From Arcadia, California, The Carter Report presents 00:00:08.12\00:00:11.19 "The Living Word" around the world. 00:00:11.22\00:00:13.59 Hello friend, my name is John Carter 00:00:18.29\00:00:21.75 and I am going to give you right now the opportunity 00:00:21.78\00:00:24.73 to be part of something exciting and amazing. 00:00:24.76\00:00:29.07 My guest today is from Reasons to Believe. 00:00:29.10\00:00:33.54 He is the Executive Vice President 00:00:33.57\00:00:35.81 of that remarkable organization. 00:00:35.84\00:00:38.35 His name is Dr. Rana. 00:00:38.38\00:00:41.54 Today we are going to ask and try to answer the question, 00:00:41.57\00:00:46.55 are scientists about to create life in the laboratory. 00:00:46.58\00:00:52.67 And if this happens is there no longer a reason 00:00:52.70\00:00:56.94 for the existence of God? Stay with us. 00:00:56.97\00:01:04.20 Hello friend, I am John Carter. 00:01:04.23\00:01:06.52 I am here today to tell you the most amazing news. 00:01:06.55\00:01:09.98 I want to thank you firstly in Jesus name 00:01:10.01\00:01:13.09 for your magnificent support. 00:01:13.12\00:01:15.51 We are on our way to Port Moresby, 00:01:15.54\00:01:19.19 the capital of Papua New Guinea. 00:01:19.22\00:01:22.36 We are going to see the amazing power of God. 00:01:22.39\00:01:25.67 We are going there to preach the everlasting Gospel. 00:01:25.70\00:01:29.36 I will be preaching 00:01:29.39\00:01:30.76 every night outdoors in the national stadium. 00:01:30.79\00:01:34.32 The locals tell us we will have over 100,000 people a night, 00:01:34.35\00:01:40.02 some say a 150,000 people. 00:01:40.05\00:01:43.24 A few have said, maybe 200,000 00:01:43.27\00:01:47.16 but I want you to know this we go in the name of Christ 00:01:47.19\00:01:50.69 to preach the gospel and to save souls. 00:01:50.72\00:01:55.05 And I am saying today, I can't do this without your help. 00:01:55.08\00:01:59.49 I have got to raise right now $500,000 for this great campaign 00:01:59.52\00:02:07.31 that is going to shake an entire nation for God. 00:02:07.34\00:02:12.27 Please be my partner. 00:02:12.30\00:02:14.44 Write to me, John Carter Post office box 1900, 00:02:14.47\00:02:19.03 Thousand Oaks, CA 91358. 00:02:19.06\00:02:22.58 In Australia, my aussie friends, please write to Terrigal, 00:02:22.61\00:02:27.29 the address is now appearing on the screen. 00:02:27.32\00:02:30.25 Please stand with me in this tremendous outreach 00:02:30.28\00:02:34.99 to the people of Papua New Guinea. 00:02:35.02\00:02:38.31 We used to talk about mission impossible. 00:02:38.34\00:02:43.66 All of a sudden it has become mission possible. 00:02:43.69\00:02:48.18 This is an opportunity to reach 00:02:48.21\00:02:51.48 an entire nation for the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:02:51.51\00:02:54.81 Please write to me today 00:02:54.84\00:02:57.06 and I want to say to you from my heart to yours 00:02:57.09\00:03:00.89 thank you in Jesus name. 00:03:00.92\00:03:05.28 Welcome, my friend. 00:03:05.31\00:03:07.74 We are going to call this program today 00:03:07.77\00:03:10.69 Are Scientists Playing God? 00:03:10.72\00:03:14.66 An amazing concept. 00:03:14.69\00:03:17.14 We are going to talk about it today 00:03:17.17\00:03:18.54 with our special guest Dr Rana from Reasons to Believe, 00:03:18.57\00:03:24.10 a great organization here in Southern California 00:03:24.13\00:03:26.68 that gives people reasons to believe. 00:03:26.71\00:03:30.55 We are just delighted, Dr. Rana, 00:03:30.58\00:03:32.26 to have you with us at the Carter Report today 00:03:32.29\00:03:34.36 and we want to say, thank you so much for joining us. 00:03:34.39\00:03:37.01 Well, thank you Pastor Carter, for having me. 00:03:37.04\00:03:38.91 It's a pleasure to be here with you. 00:03:38.94\00:03:40.56 We look upon you as an old friend. Thank you. 00:03:40.59\00:03:43.97 Along with Dr. Hugh Ross who is a great astronomer. 00:03:44.00\00:03:47.55 Now astronomy of course, 00:03:47.58\00:03:49.26 and as I said he's a great astronomer. 00:03:49.29\00:03:52.21 It talks about the big things, 00:03:52.24\00:03:54.36 the vast things out there in space. 00:03:54.39\00:03:57.18 You talk about the little things. Yeah. 00:03:57.21\00:04:01.02 What is Biochemistry? 00:04:01.05\00:04:03.29 Well, it's simply put. 00:04:03.32\00:04:04.69 It's the study of life's chemistry. 00:04:04.72\00:04:07.57 It's the study of the chemical systems 00:04:07.60\00:04:09.58 that make up living organisms. 00:04:09.61\00:04:12.09 So chemistry is the study of matter, 00:04:12.12\00:04:14.34 how is it structured, how does it interact with itself. 00:04:14.37\00:04:18.51 And so biochemistry interested in what is the matter 00:04:18.54\00:04:21.17 that makes up life and how does it interact 00:04:21.20\00:04:23.94 and then how is that been explained biological process. 00:04:23.97\00:04:27.24 So you are dealing with molecules, 00:04:27.27\00:04:29.19 DNA and proteins and sugars and fats. 00:04:29.22\00:04:32.33 These are part of the molecular constituents that make up life. 00:04:32.36\00:04:37.01 I have been reading through your new book, 00:04:37.04\00:04:40.65 "Creating Life in the Lab" 00:04:40.68\00:04:43.23 and we are going to talk about that today a little bit. 00:04:43.26\00:04:45.65 You know, because it does appear to me 00:04:45.68\00:04:48.00 that many scientists are now on the place 00:04:48.03\00:04:50.79 where they are actually trying to create life in the lab 00:04:50.82\00:04:56.06 and they are playing God. 00:04:56.09\00:04:59.52 You got a PhD in these things. 00:04:59.55\00:05:01.90 Where did you get it and when did you get it? Sure. 00:05:01.93\00:05:03.82 Well, I did my PhD in Chemistry with an emphasis 00:05:03.85\00:05:06.82 in Biochemistry at Ohio University 00:05:06.85\00:05:09.82 in Athens, Ohio, that was 1990. 00:05:09.85\00:05:12.73 And then after that I did a couple of extra bits 00:05:12.76\00:05:16.96 of training in Biochemistry at the University of Virginia, 00:05:16.99\00:05:20.12 University of Georgia where I had post doctoral fellowships. 00:05:20.15\00:05:24.61 And then from there I went into a private industry 00:05:24.64\00:05:27.06 for a number of years. 00:05:27.09\00:05:28.46 And then from there I joined Reasons to Believe 00:05:28.49\00:05:30.82 about 13 years ago now. 00:05:30.85\00:05:32.63 We normally don't think of science bringing people to God. 00:05:32.66\00:05:37.82 People say that science drives people away from God, 00:05:37.85\00:05:42.37 but I understand that science has played a part 00:05:42.40\00:05:45.50 in bringing you to Christ. Yeah. 00:05:45.53\00:05:47.49 Can you tell me about it? Sure thing. 00:05:47.52\00:05:48.98 It played really I think a central role 00:05:49.01\00:05:51.64 in my conversion to Christianity. 00:05:51.67\00:05:53.84 I didn't grow up in a home 00:05:53.87\00:05:55.24 with any kind of Christian influences whatsoever. 00:05:55.27\00:05:56.94 Oh, you didn't? No. 00:05:56.97\00:05:59.08 My father was from India. 00:05:59.11\00:06:00.72 He was a Muslim and came to the United States 00:06:00.75\00:06:03.77 via Canada in the 1950s. 00:06:03.80\00:06:06.66 He met my mom who had a Catholic background 00:06:06.69\00:06:10.62 and when they married they agreed to disagree 00:06:10.65\00:06:13.11 when it came to religion. 00:06:13.14\00:06:14.51 They were wise, weren't they? They were. 00:06:14.54\00:06:16.47 Well, my mom was in fact a non-practicing Catholic 00:06:16.50\00:06:19.48 and my dad was the more religious of my two parents, 00:06:19.51\00:06:23.75 but he never or my mom never really pressed 00:06:23.78\00:06:28.00 their religious believes on us. 00:06:28.03\00:06:30.02 They kind of left it up for-- to my brother and I, 00:06:30.05\00:06:32.15 to figure things out on our own. 00:06:32.18\00:06:34.31 My father was a nuclear physicists, 00:06:34.34\00:06:36.32 my mom was a science and math teacher. 00:06:36.35\00:06:37.93 Now what did he do? What exactly did he do? 00:06:37.96\00:06:40.22 Well, when I was born he was a university professor 00:06:40.25\00:06:43.97 but he prior to that worked in an industry 00:06:44.00\00:06:48.31 as a nuclear physicists in the 1950s so. 00:06:48.34\00:06:51.99 And he was a Muslim at this time. 00:06:52.02\00:06:53.72 He was. Yes. A practicing Muslim. Yes. 00:06:53.75\00:06:56.10 Yes, he was. Yes, he was. 00:06:56.13\00:06:57.64 But he again didn't feel like he was appropriate for him 00:06:57.67\00:07:01.36 to press his beliefs on either me or my brother 00:07:01.39\00:07:04.57 and so we kind of grew up in a home 00:07:04.60\00:07:07.14 where there was you know, good ethical upbringing, 00:07:07.17\00:07:09.54 but not really any kind of religious instruction. 00:07:09.57\00:07:12.93 But my father being a scientist, my mom being a science teacher, 00:07:12.96\00:07:16.93 science was everywhere in our household so to speak 00:07:16.96\00:07:19.68 as we were growing up. 00:07:19.71\00:07:21.08 So, but to answer my question, 00:07:21.11\00:07:23.61 how did you come to know God with science 00:07:23.64\00:07:27.78 because I understand that science had a definite part 00:07:27.81\00:07:31.35 in leading you to a knowledge of the Scriptures and to God. 00:07:31.38\00:07:34.66 Sure thing, well, by the time I went to college 00:07:34.69\00:07:38.34 I pretty much had no real commitment one way 00:07:38.37\00:07:41.23 or the other to whether or not God existed. 