1st English edition 19992nd Expanded and updated English edition 2003

© of the German editionWerner Gitt: Faszination Mensch1996 by CLV · Christliche Literatur-VerbreitungPostfach 110135 · D-33661 Bielefeld, Germany

© of the English edition1999 by CLV · Christliche Literatur-VerbreitungPostfach 110135 · D-33661 BielefeldTranslation: Prof. Dr Jaap Kies, Dr Carl Wieland,

Dörte Götz, Veronika AbrahamCorrections: Dr Carl WielandTypography: Enns Schrift & Bild, BielefeldCover and Design: Dieter Otten, GummersbachPrinted in Germany: by Matthiesen Druck, Bielefeld

ISBN 3-89397-397-4

Christliche Literatur-Verbreitung e.V.Postfach 11 01 35 · 33661 Bielefeld · Germany

The Wonderof Man

6

Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Additional foreword to the English edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Part 1 Man – an ingenious constructionOur sense organs – brilliantly designed tools for perception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11The eye – our window to the outside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12The ear – our highest-precision sense organ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21The sense of smell – beyond words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30The sense of taste – not just for connoisseurs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35The sense of touch – it’s all over the skin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Our sense organs – in this world and the next . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45The heart – more than a high-tech pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49The blood – a universal transport medium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57The kidneys – marvels of filtration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67The cells – our body’s 100 million million building blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72DNA – information storage technology way beyond computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75The brain – the most complex structure in the universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81Body, soul, and spirit – man is more than just matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Contents

7

Part 2 What is man?Man: The image of God? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99Like God, we can speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100Like God, we can think . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101Like God, we can write . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102Like God, we are creative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103Like God, we can appreciate and create beautiful things . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103Like God, we have our own will . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103Like God, we can evaluate and judge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104Like God, we can love . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104Like God, we can be faithful and true . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104We are able to commune with God, just as He communes with us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105Further human characteristics which distinguish us from the animals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105Does God also have sense organs? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107Every person – known to God? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Man after the fall – a distorted image . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112A very special man: Jesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115God is calling everyone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118Two maritime parables – the Gustloff and the Titanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120Details of the Gustloff and the Titanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126Personal testimonies: Jesus found through a book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129From Auschwitz to Christ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129A book that caused a restless night . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129Through babywear to faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130Questions looking for answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131Getting your name in the “Book of Life” – how does it happen ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135Every believer: Beloved of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140Man in Heaven: sharing the glory of Jesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143What about hell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143What do we know about heaven? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1451 Heaven is the place where we will be perfectly happy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1462 Heaven is a place of pleasure for the senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1463 Heaven is the place of everlasting celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1474 Heaven is a beautiful place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1485 Heaven is where our lives will be fulfilled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1496 Heaven is a home for us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1497 Heaven is a place where we shall reign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1508 Heaven is the place where Jesus is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1509 Heaven is where we become like Jesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

10 Heaven is something special to look forward to . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151Abbreviations used for the books of the Bible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154Technical bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154Copyrights and acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155About the author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155Other books by the author (and available in English) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

cern ourselves with the body of some specialperson of extraordinary ability and achievement,but with the faculties we all have in common. Wewill take a closer look at just some of the wonder-ful and ingeniously planned details of the humanbody. You will be amazed, to say the least, anda little thought will lead you to some vitallyimportant conclusions.

Plan of this book: There are two main parts. In thefirst, many amazing details of the human bodyare presented, showing that we are wonderfullymade. This automatically leads to the question:Whose plans and ideas are incorporated in thiswonderful construction; who made us?

There are essentially only two possible answers:Either I am the result of blind physical and chemi-cal processes planned by nobody, or I was madeby an incredibly brilliant Creator. A closer look atthe human body can help us to come to theappropriate conclusion.

The many numbers given in the first part for vari-ous values require a note of clarification: Text-books and scientific articles often give divergentvalues for these. This is firstly because there is somuch variation between individuals. Also, becausemany of the numbers are so large (e.g. the num-ber of cells in the body), they can only be esti-mated or calculated indirectly. So it is not sur-prising that the numbers vary from source tosource.

In the second part of the book we discuss ques-tions about the essence of man: Why are we likewe are? Why do we behave as we do? Why hasno ideology succeeded in improving man? Whatis our future? Is death the end of everything? Isthere an eternity? If so – what can we expect?

What would you expect from a book called TheWonder of Man? In German the title is Faszina-tion Mensch. What fascinates you – what do yousee as wonderful? The work of some greatpainter, a virtuoso singer or musician? Or perhapsit is a sensational athletic achievement, or somemarvellous technological advance.

This book is concerned with the general question:What is man? What is a human being? A sciencewriter gave the following answer:

“Man is a wonderful, inconceivably complex being.Consider the facts: A chemical factory, an electri-cal network, climate control, filtration plant – allthese controlled centrally by the brain, a thinkingcomputer with the additional ability of loving andhating. Our organism keeps itself alive for severaldecades, and through various control mecha-nisms, operates almost without friction. We con-sist of a hundred million million microscopicparts, all of which are fantastically fine-tuned to,and co-operatively integrated with, each other.When healthy, these parts are continuously reju-venated and can even repair themselves.

“This entire marvellous body is kept in operationby a fist-sized pump, the heart, which beats100,000 times a day and transports nourishmentthroughout the entire body by means of fivelitres of blood. The volume of air passing throughour lungs during the course of a day is about20,000 litres. This provides the necessary oxygen,and the unwanted gases are exhaled at the sametime. The normal operating temperature is 37degrees Celsius. Unfortunately, like everythingelse, it is subject to wear and tear.

“The human body can be investigated with amagnification factor of 200,000 by means ofelectron microscopes, which enable us to observenearly all its deepest recesses.”

Some of the aspects mentioned above warrantcloser consideration. In this book we won‘t con-

8

Foreword

While the first part emphasises scientific knowl-edge, in the second part the Bible takes a morecentral role. Bible quotes are from the New Inter-national Version except where otherwise stated.

Readership and purpose of this book: No specialreadership is intended. The many amazing detailsof the human frame will likely interest everyone,regardless of age, level of education, gender, oroccupation. In this book scientific facts are linkedto biblical affirmations. The main purpose of thebook is to bring seekers, doubters, atheists andagnostics to faith. By faith is not meant somevague, universal religious impulse, but true savingfaith in the Redeemer, Jesus Christ. For this reasonthe necessary space is devoted to explaining boththe necessity of redemption and the way of salva-tion. Those who follow through will indeed see thewonder and fascination of not only the factsabout their own selves, but also by the amazingCreator Who made us and told us through hisprophet: “Since you are precious and honored inmy sight, and because I love you...” (Is 43:4).

Acknowledgement and thanks: After discussingeverything with my wife, as usual, the manuscriptwas scrutinised by Dr Jutta Nemitz (Braunschweig)and by Andreas Wolff (Giessen). Our son, Carsten,prepared some cartoons concerning our senseorgans. I am grateful to all involved for their val-ued assistance. Finally, I thank CLV-Verlag fortheir constructive critiques and pleasant cooper-ation in the production of this illustrated publi-cation.

Werner Gitt

Additional forewordto the English edition

As author, I am delighted that this book is nowappearing in the English language. The initialstrenuous work of translation was done by Prof.Dr Jaap Kies (South Africa). He was assisted intranslation of the many technical medical termsby Dr Desmond Stumpf and Dr Johannes Stein-berg. Rudolf Steinberg Pr. Eng. was of great sup-

port by looking up the original English citationsin libraries, where the text originated from atranslation into German.

