To devolve means moving from a higher level to a lower level. Some of the synonyms are demotion, degradation, deterioration, debase, etc. When God created man in the Garden of Eden with His own hands and breathed into him the breath of life, we were created in His image – a creation far superior than anything that God created. A creation that was given authority over all creation. We were created to be rulers and stewards over His creation. However, when man encountered sin and succumbed to its allure, the devolution of man began. Contrary to the scientific definition of the evolution of man, we have continued to devolve.

With advancements in science and technology, we may have become more intellectually superior than our ancestors. However, with rise in intellect, we have become morally deficient and are on the downward spiral of further degradation. Dependence on God and sticking to the ancient paths has become a sign of weakness and immaturity. Being a person with high morals is not a badge of honor. How did we embark on such a journey? How did we stray so far from our original design?

In the very first chapter of Isaiah and Romans, the steps are clearly laid out for the devolution of man.

Step 1: Disobedience

Isaiah 1: 2

Listen, O heavens, and hear, O earth;

For the LORD speaks,

“Sons I have reared and brought up,

but they have revolted against me.”

Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden by eating the forbidden fruit. The appeal of being like God as baited by Satan, was enough for them to disobey God’s one command. When we disobey, whether in matters small or big, we are taking the very first step to challenge God’s commands. Ever since the first sin, our human flesh is constantly fighting against God, disobeying at every instance.

Because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (Romans 1: 19)

Step 2: Ignorance

Isaiah 1: 3

An ox knows its owner,

And a donkey its master’s manger,

But Israel does not know,

My people do not understand.

In ignorance, we have failed to recognize who our Creator is. We have become ignorant of our divine purpose. In the process of becoming intellectual, we’ve strayed too far from the truth, relying on man’s experiences and embracing the lies that are dangled before us as truth. Lie becomes truth and truth becomes lie. Despite the clear demarcation between the absolute truth of God and lies that the devil portrays, man chose the lies.

“They bend their tongue like their bow;

Lies and not truth prevail in the land;

For they proceed from evil to evil,

And they do not know Me,” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 9: 3)

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (Romans 1: 20-21)

Step 3: Defiance

Isaiah 1: 4

Alas, sinful nation,

People weighed down with iniquity,

Offspring of evildoers,

Sons who act corruptly!

They have abandoned the Lord,

They have despised the Holy One of Israel,

They have turned away from Him.

Disobedience leads to ignorance. Ignorance leads to defiance. Now that man has failed to acknowledge God and forgotten Him, he became defiant. In order not to obey God’s commands, man embraced corruption as his new vocation. Every step that we have taken away from God in defiance has led us farther away from Him.

“We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant, Moses.” (Nehemiah 1: 7)

Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. (Romans 1: 22-23)

Step 4: Despair

Isaiah 1: 5

Where will you be stricken again,

As you continue in your rebellion?

The whole head is sick

And the whole heart is faint.

Being defiant of God’s commands, leads to confusion and despair. In the man’s zeal of finding his own way, he becomes disoriented and wanders around trying to find himself again. He has devolved into worshiping idols that he has carved for himself. Seeking a god apart from the Almighty God has never satisfied any man. Despite the innate urge to be united with His Creator, he will trudge on to the immoral paths that will farther lead him to confusion and despair. Look at all the idols we have placed high above God in our current culture. With shifting priorities, man is bound to feel anxious and unsure of his bearings.  

He feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot deliver himself, nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?” (Isaiah 44: 20)

Every man is stupid, devoid of knowledge;

Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols;

For his molten images are deceitful,

And there is no breath in them. (Jeremiah 10: 14)

Therefore, God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever, Amen. (Romans 1: 24-25)

Step 5: Disease

Isaiah 1: 6

From the sole of the foot even to the head

There is nothing sound in it,

Only bruises, welts and raw wounds,

Not pressed out or bandaged,

Nor softened with oil.

On this path of defiance, there is despair and disease – the twins. Man, first loses his mind and heart to despair, followed by health to diseases in his body. We go about weighed down by our own guilt of disobedience. Yet in this lowly devolved stage, we still don’t acknowledge of our disobedience and return to God. The defiant nature in us will not allow us to return to our merciful Father. Even though we have extended the average lifespan of man, it is not without numerous maladies that afflict man.

There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities are gone over my head; as a heavy burden they weigh too much for me. My wounds grow foul and fester because of my folly. I am bent over and greatly bowed down; I go mourning all day long. For my loins are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am benumbed and badly crushed; I groan because of the agitation of my heart. (Psalm 38: 3-8)

And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper. (Romans 1: 28)

Step 6: Desolation

Isaiah 1: 7-8

Your land is desolate,

Your cities are burned with fire,

Your fields – strangers are devouring them in your presence;

It is desolation, as overthrown by strangers.

The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard,

Like a watchman’s hut in a cucumber field, like a besieged city.

Man comes to the end of himself. A place of desolation:  physically, mentally and spiritually. There is just emptiness there. Nothing satisfies him. Everything hurts him. No answers to be found. Yet in such lowest devolved stage, he fails to recognize the hand of God. A merciful God has stretched forth His righteous right hand to lift us up from debased state and set us again on the path of righteousness. Are we willing to be rescued?

Therefore, My wrath and My anger were poured out and burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, so they have become a ruin and a desolation as it is this day. (Jeremiah 44: 6)

Step 7: Death

Isaiah 1: 9

Unless the Lord of hosts

Had left us a few survivors,

We would be like Sodom,

We would be like Gomorrah.

The twin cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are now heaps of rubble and never inhabited by man. The Lord in His righteous anger rained on them fire and brimstone so not a single person survived. The only climax to disobedience is death – an eternal separation from God. With man’s dead soul, decaying body, and depraved mind, death is the only culminating factor to end everything.

And although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them. (Romans 1: 32)

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. Therefore, what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. (Romans 6: 20-21)

The Solution

Despite the depravity and devolution of man, God shows mercy. As promised in the Garden of Eden, He sent the righteous and perfect Lamb of God to redeem us, His beloved Son Jesus Christ. His righteous right hand will rescue us from our depravity only if we are willing to return to Him, acknowledge Him as Lord, and worship Him as our Creator. He will cleanse us of all unrighteousness and restore us to Himself. The true evolution of man happens when he denounces the world and embraces God and His ordinances. The true evolution of man ensues when he is snatched from the path of destruction and set on the path of righteousness. The true evolution of man occurs when he is transformed into Christ’s likeness.

Now in that day the remnant of Israel, and those of the house of Jacob who have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 10: 20)

The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 37: 31)

But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6: 22-23)

“The highest glory of the creature is in being only a vessel, to receive and enjoy and show forth the glory of God. It can do this only as it is willing to be nothing in itself, that God may be all. Water always fills first the lowest places. The lower, the emptier a man lies before God, the speedier and the fuller will be the inflow of the divine glory.” – Andrew Murray