00:07:41.26\00:07:43.20 I was an agnostic and in fact as an undergraduate 00:07:43.23\00:07:46.54 I readily embraced the evolutionary paradigm. 00:07:46.57\00:07:50.25 The professors I admired, said life's origin, 00:07:50.28\00:07:52.70 life's history is explicable through evolutionary processes. 00:07:52.73\00:07:56.88 I accepted that teaching, 00:07:56.91\00:07:59.13 but then I went to graduate school 00:07:59.16\00:08:00.70 to get a PhD in Biochemistry. 00:08:00.73\00:08:03.14 The idea of God was the furthest thing 00:08:03.17\00:08:04.96 from my mind at that point. 00:08:04.99\00:08:07.35 And as I began to really study in depth 00:08:07.38\00:08:10.46 and in detail bio-chemical systems 00:08:10.49\00:08:12.78 I became convinced that these are incredible systems 00:08:12.81\00:08:18.03 unlike anything that I really could have ever appreciated 00:08:18.06\00:08:21.27 prior to my in-depth study. 00:08:21.30\00:08:23.73 These are incredibly complex systems, 00:08:23.76\00:08:26.09 they are incredibly elegant, incredibly sophisticated. 00:08:26.12\00:08:29.33 There was a cleverness to how these systems work. 00:08:29.36\00:08:32.90 And to me that became a curiosity, 00:08:32.93\00:08:35.38 how do scientists really explain these things. 00:08:35.41\00:08:38.35 I wasn't looking for evolution did it. 00:08:38.38\00:08:40.66 I wanted to know the detail step by step 00:08:40.69\00:08:43.88 how these systems come into being 00:08:43.91\00:08:45.54 and as I examined the scientific explanations 00:08:45.57\00:08:48.95 or the attempts to explain these systems scientifically, 00:08:48.98\00:08:52.22 I didn't think those explanations were sufficient. 00:08:52.25\00:08:55.54 I didn't think chemistry and physics could generate 00:08:55.57\00:08:57.98 on its own the complexity of life 00:08:58.01\00:09:01.18 and given their elegance and sophistication 00:09:01.21\00:09:03.51 I thought there has to be a mind that's behind all of this. 00:09:03.54\00:09:08.07 And of course once you come to the recognition 00:09:08.10\00:09:09.82 that there's a mind that leads 00:09:09.85\00:09:12.02 to even more important questions. 00:09:12.05\00:09:14.06 Who or what is that that mind? 00:09:14.09\00:09:16.07 Do I relate to that, that creator? 00:09:16.10\00:09:18.54 And that sent me on a journey of about six months 00:09:18.57\00:09:22.65 of beginning to wrestle through these questions 00:09:22.68\00:09:24.74 and through a fairly complex series of events. 00:09:24.77\00:09:27.46 I wound up being challenged to read the Bible to see 00:09:27.49\00:09:31.14 if it was true and as I read through the gospel of Matthew 00:09:31.17\00:09:35.44 and specifically the Sermon on the Mount 00:09:35.47\00:09:37.66 I became convinced that Jesus had to be 00:09:37.69\00:09:40.01 who Christians claim Him to be. 00:09:40.04\00:09:42.26 So I would argue it was 00:09:42.29\00:09:44.14 a supernatural religious experience 00:09:44.17\00:09:46.40 where God is revealed to me through the pages of Scripture. 00:09:46.43\00:09:49.03 But my coming to the recognition there had to be a creator. 00:09:49.06\00:09:52.67 I believe too was God revealing Himself 00:09:52.70\00:09:55.33 to me through the record of nature. 00:09:55.36\00:09:57.82 Now you know about C.S. Lewis, don't you? Yes. 00:09:57.85\00:10:00.31 Jack Lewis as they call him. 00:10:00.34\00:10:03.19 He had a conversion in a somewhat similar way. 00:10:03.22\00:10:07.11 He was at Oxford University, had a head full of brains 00:10:07.14\00:10:10.80 and as he thought things through, 00:10:10.83\00:10:13.59 through the processes of logic he came to the conclusion, 00:10:13.62\00:10:20.44 man cannot be alone 00:10:20.47\00:10:21.84 there must be someone bigger than man. 00:10:21.87\00:10:24.80 And Lewis became of course, 00:10:24.83\00:10:26.29 one of the greatest Christian writers 00:10:26.32\00:10:28.90 and most people, at least intellectuals 00:10:28.93\00:10:31.59 who read the writings of C.S. Lewis. 00:10:31.62\00:10:34.94 So you are a believer in God and a believer in Christ? 00:10:34.97\00:10:37.95 I am, yes. And a believer in Scripture. 00:10:37.98\00:10:40.38 Yes, very much so. 00:10:40.41\00:10:42.18 But the arguments for evolution can be somewhat 00:10:42.21\00:10:45.55 overwhelming for a young person, don't you think? 00:10:45.58\00:10:48.78 They can and part of the challenge too 00:10:48.81\00:10:51.22 is the people who are making those arguments 00:10:51.25\00:10:53.93 are people in authority. Yes. 00:10:53.96\00:10:55.92 And there are people too that I think 00:10:55.95\00:10:57.57 students going through a science program admire. Yes. 00:10:57.60\00:11:02.10 They typically are good people who are people of integrity. 00:11:02.13\00:11:05.57 They just have a particular world view. 00:11:05.60\00:11:07.75 And not all of them are unbelievers. Not necessarily. 00:11:07.78\00:11:10.62 No, because there are plenty of evolutionists 00:11:10.65\00:11:13.01 who are theistic evolutionists 00:11:13.04\00:11:15.10 who believe that God used the evolutionary process 00:11:15.13\00:11:18.92 to create life as we understand it. Yes. 00:11:18.95\00:11:21.07 Now I wouldn't classify myself as a theistic evolutionist. 00:11:21.10\00:11:23.77 No. No. 00:11:23.80\00:11:25.17 I am a creationist, but you are right, there. 00:11:25.20\00:11:28.79 It's a very overwhelming environment for students 00:11:28.82\00:11:32.23 who don't have an adequate background in science. 00:11:32.26\00:11:35.08 And then you have people like Professor Dawkins. 00:11:35.11\00:11:38.98 Now there's no doubt about it he is a brilliant man, 00:11:39.01\00:11:43.87 but he speaks sort of ex-cathedra. 00:11:43.90\00:11:47.85 And what he says that's it 00:11:47.88\00:11:49.86 and if you don't agree with him you are a complete fool. Yes. 00:11:49.89\00:11:54.28 And so the people who follow him are almost like, 00:11:54.31\00:11:58.54 many of them at least are 00:11:58.57\00:11:59.99 like people who follow a religious guru. Yeah. 00:12:00.02\00:12:04.61 So it's a cult, a religious cult 00:12:04.64\00:12:09.12 and they are afraid to think for themselves 00:12:09.15\00:12:11.36 or to consider some of the evidence 00:12:11.39\00:12:13.45 that you are going to give to me today. 00:12:13.48\00:12:16.53 Tell me this one, you are a scientist 00:12:16.56\00:12:19.08 with a PhD in these things, 00:12:19.11\00:12:21.55 in these things I am a layman person, I am a pastor. 00:12:21.58\00:12:24.99 I have often wondered why is it that the two scientists 00:12:25.02\00:12:28.23 can look at the same evidence 00:12:28.26\00:12:30.23 and reach completely different conclusions? 00:12:30.26\00:12:33.60 You know that's a great question 00:12:33.63\00:12:36.01 and it's a question I have given a lot of thought too 00:12:36.04\00:12:38.81 and I think at the end of the day 00:12:38.84\00:12:40.52 it boils down to not the evidence itself, 00:12:40.55\00:12:43.80 but really philosophical influences 00:12:43.83\00:12:47.53 and maybe even a spiritual condition if you will. Yes. 00:12:47.56\00:12:51.77 I mean, Richard Dawkins for example, 00:12:51.80\00:12:53.47 in his introduction to the book "The Blind Watchmaker" says, 00:12:53.50\00:12:57.15 Biology is the study of complicated things 00:12:57.18\00:12:59.98 that give the appearance 00:13:00.01\00:13:01.38 of having been designed for a purpose. Yes. 00:13:01.41\00:13:03.58 And you know, and so here Dawkins is admitting 00:13:03.61\00:13:06.20 that when you look at biochemical systems 00:13:06.23\00:13:08.72 the first reaction is that they are designed. Yes. 00:13:08.75\00:13:12.43 But yet he argues that evolution did it 00:13:12.46\00:13:14.97 as opposed to taking it to the logical conclusion 00:13:15.00\00:13:17.98 that maybe indeed there was a mind behind it at all. 00:13:18.01\00:13:20.66 So I think it's a philosophical commitment 00:13:20.69\00:13:23.50 to a world view or unwillingness to be open to maybe 00:13:23.53\00:13:28.62 just maybe that there is a God 00:13:28.65\00:13:30.14 who is responsible for everything. 00:13:30.17\00:13:34.29 I have discovered after 50 years 00:13:34.32\00:13:37.56 of preaching the truths of the Bible and being a pastor 00:13:37.59\00:13:43.41 everybody has got some prejudice. 00:13:43.44\00:13:46.46 All religious people too, this thing that's called bias. 00:13:46.49\00:13:51.90 And often we think because of our culture and our parents 00:13:51.93\00:13:56.82 and our upbringing and our fears and everything else. 00:13:56.85\00:14:02.42 I have a feeling that many, many people 00:14:02.45\00:14:05.79 choose to believe that there's no God 00:14:05.82\00:14:08.11 not because it's necessarily, intellectually honest 00:14:08.14\00:14:12.89 but because it's more convenient. 00:14:12.92\00:14:16.54 It suits their lifestyle. 00:14:16.57\00:14:18.22 Now this may not be true with everybody, 00:14:18.25\00:14:20.40 but I think it's true with some, wouldn't you say? 00:14:20.43\00:14:22.95 Yeah, I think there's a lot to be said to that statement 00:14:22.98\00:14:26.01 and you know again we are talking about 00:14:26.04\00:14:27.87 students going through university 00:14:27.90\00:14:29.54 where it's just not considered to be 00:14:29.57\00:14:32.18 intellectually sophisticated to believe in God. 00:14:32.21\00:14:35.40 And so students want to be 00:14:35.43\00:14:37.14 viewed as being intellectually sophisticated. 