The main purpose of the book is to win peoplefor heaven. It is thus necessary to explain thenature of heaven in some detail. The originalGerman book only devoted two pages to thiscentral theme, so for the English version, thesewere replaced with a substantially expanded sec-tion. I am thankful to Dörte Götz, MA, for trans-lating this chapter. She has a degree in Englishand Russian translation from the University ofHeidelberg (Germany). Veronika Abraham, pursu-ing studies towards a BA in History and Philoso-phy at Queen’s University in Canada, also helpedwith translating this chapter. Sarah Jayne Cur-tius, BA, was born in Britain and completed Ger-man and English language studies in Sheffield.She has reviewed this chapter stylistically, mak-ing refinements where necessary.

Finally, my friend Dr Carl Wieland (Australia)went through the entire translated manuscript indetail, checking against the original and correct-ing as necessary from both a medical and styl-istic viewpoint, as well as translating a numberof additional sections I provided for the variouschapters. Dr Wieland is the director of the world-renowned organisation for creation science/research‚ “Answers in Genesis” in Brisbane (Aus-tralia). He is editor of their brilliantly presentedand colourful English-language magazine “Crea-tion ex Nihilo” (print run > 50,000) which hassubscribers in more than 120 countries.

To all who have helped in any way in bringingabout the publication of this edition, I extend mywarmest thanks.

Werner Gitt November 1998

9

Part 1:Man – an ingeniousconstruction

– brilliantly designed toolsfor perception Our senses are our windows on the externalworld. Only via this ’radar network’ of our sensescan we observe, recognise, experience and under-stand our world. Our senses determine the quali-ty of our conscious life, and influence many ofour decisions. Input from our senses can triggera wide range of emotions in us; for example joy,happiness, peace and contentment, but also pain,fear, anger and sorrow.

We can extend the limits of our sensory capacitiesby means of technological aids like microscopes,telescopes, and stethoscopes. Our senses are ona continual voyage of discovery. A large part ofour lives is spent on treating our senses to new,special experiences. We undertake long journeysto visit new countries, so as to experience distantdeserts, mountains, lakes or beaches. We visit thezoo, movies or the theatre; we listen to classicalmusic or pop concerts, buy exotic perfumes, orspend money on culinary delights. Whenever wewillingly pay high admission fees, it is becausewe want to give our senses some special treat.

Clearly, the quality of our human experience is inlarge measure determined by our senses. So wewill take an extensive look at not only the manyabilities of our sense organs, but also the detailsof their construction.

Our sense organs

11

– our window to the outside

We read in the Bible that “The eye never hasenough of seeing” (Eccl 1:8). The eye is actuallyone of our most important sense organs, sincewell over half of all the information we take inabout our surroundings comes to us by way ofour eyes. Through being able to perceive incidentlight, we can read letters, newspapers, and books;marvel at the colours of a blossom, the per-spectives of a landscape, the beauty of a dress, orthe artistic appeal of a painting. But especially,we can see our loved ones and others whom weencounter in our daily lives. The German word forface is Gesicht which means the same as visionor sight. The English (and French) word visage,also meaning face, similarly refers to seeing(from the Latin videre = to see).

Physiologically speaking, seventy percent of allour sense receptors are located in the eyes. Inreality, we evaluate and understand our worldmostly from being able to see it. That’s why,despite all their differences, all human languagesare rich in visual imagery. Figures of speech andproverbs, though conveying abstract meanings,are often easily visualised, like: “Up to one’s neckin debt”; “Carrying your heart on your sleeve”;“A rolling stone gathers no moss”.

In the Bible, the Creator commanded on the veryfirst day: “Let there be light!” Our visual sensewas thus provided for right from the beginning.When He reviewed His creative works, we readfive times: “And God saw that it was good.” Inreviewing all He had made at the end of the sixcreation days, we again find His evaluation basedon vision: “And God saw all that he had made,and it was very good” (Gen 1:31).

Having established the importance of vision, wenow turn to the actual organ of sight.

General features of the eye: Visible light com-prises electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths

between 400 (violet) and 750 (red) nanometres(1 nm = 10-9 m = one millionth of a millimetre).For the purpose of forming an image, the incidentlight rays must be bent (refracted) and focusedsharply on the retina. The cornea handles most ofthe refraction and the lens subsequently focusesimages at various distances by varying its curva-ture. Through this ingeniously devised ability tochange its shape, the focal length of the lens canvary between 69.9 mm and 40.4 mm. This is why,unlike the best products of the optical industry,we can manage with only one lens.

The iris acts like the diaphragm of a camera.There are two opposing sets of muscles whichregulate the size of the aperture (the pupil)according to the brightness of the light. Theshape of the eye is maintained by the vitreousbody, and the pressure in a fluid called the aque-ous humour which fills the anterior and posteriorchambers. This pressure depends on a balancebetween the production of this fluid and its out-flow. The cornea is lubricated, and protectedagainst drying out, by the tear ducts and themovements of the eyelids.

Of all our sense organs, our eyes have the great-est range of detection sensitivity, as well as thegreatest adaptability. They have their own machi-nery of movement, through special muscleswhich enable vision to be directed towards a tar-get. The two-dimensional image on the retinarequires massive parallel processing in the subse-quent network of nerve fibres.

Structure of the eye: The eye can be dividedfunctionally into two parts, namely the physicaldioptric mechanism (Greek: dioptra = somethingthrough which one looks) which handles incidentlight, and the receptor area of the retina wherethe light triggers processes in nerve cells. Thedioptric mechanism produces a miniaturised,upside down image. To obtain a sharp imagerequires an exact “fine tuning” between the re-fractory (light-bending) properties of the opticalmedium and the dimensions of the eye. A devia-tion in the latter as small as 0.1 mm is enoughto cause faulty vision, requiring correction byspectacles.

The eye

13

The cornea’s main task is to protect the delicatecomponents of the eye against damage by foreignbodies. The iris is located between the cornea andthe lens, and its function is to control the amountof incident light, in the same way as the dia-phragm of a camera. The lens focuses the incom-ing light rays on to the retina (Latin: rete = net),where the actual process of perception begins.The photo-receptors (the rods and cones) convertthe incident ’optical signals’ into chemical (andsubsequently into electrical) signals. These elec-trical signals then travel to the brain along theoptic nerve. There are no photo-receptor cells atthe point where the optic nerve leaves the retina,and this is known as the “blind spot”. Anotherimportant feature of the retina is the so-called“yellow spot” (the macula lutea). In the middle of

this is the fovea centralis, the point where visualacuity is at a maximum. There are no rods in thisposition, only cones, which are connected in aspecial way to the relevant nerve cells. When youfocus your attention on a certain object, yourhead and eyes automatically move in such a wayas to let its image fall on the fovea for greatestsharpness.

The retina: The back of the eye can be observedthrough the pupil using an ophthalmoscope. Theretina, with the blood vessels supplying its innerlayers, can be seen, as well as the blind spot andthe yellow spot.

The retina plays a key role in visual perception.This thin (only 0.2 mm) layer of nerve tissue lines

14Transverse view of the right human eye (after Faller/Schünke, Der Körper des Menschen,Thieme-Verlag)

Pupillary openingCanal of Schlemm Cornea

Anterior chamber

Iris

Ciliary muscle

Lens

Sclera

Vitreous body

Yellow spot (macula lutea,containing the central fovea)

Visual axis

Externaleye (lateral

rectus) muscle

Posterior chamber withlens filaments

Reflection of the coveringlayer (conjunctiva) fromthe front of the eye to theinside of the eyelid

The ora serrata:Posterior to thispoint, the retinais light-sensitive

Choroid

Retina

Optic nerve

Blind spot (optic papilla)

The outer or ‘hard‘ layerof the brain’s coveringmembranes (Dura mater)

the inside of the eyeball. It contains the photo-receptor (light-sensitive) cells and four types ofnerve cells, as well as structural cells and epithelialpigment cells (Latin: pigmentum = dye; Greek:epithel = outer layer of the skin). The two kindsof photo-cells are called rods and cones because

tinguish between brightness and darkness. Theyare so sensitive that the absorption of a singlephoton results in a measurable electrical signal.This high sensitivity is achieved through havinga long time lag (about 0.3 seconds) between theabsorption of a photon and the emission of theelectric signal, allowing a complex amplificationprocess to take place.

