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Within the solar system and possibly in the Universe, the Earth is unique and life is the exception. Why?

Advocates of the theory of Evolution believe that because the Earth by chance had the suitable conditions, life spontaneously developed and then diversified. They say that life was an almost expected result of those fortuitous and accidental conditions.

Others, including the Christadelphians, believe that the whole system is part of a plan. In the development of the Universe and the suitability of the Earth they see the guiding hand of a Creator who wanted intelligent life and therefore created first the materials and then the environment to achieve it.

A diagram showing the structure of a cell. All of the labelled sub-components are vital for its function, and are themselves very complex.

What is life?
There is no gradual transition from non-living chemicals to living things. Even the simplest form of life contains very specialised chemicals that are never found free in nature. This is because living matter is invariably found inside a microscopic box called a cell. Some forms of life exist as a single cell, but the more familiar ones such as plants and animals are made up of vast numbers of cells joined together. When people rather glibly talk of life spontaneously appearing, they are taking a huge intellectual jump that has very little to justify it. As you read on you will see what we mean.

The complexity of a living cell
A living cell is a miniature manufacturing unit, complete with its own power supply. The things it makes are the various complex chemicals needed for it to live, grow and reproduce.

One of the most important series of chemicals are special proteins, called enzymes. In a human manufacturing process a device called a ‘jig’ is often used to hold components in the right place whilst they are being joined together. An enzyme is a microscopic ‘jig’ that holds two or more chemicals together whilst they react and are welded into one – or sometimes they are split in two. Obviously, such a ‘jig’ has to be just the right shape so that it can hold the chemicals in the correct relationship.

These chemicals are of all shapes and sizes, so this means that there has to be a completely different ‘jig’ or enzyme for each chemical reaction within the cell. Even the simplest cell could not function with fewer than several hundred different enzymes. For example, the simplest known living organisms are called Mycoplasma. One scientist says, ‘these represent almost the smallest size compatible with life.’ He goes on to say that ‘this ‘simple’ cell can produce seven hundred different proteins and that half of this number are considered essential for the life of the cell.’ ( Professor David Taylor-Robinson: Topley and Wilson’s principles of Bacteriology, Virology and Immunity, 8th edition 1990, Volume 2, page 672.)

Two chemical molecules to be joined - They are held in place by the enzyme - The new molecule is then released

Enzyme structure
Here is a diagram representing an enzyme, its special shape designed to hold its reacting chemicals. You can see that it is a long chain bent and twisted into the necessary shape. How does it get bent in just the right places so that its unique chemicals fit exactly into this ‘jig?’

Diagram to show how amino acids with different ‘shapes’ are joined together to produce the unique three-dimensional structure of an enzyme.

If you placed a row of square bricks end to end they would obviously form a straight line. If you introduced into the row a brick with a triangular cross-section, a bend in the row would be obtained. An enzyme molecule is constructed on this principle, using chemicals called amino acids as its ‘bricks’. There are about 20 different amino acids and in effect, they are all different ‘shapes.’ Also, some amino acids have the property of ‘clipping on’ to others further down the chain, thus creating a loop. By careful selection of the various amino acids (and there are usually many hundreds in the enzyme chain) the molecule can be bent into the requisite three-dimensional shape.

Now the important thing! Obviously, to produce a given enzyme there is only one correct sequence of amino acids. The substitution of just one amino acid in the sequence could produce a ‘bend’ in the wrong place, with the result that the enzyme would be unable to hold its particular chemicals and would thus be useless.

So the cell in some way has to remember the correct sequence of amino acids in every one of the hundreds of different enzymes it needs, so that it can make them when required. If it gets even one amino acid in the wrong place in the line, the enzyme might not work properly. How does the tiny cell ensure this correct sequence?

The code of life
Within each cell is a separate enclosure, the nucleus. Inside this nucleus is a truly amazing substance, commonly known as DNA. Think of a ladder with its two side rails joined by the rungs. Then imagine that some giant twisted the ladder along its length, until the side rails looked like two huge corkscrews cross-connected by the rungs. Reduce this in size to a minute fraction of a millimetre and you have, in essence, the structure of a DNA molecule. The diagrams show the idea. The simple diagram shows the twisted ladder arrangement and the more complicated one the actual structure of just a short length of DNA. A complete DNA molecule would be very much longer, having many thousands of twists in its spiral rather than the few you see here. In fact if the total DNA in just one human cell could be stretched out, it would be about 2 metres long!

