Document Text Contents
Page 2
Contents
Endorsements
Title Page
Copyright Page
List of Figures and Tables
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. The Awe-Inspiring Night Sky
2. My Skeptical Inquiry
3. Big Bang—The Bible Taught It First!
4. Discovery of the Twentieth Century
5. Twenty-First Century Discoveries, Part I
6. Twenty-First Century Discoveries, Part II
7. Einstein's Challenge
8. Closing Loopholes: Round One
9. Closing Loopholes: Round Two
10. Science Discovers the Creation of Time
11. A God Outside of Time, but Knowable
12. A Brief Look at A Brief History of Time
13. A Modern-Day Goliath
14. The Divine Watchmaker
15. A "Just-Right" Universe
16. Responding to Nonempirical, Nontheistic Cosmic Models
17. Earth: The Place for Life
18. Extradimensional and Transdimensional Powers
19. The Point
Appendix A: Evidence for the Fine-Tuning of the Universe
Appendix B: Evidence for the Fine-Tuning of the Milky Way Galaxy, Solar
System, and Earth
About the Author
About Reasons to Believe
More from Reasons to Believe
Notes
Page 159
Evolution Reversal
According to the fossil record, more and more species of life came into existence
through the millennia before the appearance of modern humans. Through time,
the number of species extinctions nearly balanced the number of introductions,
but introductions remained slightly more numerous.
Everything changed, however, with the arrival of the human species. Since
the first human being, the number of species going extinct has remained high
while the number of new species appearing measures a virtual zero. Estimates of
the current rate of extinction vary, from one species a day to five species an
hour.10 Though many believe that the influence of the human race is the
predominant factor in that rate, environmental experts are willing to say that
even if no humans existed, at least one species per year would still go extinct.11
Meanwhile, as biologists Paul and Anne Ehrlich disclose, “The production of a
new animal species in nature has yet to be documented.” Furthermore, “in the
vast majority of cases, the rate of change is so slow that it has not even been
possible to detect an increase in the amount of differentiation.”12 Obviously, a
tremendous imbalance between extinctions and speciation now exists.
The imbalance between speciation today and speciation in the fossil record
era cannot be explained by radically different natural conditions. The conditions
are known, and they are not significantly different. What is different is God’s
activity. The Bible declares that since God created Adam and Eve he has ceased
from his work of creating new life-forms. But in the fossil record era (God’s six
days of creation), God was active in creating millions of species of life,
introducing new species, and replacing and upgrading all those going extinct by
natural processes.
What materialists fail to address is the reversal in the direction of biological
evolution. Before humanity’s appearance, life on Earth was becoming
progressively complex and diverse (during God’s days of creation). Since the
appearance of human beings, life on Earth has become less complex and diverse
(during God’s seventh day of rest).
Much more could be added to the argument against the materialistic
interpretation of life, such as the problems of mass extinction and mass
speciation events, similarities in chemistry and form among Earth’s species, the
origin of sex, nonrandom mutations, results from long-term evolution
experiments, missing horizontal branches in the fossil record trees, genetic
Page 160
decay, inconsistencies between molecular clock and fossil record dates, etc.13
Modern research in astronomy, biology, and paleontology, far from discrediting
Paley, fully exonerate him.
A Bad Design?
As for Gould’s examples of bad design, three responses come to mind. First, his
judging of certain biological components as bad is largely subjective. Others
have disagreed with his evaluations. In particular, Peter Gordon takes issue with
Gould’s best-known example of the panda’s thumb. Gordon argues that rather
than the thumb being clumsy and jury-rigged, it is a functional, original design.14
Gordon’s conclusion has been established in a study by six Japanese biologists
who used three-dimensional computed tomography and magnetic resonance
imaging to demonstrate that certain bones of the giant panda’s hand form a
double pincer-like apparatus that allows the panda to “manipulate objects with
great dexterity.”15
Organisms are so complex that no biologist can claim to understand them
completely. Thus, even biologists are in a poor position to judge the quality of
the Creator’s work.
Second, to believe in creation by God is not to claim that all the development
in organisms is strictly divine. In addition to divine intervention, natural
processes are obviously at work to change, at least to some degree, the form and
function of organisms. Thus, the second law of thermodynamics, for example,
would guarantee increasing degradation of the divine designs.
Third, Gould provides no new explanation for the design in the “previously
existing parts.” All he can muster are the already discredited Darwinist
explanations.
A Better Argument
Far from being shattered, Paley’s Watchmaker argument stands firm. Today it’s
possible to strengthen Paley’s argument by looking at the whole in addition to
the parts. Paley did the only thing he could do in the early 1800s: examine a tiny
part of God’s creation in search of evidence for him. However, that left
unanswered the relationship of the whole to the parts and the parts to the whole.
But these relationships can now be explored. The universe has now been
measured and new understandings of the whole help us to comprehend more
about the Creator.