The cones operate much faster; their time lag isonly 0.075 seconds, but they are much less sensi-tive than the rods, and only function optimally indaylight. There are three types of cones, distin-guished by their absorption maxima, each beingmost sensitive for, respectively, red light (havinga wave length of approximately 705 nm), greenlight (520 nm), and blue light (450 nm). By com-paring the messages received from the differentcones, the ganglia identify the colours actuallyobserved.

We would expect the light receptors to be on theside of the retina exposed to the incident light,but, amazingly, this is not the case. The lightmust first pass through another layer of the reti-na. That is why it has been said that our eyeshave “inverted wiring”, an arrangement whichnevertheless works brilliantly.

The light sensitive cells act like interpreters,translating the impulses of light into the lan-guage of the nervous system. Another way ofputting it is that a photo-receptor cell is basicallya counter which counts the number of incidentlight quanta (photons). Its sensitivity ranges overfive powers of ten, and it is able to adapt to thebrightness of the prevailing light conditions byaltering its sensitivity. For example, in responseto bright light, it can reduce its sensitivity100,000 times!

Sensitivity: We are blessed with extremely sensi-tive sense organs. Furthermore, the Creatorsolved a universal technical problem. Whenevera radio receiver is set for maximum sensitivity, itbecomes noisy. This hissing sound is caused bythe irregular thermal (heat) motions of electronsin the resistors. It can be eliminated by cooling allthe components to a temperature far below

of their shape. These microscopically small lightdetectors, which contain the various visual pig-ments, are masterpieces of technological effi-ciency. Each eye has about 110 million rods and 6million cones. They form a laterally inter-connected network and are connected “vertically”,by means of so-called bipolar cells, to the onemillion ganglion cells. These collect all the opticalsignals received by the retina, determine thedirection of flow of these signals, and transmitthem to the brain through the optic nerve. Thisbundle of more than one million nerve fibres,each well “insulated” from the others, is about2 mm thick. Present-day communications expertsusing glass fibre technology can only dream ofa “cable” of this kind.

One single square millimetre of the retina containsapproximately 400,000 optical sensors. To getsome idea of such a large number, imagine asphere, on the surface of which circles are drawn,the size of tennis balls. These circles are separat-ed from each other by the same distance as theirdiameter. In order to accommodate 400,000 suchcircles, the sphere must have a diameter of 52metres, nearly three times as large as the hot airballoons used for advertising promotions.

The photo-receptors: The rods and cones notonly differ in shape, but also in function. Therods are cylindrical, while the cones are smallerand have a tapered form. In the case of low illu-mination as at night, the rods enable us to dis-

15

freezing. But this is impractical, and is technicallyimpossible for signals having the same strengthas the (statistical) noise. A certain trick helps –transmit the signal on two separate channels andsubsequently combine them. In this way the ran-dom noise fluctuations in each partially canceleach other out, resulting in an appreciable reduc-tion in noise.

This method is also employed in the eye. In sen-sory organs and nerve cells, “noise” is not somuch a result of fluctuations in electron density,but is caused by fluctuations in the voltage onthe interfaces between sensory and nerve cells.The Creator made our optic cells as sensitive asphysically possible. As mentioned, one singlelight quantum (photon), the smallest physicalunit of light, is sufficient to cause an electricimpulse in an optic cell. Any possible illusionwhich might be caused by “noise”, is eliminatedas follows:

Several hundred rods, the most highly sensitivecells, are connected to only one nerve cell. Thesespecial nerve cells only transmit an impulse if asufficiently strong signal has been received fromat least four or five optic cells within a certaintime period, about 0.02 seconds. This means thatthe individual optic cells are as sensitive as at allphysically possible, but the nervous system onlytransmits signals when several impulses arrivemore or less at the same moment, after a certainsummation period. Thus the maximum possiblesensitivity only comes into play when the lightstimulus arises virtually simultaneously fromreceptor cells spread over a sizeable area, and notfrom just a single point. Random “noise“ fluctu-ations would arise at different times in each cell,so are never transmitted.

Visual acuity: Visual acuity (sharpness), the abili-ty to resolve objects, is very important in theassessment of vision. Under good illumination anormal eye can distinguish between two points ifthe incident light rays make an angle of 1 minute(1’ = 1/60 degree).

Adaptation (Latin: adaptio = adjustment, espe-cially that of sensory organs to the prevailing

conditions): Our eyes are able to process brightand dim light over a wide range. At night we canobserve dim stars, and we can also adapt to theglaring intensity of bright sunlight reflected fromsnow and ice. This amazing adaptability of theeye spans an immense range – a factor of 1 to1 million million!

Colour perception: We would have missedsomething wonderful if we could not see colours!Colours may bring joy, and can even affect ourmoods. They contribute to happiness and affectour state of mind. Colours fascinate all of us, notjust artists and fashion designers.

Colours can be characterised by three aspects,namely hue, brightness, and saturation (= thedegree of admixture with white). Our eyes candistinguish 300 different hues or shades ofcolour, and if, in addition, the brightness and satu-ration are varied as well, several million possiblecolour values can be distinguished. The bright-ness of a colour is determined by the strength ofillumination, and the saturation.

In our eyes it is only the cones which can detectcolours. The chemical involved is called rhodopsin(Greek rhodon = a rose), or visual purple. It con-sists of protein molecules (comprising approxi-mately 350 amino acids), including the so-calledretinal which colours the rhodopsin. Retinal alsomakes the rhodopsin sensitive to light, similar tothe way a detonator makes a cartridge sensitiveto being struck by a firing pin. The rhodopsin of acone cannot absorb all the light quanta (photons)which strike it; it “selects” quanta of a certainsize (wavelength). It will capture most or all ofsuch quanta, but will also capture one out of tento one out of fifty of those which are exactlydouble or half the preferred size. However, eachphoton captured has the same effect, regardlessof the wavelength.

There are three types of cones, each preferringa specific, optimal quantum size. They are knownrespectively as red-, green-, or blue-sensitivecones, according to the optical pigments and thepreferred quantum size (wavelength of the in-coming photons of light). But all this still does

16

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not mean that we can see colours – it only pro-vides the necessary preconditions.

The sensation of colour only arises in the brainafter a computational comparison of the excita-tion of the three types of cones. There are about100 million optic cells in the retina, but only onemillion optic nerve fibres lead from them. Thismeans that many optic cells are interconnected ina complex fashion. The optic nerve transmitsimage information to various parts of the brain inthe form of electrical pulses. A small number offibres lead directly to the mid-brain, but most ofthem converge on a switchboard which serves theprimary vision centre in the rear of the brain.

The images formed on both retinas are upsidedown and also left-right inverted. But anastounding fact is that the optic nerves fromboth eyes split up and cross each other insuch a way that the left halves of theimages of both eyes are received by theright half of the brain, and the righthalves end up in the left hemisphere ofthe brain. Each half of the observer’s brainreceives information from only one half of theimage. In addition, these images are distorted,because the region around the yellow spot (thefovea – where we see best; the Latin word for ahollow) forms an image which is ten times aslarge as that of the peripheral area. The left sideof the brain only observes the left half of theimage ( = the right half of what we are lookingat) and this half is the right way up with the dis-tortion removed. At the same time the right sideof the brain deals with the other half of the fieldof view.

Note that, although the brain processes the dif-ferent parts of the image in various remote loca-tions, the two halves of the field of visionare seamlessly re-united, without any trace ofa joint – amazing! This process is still far frombeing fully understood.

Hermann von Helmholtz (1821 – 1894), a famousphysicist and physiologist of the 19th century,comparing the error count of eye imaging withthat of a lens, concluded as follows in 1863:

“If an optician sold me an instrument having theerrors exhibited by the eye, it would be in orderfor me to express my dissatisfaction with thequality of his work in the strongest terms, andreturn his instrument forthwith.”

