We are faced with an endless noisy torrent of articles, programs, books, and other media, with or without scientific flavor, providing yet more "evidence" that the theory of evolution is true. Some magazines, like "National Geographic", have a phobia about trying to prove the validity of this theory. Every little discovery is seen through the Darwinian lens. Cutting edge science seems to be on the same path. So many experi­ments and voyages of scientific discovery are aimed at proving that life on earth, or perhaps on other planets, has been around for millions of years. NASA has just landed rover "Curiosity" on planet Mars probing for evidence of primordial life that might precede life on earth and, of course, show up Genesis 1 as a myth.

It appears that those pushing evolution are crowned with success. Many popular movies, songs and novels have even gone beyond trying to prove evolution is true. The starting point is: evolution is true, period. In the same vein we see evolution taken as a fact in public art, school text books and even advertisements. We live in a culture that is saturated with the belief we have developed from the animals.

Let's pause for a basic question. Why are people so insistent about the "truth" of evolution? Why all that noise and constant mantra about the origin of the species? What is the bottom line here? Answer: to ''prove'' and reinforce the belief that God does not exist. And why is that so important? Because people do not want God, the God of Scriptures, to tell them how to live. Most people want to be a law unto them­selves, and live just as they like. Therefore any talk or reminder of God has to be reasoned away. Any commandments, norms or limitations that might restrict people, or prick the conscience, have to be obliterated. So it is important to keep on telling each other that there is lots of evidence that it all started with a big bang and that millions of years ago primor­dial life crawled out of the marshy slime and eventu­ally developed into humans. There might still be some missing links, but there is "enough" evidence to set us absolutely free from God and His commandments. In order to keep the doubters on side the pro-evolution propaganda machine maintains its daily grind.

The desire to wish God away is nothing new. Friedrich Nietzsche, (b. 1844 – d. 1900) a German philosopher and, remarkably, the son of a Lutheran minister, wanted God "dead". He was glad that leading people in his time began to link Darwin's theory with the idea that God was dead (in people's minds). His first response to this news of God's passing was one of joyful relief. He wrote,

We philosophers and "free spirits" feel ourselves irradiated (illuminated) by a new dawn by the report that the "old God is dead"; our hearts overflow with gratitude, astonishment ... and expectation. At last the horizon seems open once more ... perhaps never before did such an open sea exist.¹

Nietzsche said Christianity is the most fatal and seductive lie that has ever yet existed. He was appalled that Europe should accept the morality of that small group of wretched outcasts who clustered around Jesus. It is totally unacceptable, he said, that these uneducated disciples should dictate (through their writings in the New Testament) what is truth. To Nietzsche it was incredible that in the New Testament "the least qualified people ... have their say in its pages in regard to the greatest problems of existence." He said that Christianity, by its doctrines of sin, criticizes and destroys everything strong and intelligent and visionary. It shatters great hopes, to cast suspicion on the delight in beauty and breaks down all feelings of independence. Christianity does away with instincts that are natural to the full "men" and denies man's supremacy over the earth.²

The apostle Paul, anticipating this kind of venom, wrote well before Nietzsche was on the scene that "Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness" (1 Corinthians 1:22-23). The apostle Peter too said that to those who are disobedient Jesus Christ is "a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense." (1 Peter 2:7-8).

As far as Nietzsche was concerned, Christianity, and western culture had to go. He wanted to be free from traditional Christian beliefs and values and start afresh. Instead of submitting obediently to the Bible and follow the old path He wanted to experiment with new ideas. Western culture had to be ground into powder. Western civilization, with its Christian foundation, had to be burned to the ground. He believed that out of the ashes a phoenix would arise giving a new birth and spectacular horizons. A new era was dawning.