00:14:37.17\00:14:39.96 They wanted to be viewed as being 00:14:39.99\00:14:41.36 part of the intelligentsia 00:14:41.39\00:14:43.52 and so they reject belief in God for peer pressure reasons. 00:14:43.55\00:14:47.96 That good man, Dr. Dawkins attacks 00:14:47.99\00:14:51.35 Christianity and religion in general very strongly. 00:14:51.38\00:14:53.96 He says, "Look, what religious people have done. 00:14:53.99\00:14:56.81 Look at the wars over religion. 00:14:56.84\00:14:59.11 Look at the terrible crimes in the name of God." 00:14:59.14\00:15:02.23 Has he ever heard of communism? 00:15:02.26\00:15:05.93 Has he ever been to Russia? 00:15:05.96\00:15:08.30 In fact, I have been there 42 times, 00:15:08.33\00:15:10.55 just come back from Russia and Ukraine. 00:15:10.58\00:15:12.99 I have been there 42 times. 00:15:13.02\00:15:15.55 I know the story of communism 00:15:15.58\00:15:18.14 during that time of 70 years 00:15:18.17\00:15:20.70 when the Marxist ruled Russia and Ukraine. 00:15:20.73\00:15:25.05 Historians tell us now at least fifty million people 00:15:25.08\00:15:29.07 were murdered by the atheists. 00:15:29.10\00:15:32.54 So the atheists were watching the telecast 00:15:32.57\00:15:36.08 ought to think about this one 00:15:36.11\00:15:38.03 because the atheists who put to death in their own lifetime 00:15:38.06\00:15:42.42 basically millions and millions and millions of people. 00:15:42.45\00:15:46.89 So it's not just the religious people 00:15:46.92\00:15:48.63 but of course, I would beg to disagree with Dr. Dawkins 00:15:48.66\00:15:52.96 when he says he's not religious. 00:15:52.99\00:15:54.99 He's the high priest of a great religion. 00:15:55.02\00:15:57.06 He maybe a good man, 00:15:57.09\00:15:58.46 but he's a high priest of a great religion 00:15:58.49\00:16:00.76 and he thinks like a religious person does. He sure does. 00:16:00.79\00:16:04.81 Who doesn't want to consider all of the evidence? 00:16:04.84\00:16:07.93 Now I have been reading through 00:16:07.96\00:16:11.25 this great book "Creating Life in the Lab." 00:16:11.28\00:16:14.17 This is an amazing book 00:16:14.20\00:16:16.07 and I recommend it to you my friend. 00:16:16.10\00:16:18.20 Just read this book. 00:16:18.23\00:16:19.60 This has got some amazing concepts. 00:16:19.63\00:16:22.90 It's called "CreatingLife in the Lab." 00:16:22.93\00:16:26.63 Don't read it after you had a heavy lunch 00:16:26.66\00:16:31.03 because it's got some profound thoughts in it. 00:16:31.06\00:16:35.87 Doctor, is the creation of synthetic life feasible? 00:16:35.90\00:16:43.82 Is it possible, is it likely? Yes. 00:16:43.85\00:16:47.49 We are very close to be able to create 00:16:47.52\00:16:49.88 artificial synthetic life forms in the laboratory. 00:16:49.91\00:16:53.06 Amazing. Yeah. 00:16:53.09\00:16:54.46 I mean, 10 years ago if you had asked me is this possible, 00:16:54.49\00:16:56.64 I would have said there's absolutely no way, 00:16:56.67\00:16:58.74 but the advances that have happened 00:16:58.77\00:17:00.67 in terms of just understanding how biochemical systems work, 00:17:00.70\00:17:04.58 in terms of being able to manipulate those systems 00:17:04.61\00:17:07.78 and then in advances in genetic engineering 00:17:07.81\00:17:10.91 have led us to the point where we do have the capabilities of 00:17:10.94\00:17:14.48 creating artificial life forms in the laboratory. 00:17:14.51\00:17:17.87 Now we are talking about cell, single cells like bacteria. 00:17:17.90\00:17:21.37 But still it's a life form. It's a life form, exactly. 00:17:21.40\00:17:24.30 And now friend, are you listening to this 00:17:24.33\00:17:25.78 because you are going to hear this 00:17:25.81\00:17:28.56 on this program for the first time. 00:17:28.59\00:17:30.39 I just want you to listen to this 00:17:30.42\00:17:31.84 because if I have been doing 00:17:31.87\00:17:34.36 this television program 10 years ago, 00:17:34.39\00:17:36.09 I would have said, this will never happen. 00:17:36.12\00:17:39.52 And I would have agreed with you. 00:17:39.55\00:17:41.25 Well, but you would have had a good reason to believe. 00:17:41.28\00:17:43.99 I just would have you know, 00:17:44.03\00:17:45.47 I would be going by my gut feeling. 00:17:45.50\00:17:47.73 So scientists are on the brink of creating synthetic life, 00:17:47.76\00:17:54.79 I heard you say that. 00:17:54.82\00:17:57.00 Tell us about the work of James Watson, Francis Crick 00:17:57.03\00:18:00.60 and more recently Craig Venter and genetic engineering. 00:18:00.63\00:18:06.22 Now friend, I want you to hear this 00:18:06.25\00:18:08.40 particularly university students 00:18:08.43\00:18:10.91 tune in right now. Listen to this. 00:18:10.94\00:18:13.23 Well, you know in 1953 Francis Crick and Jim Watson 00:18:13.26\00:18:20.08 published a paper in Nature, that is a famous paper now 00:18:20.11\00:18:24.75 where they present the structure of the DNA molecule. 00:18:24.78\00:18:28.17 And that structure, this double helix 00:18:28.20\00:18:30.53 that everybody is familiar with-- 00:18:30.56\00:18:31.93 50 years ago. Yeah. 00:18:31.96\00:18:33.33 They are about 1953 was the year. 00:18:33.36\00:18:35.22 Well, its more than 50 years. 00:18:35.25\00:18:36.62 Yeah, 60. Almost 60. 00:18:36.65\00:18:38.08 I mean, where have the years gone? 00:18:38.11\00:18:40.07 Yeah. Yeah. 00:18:40.10\00:18:41.47 But, and that structure provided critical insight 00:18:41.50\00:18:45.44 in terms of how DNA was able to replicate itself, 00:18:45.47\00:18:49.10 how the cell could just store genetic information 00:18:49.13\00:18:52.37 and led to what's call the molecular biology revolution 00:18:52.40\00:18:55.80 where through that understanding we developed 00:18:55.83\00:18:58.97 again the capability to manipulate and understand 00:18:59.00\00:19:02.89 how life works at its basic level. 00:19:02.92\00:19:05.46 This is astounding. 00:19:05.49\00:19:06.86 And then this lead to genetic engineering 00:19:06.89\00:19:09.52 which was first successful in the 1970s 00:19:09.55\00:19:13.10 where scientist could manipulate small pieces of that molecule 00:19:13.13\00:19:16.51 and in doing so introduce for example the gene 00:19:16.54\00:19:20.02 that encodes for the protein insulin into bacteria, 00:19:20.05\00:19:23.43 so that you now have 00:19:23.46\00:19:24.91 bacteria making the human insulin protein. 00:19:24.94\00:19:28.00 And then that goes fast forward to about two years ago now 00:19:28.03\00:19:34.03 when Craig Venter and his group announced 00:19:34.06\00:19:37.06 the creation of synthetic version of a bacterium 00:19:37.09\00:19:40.58 where they literally went in to a lab 00:19:40.61\00:19:42.47 with four bottles of a chemicals 00:19:42.50\00:19:44.84 and made a massive piece of DNA 00:19:44.87\00:19:47.19 that was about a million genetic letters in size. 00:19:47.22\00:19:51.85 They made this thing. In the lab. 00:19:51.88\00:19:54.12 But they made it out of pre-existing matter of course. 00:19:54.15\00:19:56.40 Oh, of course. Yes. 00:19:56.43\00:19:57.80 So they start with the same building blocks 00:19:57.83\00:19:59.49 that the cell uses to make DNA, 00:19:59.52\00:20:01.71 but it was a total laboratory creation of DNA off synthetic-- 00:20:01.74\00:20:07.61 This is astounding. 00:20:07.64\00:20:09.23 Which you could think of its being 00:20:09.26\00:20:10.63 like the software of the cell 00:20:10.66\00:20:12.47 and they took that software that they made 00:20:12.50\00:20:15.01 and they transplanted it into another bacterium 00:20:15.04\00:20:18.59 and that DNA and some clever biochemical tricks 00:20:18.62\00:20:22.45 allow them to dissolve that host cells DNA 00:20:22.48\00:20:26.71 and the synthetic DNA took over the operation of the cell. 00:20:26.74\00:20:29.88 They rebooted the cell and, voila, 00:20:29.91\00:20:32.81 in a few generations of cell division they had 00:20:32.84\00:20:35.74 a completely different species of bacteria that was synthetic. 00:20:35.77\00:20:39.38 Now here's the question. Was that DNA alive? 00:20:39.41\00:20:42.86 No, the DNA is not alive. 00:20:42.89\00:20:44.37 So it's not alive. It's not alive. 00:20:44.40\00:20:45.77 So they didn't create life then. 00:20:45.80\00:20:47.52 No, but they took the molecules 00:20:47.55\00:20:49.30 and they manipulated them all together in such a way 00:20:49.33\00:20:52.25 that you have now an entity that functions as a living organism. 00:20:52.28\00:20:58.58 But that's when its put into 00:20:58.61\00:20:59.98 another living organism, isn't it? 00:21:00.01\00:21:01.38 Yes. Exactly. 00:21:01.41\00:21:02.78 But the thing is life is kind of a tricky concept to define. Yes. 00:21:02.81\00:21:07.12 You know and we are talking about physical life now 00:21:07.15\00:21:09.35 not about you know the spiritual makeup of the human being, 00:21:09.38\00:21:13.09 but in the sense life really consists of 00:21:13.12\00:21:16.30 a very complex assemblage of molecules 00:21:16.33\00:21:20.05 that when they are there 00:21:20.08\00:21:21.45 in the right types in the right numbers 00:21:21.48\00:21:23.92 begin to function like a life form. 00:21:23.95\00:21:26.91 So there's not like a vital force 00:21:26.94\00:21:30.07 that you need for something to be alive. 