LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--Recent evangelical discussion concerning Adam and Eve has served at least one good purpose -- it has helped to clarify what is theologically at stake in the debate. The recent report by National Public Radio alerted the larger secular culture to the debate, but the debate is hardly new.
What is new, however, is the candid admission on the part of some that the denial of a historical Adam requires a new understanding of the Bible's basic story -- and thus of the Gospel as well.
One of my recent articles, "False Start? The Controversy Over Adam and Eve Heats Up," made this point clearly. As I argued there, the denial of a historical Adam means not only the rejection of a clear biblical teaching but also the denial of the biblical doctrine of the Fall, leading to a very different way of telling the story of the Bible and the meaning of the Gospel.
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