Helmholtz was wrong, since he only measuredthe performance of the lens of the eye in com-parison with the light path in optical instruments.But he forgot that no technologically producedlens system can function faultlessly for thelength of a human lifespan. Neither is it protectedagainst heat and cold, dryness and humidity,shocks and dust, nor can it repair itself in theevent of minor damage. Which optical instrumentavailable at that time could adjust itself auto-

17

Rods Horizontal cells� Bipolar cells� Amacrine cells

Ganglia(singular = ganglion)

� Direction of incidentlight

� Glial (supporting) cells� Cones

Structure of the retina

matically to prevailing conditions like bright-darkcontrasts, distance, and the light spectrum? Andwhich optical system processes the data prior totransmitting it to a computer, like the eye? Butremember that, as we shall see later, the brain ismuch more than a computer.

The Bible and the eye: All evolutionary state-ments about the origin of the eye notwithstanding,the Bible affirms unequivocally that the eye isuniquely the work of the Creator. Its conceptionand complexity defy human genius. We read inPsalm 94:9: ”Does he who formed the eye notsee?” If this Word is true, as I am deeply convincedit is, then any other human ideas and wordsabout the origin of the eye are wrong from theoutset.

The eye is described in the Bible as a very import-ant organ. It cannot become satisfied (Prov 27:20),and our heart follows our eyes (Job 31:7). TheGerman proverb “What the eye sees, the heartbelieves”, is derived from this fact. Being a mirrorof our soul, our eyes strongly express our person-ality. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus describedthis truth: “The eye is the lamp of the body. Ifyour eyes are good, your whole body will be fullof light. But if your eyes are bad, your wholebody will be full of darkness. If then the lightwithin you is darkness, how great is that dark-ness!” (Matt 6:22-23).

Many other biblical statements confirm that theeye expresses our innermost nature – aspects likegenerosity (Prov 22:9), pride and haughtiness (Ps18:27; 131:1, Prov 6:17, and Is 10:12), idolatry (Ez6:9), and adultery (2 Peter 2:14). Our eyes can bepiercing with hatred (Job 16:9), winking withmalice (Ps 35:19), or closed to the poor andneedy (Prov 28:27). With our eyes we marvel atGod’s works (Ps 118:23) and expect help fromHim: “I lift up my eyes to you, to you whosethrone is in the heaven. As the eyes of slaves lookto the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidlook to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes lookto the LORD our God, till he shows us his mercy”(Ps 123:1-2). When looking up to God, we expecthis help: “I lift up my eyes to the hills – wheredoes my help come from? My help comes from

the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth”(Ps 121:1-2).

When man fell into sin, the eyes played a signifi-cant role: “the woman saw that the fruit of thetree was good for food and pleasing to the eye”(Gen 3:6). The eye was the gate to sin. Samsonalso experienced this. His downfall was caused byhis marrying a heathen woman. What decidedhim, was her visible attractiveness: “She’s theright one for me” (Judges 14:3b).

Our salvation also has to do with vision. Jesuscame to this world and He could be seen byhuman eyes. The pious Israelite Simeon hadreceived a promise that he would not die beforeseeing Christ the Lord. When he held the babyJesus in his arms, he praised God and said “... myeyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:30).

The apostle John expressed his knowledge ofJesus as an eye-witness: “We have seen his glory,the glory of the One and Only, who came fromthe Father, full of grace and truth“ (John 1:14).And the salient feature of His second coming isthat everybody will see Him: “Look, he is comingwith the clouds, and every eye will see him, eventhose who pierced him; and all the peoples of theearth will mourn because of him” (Rev 1:7). Onthat day everybody will see Him, either as Saviouror as Judge.

With enlightened eyes – such enlightenment isalso a gift of God – we can know His glory andwisdom (Eph 1:17-18). And what God has pre-pared for us in heaven is rich and vast beyondcomprehension, as described in 1 Corinthians 2:9:“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind hasconceived what God has prepared for those wholove Him.” Heaven is the destination of the re-deemed, and when we arrive there, we willsee the Lord Jesus as He is (1 John 3:2b). In thisworld many people suffer severe pain and misery,and the question “Why?” is cried out often. Butwhen we arrive at our destination, everything willbe made clear, because Jesus said: “In that dayyou will no longer ask me anything” (John 16:23).All suffering will end, as stated in Revelation21:4: “He (God) will wipe every tear from their

18

eyes. There will be no more death or mourning orcrying or pain, for the old order of things haspassed away.”

Quotes:

Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882) in his book TheOrigin of the Species:

“To suppose that the eye with all its inimitablecontrivances for adjusting the focus to differentdistances, for admitting different amounts oflight, and for the correction of spherical andchromatic aberration, could have been formed bynatural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurdin the highest degree.”

Dr. Carl Wieland, M.B., B.S., in the magazine Crea-tion ex nihilo (Vol. 18, No. 2, 1996, p. 40):

“Eyes in different creatures are designed to meettheir differing needs. Humans need good resolu-tion and detail, whereas a fly needs speed. Wesee a fluorescent lamp as flickering at 10 Hz(cycles per second) but it looks stable to us at20 Hz. A fly can detect a flicker of 200 Hz, so anormal movie would look to it like a slide show!The simple act of walking into a room and im-mdiately recognizing all the objects in it requiresmore computing power than a dozen of theworld’s top supercomputers put together.”

Proverb:“There are none so blind as those who will notsee.”

French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry(1900 – 1944):“One can only see well through one’s heart.”

Units of length:1 kilometre = 1 km = 1000 m1 metre = 1 m = 100 cm1 centimetre = 1 cm = 10 mm = 10-2 m1 millimetre = 1 mm = one thousandth

of a metre1 mm = 1000 µm = 10-3 m1 micrometre = 1 µm = one thousandth

of a millimetre1 µm = 1000 nm = 10-6 m1 nanometre = 1 nm = one millionth

of a millimetre1 nm = 1000 pm = 10-9 m1 picometre = 1 pm = one thousand millionth

of a millimetre1 pm = 0.001 nm = 10-12 m

19

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– our highest-precisionsense organWithout the sense of hearing we would lack animportant method of orientation. Like a bird ina small cage, we would then be largely excludedfrom everyday events,. Sounds intensify the sen-sory impressions of life. We can listen to the mur-mur of rippling wavelets at our feet, while at thesame time hearing the booming of the mightybreakers rolling in from the ocean. When takinga stroll, we enjoy the humming of bees flittingfrom blossom to blossom, as well as the exuberantsong of a lark. We can hear a wide range of sounds,from the soft whining of a mosquito to the ear-shattering noise of a jet plane taking off. The rack-et of pneumatic drills and other noisy machinesare also part of our everyday experience. Althoughthese sound signals reveal their origin, they do notconvey any personal messages to us.

In addition to receiving sounds, we can alsotransmit them. Speaking and hearing compriseour basic method of communication. In this casethe kinds of noises and their significance arecompletely different. Musical notes, songs, andthe spoken word bear meaningful messages. Theact of identifying their inherent meaning involvesmuch more than merely processing the receivedsound waves. A special evaluation system, locat-ed in the brain, is required for this purpose.Without the brain we would not have been ableto hear. Our souls are stirred by what we hear, asexpressed by the poignant French proverb: “Theear is the way to the heart.”

In our contact with the world our sense of hearingis just as important as our vision. Sounds are airvibrations which are detected by our ears, wherethey are first converted into hydro-dynamic vibra-tions, and subsequently into electrical nerveimpulses. Finally the brain identifies these signalsas information.