00:21:30.10\00:21:32.15 It's just the right molecules present in the right amounts 00:21:32.18\00:21:36.14 and that gives you a living entity. 00:21:36.17\00:21:38.30 Now this stuff didn't put itself together, did it? No. 00:21:38.33\00:21:41.04 It's in a laboratory. It sure didn't. 00:21:41.07\00:21:43.23 I mean, when you look at what Craig Venter's team did, 00:21:43.26\00:21:46.66 they worked on this project for 15 years 00:21:46.69\00:21:50.55 and looking at research teams that had 00:21:50.58\00:21:53.78 anywhere from 20 to 50 people 00:21:53.81\00:21:55.75 at various times throughout that process. 00:21:55.78\00:21:58.49 They spent about $40 million. 00:21:58.52\00:22:01.38 They are using incredibly 00:22:01.41\00:22:02.78 sophisticated laboratory apparatus. 00:22:02.81\00:22:05.63 They are using incredibly elaborate 00:22:05.66\00:22:07.79 strategies and protocols, 00:22:07.82\00:22:09.83 but people who are carrying out these protocols 00:22:09.86\00:22:12.03 were some of the world's best scientists. 00:22:12.06\00:22:14.00 In fact, there's a Nobel laureate 00:22:14.03\00:22:15.89 who's part of their team, Hamilton Smith. 00:22:15.92\00:22:18.52 And so-- I have heard of this man. 00:22:18.55\00:22:19.92 Yes. Yes. 00:22:19.95\00:22:21.32 Incredible, incredible team of the best minds in the world 00:22:21.35\00:22:25.93 working over a vast periods of time 00:22:25.96\00:22:27.88 and spending huge amounts of money 00:22:27.91\00:22:29.85 using incredibly sophisticated systems, 00:22:29.88\00:22:32.75 using knowledge accumulated for centuries to do what they did. 00:22:32.78\00:22:37.76 This is a tremendous argument 00:22:37.79\00:22:40.05 against blind forces of nature coming together by themselves. 00:22:40.08\00:22:44.45 Oh, it sure is. 00:22:44.48\00:22:45.85 I mean, this is really evidence 00:22:45.88\00:22:47.25 that it takes intelligent agents to make life possible. 00:22:47.28\00:22:51.42 It takes an intelligent designer. Exactly. 00:22:51.45\00:22:54.36 It takes an intelligent-- did you hear that friend, 00:22:54.39\00:22:56.71 it takes an intelligent designer to create life. 00:22:56.74\00:23:01.25 And not to minimize the accomplishments 00:23:01.28\00:23:04.11 of Craig Venter. No, not at all. 00:23:04.14\00:23:05.51 But what he essentially did is just made a synthetic version 00:23:05.54\00:23:09.14 of a life form that already exists. 00:23:09.17\00:23:10.80 Which is amazing in itself. Yes. 00:23:10.83\00:23:13.19 Now this is of course a stepping stone 00:23:13.22\00:23:15.06 to actually going the next step 00:23:15.09\00:23:16.99 and now creating an organism 00:23:17.02\00:23:18.93 that would be unlike any think in nature 00:23:18.96\00:23:21.39 but nerveless-- Astounding. 00:23:21.42\00:23:23.33 Its, again the same point would be true 00:23:23.36\00:23:27.16 when they make the synthetic version of-- 00:23:27.19\00:23:29.68 sorry, a novel synthetic organism 00:23:29.71\00:23:31.93 and that would be intelligent agents are required 00:23:31.96\00:23:34.67 to bring life into existence. 00:23:34.70\00:23:36.07 We are coming into a new brave new world, 00:23:36.10\00:23:39.33 a strange new world, a dangerous new world. 00:23:39.36\00:23:42.04 Don't you think? We sure are. 00:23:42.07\00:23:44.63 And I think this is why it's very important 00:23:44.66\00:23:46.86 for Christians to understand what the technology is. 00:23:46.89\00:23:50.84 Yes, absolutely. 00:23:50.87\00:23:52.24 And to be able to offer an intelligent perspective 00:23:52.27\00:23:55.46 in form of our biblical world view 00:23:55.49\00:23:58.18 of what is the right way to handle this technology. 00:23:58.21\00:24:01.91 And not to make statements 00:24:01.94\00:24:04.12 that are going to be proven in six months 00:24:04.15\00:24:06.29 to be completely erroneous. 00:24:06.32\00:24:07.84 Right. Yeah. 00:24:07.87\00:24:09.24 You know, if we see this as being evidence for God 00:24:09.27\00:24:13.50 and the necessity of God bringing life into existence 00:24:13.53\00:24:16.15 we can become excited about the prospects. 00:24:16.18\00:24:19.53 You got me excited here today. 00:24:19.56\00:24:21.55 But when you begin to realize that 00:24:21.58\00:24:23.96 this ability could actually represent 00:24:23.99\00:24:26.49 very important technology 00:24:26.52\00:24:28.66 that could have huge implications 00:24:28.69\00:24:30.30 in terms of biomedicine. Yes. 00:24:30.33\00:24:32.65 You know, making drugs available 00:24:32.68\00:24:34.61 that currently we don't have access to 00:24:34.64\00:24:36.77 that could improve the quality of people's lives. 00:24:36.80\00:24:39.27 Some people this could be the key to producing green fuels 00:24:39.30\00:24:44.30 you know without causing potential harm to environment. 00:24:44.33\00:24:47.30 Actually, using bacteria to create alcohol. 00:24:47.33\00:24:51.57 Exactly. Yeah. 00:24:51.60\00:24:52.97 That could be used as a fuel source 00:24:53.00\00:24:54.86 or even generating hydrogen gas with bacteria 00:24:54.89\00:24:58.02 that can be used to power-- Now when we think of-- 00:24:58.05\00:25:01.65 Now, ladies and gentleman, 00:25:01.68\00:25:03.23 just listen to this because this is amazing material. 00:25:03.26\00:25:06.06 I want you to be part of this conversation. 00:25:06.09\00:25:09.56 We are talking about "Creating life in the Lab". 00:25:09.59\00:25:12.99 We are talking about scientists who seem to be playing God. 00:25:13.02\00:25:17.92 But if they are playing God, 00:25:17.95\00:25:19.41 we must pre-suppose there is a God. 00:25:19.44\00:25:21.87 Yes, exactly. This is important. 00:25:21.90\00:25:25.30 The fact that if they are playing God, 00:25:25.33\00:25:27.78 then it's a presupposition that there is a God 00:25:27.81\00:25:30.61 because they couldn't be doing this if there were no God. 00:25:30.64\00:25:34.59 Tell me this, how amazingly complex is life? 00:25:34.62\00:25:42.05 Well, one way to think about the complexity of life 00:25:42.08\00:25:45.34 is how many genes do you need for a life form to exist 00:25:45.37\00:25:50.27 in its simplest form independently in the environment 00:25:50.30\00:25:53.46 so that it can live all on its own? Yes. 00:25:53.49\00:25:56.77 And one way again to think about this 00:25:56.80\00:25:59.80 is the number of genes that requires 00:25:59.83\00:26:01.59 and a gene is a region of the DNA molecule 00:26:01.62\00:26:04.71 that contains the information to make 00:26:04.74\00:26:06.28 another type of molecule called the protein. 00:26:06.31\00:26:07.68 How complex is a gene? 00:26:07.71\00:26:09.08 A gene would typically be about a thousand genetic letters. 00:26:09.11\00:26:14.59 And so that would be about it-- 00:26:14.62\00:26:17.74 And so a typical genome which would be all the genes combined 00:26:17.77\00:26:22.59 for the simplest organism that could exist all on its own 00:26:22.62\00:26:25.83 will be about, oh, I am guessing 00:26:25.86\00:26:27.66 about 1.5 million genetic letters. 00:26:27.69\00:26:30.69 Our genome consists about 3.2 billion genetic letters. 00:26:30.72\00:26:34.76 But a simplest bacteria that can exist independently 00:26:34.79\00:26:37.70 in its environment is about 1.5 million genetic letters 00:26:37.73\00:26:41.27 which translates to about 1500 genes 00:26:41.30\00:26:45.26 and each gene codes for a protein 00:26:45.29\00:26:47.39 and a protein is a molecule that in itself is a very complex 00:26:47.42\00:26:53.70 that plays a particular role inside the cell 00:26:53.73\00:26:57.01 and so we need based on the best understanding 00:26:57.04\00:27:00.90 about 1500 different types of proteins working collaboratively 00:27:00.93\00:27:05.88 to carry out all the operations needed for a cell-- 00:27:05.91\00:27:08.39 So the great Dr. Venter with his great team 00:27:08.42\00:27:13.03 and we applaud what they are doing. 00:27:13.06\00:27:16.14 This is science at its best. 00:27:16.17\00:27:18.88 They are putting together all the atoms and the molecules, 00:27:18.91\00:27:22.55 is this what they are doing from the ground up? Yes. 00:27:22.58\00:27:24.82 Well, they are kind of taking a shortcut in that 00:27:24.85\00:27:27.17 they are basically assembling the DNA 00:27:27.20\00:27:30.44 which again is the set of instructions. Yes. 00:27:30.47\00:27:33.09 And then they are using that DNA 00:27:33.12\00:27:34.49 to take over the operation of another cell 00:27:34.52\00:27:37.52 where that cell has already done the hard work 00:27:37.55\00:27:39.40 of assembling all the molecules together for them. 00:27:39.43\00:27:42.80 Now there are other researchers 00:27:42.83\00:27:44.62 for example, Jack Shaw Stack who's at Harvard University 00:27:44.65\00:27:48.03 who are taking a different approach than Dr. Venter 00:27:48.06\00:27:50.66 going in a lab and then starting with individual molecules 00:27:50.69\00:27:53.73 and they are trying to assemble them into life forms 00:27:53.76\00:27:56.54 that work is much further away 00:27:56.57\00:27:59.43 in terms of being successful than Venter's approach. 00:27:59.46\00:28:03.53 So Venter's kind of taking advantage of 00:28:03.56\00:28:06.28 what "nature or God" has already done 00:28:06.31\00:28:10.45 to kind of jumpstart the process. 00:28:10.48\00:28:12.89 And then he gets a copyright on what he has done. 00:28:12.92\00:28:14.66 That's exactly-- Is that right? 