Sixth: “Is this life on earth all there is? Aren’t there lots of aliens?”
Do aliens exist? It’s another familiar question from children, especially if they are from cultures where people watch lots of media. Consider another example: Having spent time with a ministry leader talking about biblical creation for a couple days, during which he said that he believed the Bible, he posed the question as we left, “Isn’t something else out there?” He was talking about alien life. So, it is not just the question of children.
Are there intelligent beings besides humans in the universe? The answer is ‘no.’ God made man in His image, and we are the crown of His creation. Christ died and rose again for those made in His image. The earth is our habitat, which He created, as written in Genesis.
The heavens are the extended habitat (we can see them) but do they contain aliens? The heavens are specifically addressed on Day 4 of the creation week (Genesis 1:14-19). Their purpose is explained, but also explained in Psalm 19, where it says heavens declare his glory. Aliens are not mentioned.
So, what about science? There has been no ‘contact’ after decades of attempted communication with extraterrestrials. But the message from media is the opposite. Why? The evolutionary world view means life can start anywhere, so aliens must exist. Evolution, which is a philosophy about how things started (but is not proven) demands that we not be special and earth not be deliberately created. Underlying those basics, any notion of the God of the Bible as being accurate or real is simply unacceptable. So, the pursuit of aliens continues.
However, there is something alien or foreign to us. It showed up in Genesis 3 (Genesis 3:1). It showed up in Judas (Luke 22:3). It was handled by Jesus Christ (Mark 1:39), the disciples (Mark 6:33), and Christ-followers (Acts 8:7). The issue has not changed. That evil—and it is evil—is the presence of demons, whose head is Satan. Of course, most secular circles consider this ridiculous, but when demonic influence happens and is dealt with in a biblical way, it can be stopped and the person healed. But this ‘alien’ presence is not intelligent life in the universe as predicted by evolution. In ancient days it took other forms, but it is still the same thing.
This must be explained in an appropriate manner to young people but avoiding the subject, or pretending it is not there, is not good. Evil exists. It is just as real as wanting our own way, which began with a temptation from the enemy of our souls (Satan). Christ died to set us free from sin and choose His way instead. That change can include, as needed, delivering us from the influence of evil, demons, or the like. There is more to it, as we present in our resources and the free cell phone application, but this is the short answer.