Did you know that the human ear is a detectiondevice which utilises a level of technology that

no science has as yet been able to attain, or even(in many aspects) to understand? For the purposeof describing this, we need a few technical terms,which will first be explained:

Sound level: Vibrating objects (like a tuning fork,the cone of a loudspeaker, or human vocalchords) induce vibrations in the surrounding air.Adjacent air molecules are accelerated, causingwaves travelling at a speed of approximately330 m/s. This phenomenon is called sound, andin a sound field there are zones where air mol-ecules are more densely packed than in otherzones. Air pressure is greater in the denser zones,and smaller in the less dense zones. Sound vibra-tions can be depicted as wave-shaped graphs.The distance between two adjacent locationswhere the air pressure is the same, is known asthe wave length. The maximum deviation fromthe neutral value is called the amplitude. If thewave length increases (implying a decrease in thenumber of vibrations per time unit), the pitch ofthe sound becomes lower. And, vice versa, when

The ear

21

� The curved rimof the helix formsa tunnel or flume

� The root of thehelix (Crus helicus)

Concealed openingof the externalacoustic meatus

� Lid of the ear (Tragus)� Antitragus� Concha (a hollow depression)� Antihelix� Helix� Gateway to the flume of the helix � Darwin's tubercle

the number of vibrations per time unit increases(shorter wave length), we hear a higher pitchedsound. The pitch of a tone – its frequency – ismeasured in Hertz (1 Hz = one vibration per sec-ond). If the amplitude increases, the soundbecomes louder, and a decrease in amplituderesults in a softer sound. Everyday sounds com-prise a mixture of different frequencies andamplitudes.

The amplitude of a sound is called sound pres-sure, which, in the same way as any other type ofpressure, can be measured in N/m2 (Newtons per

square metre). But in acoustics, another unit ispreferred, called sound level or noise level, whichis measured in dB (deciBels). To convert soundpressure px into the corresponding dB number,we use the quotient px/p0 where p0 = 2 x 10-5 N/m2

represents an arbitrarily selected reference value.It is actually the pressure of a sound which onecan just detect at the threshold of audibility. Thelogarithm (base 10) of the ratio px/p0 is multipliedby 20 so that the formula for the noise level Lin dB is

L = 20 x log(px/p0).

This seemingly random definition has a numberof advantages:

– Instead of using cumbersome powers of tenfor pressure, these values are expressed byone, two or three digit numbers.

– The following simple relations hold for theindicated physical units:

– A tenfold increase in sound pressure isexpressed as a change of 20 dB.

– If the sound pressure is doubled, we have anincrease of 20 x log(2) = 20 x 0.30103 = 6 dB.

– In the case of a three-fold increase in soundpressure the formula produces a dB changeof 9.54, which can be rounded off to 10 dB.

– The energy level of a sound is proportional tothe square of the sound pressure, meaningthat when the energy is doubled, the decibellevel is increased by 3 dB.

Loudness: The noise level of a sound is a purelyphysical measure, expressed in either N/m2 or dB.But this gives no indication of the subjectiveexperience of the loudness of a sound. Sound

22

Structure of the human ear.Sound vibrations travel through the external acousticmeatus to the ear drum, and then via the malleus, theincus, and the stapes through the oval window into theliquid-filled cochlea. The round window allows the pres-sure between the cochlea and the air-filled middle ear tobe equalised. The three arc-shaped structures (semi-cir-cular ducts) are part of the organ of balance. Sounds aredetected in the two spirals of the cochlea which containthe organ of Corti. This has some 15,000 sensory “hair”cells. A thick “cable” of nerve fibres (the cochlear branchof the 8th cranial nerve), leads from the cochlea to thebrain.

Malleus IncusBodyHead

Long (lateral)process

Shortprocess

Short processLong process

Base of stapes Handle

of malleusTemporal muscle

StapesIncus

Malleus

Ear drum

Auricle

Eustachian tubeApex of the cochlea

Cochlear ductExternal acoustic

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waves at different frequencies, exerting the samepressure, are not perceived subjectively as beingof equal volume. A sound at a level of 20 dB,having a frequency of 63 Hz, would have to bemade about 30 times stronger in order to soundas loud as a 1,000 Hz signal at the same dB level.From the formula already given, that means itwould have to be increased by 20 x log(30) =29.5 dB.

By connecting the points of equal loudness at dif-ferent frequencies on a dB-Hz diagram, curvesknown as isophones result. By definition, themeasured sound pressure in dB at a frequency of1,000 Hz is the loudness, expressed using a unitknown as the phon. So for example, if one wantsto find the 50 phon isophone, a test subject lis-tens to a 1,000 Hz signal having a sound pressureof 50 dB. At all other frequencies the personadjusts a control indicating dB values, until itsounds just as loud as the 1,000 Hz signal. In thisway one can plot the dB values corresponding toeach of the frequencies to obtain the 50 phoncurve. Only at a frequency of 1,000 Hz is the phonscale numerically equal to the decibel scale.

The pressure at which a sound becomes audibleis called the threshold of audibility. This corres-ponds to the 4 phon isophone. If a sound is soloud that it causes pain, the threshold of pain isreached. Its isophone is 130 phon. If our earswere purely mechanical sound detectors, then allisophones would have been horizontal lines.

We are able to distinguish very clearly between theloudness of two sounds. At low sound intensitiesat a given frequency, a difference of 1 dB is suffi-cient. At louder levels this difference is even less.

12 orders of magnitude without switching:The ear has the amazing ability of detecting arange of sound pressure extending over 120 dB.Keeping in mind that 6 dB represents a doublingof sound level, this means that the human earcan handle intensities ranging over 20 powers of2 (120/6 = 20; 220 = 1,048,576 = approximatelyone million). In the case of sound energy, doub-ling occurs every 3 dB because of the physicalrelationships involved. The human ear thus has

the unique ability of detecting differences in soundenergy over a very wide range. The relevant fac-tor is 40 powers of 2 (120/3) which is equal to12 powers of ten (240 = 10244 = 1.099 x 1012).Expressed differently: The range between thepain threshold and a barely audible soundencompasses an energy ratio of one million mil-lion to one. This is an astonishing feat, since it isaccomplished with just one range of measure-ment. No known technical measuring apparatuscan do this without switching from one range toanother. If, for example, we want to measurevoltages in the range from 1 volt to 10,000 volts(4 powers of ten), it can only be done with a sin-gle instrument by switching the measuringrange.

Range of normal human hearingThe threshold of audibility is a curve, meaning that theear is more sensitive to some frequencies than to others.The optimal range is between 1 kHz and 5 kHz, wheresound pressures as low as 2 x 10-5 N/m2 can be detected.This is equivalent to an intensity I (sound energy) of 10-16

W/cm2. The intensity-frequency ranges for speech andmusic are shaded. The maximum range of hearing lies atabout 2 kHz. At this frequency, the range of sound ener-gy we are able to detect spans an almost unimaginable13 orders of magnitude (powers of ten).

Threshold of audibility

Pain thresholdSo

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Furthermore, the human ear is an optimally con-structed measuring system whose sensitivityreaches the limits of physical possibility. Soundwaves are pressure waves having very small

23

DarwinschesHöckerchen

Tor zumHelixtunnel

Helix(Schnecke)

Anthelix(Gegenschnecke)

Concha-Höhle(Cavum conchae)

zum Tunnel eingerollteKrempe der Helix

Wurzel der Helix(Crus helicis)

verdeckte Öffnungdes äußerenGehörganges

Ohrdeckel(Tragus)

Antitragus

b)a)

The rim of the helix isfolded to form a tunnel

Darwin’stubercle

Entry to thetunnel(flume) ofthe helix

Helix

Antihelix

Antihelix

Crus helicus

Tragus

Anti-tragus

Partially coveredopening of theexternal acousticmeatus

Sound path 1

Sound path 2

amplitudes. The pressure exerted by a barelyaudible 1,000 Hz tone is 2 x 10-5 N/m2. At thesame frequency the pain threshold is about sixmillion times greater. The performance of the earencompasses several powers of ten (Diagram,page 23).

A sound at the threshold of audibility causes theear drum to vibrate with an amplitude of only10-10 cm. We need to use an extraordinary com-parison in order to visualise such a minute dis-placement. If our body height were increased bya factor of 200 million, it would extend from theearth to the moon. Even at this enormously mag-nified scale, the ear drum would only vibrate overa distance of 2 mm.

