Who Is Behind It All?

HACKING his way through the jungle in Cambodia, Henri Mouhot, a 19th-century French explorer, reached a broad moat surrounding a temple. Half a mile from where he stood, the five towers of the temple soared more than 200 feet [60 m] into the air. It was Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument on earth. It had already withstood the elements for seven centuries when Mouhot discovered it.

Mouhot could tell at a glance that the moss-covered structures were the work of human hands. “Erected by some ancient Michelangelo, it is grander than anything left to us by Greece or Rome,” he wrote. Despite their having been abandoned for centuries, he had no doubt that behind the magnificent structures, there was a designer.

Interestingly, a book of wisdom written centuries ago used similar reasoning to explain why the world around us must be the product of a Designer. It must have been created. The apostle Paul wrote: “Of course, every house is constructed by someone, but he that constructed all things is God.” (Hebrews 3:4) Some may disagree with this analogy, saying: ‘The workings of nature are different from what is man-made.’ However, not all scientists agree with that objection. After conceding that “biochemical systems aren’t inanimate objects,” Michael Behe, associate professor of biochemistry at Lehigh University, asks: “Can living biochemical systems be intelligently designed?” He goes on to show that scientists are now designing basic changes in living organisms through such methods as genetic engineering. Clearly, both inanimate and animate things can be designed and engineered! Delving into the microscopic world of living cells, Behe discusses the amazingly complex systems made up of components that are dependent on one another to function. His conclusion? “The result of these cumulative efforts to investigate the cell—to investigate life at the molecular level—is a loud, clear, piercing cry of ‘design!’”

Cosmologists and physicists have likewise taken a hard look at the world and the universe and have come up with some astonishing facts. For example, they now know that if there had been even an infinitesimal change in the value of any of the universal constants, the universe would be lifeless.a Cosmologist Brandon Carter called these facts astonishing coincidences. But if you came across a series of mysterious, interconnected coincidences, would you not at least be suspicious that somebody was behind them?

Indeed, there is a Designer behind all these complex systems and finely tuned “coincidences.” Who? “Identifying the designer by scientific methods might be extremely difficult,” admits Professor Behe, and he leaves the question to “philosophy and theology” to try to answer. You personally may feel that the question is irrelevant to you. However, if you received a nicely wrapped package filled with exactly what you needed, would you not want to find out who sent it to you?

We have, so to speak, received such a package—a package filled with wonderful gifts that make it possible for us to live and enjoy life. That package is the earth, with all its remarkable systems for sustaining life. Should we not want to find out who gave us these gifts?

Happily, the Sender of the package attached a note with it. The “note” is that ancient book of wisdom quoted previously—the Bible. In its opening words, the Bible answers with remarkable simplicity and clarity the question of who gave us the package: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”—Genesis 1:1.

In his “note” the Creator identifies himself by name: “This is what the true God, Jehovah, has said, the Creator of the heavens . . . , the One laying out the earth and its produce, the One giving breath to the people on it.” (Isaiah 42:5) Yes, Jehovah is the name of the God who designed the universe and made men and women on the earth. But who is Jehovah? What kind of God is he? And why should all the peoples of the earth listen to him?

[Footnote]

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Angkor Wat was built by men

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When you receive a gift, do you not want to know who sent it?