00:28:14.69\00:28:16.06 Oh, yes. 00:28:16.09\00:28:17.46 I am sure he's going to create headaches 00:28:17.49\00:28:19.47 for people that are involved in patent law. 00:28:19.50\00:28:21.09 Yeah. I am sure. 00:28:21.12\00:28:22.49 Now we have talked about a gene, 00:28:22.52\00:28:23.89 we have talked about the DNA. 00:28:23.92\00:28:25.97 Perhaps, we shouldn't talk about RNA, 00:28:26.00\00:28:29.34 but tell me what about a cell itself? 00:28:29.37\00:28:34.15 A simple cell, how complex is a simple cell? 00:28:34.18\00:28:38.66 It's almost in the sense beyond imagination 00:28:38.69\00:28:42.70 of how complex it is. 00:28:42.73\00:28:44.81 Try to get me to imagine it. 00:28:44.84\00:28:46.26 Probably, the best example would be 00:28:46.29\00:28:48.37 a city like Los Angeles or Sydney 00:28:48.40\00:28:51.79 you know, where you have got-- 00:28:51.82\00:28:53.73 Why would you say Sydney? 00:28:53.76\00:28:55.20 Because you are from Australia and I just visited there. 00:28:55.23\00:28:57.85 And it's a beautiful city. 00:28:57.88\00:28:59.25 Oh, thank you. It's on my mind. 00:28:59.28\00:29:00.65 All right, let's talk about Sydney. 00:29:00.68\00:29:02.05 But you know when you think about the operation of a city 00:29:02.08\00:29:05.17 you have all kinds of different 00:29:05.20\00:29:07.22 activities taking place in the city. 00:29:07.25\00:29:10.01 And we are talking about just one cell. 00:29:10.04\00:29:12.07 Yes, exactly. 00:29:12.10\00:29:13.47 And so, and you have got 00:29:13.50\00:29:15.44 you know, there are aspects of the city 00:29:15.47\00:29:18.43 that are involved in producing the materials 00:29:18.46\00:29:21.47 that the city is going to need to operate their-- 00:29:21.50\00:29:22.93 Yeah, power 00:29:22.96\00:29:24.40 There's power been generated. 00:29:24.43\00:29:26.01 Getting rid of the garbage. That's right. 00:29:26.04\00:29:27.69 There's can't do its in terms of moving material 00:29:27.72\00:29:30.18 and people around you know. 00:29:30.21\00:29:32.05 And there is all these different activities 00:29:32.08\00:29:33.63 that are intergrated together. 00:29:33.66\00:29:35.33 How small is the cell? 00:29:35.36\00:29:36.73 Well, a cell, 00:29:36.76\00:29:38.13 a bacterium would be about a micron in length 00:29:38.16\00:29:44.18 and about a micron in width. 00:29:44.22\00:29:46.00 So that's about one millionth of a meter. 00:29:46.03\00:29:48.61 Well, it's going to take professor Venter 00:29:48.64\00:29:51.03 a while to make a cell starting from scratch. 00:29:51.06\00:29:55.53 Oh, yes, yeah. 00:29:55.56\00:29:56.93 The prospects of doing that 00:29:56.96\00:29:58.33 are much further away by all means. 00:29:58.36\00:30:01.92 Now in your book I have read about 00:30:01.95\00:30:05.05 and I have read about this before, 00:30:05.08\00:30:07.05 "Stanley Miller's Experiments" 00:30:07.08\00:30:10.24 when he tried to recreate life on the planet. 00:30:10.27\00:30:14.33 You know with electricity going through 00:30:14.36\00:30:16.60 different types of chemicals. That was big news. 00:30:16.63\00:30:22.37 But what about today, how far has it gone since then? 00:30:22.40\00:30:25.86 You don't hear about this anymore. 00:30:25.89\00:30:27.94 Yeah, well, you know people will say today 00:30:27.97\00:30:30.96 that the experiment that Stanley Miller did 00:30:30.99\00:30:34.53 which maybe one of the most famous experiments 00:30:34.56\00:30:36.66 in the history of science is of historic interest, 00:30:36.69\00:30:40.60 but it isn't really relevant 00:30:40.63\00:30:42.75 to try to explain how life came from non-life. 00:30:42.78\00:30:46.14 Because we know so much more about life 00:30:46.17\00:30:48.55 and it's not as simple as he even thought it was. 00:30:48.58\00:30:52.12 That's part of it and part of it too is 00:30:52.15\00:30:55.02 Stanley Miller at that time was trying to mimic 00:30:55.05\00:30:57.87 the early earth's conditions based on what they knew 00:30:57.90\00:31:00.64 at that time which was in the 1950s. 00:31:00.67\00:31:03.63 And so he filled up his glass apparatus 00:31:03.66\00:31:05.74 with ammonia and methane and hydrogen. 00:31:05.77\00:31:08.19 He was very careful to make sure no oxygen was present. 00:31:08.22\00:31:11.36 He had boiling water that simulated the earth's oceans 00:31:11.39\00:31:14.74 and was able to make amino acids 00:31:14.77\00:31:16.55 which were the building blocks for proteins. 00:31:16.58\00:31:19.82 Well, we now know that 00:31:19.85\00:31:21.36 the conditions of the early earth were probably 00:31:21.39\00:31:23.23 radically different from what Miller thought. 00:31:23.26\00:31:25.51 So science is moving on. Exactly. 00:31:25.54\00:31:28.32 And sometimes scientists are brave enough-- 00:31:28.35\00:31:31.41 many times they are brave enough to say, 00:31:31.44\00:31:33.87 "Well, we were wrong, we better move on." 00:31:33.90\00:31:37.63 And we are going to move on right now 00:31:37.66\00:31:39.70 because we going to have a message, ladies and gentlemen. 00:31:39.73\00:31:43.28 I am talking with Dr. Rana. 00:31:43.31\00:31:46.16 We are having a great time here at the Carter Report today. 00:31:46.19\00:31:49.46 And after this important message 00:31:49.49\00:31:51.64 I want you to come back 00:31:51.67\00:31:53.04 because we are going to talk about 00:31:53.07\00:31:54.76 the concept of intelligent design. 00:31:54.79\00:31:59.54 Many courts in the United States of America 00:31:59.57\00:32:01.86 have sort of thrown it out. 00:32:01.89\00:32:03.26 They say it's unscientific. Join us after this break. 00:32:03.29\00:32:08.07 The Carter Report is a self supporting ministry 00:32:10.15\00:32:13.39 with a global mission. 00:32:13.42\00:32:15.20 We believe that the most important thing 00:32:15.23\00:32:17.28 that we can do in this tremendous hour 00:32:17.31\00:32:19.93 is to tell people about the Lord Jesus Christ 00:32:19.96\00:32:23.32 because Jesus said, "I am the way, 00:32:23.35\00:32:25.98 the truth and the life." 00:32:26.01\00:32:27.77 We do not believe that this is business as usual. 00:32:27.80\00:32:31.64 We believe that we are living in the closing hours 00:32:31.67\00:32:35.06 in the history of this world. 00:32:35.09\00:32:36.87 Bless your heart, friend. 00:32:36.90\00:32:38.32 Look at the signs that are been fulfilled almost everyday. 00:32:38.35\00:32:42.18 The signs of the times are shouting at us. 00:32:42.21\00:32:45.26 And they are saying Jesus is coming soon. 00:32:45.29\00:32:48.71 I want you to be my partner in global mission. 00:32:48.74\00:32:52.18 I want you to be my partner 00:32:52.21\00:32:54.22 in helping to tell the world about the coming of Jesus. 00:32:54.25\00:32:57.85 I want you to be my partner in the preaching 00:32:57.88\00:33:01.01 of the distinctive truths of the 3Angels messages. 00:33:01.04\00:33:05.86 Please check us out 00:33:05.89\00:33:07.93 at the new Carter Report website, carterreport.org. 00:33:07.96\00:33:12.79 We have a special section whereby you can ask questions 00:33:12.82\00:33:17.46 and I will give you the answers 00:33:17.49\00:33:19.43 from the living Word of the living God. 00:33:19.46\00:33:23.09 That is the carterreport.org. 00:33:23.12\00:33:27.62 My friend, we want you to join us 00:33:27.65\00:33:30.49 in the mission to preach the gospel 00:33:30.52\00:33:33.27 in China, in India, in Australia, 00:33:33.30\00:33:37.03 in Africa, in the United States of America 00:33:37.06\00:33:40.60 wherever people are lost 00:33:40.63\00:33:42.67 and wherever people need to hear 00:33:42.70\00:33:44.82 the good news that Jesus saves. 00:33:44.85\00:33:48.75 Please check us out 00:33:48.78\00:33:50.15 the new carter report website, carterreport.org. 00:33:50.18\00:33:54.97 I want to hear from you today. 00:33:55.00\00:33:58.69 Dr. Rana, we are glad to have you with us here today 00:34:12.11\00:34:15.87 and we are very glad to have you here with us today. 00:34:15.90\00:34:18.60 We are talking about "Creating Life in the Lab." 00:34:18.63\00:34:22.88 Is God still necessary? 00:34:22.91\00:34:25.90 We are going to call this program Playing God 00:34:25.93\00:34:29.37 because that's what scientists are doing today, 00:34:29.40\00:34:31.50 but you need to get the evidence 00:34:31.53\00:34:34.44 because scientists seem to be moving on the road 00:34:34.47\00:34:36.99 to synthesizing life in the laboratory. 00:34:37.02\00:34:40.44 Some would tell us that this proves 00:34:40.47\00:34:42.62 that God is no longer necessary 00:34:42.65\00:34:45.19 and we can do it now in the laboratory. 00:34:45.22\00:34:47.96 I think what some people are going to say 00:34:47.99\00:34:49.36 if life is generated in the laboratory, 00:34:49.39\00:34:51.58 they are going to say, "Well, that proves there is no God." 00:34:51.61\00:34:54.04 What would you say, doctor? 00:34:54.07\00:34:56.50 Well, that's the great irony 00:34:56.53\00:34:57.90 because the very scientist who are making proclamations 00:34:57.93\00:35:01.82 are also the scientists who are demonstrating 00:35:01.85\00:35:04.51 I believe that apart from the work 00:35:04.54\00:35:07.03 of an intelligent agent life can't come from non-life 00:35:07.06\00:35:10.30 and so to me 00:35:10.33\00:35:11.70 this is the most powerful evidence for intelligent-- 00:35:11.73\00:35:13.82 Incredible. Incredible. Yes. 00:35:13.85\00:35:15.74 Because it's an empirical demonstration 00:35:15.77\00:35:19.06 in the laboratory time and time again 00:35:19.09\00:35:21.66 that the critical component to bringing 00:35:21.69\00:35:23.69 life from non-life is the work of a mind. 00:35:23.72\00:35:26.90 And you have got some of the best minds in the world. 