The Origins Of Life - Part II

Psalm 8; Psalm 19:1-6; Psalm 139   When it comes to explaining the beginning of the universe and the origin of life here are two competing views:   1.    Naturalism—the belief that claims everything arises from natural properties and causes, and supernatural or spiritual explanations are excluded or discounted. ·         Undirected process or randomness.   2.    Supernaturalism—the belief that all life came into being through supernatural, intelligent design beyond all scientific understanding of the laws of nature. ·         Directed process or determinism.    Supernaturalism . . . Those who hold the view of supernaturalism believe that there is a supernatural force or Supreme Being behind the existence of the universe and the origin of life.   ·         Intelligent Design (I.D.)—intelligent design is a minimal commitment scientifically to the possibility of detecting intelligent causation.  (Dr. Paul Nelson, Professor at Biola University, Los Angeles)   ·         Creationism—the belief that the intelligent design of the universe and life is the result of the eternal God who has created all things.   Let The Evidence Show . . .   The universe has been incredibly designed.   “The universe and the laws of physics seem to have been specifically designed for us.  If any one of about 40 physical qualities had more than slightly different values, life as we know it could not exist:  Either atoms would not be stable, or they would combine into molecules, or the stars wouldn’t form the heavier elements, or the universe would collapse before life could develop and so on.”  (Evolutionist, Stephen Hawking, Austin American Statesman, October 1997)   ·         There is order to the universe. ·         The universe is “finely tuned.” o   Psalm 19:1-6; Psalm 8:3-4     Your life has been fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139)   ·         DNA—not just a simple cell. o   The information in the 3 billion characters in the DNA of every cell is equivalent to that in 1,000 encyclopedia-sized books. o   It would take a person typing 60 words per minute 8 hours a day, around 50 years to type the human genome. o   If all DNA in the 100 trillion cells that make up “you” were put end-to-end, it would reach the sun (90 million miles away) and back 600 times.  (Genome Facts)   ·         Laminin o   Cell adhesion protein molecule. o   Cells organize into certain molecular structures and that determines what protein there are; between 10,000-60,000 proteins in the human body. o   Tells the cell what its job is. o   It holds the membranes together; it’s the glue of the human body.   The Conclusion . . . The overwhelming and rational observable evidence is on the side of creationism.   The truth is, regardless of the overwhelming evidence, the purpose of creation is to point us to the Creator so that we might know Him. ·         By grace He has revealed Himself to us. ·         Through faith we come to know Him. o   Faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ.   Your Decision . . . What do I believe?