The frequency range of the human ear is approxi-mately 10 octaves. One octave comprises thenotes from middle C to C’ (or A to A’, G to G’, etc).This does not imply absolute values, but indicatesa doubling of the frequency. Two octaves (e. g.from C to C’’) thus range from a given frequencyf1 to a frequency f2 = 4 x f1 – a fourfold increase.Similarly three octaves imply an eightfold increase:f3 = 23 x f1. Human hearing ranges over 10 octaves,from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, involving the factor 210 =1024 = approximately one thousand.

The ability to distinguish between different tonesis astonishingly good. Around a frequency of1,000 Hz we can detect frequency differences assmall as 3 Hz or 0.3 %.

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Auricle and sound paths

a) Auricle: Anatomical names of the various parts ofthe auricle (outer ear) are shown in the illustrationabove left.

b) Possible sound paths: Two possible paths, 1 and 2,are indicated in the diagram above right: 1 shows the route from the antihelix to the acousticmeatus (auditory canal), while route 2 follows theS-shaped curve of the rim of the helix. Route 2 is about66 mm longer than route 1, so that the time lag is

0.2 milliseconds (0.066 m / 330 m/s = 0.0002 seconds).The result is that the brain has four different soundinputs from the two ears (it’s as if there were four ears!):Two of the four are located somewhat higher, and fur-ther out, than the other two. The brain receives the samesignal at four slightly different instants.

c) d)

Lengthened route 6 different possibilities for computationalcomparison between the four ”entrypoints” for sound (two for each ear)

Calculated heightdifference for the firstand second sound routes

Sound coming from belowat an angle of 45°

Upper soundreception area

Lower soundreception area

Calculatedheightdifference

Upper

Lower

Left Right

Flume formed by the rim of the helixThe interior of Darwin'stubercle covers theportal of the helicalflume

Rim of the antihelixalso forms a channel forsound

The perpendicular distancebetween the soundreception apertures, calcu-lated from the differencein height

Lower edge of the antihelixfunctions as a sounding board

precision. This measuring process is so accuratethat a time lag of 0.00003 seconds between thetwo ears can be detected clearly. In accoustic ori-entation terms this means that a sound sourcelocated only about 3° from the centre line of thehead is recognised as being off-centre.

Measured sound levels: The dB values of varioussounds are given in the table below. Soundslouder than 90 dB can cause hearing damage,while a continuous sound of 155 dB can burn theskin. Some sound sources and their dB levels are:

Source dBLimit of audibility 15Rustling of leaves 18

25

c) Six different values: As can be seen from the dia-gram, the four separate locations result in six differentsound values to be computed and compared.

d) Sound reception areas: The positions of the soundreception areas can be clarified by means of this dia-gram. If a sound source is located in a direction 45°below one's head, then the sound waves reach the upperreception area along a route which is 9.1 mm longer. Theheight of the right-angled triangle would then be 13 mm.

The entry to the tunnel-like rim of the helix is locatedbelow Darwin's bulge. The aperture for the shorter route1 is located where the rim of the antihelix becomes aflume. The sound waves are also reflected into the helixrim by the thickened antihelix from whence it followsthe longer route to the ear canal. It could also travelalong the shorter route. The shortest link between thetwo apertures makes an angle of 45°, so that the differ-ence between the two routes is about 18 mm (based onJ. Maximilian, E. Irrgang, and B. Andresen).

Different computational comparisons of sounds by the brain.

Loudness, duration, and frequency are the prop-erties of a sound which inform us of its charac-ter and its origin. But the direction of the soundis also important. The problem of direction find-ing was solved by the Creator when He endowedus with two ears. To locate the position of asound source, two factors are involved: the dif-ference in intensity, and the time lag. The earturned away from a sound source receives thesignal a little softer and somewhat later than theother one. The brain can also measure the differ-ence in relative loudness between both ears, andthus estimate the distance of the sound source.Although very small, these time and volume dif-ferences are evaluated by the brain in such a waythat the direction can be ascertained with some

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Whispering 25Spacious office 50Motor car cruising smoothly 50Thunder 65Noisy street traffic 70Typewriter 70Waterfall 90Freight train 98Sawmill 100Jet plane (at 600m height) 105Disco 114Prop-driven plane starting up 120Boilermaking 120Rock concert 125Pneumatic drill 130Artillery fire 130Testing airplane engines 140Jet engine starting up 145

Let us now consider the structure of the ear.

The auricle: The human auricle, with its attractiverelief of ridges, hollows, bulges, curves andgrooves, is unmistakeably the same in its basicfeatures, yet is a little different, in each one of us.The fact that these complex and beautiful formsplay an important part in the hearing process hasonly been discovered in recent years.

Sounds are conducted to the external hearingcanal along two different paths, with the resultthat the sound travelling along the shorter routearrives one five thousandth of a second beforethe other signal. Given that sound travels at aspeed of 330 m/s, this means that the differencein path length is about 6.5 cm. This is quite sepa-rate from the time difference between the twoears, which enables us to locate the source ofvarious sounds. Such refined accoustic analysis isfairly essential for us. In effect we are able toanalyse sounds in three dimensions, in such away that we can recognise the direction of allincoming sounds, as well as the location andmotion of their sources.

Vocal communication requires very accurateidentification of the position and movement ofsomeone who is speaking, as well as of all thecomplex sound sequences involved. Since thereare two sound paths for each ear, we virtuallypossess four ears. This ingenious system is sosubtly and cleverly designed, that it all happenswithout us ever being aware of any doubling orquadrupling of sounds.

Darwin’s book, The Descent of Man and Selectionin Relation to Sex was published in 1871. In it he

� Columnar cells� Spiral ligament Epithelial cells of the

scala tympani� Supporting cells

(of Hensen)� Outer hair cells� Interior tunnel� Inner hair cells� Internal spiral sulcus� Pillar cells� Cochlear nerve� Bony spiral layer� Edge of the bony spiral

layer� Tectorial membrane� Vestibular membrane� Cochlear duct

The organ of Corti

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denigrated the external human ear, with all itsconvolutions, as being pointless and useless, adegenerate left-over from some alleged evolu-tionary history. The little protrusion on the upperoutside edge of the auricle has been known sincethen as “Darwin’s tubercle”. Generations ofresearchers after Darwin blindly accepted his ver-dict on the ear. But in reality, the whole beautiful,convoluted labyrinth that is our auricle is a pre-cise, genetically programmed device which deliv-ers an identical additional signal to the brainafter a time lag of one five thousandth of a sec-ond ( = 0.0002 s, see the diagram on page 24). Ineffect, one has four ears, two of which are locat-ed slightly higher than the other two. The resultof this finely tuned system is that the brain isable to process six different values, two of thembeing the differences between the two upper”ears”, two more are those between the twolower “ears”, and the third pair is that betweenthe lower “ear” on one side, and the upper “ear”on the other side (see the diagram on page 25).The required computations are carried out atlightning speed in the brain to give us a verysophisticated “sound image” of our surroundings.This structure is also crucial in our astoundingability to voluntarily suppress some sounds tothe enhancement of others.

Middle ear: After travelling along the externalacoustic meatus, incoming sound waves strikethe ear drum, which is set vibrating. The energytransferred in this way is passed on, as the threetiny, connected bones in the middle ear (malleus,incus, and stapes, or hammer, anvil and stirrup)transmit the sound vibrations through the ovalwindow into the inner ear. Weighing only about10 mg, a tiny percent of the mass of the smallestof coins, these minute bones are the smallest inthe entire human body.

The hearing process involves the transfer of airvibrations into the liquid medium of the inner ear.In the normal course of events, the greater part ofthe sound energy would be reflected at an air/li-quid boundary, and such losses would play havocwith the hearing process. To circumvent this, theCreator used a very ingenious interface structurewhich limits reflection losses to a negligible level.