00:35:26.93\00:35:29.28 Oh, yes. 00:35:29.31\00:35:30.68 So I want the university students 00:35:30.71\00:35:32.82 who are watching the telecast today 00:35:32.85\00:35:35.21 and your faith is being shaken 00:35:35.24\00:35:36.75 and you say, "Well, you know, we don't need God." 00:35:36.78\00:35:38.49 You better listen to this 00:35:38.52\00:35:40.03 because what's happening today in the lab is an evidence 00:35:40.06\00:35:43.96 that we need a great intelligent master designer. 00:35:43.99\00:35:49.14 Don't you think? Yes, that's exactly-- 00:35:49.17\00:35:51.10 This is what now the conclusion you have come to 00:35:51.13\00:35:53.53 and I believe you are right. 00:35:53.56\00:35:56.30 First, intelligent design is controversial. 00:35:56.33\00:36:01.81 It doesn't have a good connotations 00:36:01.84\00:36:04.30 we would like it to have, 00:36:04.33\00:36:06.37 it's been I believe declared by some of the courts unscientific. 00:36:06.40\00:36:13.72 Do you believe in intelligent design 00:36:13.75\00:36:18.45 and what about the book "Darwin's Black Box" 00:36:18.48\00:36:22.05 that I read 10 times. 00:36:22.08\00:36:23.77 I had to do that, so I could understand it? 00:36:23.80\00:36:26.54 But I like your book, but this a great book. 00:36:26.57\00:36:30.36 And the "Amazing Propeller," 00:36:30.39\00:36:32.11 you know what I am talking about? 00:36:32.14\00:36:33.51 Yes, exactly. 00:36:33.54\00:36:34.91 This little thing that goes through the water 00:36:34.94\00:36:36.31 and I got a speed boat 00:36:36.34\00:36:38.54 and you know I have got this great engine in it, 00:36:38.57\00:36:42.42 but nature's got these things too. 00:36:42.45\00:36:44.65 So tell me from your heart 00:36:44.68\00:36:48.09 and as a scientist your views on intelligent design. 00:36:48.12\00:36:52.68 Well, I thoroughly accept the notion 00:36:52.71\00:36:54.86 of intelligent design. So you do. 00:36:54.89\00:36:56.87 You thoroughly accept that notion. Yes. 00:36:56.90\00:36:58.97 And so does Hugh Ross. Yes. 00:36:59.00\00:37:00.66 And I think that's what the evidence shows. 00:37:00.69\00:37:02.47 The evidence shows that when you look at 00:37:02.50\00:37:05.03 whether it's the largest objects in the universe 00:37:05.06\00:37:07.27 or the smallest objects in the universe 00:37:07.30\00:37:09.47 that we have been talking about, 00:37:09.50\00:37:11.03 you see evidence that these things 00:37:11.06\00:37:12.77 have been put together by a mind. 00:37:12.80\00:37:15.11 In fact, one of the things I find 00:37:15.14\00:37:17.78 absolutely astounding as a biochemist is that 00:37:17.81\00:37:21.11 the way in which biochemical systems are structured, 00:37:21.14\00:37:24.36 the way they operate is identical to the designs 00:37:24.39\00:37:28.27 that we would make as human beings. 00:37:28.30\00:37:30.17 So systems and objects that we would make 00:37:30.20\00:37:32.93 have certain signatures that indicate a mind 00:37:32.96\00:37:36.25 was responsible for this system not nature 00:37:36.28\00:37:39.92 and we see those same features inside the cell. 00:37:39.95\00:37:42.21 But can not nature itself through 00:37:42.24\00:37:47.39 the laws of nature produce things. 00:37:47.42\00:37:54.09 You have got natural selection, we know that works. Yes. 00:37:54.12\00:37:59.04 You, of course, 00:37:59.07\00:38:00.44 you are an expert on the theory of the God of the gaps. 00:38:00.47\00:38:03.66 If you don't understand something you say, 00:38:03.69\00:38:05.90 "Well, it's supernatural." 00:38:05.93\00:38:07.61 We don't believe that. 00:38:07.64\00:38:09.49 We don't believe that everything we don't understand 00:38:09.52\00:38:11.46 has got to be supernatural, do we? 00:38:11.49\00:38:14.09 Well, to me I would argue that it's not God of the gaps 00:38:14.12\00:38:16.73 because we clearly don't want to make that argument that 00:38:16.76\00:38:19.58 if you can't explain it today we just insert God-- 00:38:19.61\00:38:22.76 Yeah, and that's dangerous. 00:38:22.79\00:38:24.45 And it makes believers to say these things rather Ludachrists. 00:38:24.48\00:38:29.09 That's right. Yeah. 00:38:29.12\00:38:30.49 But, but again when you couple the idea 00:38:30.52\00:38:34.01 that biochemical systems again look like 00:38:34.04\00:38:37.32 they are the work of a human mind, 00:38:37.35\00:38:39.14 they have the identical features to what we would produce 00:38:39.17\00:38:43.21 and then the work in the lab 00:38:43.24\00:38:45.87 in terms of trying to create life in a lab, 00:38:45.90\00:38:47.79 you have really two different lines of evidence 00:38:47.82\00:38:50.39 that are emerging together that are consistent 00:38:50.42\00:38:52.51 with the idea that life comes from a creator 00:38:52.54\00:38:55.21 that supports that idea I believe very powerfully, 00:38:55.24\00:38:58.37 but it's astounding to me we've been talking about DNA 00:38:58.40\00:39:03.30 but the way that DNA functions inside the cell 00:39:03.33\00:39:06.23 is literally like a computer system. 00:39:06.26\00:39:08.84 In fact, there is this British mathematician 00:39:08.87\00:39:12.44 who died a premature death name Alan Turing. 00:39:12.47\00:39:15.71 Yeah, I know, I know of it. You got a picture of him. 00:39:15.74\00:39:18.17 You sent me a picture. I did. 00:39:18.20\00:39:19.59 He's become to some degree my new hero 00:39:19.62\00:39:22.45 because he's the father of computer science 00:39:22.48\00:39:25.47 and he developed these things called Turing machines 00:39:25.50\00:39:28.05 where he said, a Turing machine is a machine 00:39:28.08\00:39:33.17 that takes a data input, transforms it 00:39:33.20\00:39:36.67 and then generates an output 00:39:36.70\00:39:39.07 and if you string these Turing machine together 00:39:39.10\00:39:41.34 you can take very simple operations 00:39:41.37\00:39:43.13 and make them incredibility complex. 00:39:43.16\00:39:45.46 Well, it turns out that the cells machinery 00:39:45.49\00:39:48.77 that manipulates DNA is an ensemble of Turing machines 00:39:48.80\00:39:53.32 and what's interesting is that 00:39:53.35\00:39:54.85 the Turing machines that computer scientist work with 00:39:54.88\00:39:58.06 are mental constructs they are not physical machines, 00:39:58.09\00:40:01.33 but inside the cell you have these physical Turing machines 00:40:01.36\00:40:05.89 that are working to carry out very complex operations 00:40:05.92\00:40:09.06 so much so that this computer scientist said 00:40:09.09\00:40:12.44 the university of Southern California, 00:40:12.47\00:40:14.28 Leonard Adleman recognized this 00:40:14.31\00:40:16.61 and founded a whole new area of nano-technology 00:40:16.64\00:40:19.73 called DNA computing where he's taking those principles 00:40:19.76\00:40:22.95 and he's building computers out of DNA. 00:40:22.98\00:40:26.07 He's building computers out of DNA. 00:40:26.10\00:40:28.17 Exactly, because the cell is functioning like a computer. 00:40:28.20\00:40:32.36 Do you hear this, building computers out of DNA? 00:40:32.39\00:40:33.91 Because the cell is functioning like a computer 00:40:33.94\00:40:36.97 which in its functioning in the same way 00:40:37.00\00:40:39.89 that Alan Turing in his mind conceived of it. 00:40:39.92\00:40:43.01 So to me that's extremely provocative in terms of 00:40:43.04\00:40:47.52 again the idea that life comes from the work of the mind. 00:40:47.55\00:40:51.53 And-- It's rather compelling. 00:40:51.56\00:40:54.02 Is it not true to say that a scientist who was an atheist 00:40:54.05\00:40:59.48 and who was dealing with all of these things 00:40:59.51\00:41:01.49 is a man of tremendous faith? 00:41:01.52\00:41:04.01 You have got to have a lot of faith 00:41:04.04\00:41:05.56 to believe there's no God. 00:41:05.59\00:41:06.96 Yeah, I think there's a pre-commitment to a world view. 00:41:06.99\00:41:09.62 There's a tremendous step of faith 00:41:09.65\00:41:14.05 to say after all of this evidence 00:41:14.08\00:41:16.97 and all these Turing machines or there's no Turing. 00:41:17.00\00:41:22.94 Now there are different forms of evolution. 00:41:22.97\00:41:28.82 There's micro evolution, we believe-- 00:41:28.85\00:41:31.61 you believe in micro evolution. 00:41:31.64\00:41:33.01 Yeah, I sure do. 00:41:33.04\00:41:34.41 I mean, every scientist has got to believe in that. 00:41:34.44\00:41:36.57 There was a time 00:41:36.60\00:41:37.97 when Christians didn't believe in micro evolution. 00:41:38.00\00:41:40.27 We believe that-- well, tell me. 00:41:40.30\00:41:44.48 You tell me what we believe. 00:41:44.51\00:41:46.53 What is micro evolution? 00:41:46.56\00:41:47.93 Like a peppered moth that everybody is familiar with 00:41:47.96\00:41:49.97 whose wings change from light to dark and dark to light 00:41:50.00\00:41:52.92 based on industrial pollutant 00:41:52.95\00:41:54.82 in the environment that's micro revolution. 00:41:54.85\00:41:56.53 It's a fact. Yeah. 00:41:56.56\00:41:57.93 Or the Galapagos finches, 00:41:57.96\00:41:59.33 you know where one finch gives rise to 00:41:59.36\00:42:01.90 a number of closely related finches. Yes. 00:42:01.93\00:42:03.96 And viruses becoming resistant to antibiotics. 