Soon after he published his thoughts composers, artists and writers began to promote his ideas about the new era. At first their messages were aimed at the intellectuals and people with influence. Richard Wagner wrote an opera "The Twilight of the Gods"; Mahler's wrote "The Resurrection"; Picasso destroyed traditional art. Artists used Biblical scenes to spread the new gospel, like Wassily Kadinski who painted "All Saints" which has an angel announcing, with a trumpet, a new era for Europe. He painted his version of the horses of Revelation, bringing not calamities, but new hope. Now that the new faith held that God is dead, music no longer had to be written for His glory, played in His house or according to the principles of beauty laid down in creation. So music moved out of the churches and into concert halls, free from any association with God, free to soar, or crawl, wherever imagination took it. New kinds of music were developed, often chaotic, atonal, raw. Arnold Schoenberg, an early modernist musician, believed he too had a task in ushering the new era. Like Picasso, he first set out to overthrow the ancient laws which governed harmony and tone; hence his atonal music. Richard Strauss wrote an opera based on Oscar Wilde's play "Salome", in which John the Baptist, representing the old Christian Europe, had to be silenced. His message about repentance and obedience to God had to be killed stone dead. These thinkers now had to make up their own explanation of life and find their own comfort.³

Some recurring themes in mainstream music since that time are that there is no certainty in life, no resolution to life's difficulties and no hope or optimism for the future. We hear a lot of anger, frustration, regrets, but no real hope. This stands in sharp contrast to the messages of Christian music written by musicians like JS Bach, GF Handel, A Vivaldi and D Buxtehude who meditated on Scriptures and then composed their beautiful music. Their music promotes the beauty and hope of the gospel. They wrote for the glory of God and their music lifts soul of the discerning listener. Their work reflects the beauty and universal order God has laid into creation. Their music too grapples with sin and its consequences, but points to resolution and salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Their music has enormous scope and variety. Just on this one point alone it leaves rock and pop for dead.

A Wilson-Dickson writes⁴: Bach's music inhabits such a broad area it cannot fail to continue to delight its hearers with revelations of beauty, whatever their expectations. That beauty is of eternal and abiding truths: created order and human relationships, the perfection of God's universe and the agonies and joys of mankind's struggle to find its place within it.

During and after the 1960's years pop and rock music became the loudspeakers in society proclaiming, even screaming, the new message: the God of Scriptures does not exist, we are on our own. With the help of other media the message penetrates into virtually every ear and cranium. The message is so pervasive that it reaches into almost every place on this planet. And the message, declared directly or indirectly, remains the same, except that it's now louder and more brazen: we are descendants of the animals and we proclaim God is dead. Man is entitled to pursue his own godless lifestyle. Popular culture, under the guise of entertainment, pumps out this destructive message day by day. And it remains saturated by anger, frustration, regrets and offers no hope. Such cultural products are an abomination to God.

Its fruits are all around us. It is as Psalm 36:1 to 4 tells us regarding those who reject God:

There is no fear of God before his eyes. For he flatters himself in his own eyes, when he finds out his iniquity and when he hates. The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit; he has ceased to be wise and to do good. He devises wickedness on his bed; he sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not abhor evil.

There are still some reminders that western culture once had a Christian foundation. They still prophesy to people ... But these reminders, too it seems, have to be ground to powder, even if it requires new laws. Man has to be free to live as he likes, without any pangs of guilt. So the relentless torrent of "evidence" for evolution just keeps going. Man wants to reassure himself: there is no God and His commandments are a thing of the past.

This situation prompts some self examination. Do we, too, chose to be entertained by popular culture that promotes evolution and the false doctrine that the God of Scriptures is dead? Do we truly test the spirits of our culture or just go with the secular flow? Do we live according to what we sing on Sundays:

Things base and worthless I will not have near me.
The faithless and their deeds I hate sincerely.
I shun all evil. No disloyalty shall cling to me.Psalm101:3 rhymed version in BOP

We have access to much culture that is produced for the glory of God and the edification of the Christian faith, especially in the form of music, literature and art. Much of it is the direct fruit of the Great Reforma­tion. Do we take the effort to appreciate it, to glorify God through it and be truly edified?