The wonderful thing about DNA is that along its length it contains the instructions for making all the different types of enzymes the cell needs. As the enzymes are responsible for making the chemical reactions in the cell work, you can see that DNA therefore controls the whole cell. The information about the correct sequence of amino acids in each enzyme is contained in coded form on the ‘rungs’ of the DNA ladder. There are only four different kinds of ‘rungs’, each composed of chemicals paired together (T, A, G, C in the diagram) and it needs three ‘rungs’ to code for one amino acid.

If we call the four types of rungs A B C D, then ABC might be the code for amino acid 1, BCD for amino acid 2, BCB for amino acid 3, DBA for amino acid 4 and so on, continuing until all the 20 amino acids are coded, using only four ‘rungs’. So, in our example above, if the sequence of ‘rungs’ on the DNA molecule were BCDBCBABCDBA it would mean that the sequence of amino acids would be 2,3,1,4. In this way, a ladder of 600 ‘rungs’ could code for an enzyme of 200 amino acids in its chain. If the code sequence on the DNA was correct, then every enzyme produced from that section of its length would have its amino acids in the right order too and would therefore be able to do its job.

This only explains the principle of the code's operation. In practice, the transfer of the coded information to the site of enzyme production is very complicated and involves other very special substances. It is estimated that to make one protein molecule, about another hundred different proteins are required as enzymes to effect the production. (M Denton: Evolution: A theory in Crisis, page 265 (Adler and Adler 1986).)

The total amount of information along that microscopic chain of DNA is mind-boggling. In a simple cell, like a bacterium, there are several million coded symbols and in those of man there are between two and four billion. The total DNA code in a cell is styled the genome; and it is a measure of scientific progress that in recent years the whole of the human genome has been elucidated.

Cell division
Before cell division occurs, the DNA, which is normally loosely spread through the nucleus of the cell, condenses into these discrete bodies called chromosomes. These then divide, by a very intricate mechanism, to produce identical sets of DNA which then migrate into the newly formed cells.

Before cell division occurs, the DNA, which is normally loosely spread through the nucleus of the cell, condenses into these discrete bodies called chromosomes. These then divide, by a very intricate mechanism, to produce identical sets of DNA which then migrate into the newly formed cells.

One of the definitions of living material is that it can reproduce itself. This must obviously occur first at the cellular level. For one cell to become two, the DNA must first be accurately duplicated, so that each new cell can contain the vital instructions coded on that molecule. This replication of DNA is achieved by enzymes made by the DNA itself. If you think about this you will realise that DNA and its enzymes are interdependent. The DNA makes an enzyme that in turn makes the DNA. So both must have originally appeared at the same time. Neither can function on its own. Evolutionists admit that this is a thorny problem. One of them wrote: ‘We are grappling here with a classic ‘chicken and egg’ situation. Nucleic acids [DNA] are required to make proteins, whereas proteins are needed to make nucleic acids…so how could useful proteins have first arisen and then evolved without the nucleic acids needed to encode them? How could nucleic acids be faithfully copied and evolve without the catalytic assistance of proteins?’ ( Andrew Scott: New Scientist, 2nd May 1985, page 31.)

Design or chance?
Do you think that this complex yet accurate method of protein production could have occurred by chance? Could such a detailed code, with its millions of symbols, have been produced by accident? No scientist, despite confident assertions in the media and in school textbooks, has yet proposed a possible way that this detailed system could occur by chance. As one of them freely writes: ‘In their more public pronouncements, researchers interested in the origin of life sometimes behave like the creationist opponents they so despise – glossing over the great mysteries that remain unsolved and pretending they have firm answers that they have not really got.’ ( Andrew Scott: New Scientist 2nd May 1985, page 33.)

But why do some scientists despise those who believe in creation? Surely experience teaches that complexity, such as in a cell, must have been the product of an intelligent mind. The most rational view is that God designed the ‘Code of Life’. By giving a slightly different code to the different sorts of living organisms, He brought into being all the varied forms of life, such as trees, flowers, animals, insects and mankind, as the Bible says:

‘…with thee is the fountain of life’ [Psalm 36.9].

‘…he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things’ [Acts 17.25].

But of course life on earth is not just simple cells. They are organised into groups to form organs and bodies that can see, feel, manipulate things and in the case of human beings, have the ability to reason and communicate. In all this there is the evidence of design, not accidental development.

More information about Creation
Life on earth
The universe has a structure
Man in the image of God
Does chance produce design?
Design demands a designer