00:42:03.99\00:42:07.92 Yeah. So this well established. 00:42:07.95\00:42:09.79 Its not-- I don't this it contradicts 00:42:09.82\00:42:12.33 the notion of a creator been responsible for that. 00:42:12.36\00:42:14.21 Not at all. Not at all. 00:42:14.24\00:42:15.87 But let's talk about macro evolution 00:42:15.90\00:42:18.61 and the time restrains. 00:42:18.64\00:42:21.10 Now for macro evolution to operate 00:42:21.13\00:42:25.05 you need massive periods of time. Yes. 00:42:25.08\00:42:29.64 And more than this if we press Richard Dawkins 00:42:29.67\00:42:33.96 and I don't doubt that he's an honest man. 00:42:33.99\00:42:36.52 We shouldn't say a person is not honest 00:42:36.55\00:42:38.43 because they don't think the same as we do. 00:42:38.46\00:42:41.10 But Richard Dawkins as an honest man 00:42:41.13\00:42:44.07 must be forced to concede 00:42:44.10\00:42:46.64 that he doesn't know how life started. 00:42:46.67\00:42:49.37 In fact, no scientist knows. No. 00:42:49.40\00:42:50.96 Knows how life started. No. 00:42:50.99\00:42:52.80 This in a sense-- From the lab nobody knows. 00:42:52.83\00:42:55.79 You know, there's been work 00:42:55.82\00:42:57.19 over the last 60-65 years on this question 00:42:57.22\00:43:00.29 and there's not been 00:43:00.32\00:43:01.69 any genuine progress that's been made. 00:43:01.72\00:43:03.53 A lot of work has been done, 00:43:03.56\00:43:04.96 a lot of ideas have been floated 00:43:04.99\00:43:06.84 but there's been no genuine progress 00:43:06.87\00:43:09.06 in my mind explaining the origin of life. 00:43:09.09\00:43:11.99 Well, talk to me now, 00:43:12.02\00:43:13.39 tell me the weaknesses you have seen in the theory of evolution, 00:43:13.42\00:43:19.28 macro evolution because of the time constraints 00:43:19.31\00:43:23.21 that we know exists for life to evolve. 00:43:23.24\00:43:26.67 Well, for example 00:43:26.70\00:43:28.65 as soon as the earth is capable of supporting life 00:43:28.68\00:43:31.29 we see that life appears in a geological instant. 00:43:31.32\00:43:34.97 And it just again it appears suddenly 00:43:35.00\00:43:38.39 and the very first life forms that appear on earth 00:43:38.42\00:43:41.24 are simple single cell bacteria like we have been talking about, 00:43:41.27\00:43:46.34 but even though again 00:43:46.37\00:43:48.02 they appear superficially to be simple. 00:43:48.05\00:43:50.34 They are incredibly complex organisms 00:43:50.37\00:43:53.25 and so this sudden appearance of intrinsically complex life. 00:43:53.28\00:43:57.33 And every scientist has got to concede that this is so. 00:43:57.36\00:44:02.00 Yes, this is well established. 00:44:02.03\00:44:03.76 So what we are talking here now, 00:44:03.79\00:44:05.89 we are going to use the arguments 00:44:05.92\00:44:10.10 that are often used against us. 00:44:10.13\00:44:14.93 Because every scientist will agree that life appears 00:44:14.96\00:44:19.73 apparently suddenly on the planet 00:44:19.76\00:44:23.34 over very short period of time and its complex life 00:44:23.37\00:44:30.35 and it doesn't seem impossible, is this true? 00:44:30.38\00:44:32.47 Doesn't seem impossible that life going through 00:44:32.50\00:44:35.56 the process of evolution could reach such a stage? 00:44:35.59\00:44:39.68 Yes, and that rapidly. No. 00:44:39.71\00:44:42.72 And so this is to me one of the big problems 00:44:42.75\00:44:45.54 with trying to explain the origin of life. 00:44:45.57\00:44:48.50 And don't scientists recognize this in the theory of, 00:44:48.53\00:44:51.43 what is it Panspermia or Tanspermia, what is it called? 00:44:51.46\00:44:54.12 Yeah, Panspermia. Yeah, Panspermia. 00:44:54.15\00:44:56.09 Tell us about why do they have this idea of Panspermia? 00:44:56.12\00:44:57.99 Well, the idea is that 00:44:58.02\00:44:59.56 if there's not time for life to evolve on earth 00:44:59.59\00:45:02.50 if it appears suddenly then they argue, 00:45:02.53\00:45:04.61 well, maybe life didn't appear on earth. 00:45:04.64\00:45:06.90 It appeared somewhere else in our solar system. 00:45:06.93\00:45:09.76 Or even beyond our solar system and was transported to earth 00:45:09.79\00:45:13.29 and so when life appears on earth 00:45:13.32\00:45:16.10 for the first time it's not its origin on earth, 00:45:16.13\00:45:18.89 but its delivery to earth. Yeah. 00:45:18.92\00:45:21.54 But while this idea of panspermia 00:45:21.57\00:45:24.41 has been bantered around, 00:45:24.44\00:45:26.69 there not a whole lot of scientists 00:45:26.72\00:45:28.31 that think it has a lot of credibility, 00:45:28.34\00:45:30.84 because you are just simply postponing 00:45:30.87\00:45:32.83 the problems someplace else. 00:45:32.86\00:45:34.94 Now you're not really solving the problem. 00:45:34.97\00:45:36.63 No, it's true. 00:45:36.66\00:45:38.03 The transport mechanisms just simply don't work. 00:45:38.06\00:45:41.47 But is not an admission that the theory of the evolution 00:45:41.50\00:45:45.98 as it is taught has filed at least on this planet? 00:45:46.01\00:45:49.53 Yes, that is one way you can think of that, 00:45:49.56\00:45:52.15 about that and I think it's legitimate-- 00:45:52.18\00:45:53.56 And so there's not enough time on this planet, 00:45:53.59\00:45:56.56 even with billions of years there's not enough time 00:45:56.59\00:45:59.91 therefore it happened somewhere else. 00:45:59.94\00:46:02.01 Yes, exactly. 00:46:02.04\00:46:03.41 And this motivates NASA somewhat. 00:46:03.44\00:46:05.70 Is that true? It does. 00:46:05.73\00:46:07.45 I mean, the big thrust of NASA 00:46:07.48\00:46:09.51 at least with regard to its sciences to look for life 00:46:09.54\00:46:12.90 in our solar system and beyond. Yeah. 00:46:12.93\00:46:15.18 And, you know, they're convinced 00:46:15.21\00:46:16.62 that there has to be life everywhere. 00:46:16.65\00:46:18.92 But yet, I've not seen anything 00:46:18.95\00:46:21.04 coming from NASA that is compelling-- 00:46:21.07\00:46:23.13 No. Towards that end. 00:46:23.16\00:46:24.71 There's almost a fanatical religious zeal 00:46:24.74\00:46:29.04 to find an evidence of life on other planets, 00:46:29.07\00:46:32.17 so that they can say, 00:46:32.20\00:46:33.57 well, may I use the word they wouldn't use, Hallelujah. 00:46:33.60\00:46:38.91 It couldn't start here 00:46:38.94\00:46:40.31 because it wasn't enough time, but it started there 00:46:40.34\00:46:43.04 and therefore we have saved the theory of Darwinism 00:46:43.07\00:46:47.09 and the theory of evolution. 00:46:47.12\00:46:49.84 Now, tell us about-- 00:46:49.87\00:46:53.51 are you folks getting this, not enough time 00:46:53.54\00:46:56.26 according to the arguments of the evolutionists, 00:46:56.29\00:46:59.00 the life to happen on the earth and if there was, 00:46:59.03\00:47:02.42 how did it happen and nobody knows? 00:47:02.45\00:47:05.12 Haven't got a clue, I'll tell you. 00:47:05.15\00:47:07.69 Tell us about the Origin of Life program 00:47:07.72\00:47:13.18 because these are being going-- 00:47:13.21\00:47:14.58 haven't they for about 50 years or something? 00:47:14.61\00:47:16.26 Yes. Have you been along? 00:47:16.29\00:47:17.85 Yes, yes, I mean, you know, this has been a program 00:47:17.88\00:47:23.38 that's been a vigorous program for the last 50, 65 years now. 00:47:23.41\00:47:28.69 And I've been to a number of meetings, 00:47:28.72\00:47:31.64 I've actually even written 00:47:31.67\00:47:33.04 articles for Origin of Life journals 00:47:33.07\00:47:35.82 where I've been critical of specific aspects of the model. 00:47:35.85\00:47:39.82 And they publish this? Yes, they have. 00:47:39.85\00:47:41.22 That's good, isn't it? That is, they are-- 00:47:41.25\00:47:44.46 It's an interesting group of people 00:47:44.49\00:47:46.03 because everybody has their own ideas 00:47:46.06\00:47:48.87 which in and of themselves 00:47:48.90\00:47:50.41 are not necessarily the most robust ideas 00:47:50.44\00:47:53.51 and they are very quick to criticize one another's ideas. 00:47:53.54\00:47:55.96 Which is good. Which is good. 00:47:55.99\00:47:57.37 Yeah, that's honesty. 00:47:57.40\00:47:58.77 Yes, the matter of fact is that everybody realizes 00:47:58.80\00:48:02.37 that no matter what model they float 00:48:02.40\00:48:05.26 to try to explain chemical evolution, 00:48:05.29\00:48:08.08 there is always deficiencies 00:48:08.11\00:48:09.74 and so again there's not 00:48:09.77\00:48:11.19 a whole lot of progress being made. 00:48:11.22\00:48:13.54 Is it true and this analogy has been used? 00:48:13.57\00:48:17.62 I think the author of Darwin's "Black Box" use it 00:48:17.65\00:48:22.94 he said, "You make a discovery, you open a door. 00:48:22.97\00:48:26.87 Ah, this it great? We've got this." 00:48:26.90\00:48:29.38 So you open the door, 00:48:29.41\00:48:30.78 there's a corridor there that's thousand miles long. 00:48:30.81\00:48:34.68 And you walk down this corridor 00:48:34.71\00:48:36.51 and there's doors on either side of you. 00:48:36.54\00:48:38.95 And so you say, well, okay, you get down this long corridor, 00:48:38.98\00:48:42.84 then you open the last door and there's another corridor. 