This complex mechanism, comprising the eardrum and the three middle ear bones, exactlymatches the sound wave impedance in air to thatof the inner ear. The effective vibrational area ofthe ear drum is about 0.65 cm2, which is 20 timesthat of the oval window (only 0.032 cm2). This isequivalent to an amplification factor of 20. Inaddition, the leverage afforded by the malleus-incus-stapes linkup provides a further amplifica-tion factor of 3.

Inner ear: It is clear that a massive amplificationfactor is involved in the conversion of air waves(at the ear drum) to the vibrations of the liquid inthe cochlea. The inner ear, comprising both thebalance organ and the cochlea (Latin cóchlea =snail), is housed in the solid bone of the skull. Asecond conversion takes place here; mechanicalvibrations are changed into electric neural(nerve) impulses.

The cochlear duct is filled with a highly viscousliquid (Latin viscum = birdlime, sticky, or thick),called the endolymph. There are two more liquid-filled spaces on either side, the scala vestibuli(Latin scala = steps; vestibuli = forecourt), andthe scala tympani (Latin tympanum = drum).Both of these cavities are filled with a somewhat

27

� Scala vestibuli� Cochlear duct Scala tympani� Sensory zone (organ of Corti)� Vestibular membrane� Helicotrema� Round window� Stapes in oval window

The cochlea

less viscous liquid, called the perilymph, and theyare connected at the apex of the cochlea (by thehelicotrema). The scala vestibuli begins at theoval window, and the scala tympani ends at themembrane of the round window.

The cochlear duct and the scala vestibuli are sepa-rated by an elastic sheet, called the vestibularmembrane. This membrane reproduces the wave-shaped changes in volume caused by the incidentsound. The endolymph then transmits the vibra-tions to the basilar membrane which lies betweenthe cochlear duct and the scala tympani. Eventu-ally the round window is reached via the peri-lymph. Because of this shortcut the vibrations donot have to travel all the way round through thehelicotrema. The vestibular and basilar mem-branes thus vibrate in unison.

The spiral-shaped bulge of the organ of Corti islocated above the basilar membrane. It consistsof sensory cells, twelve thousand of which,arranged in rows of three to five, make up theexterior hair cells. The interior 3,500 hair cellsas well as the structural support cells lie in onerow. The 12,000 sensory cells are arranged ona 32 mm long lamina in four parallel rows havinga total width of only 1/20 mm. Their geometricalsequence and distribution resemble that of pianokeys in a linear scale. At one end the cells aretuned to a maximum frequency of between10 and 20 kHz, which descends to about 30 Hz atthe other end.

When sounds are received, the basilar membranevibrates in sympathy, but the amplitude is incon-ceivably minute, only about 10-11 m. This is equalto 100 picometres or one thousand millionth ofa cm (one million million pm = 1 metre) whichapproaches the size of a few atoms. The tips ofthe outer hair cells penetrate a covering mem-brane (the tectorial membrane) which projectsinto the cochlear duct. Volume changes in thispassage cause the basilar membrane to move rela-tive to the tectorial membrane so that the senso-ry hairs experience a slight shearing pressure.These stimuli are then transmitted as electricalsignals along the cochlear (auditory) nerve to thebrain. It should be noted that these signals not

only travel to the brain, but also in the reversedirection. For this purpose there are two types ofneural tissue at the base of the hair cells, namelythe afferent (leading to the brain) and the effer-ent fibres leading to the hair cells. The reason forthis feedback is not yet understood and this isonly one of the many unsolved puzzles.

There are about 15,000 receptor cells (hair cells)in the cochlea and they are sensitive to differentsound frequencies (Diagram, page 27). The haircells are located in ordered rows on the basilarmembrane, which is a thin wall extendingthrough the entire cochlea, following all its con-volutions. An incident sound image is separatedinto its single component frequencies, each ofwhich stimulates only a small fraction of the15,000 sensory cells located at a specific positionon the basilar membrane. The functioning of thecochlea is highly complex, and its ingeniousstructure is not yet fully understood.

Special abilities of the ear: The ear is the mostsensitive human sensory organ. Sounds with fre-quencies between about 20 Hz and 16 kHz areaudible. Lower frequencies are felt rather thanheard. All natural sounds are highly complex;pure tones consisting of a single sinusoidal fre-quency are not found in nature. But when theyare produced artificially, they are of great experi-mental use. Sounds and noises can be consideredas a mixture of sinusoidal tones having differentfrequencies and amplitudes. A tone can beregarded as being the elementary unit for naturalsounds and noises. A 3 kHz note having an energylevel of only 4 x 10-17 W/cm2 can be heard, and ingeneral audible sound intensities lie in the rangebetween 10-16 and 10-4 W/cm2 (Diagram, page 23).

Speech detection: Amongst all living things thegift of speech is unique. Only man has beenendowed by the Creator with this exceptionalmeans of communication. It essentially requiresfour independent organ systems:

– The larynx which produces the sounds(phonation).

– The mouth and throat which modulate thesounds produced by the larynx to form recog-

28

nisable vowels and consonants. This processis called articulation.

– The brain’s motor speech centre controls boththe above processes.

– Hearing is essential for the continuous feed-back control which orderly speech requires;hearing ourselves as we speak, the so-calledaural-vocal cycle. This cycle depends on theintact physiological operation of all the audi-tory mechanisms and pathways leading toperception of speech in the brain’s sensoryspeech centre. It also involves the psyche andthe intellect. It should be obvious that the earis much more than a technologically sophisti-cated physical detection device. It is in fact anintegral component of a system involving thetransmission of meaningful information, ofthoughts, ideas, and intelligence, and thebeauty of music.

Origin of the ear: From whence does the in-genious construction of the ear (and the eye)derive? The Psalmist gives a concise and strikinganswer: “Does he who implanted the ear, nothear? Does he who formed the eye, not see?”(Ps 94:9). This is also affirmed in Proverbs 20:12:“Ears that hear and eyes that see – the LORD hasmade them both.” The ear did not originate insome evolutionary process, but it was made bythe almighty Creator. Jesus calls those peopleblessed who hear the Word of God (Matt 13:16)and He urges the bystanders to listen: “He whohas ears, let him hear” (e. g. Matt 11:15, Matt13:9,43). All the messages which the resurrectedand ascended Lord Jesus Christ sent to the sevenchurches end with the admonishment “He whohas an ear, let him hear...” (Rev 2:7,11,17,29; Rev3:6,13,22). The Creator blessed us with earswhich are indispensable organs for the receptionand processing of accoustic information in thislife, and He desires that His Word should begiven its proper place.

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30

– beyond words

From earliest childhood, we are accompanied byscents and smells. We store the experience ofthem in such a way that we can recognise themwith certainty, even decades later. Many smellsremind us of specific experiences – like the fra-grances of spring, the scent of cedar trees or vio-lets, the freshness of a forest after a summerdownpour, the lightly salty tang of sea air, theunmistakeable aroma of freshly unearthed pota-toes, or a roast turkey at Christmas time. Un-pleasant odours also leave lasting impressions,for example hot tar on a road surface, a dampmusty cellar, rotten eggs, or even the putrid smellof a decaying cadaver. Long forgotten scents,even after lying hidden under the accumulatedexperiences of many passing years, can suddenlyburst into our recollection. The nose is an indis-pensable organ, with which we perceive many,many details of our surroundings.

Smelling and tasting are chemical senses. With-out our olfactory sense we would only be able totaste sweet, salty, bitter, and sour. It is the nosethat makes eating and drinking pleasurable.Through our nose we can detect danger, and alsoenjoy the fragrances of flowers, spices and per-fumes.