Page 318
6361/201118581.
53. Ross, Improbable Planet, 63–70, 72–75.
54. There exists, for example, a probability of a little less than one chance in that
the hot air molecules arising from the flames on a gas stove instead of
dissipating throughout the room could bunch together inside a small volume
element, move toward you, and burn a hole through your chest and into your
heart. This probability, however, is so tiny that we can safely conclude that such
an event can never happen at any time in the history of the universe or at any
location throughout the universe.
55. Fazale Rana and Hugh Ross, Origins of Life: Biblical and Evolutionary
Models Face Off (Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2014), 180–85.
56. Rana and Ross, Origins of Life; Fazale Rana, The Cell’s Design: How
Chemistry Reveals the Creator’s Artistry (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008); Fazale
Rana, Creating Life in the Lab: How New Discoveries in Synthetic Biology Make
a Case for the Creator (Grand Rapids, Baker, 2011); Hugh Ross, Why the
Universe Is the Way It Is (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008); Hugh Ross, More Than a
Theory: Revealing a Testable Model for Creation (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009);
Hugh Ross, Improbable Planet.
18. Extradimensional and Transdimensional Powers
1. Hugh Ross, Beyond the Cosmos: The Transdimensionality of God, 3rd edition
(Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2017).
2. Genesis 16:13, 28:16; Deuteronomy 30:14; Psalm 34:18, 119:151, 145:18;
Jeremiah 23:24; Acts 17:28; and Romans 10:8 are a few of many examples.
3. Genesis 28:16; Exodus 33:20; Job 9:11, 37:23; and John 6:46 are a few of
many examples.
4. 1 Timothy 6:16.
5. Edwin Abbott, Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, with notes by
David W. Davies (Pasadena, CA: Grant Dahlstrom, 1978).
6. John 16:5–10.
7. John 16:6.
8. John 16:7.
9. Philippians 2:5–9.
10. John 14:12–14.
11. Matthew 28:20.
Page 319
19. The Point
1. Hebrews 11:6.
2. Psalm 34:18, 145:18.
3. Ephesians 2:13.
4. J. N. D. Anderson, The Evidence for the Resurrection (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1966).
5. James 4:8.
6. Revelation 3:8.
Appendix A: Evidence for the FineTuning of the Universe
1. Hugh Ross, “Part 1. FineTuning for Life in the Universe,” RTB Design
Compendium (2009) (November 17, 2010), reasons.org/finetuning
Contents
Endorsements
Title Page
Copyright Page
List of Figures and Tables
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. The Awe-Inspiring Night Sky
2. My Skeptical Inquiry
3. Big Bang—The Bible Taught It First!
4. Discovery of the Twentieth Century
5. Twenty-First Century Discoveries, Part I
6. Twenty-First Century Discoveries, Part II
7. Einstein's Challenge
8. Closing Loopholes: Round One
9. Closing Loopholes: Round Two
10. Science Discovers the Creation of Time
11. A God Outside of Time, but Knowable
12. A Brief Look at A Brief History of Time
13. A Modern-Day Goliath
14. The Divine Watchmaker
15. A "Just-Right" Universe
16. Responding to Nonempirical, Nontheistic Cosmic Models
17. Earth: The Place for Life
18. Extradimensional and Transdimensional Powers
19. The Point
Appendix A: Evidence for the Fine-Tuning of the Universe
Appendix B: Evidence for the Fine-Tuning of the Milky Way Galaxy, Solar
System, and Earth
About the Author
About Reasons to Believe
More from Reasons to Believe
Notes
Page 159
Evolution Reversal
According to the fossil record, more and more species of life came into existence
through the millennia before the appearance of modern humans. Through time,
the number of species extinctions nearly balanced the number of introductions,
but introductions remained slightly more numerous.
Everything changed, however, with the arrival of the human species. Since
the first human being, the number of species going extinct has remained high
while the number of new species appearing measures a virtual zero. Estimates of
the current rate of extinction vary, from one species a day to five species an
hour.10 Though many believe that the influence of the human race is the
predominant factor in that rate, environmental experts are willing to say that
even if no humans existed, at least one species per year would still go extinct.11
Meanwhile, as biologists Paul and Anne Ehrlich disclose, “The production of a
new animal species in nature has yet to be documented.” Furthermore, “in the
vast majority of cases, the rate of change is so slow that it has not even been
possible to detect an increase in the amount of differentiation.”12 Obviously, a
tremendous imbalance between extinctions and speciation now exists.
The imbalance between speciation today and speciation in the fossil record
era cannot be explained by radically different natural conditions. The conditions
are known, and they are not significantly different. What is different is God’s
activity. The Bible declares that since God created Adam and Eve he has ceased
from his work of creating new life-forms. But in the fossil record era (God’s six
days of creation), God was active in creating millions of species of life,
introducing new species, and replacing and upgrading all those going extinct by
natural processes.