00:48:42.87\00:48:46.94 So really am I getting any closer 00:48:46.97\00:48:50.75 to solving the mystery of life without God? 00:48:50.78\00:48:54.36 No, I don't think so. 00:48:54.39\00:48:55.91 I think in fact the more that this problem is being researched 00:48:55.94\00:49:01.75 I think the more compelling the case is 00:49:01.78\00:49:05.42 for intelligent design, you know, 00:49:05.45\00:49:08.85 what's being discovered 00:49:08.88\00:49:10.25 particularly in the last 10 years or so, 00:49:10.28\00:49:12.05 I think is really raising questions as to whether or not 00:49:12.08\00:49:16.69 again life could come from non-life through chemical means 00:49:16.72\00:49:20.71 and raising those questions in a very serious way 00:49:20.74\00:49:23.30 and it's really a philosophical commitment 00:49:23.33\00:49:26.03 to a particular world view that I think fuels 00:49:26.06\00:49:30.28 the research today more so than anything else. 00:49:30.31\00:49:33.60 When I've been reading through your book, 00:49:33.63\00:49:35.17 I was delighted to discover that there are some pictures also. 00:49:35.20\00:49:38.61 Because here we've got pictures of a membrane 00:49:41.14\00:49:44.79 and we've got cells and when you look at this, 00:49:44.82\00:49:49.96 one's mind is overwhelmed 00:49:52.30\00:49:57.33 by the intricacy and the complexity 00:49:57.36\00:50:05.32 and so there's not enough time 00:50:05.35\00:50:07.17 I know for these things to happen, 00:50:07.20\00:50:08.90 there's not enough time in the universe 00:50:08.93\00:50:11.17 for these things to happen. 00:50:11.20\00:50:13.40 And to me it is a compelling evidence 00:50:13.43\00:50:17.14 that there must be an intelligent designer 00:50:17.17\00:50:20.68 who has all power and all might 00:50:20.71\00:50:25.44 and the wonderful thing is He has given us a book 00:50:25.47\00:50:28.66 and the book tells us He is interested in us 00:50:28.69\00:50:31.24 and He loves us and we are not alone in the universe. 00:50:31.27\00:50:35.76 Doctor, we admire your work, 00:50:35.79\00:50:38.53 tell me this, what would you say 00:50:38.56\00:50:41.40 to a young person attending university 00:50:41.43\00:50:43.46 and being bombarded by atheistic evolution, 00:50:43.49\00:50:47.40 possibly, by good professors who are nice guys, 00:50:47.43\00:50:50.65 can one believe in the creator 00:50:50.68\00:50:53.19 and still be intellectually respectable? 00:50:53.22\00:50:57.06 I think so. Duncan says no. 00:50:57.09\00:50:59.71 I think you can because I think 00:50:59.74\00:51:01.44 when you look at the way nature is put together, 00:51:01.47\00:51:04.34 whether it's when you study astronomy 00:51:04.37\00:51:06.65 or you study biochemistry-- Yes. 00:51:06.68\00:51:08.73 Everywhere you look, you see overwhelming evidence 00:51:08.76\00:51:12.06 for again God's fingerprints for the work of a mind 00:51:12.09\00:51:17.39 and you just see an incredible beauty 00:51:17.42\00:51:20.52 to the created order that is awe-inspiring 00:51:20.55\00:51:24.17 that I think is consistent with statements in Scripture 00:51:24.20\00:51:28.98 such as the heavens declare the glory of God 00:51:29.01\00:51:31.75 or look at the wondrous works that God has done. 00:51:31.78\00:51:35.73 So here is evidence for an intelligent mind to believe 00:51:35.76\00:51:39.48 and being a Christian is not to be equated 00:51:39.51\00:51:42.95 with being simple or foolish 00:51:42.98\00:51:49.59 or some would say in their sarcasm, stupid. 00:51:49.62\00:51:54.79 "You have got to be stupid to believe this." 00:51:54.82\00:51:57.17 Because as the evidence comes in 00:51:57.20\00:51:58.95 we see the outworking of a mighty mind. 00:51:58.98\00:52:02.81 Can you comment on the statement, 00:52:02.84\00:52:05.28 "It is not a case of nature against Scripture, 00:52:05.31\00:52:09.27 but rather a case of science against theology? 00:52:09.30\00:52:14.23 Have Christians and the church tour era, 00:52:14.26\00:52:19.35 have scientist held invalid and false ideas." 00:52:19.38\00:52:23.46 it's a long question, it's a series of questions, 00:52:23.49\00:52:26.08 and what is bigotry? 00:52:26.11\00:52:28.70 Yeah, well, you know, to me 00:52:28.73\00:52:30.10 I believe that God has revealed Himself to us. Yes. 00:52:30.13\00:52:34.07 And the Bible represents that revelation to us 00:52:34.10\00:52:36.98 and as we read through the Bible 00:52:37.01\00:52:38.40 we discover that it also teaches us 00:52:38.43\00:52:41.23 that God has revealed Himself to us through His creation. Yes. 00:52:41.26\00:52:44.94 And so both the creation and the words of scripture 00:52:44.97\00:52:48.42 have to be in agreement with each other. Yes, indeed. 00:52:48.45\00:52:50.72 And that is our commitment but we also recognize 00:52:50.75\00:52:54.09 that we are fallible human beings. Yes. 00:52:54.12\00:52:56.07 Who are reading God's Word and drawing interpretations 00:52:56.10\00:52:59.69 that may or may not be correct. Yes. 00:52:59.72\00:53:01.67 We are studying nature as scientists 00:53:01.70\00:53:03.99 and the conclusions we draw may or may not be correct 00:53:04.02\00:53:07.51 and so, well, we believe there's always going to be harmony 00:53:07.54\00:53:11.21 between God's Word and God's revelation 00:53:11.24\00:53:14.71 through nature. Two books. 00:53:14.74\00:53:16.86 We also recognize that there can be points of disagreement 00:53:16.89\00:53:21.33 when people interpret nature through the process of science 00:53:21.36\00:53:24.53 or interpret scripture through biblical studies 00:53:24.56\00:53:27.54 and through theology 00:53:27.57\00:53:29.10 and so when there's conflict that arises, 00:53:29.13\00:53:31.29 we have to have the humility on both sides. Yeah. 00:53:31.32\00:53:34.61 As scientists and Christians to say, 00:53:34.64\00:53:36.38 maybe our interpretations are wrong. Yeah. 00:53:36.41\00:53:38.73 And let's revisit and work harder. 00:53:38.76\00:53:40.95 We are not infallible. Let's keep open minds. 00:53:40.98\00:53:43.82 The last question is the most important one. 00:53:43.85\00:53:46.71 What do you think of Christ? 00:53:46.74\00:53:48.25 Well, I think of Christ as being my Lord and my Savior 00:53:48.28\00:53:53.12 that He is also the creator who brought the universe 00:53:53.15\00:53:57.39 into existence and so I love Jesus Christ and-- 00:53:57.42\00:54:01.93 And do you have everlasting life? 00:54:01.96\00:54:03.71 I believe I do in Jesus' life, 00:54:03.74\00:54:07.26 death, and resurrection. Yes. 00:54:07.29\00:54:09.10 And so I put my trust in His work on the cross 00:54:09.13\00:54:12.24 and love Jesus and seek to serve Him. 00:54:12.27\00:54:16.10 And if we trust Him, 00:54:16.13\00:54:17.50 it doesn't depend upon us so much, 00:54:17.53\00:54:21.82 doesn't depend upon our good works and our righteousness, 00:54:21.85\00:54:25.22 it depends upon His good works and His righteousness. 00:54:25.25\00:54:29.36 You know, it's amazing that the God 00:54:29.39\00:54:30.95 who made everything is a God who is also interested in us 00:54:30.98\00:54:35.30 and He has loved us so much that He was willing 00:54:35.33\00:54:38.44 to go out of His way to redeem us from our falling. 00:54:38.47\00:54:43.82 Only an infinite God could have devised the plan of salvation. 00:54:43.85\00:54:48.48 And as you said before reading through the Bible, 00:54:48.51\00:54:52.04 the New Testament, nobody could have thought up 00:54:52.07\00:54:55.58 to the person of Christ, Christ Himself, 00:54:55.61\00:54:58.97 our Lord and our Savior whom we recommend to you today 00:54:59.00\00:55:03.38 is the greatest reason why you can believe in God. 00:55:03.41\00:55:09.70 Doctor Rana, it has been 00:55:09.73\00:55:11.87 a great pleasure to have you with us today. 00:55:11.90\00:55:14.56 We look upon you as a colleague in Christ, 00:55:14.59\00:55:17.25 as a distinguished scientist. 00:55:17.28\00:55:20.62 We appreciate our friend, Hugh Ross and the team 00:55:20.65\00:55:24.62 and that you're endeavoring to give people 00:55:24.65\00:55:26.78 reasons to believe in God. Thank you. 00:55:26.81\00:55:29.55 And so we have enjoyed having you here today. 00:55:29.58\00:55:32.50 Thank you for having me. It's really good. 00:55:32.53\00:55:35.67 I want to thank you today for joining us 00:55:35.70\00:55:38.44 for this intellectually, stimulating conversation, 00:55:38.47\00:55:42.95 but more than that we have been 00:55:42.98\00:55:45.62 thinking God's thoughts after Him 00:55:45.65\00:55:47.65 as we have seen scientists in the laboratory playing God. 00:55:47.68\00:55:52.36 We have discovered that there is a God who loves you. 00:55:52.39\00:55:55.32 Please write to me today, 00:55:55.35\00:55:56.72 John Carter, Post Office box 1900, 00:55:56.75\00:55:59.40 Thousand Oaks, California, 91358. 00:55:59.43\00:56:02.53 In Australia, write to the address at Terrigal. 00:56:02.56\00:56:05.31 Until next time God bless you. 00:56:05.34\00:56:08.10 We will live in the light of the risen Lamb 00:56:11.28\00:56:18.78 See over there, there's a mansion prepared just for me 00:56:19.88\00:56:27.38 Where I can live with my Savior eternally 00:56:28.44\00:56:36.44 There will be no more night no more pain 00:56:38.96\00:56:46.96 I said no more tears never crying no crying 00:56:49.62\00:56:57.12 And praises to the great I am 00:56:58.29\00:57:06.29 We will live in the light of the risen Lamb 00:57:06.32\00:57:14.29 We will live in the light of the risen Lamb 00:57:21.95\00:57:29.95