear identification of good and evil as well as a happy ending when the drama concluded, with good being victorious over evil.

Over time technology made possible photography, radio, motion pictures, television with video cameras, and computers with the world wide internet.

Eventually entertainment with the many avenues through which it may be accessed evolved into something closely resembling the transformation of a mild respectable Dr. Jekyl into a vicious, immoral, insane, and hideous Mr. Hyde!

In the name of "1st Amendment rights" the evolution of entertainment has resulted in:

• the use of profanity ranging all the way from taking God's name in vain and the use of "hell" and "damn" to four letter words associated with sexual activity, genital organs, and waste disposal functions of the human body!

• the portrayal of violent acts in explicit detail with slow motion splattering of blood, guts, and brains made possible by highly technical "special effects." On the internet one can subscribe to web sites offering actual videos of violent death such as executions, etc.

• graphic nudity and depiction of sexual acts in films shown on TV and in movie theaters. Also bear in mind as audio and video technically progressed, a more perverted form of the foregoing has spread like a cancer totally out of control. This is commonly identified as pornography. Historically it appears to have gotten its start when some "artists" drew pictures. Then came photography and motion pictures with someone getting the idea of capturing images of women in various stages of dress and in the nude. The next step was taking pictures or making movies of couples engaged in sexual acts. The video camera and TV made it all the more convenient for couples to record their activities at home. All this became a very lucrative "underground" business for a time but favorable court rulings under "1st Amendment rights" enabled the pornography industry to go "public." At this stage this moral leprosy has evolved to the extent that it can now be compared to a Super Wal Mart which literally offers something for everyone -- only you change the sign to read "Super Sex Mart!" Thanks to the world wide web and international participation the "Super Sex Mart" offers specialized areas to appeal to whatever depraved interests the customer may have such as:
  • heterosexual acts of intercourse and varieties associated with the same
  • incest depicting sexual acts between family members
  • sodomite and lesbian sexual acts
  • pregnant women in sexual acts
  • bestiality (sexual acts with animals)
  • oral sex acts
  • sadistic and masochistic sexual activity
  • urination and defecation acts
  • violent rapes recorded on film
  • live video feeds -- sex acts "live" as they take place
  • children engaged in sexual acts, in spite of laws which are supposed to stop this kind of thing -- we hear of those few that are caught with child pornography, but what about the numbers who aren't apprehended -- also advertising "barely legal" teens involved in sexual activity

It is impossible to measure the impact that entertainment in all its perverted and grotesque forms has made on our culture -- by the same token we cannot estimate the final toll as it continues to spread, wrapping its slimy tentacles around victims of all ages!

How true the statements of Romans 1:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man; and birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. Romans 1:18-32 NKJV

Again, as victims of evolution we have moved from the respectability of the stage in entertainment and jumped into the cesspool!

But here's the "bump in the road" -- the vast majority of Christians are fairly comfortable in their own little world -- go to church and attend various church activities (as long as it is convenient) -- hold down a job -- maybe voice an occasional word of disgust at how deplorable the country and the world are getting to be and then feel we have done our "duty" -- and everything is OK as long as we can tap into God's blessings and we are never placed in a situation that makes us TOO uncomfortable -- just sit in our spiritual "rocking chair" until we pass through the pearly gates whistling "Dixie!"

What most refuse to do at this point is to face the reality of what is happening, how depravity has eaten away the vitals of this nation, how its political and religious leadership are consistently leading the country toward judgment, and that it is high time to think of the very real possibility of judgment at the hands of an angry God Whose repeated appeals to fully repent of all sin have been callously scorned.

Further, there is no real desire to boldly and publicly protest the Sodom/Gomorrah climate which dominates our nation, much less aggressively pray against it!

Cry aloud, spare not; lift up your voice like a trumpet; tell My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. Let the righteous strike me; It shall be a kindness. And let him reprove me; It shall be as excellent oil; Let my head not refuse it. For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked. Isaiah 58:1; Psalm 141:5 NKJV

As a "Committee of One" will you dare to be distinctly different -- a truly prophetic voice crying in the wilderness -- a light shining in a very dark world?

And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, say to her: 'You are a land that is not cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation.' The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured people; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst. Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. Her princes in her midst are like wolves tearing the prey, to shed blood, to destroy people, and to get dishonest gain. Her prophets plastered them with untempered mortar, seeing false visions, and divining lies for them, saying, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' when the LORD had not spoken. The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger. So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one. Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads," says the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 22:23-31 NKJV

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September 11, 2002, Updated November 15, 2023
by Clayton D. Harriger
Elder in Full Connection
W. PA Annual Conference
The United Methodist Church
and former pastor of
Gipsy Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) November 1999 > November 2019
Gipsy PA