What materialists fail to address is the reversal in the direction of biological
evolution. Before humanity’s appearance, life on Earth was becoming
progressively complex and diverse (during God’s days of creation). Since the
appearance of human beings, life on Earth has become less complex and diverse
(during God’s seventh day of rest).
Much more could be added to the argument against the materialistic
interpretation of life, such as the problems of mass extinction and mass
speciation events, similarities in chemistry and form among Earth’s species, the
origin of sex, nonrandom mutations, results from long-term evolution
experiments, missing horizontal branches in the fossil record trees, genetic
Page 160
decay, inconsistencies between molecular clock and fossil record dates, etc.13
Modern research in astronomy, biology, and paleontology, far from discrediting
Paley, fully exonerate him.
A Bad Design?
As for Gould’s examples of bad design, three responses come to mind. First, his
judging of certain biological components as bad is largely subjective. Others
have disagreed with his evaluations. In particular, Peter Gordon takes issue with
Gould’s best-known example of the panda’s thumb. Gordon argues that rather
than the thumb being clumsy and jury-rigged, it is a functional, original design.14
Gordon’s conclusion has been established in a study by six Japanese biologists
who used three-dimensional computed tomography and magnetic resonance
imaging to demonstrate that certain bones of the giant panda’s hand form a
double pincer-like apparatus that allows the panda to “manipulate objects with
great dexterity.”15
Organisms are so complex that no biologist can claim to understand them
completely. Thus, even biologists are in a poor position to judge the quality of
the Creator’s work.
Second, to believe in creation by God is not to claim that all the development
in organisms is strictly divine. In addition to divine intervention, natural
processes are obviously at work to change, at least to some degree, the form and
function of organisms. Thus, the second law of thermodynamics, for example,
would guarantee increasing degradation of the divine designs.
Third, Gould provides no new explanation for the design in the “previously
existing parts.” All he can muster are the already discredited Darwinist
explanations.
A Better Argument
Far from being shattered, Paley’s Watchmaker argument stands firm. Today it’s
possible to strengthen Paley’s argument by looking at the whole in addition to
the parts. Paley did the only thing he could do in the early 1800s: examine a tiny
part of God’s creation in search of evidence for him. However, that left
unanswered the relationship of the whole to the parts and the parts to the whole.
But these relationships can now be explored. The universe has now been
measured and new understandings of the whole help us to comprehend more
about the Creator.
Page 318
6361/201118581.
53. Ross, Improbable Planet, 63–70, 72–75.
54. There exists, for example, a probability of a little less than one chance in that
the hot air molecules arising from the flames on a gas stove instead of
dissipating throughout the room could bunch together inside a small volume
element, move toward you, and burn a hole through your chest and into your
heart. This probability, however, is so tiny that we can safely conclude that such
an event can never happen at any time in the history of the universe or at any
location throughout the universe.
55. Fazale Rana and Hugh Ross, Origins of Life: Biblical and Evolutionary
Models Face Off (Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2014), 180–85.
56. Rana and Ross, Origins of Life; Fazale Rana, The Cell’s Design: How
Chemistry Reveals the Creator’s Artistry (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008); Fazale
Rana, Creating Life in the Lab: How New Discoveries in Synthetic Biology Make
a Case for the Creator (Grand Rapids, Baker, 2011); Hugh Ross, Why the
Universe Is the Way It Is (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008); Hugh Ross, More Than a
Theory: Revealing a Testable Model for Creation (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009);
Hugh Ross, Improbable Planet.
18. Extradimensional and Transdimensional Powers
1. Hugh Ross, Beyond the Cosmos: The Transdimensionality of God, 3rd edition
(Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2017).
2. Genesis 16:13, 28:16; Deuteronomy 30:14; Psalm 34:18, 119:151, 145:18;
Jeremiah 23:24; Acts 17:28; and Romans 10:8 are a few of many examples.
3. Genesis 28:16; Exodus 33:20; Job 9:11, 37:23; and John 6:46 are a few of
many examples.
4. 1 Timothy 6:16.
5. Edwin Abbott, Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, with notes by
David W. Davies (Pasadena, CA: Grant Dahlstrom, 1978).
6. John 16:5–10.
7. John 16:6.
8. John 16:7.
9. Philippians 2:5–9.
10. John 14:12–14.
11. Matthew 28:20.
Page 319
19. The Point
1. Hebrews 11:6.
2. Psalm 34:18, 145:18.
3. Ephesians 2:13.
4. J. N. D. Anderson, The Evidence for the Resurrection (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1966).
5. James 4:8.
6. Revelation 3:8.
Appendix A: Evidence for the FineTuning of the Universe
1. Hugh Ross, “Part 1. FineTuning for Life in the Universe,” RTB Design
Compendium (2009) (November 17, 2010), reasons.org/finetuning