Structure and function of the nose: The fan-shaped fibres of the olfactory nerve occupy anappreciable volume of the complex human nasalstructure. Odour molecules collide with specificreceptor molecules, fitting together like a lockand key. There are between 10 and 25 millionreceptor cells in the olfactory region which cov-ers an area of about 2.5 cm2 on each side. Thesereceptors are part of the nervous system and areknown as olfactory neurons. Like the taste cells,they are supported by basal cells and are contin-

The senseof smell

ually renewed, their half-life being about tendays. The olfactory cells measure only about 5 to15 µm (1 µm = one thousandth of a millimetre).Molecules which cause odours are captured bythe receptors in the mucous membrane of thenose. The olfactory information is then convertedinto electrical impulses which are transmitted tothe so-called olfactory bulb which distributesthem in the brain.

We can distinguish far more than 10,000 differ-ent scents. This wide range can be extended evenfurther with practice; professional perfumetesters, and coffee and wine tasters excel in thisability. Only substances that are sufficientlyvolatile to emit minute particles into the air canbe smelled. This multitude of odours exceeds thecapacity of our vocabulary to describe them all.

The nose is also essential for respiration. Sincethe lungs prefer damp, warm, clear air, air ismoistened and warmed by its long passage overthe mucous membranes of the nose. Most of thecoarser, harmful particles in air are trapped bythe nose’s fine hairs or its thick secretions (mucus).

The olfactory mucous membrane is located fairlydeep inside the nose. It contains millions ofreceptor cells embedded in elongated supportingcells. These sensory nerve cells are stimulated byodours and also transmit the olfactory messagesdirectly to the brain. They are “direct intermedi-aries” between the outside world and the brain. From each of their ends, a tuft of fine hairlikeprojections called cilia (Latin cilium = eyelash)extends into the olfactory mucous membrane, inwhich the molecules that cause odours are dis-solved, having found their way through the nasalcavity. These olfactory nerve cells are continu-ously renewed from basal neuronal (stem) cells.This is somewhat exceptional, since many nerve

cells of humans and other organisms are notreplaced when they die.

It has recently been discovered that the numberof detectable odours is directly proportional tothe number of genes. In the case of humanbeings (and mammals generally) there are about1,000 genes which code for the same number ofdifferent olfactory receptors, each of whichoccurs in thousands of the millions of sensorycells. If a mammal has 30,000 genes, then thismeans around three percent of them code forproteins which can bind with odour-causingmolecules. This is the largest group of relatedgenes discovered so far. It is therefore difficult tomeasure various odours objectively, since everyperson, apart from identical twins, has his/herown genetically determined olfactory prefer-ences.

This contrasts sharply with the small number ofoptical receptor pigments in the eye. Only threetypes of pigments are required to distinguishbetween thousands of shades of colour, becausethe principle of recognition is fundamentally dif-ferent: All three types can receive a wide rangeof partially overlapping wave lengths of light,each being most sensitive in a different part ofthe optical spectrum. The brain finally combinesand compares the optical stimuli. Olfactory sig-nals cannot be handled in a similar way, becausea large number of qualitatively widely differentchemical components would have to be com-pared.

The process used by the brain to decode olfactoryinformation is one of the central and most diffi-cult unsolved problems in neuro-physiology.

The indescribable sense: The sense of smell trulyis the sense beyond words. It can be extraordi-narily exact, but it is practically impossible todescribe a scent to somebody who hasn’t experi-enced it personally. We move about 12 cubicmetres (12 m3) of air per day by breathing in andout 12,000 times. Inhalation requires about2 seconds, and exhalation 5 seconds. During thistime odour molecules also move with the airflow.We can describe something we have seen in the

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finest detail, using plenty of images so that thelistener can get a clear picture of our experience.But in the case of odours, we can only expressgeneral feelings like pleasant, horrible, wonderful,or exciting. Just try to describe in words the fra-grance of your marriage partner, of a shoe shop,a bakery, or an old library! Our memory forodours is astounding – nothing can stir up oldmemories better than a certain scent.

The scientifically incomprehensible sense:Most smells are a mixture of a large number ofodour-causing substances. Wine, for example,contains about 200 and coffee about 500 differ-ent ones. It has up to now not been possible toreduce the multiplicity of scents to mixtures ofa few primary odours. The phenomenon of smellis still poorly understood scientifically.

Our olfactory sense is extremely sensitive andexceeds the capabilities of most technologicalmeasuring instruments. The threshold of detec-tion for ethyl mercaptan is about 10-13 g (one tenmillion millionth of a gram = 109 molecules). It isnot clear why many molecules which are chemi-cally quite different have the same olfactoryeffect. On the other hand, very similar chemicalcompounds can smell completely different.D-carvone smells like cumin, while L-carvone hasa mint-like smell. But both have exactly the samechemical formula, except that the former isright-handed and the latter has a left-handedstructure. Like your two hands, these are identi-cal, but mirror images of each other (stereo-isomers).

Everybody has his/her own very specific personalscent, which is just as unique as a fingerprint.A baby recognises its mother by smell, and adultscan distinguish between male and female. Dogsreadily identify individuals by their odour and caneven recognise their owner in the case of identi-cal twins. A border collie has about 220 millionolfactory cells. As far as humans are concerned,the following traces of odour-causing substanceper liter of air are detectable:

0.000 000 004 g acetone0.000 000 0012 g phenol

0.000 000 004 g naphthalene0.000 000 000 016 g camphor0.000 000 000 041 g nitrobenzol0.000 000 000 005 g vanillin0.000 000 000 0004 g skatol

Perfumes can be beneficial for health (Frenchparfum = pleasant scent): Perfumes began theirtriumphal progress as incense in Mesopotamia.The word “perfume” is derived from the Latinper = by or through, and fumus = odour. The firstcountry known to have used perfumes regularlyand extravagantly was Egypt. Their pompousburial and embalming rites required spices andointments. In the time of Queen Hatsheput(1490 – 1468 BC) perfume became a commonpassion. Cleopatra (69 – 30 BC) was also a fer-vent lover of perfume. The cedarwood boat onwhich she received Anthony had perfumed sails.Incense containers surrounded her throne, andshe herself was perfumed from head to toe. Thebuildings of the kings of antiquity were filledwith scents. They preferred cedarwood for con-structing their palaces, because of its sweetresinous smell, as well as its ability to repelinsects.

The Bible and perfumes: Aromatic substancesalso play a significant role in the Bible. A mixtureof flowers, aromatic seeds and fruit, and olive oil,is described as “precious oil” in Psalm 133:2, andin Esther 2:12 we read of “six months with oil ofmyrrh and six with perfumes and cosmetics”.Aromatic plants and spices are mentioned manytimes in the Bible: aloe, balm, galbanum, henna,nard, sweet sedge, cinnamon, and myrrh. Aloes(Numbers 24:6, Psalm 45:8, Song of Songs 4:14)were used for preparing Jesus’ body for burial(John 19:39). In Solomon’s Song of Songs verymany scents, fragrances, perfumes, and oint-ments are mentioned. A certain American ladyauthor described this portion of the Old Testa-ment as the most perfumed poem of all timesand as a sensual love story saturated with per-fumes and ointments. Love is described in termsof fragrant scents: “How delightful is your love ...How much more pleasing is your love than wine,and the fragrance of your perfume than anyspice! ... The fragrance of your garments is like

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that of Lebanon” (Song of Songs 4:10-11). Nardis an aromatic and very costly plant listed amongfragrant flowers and spices in Song of Songs4:13-14. The perfume used to anoint Jesus inBethany, contained nard (Mark 14:3, John 12:3).According to John 12:5 this perfume was soexpensive that its price was equivalent to a year’swages (300 silver denarii). The gifts brought toJesus by the wise men from the east, comprisedincense, myrrh and gold (Matthew 2:11).

The phrase “A pleasing aroma to the LORD” is usedfrequently in the Old Testament (e. g. Gen 8:21, Ex29:18,25,41, Lev 1:9,13,7). This means that God ispleased with those deeds. When Noah built analtar and sacrificed burnt offerings, “the LORD

smelled the pleasing aroma ...” (Gen 8:21). GodHimself can smell. He gave us this sense to enrichour lives and to be like Him also in this respect.

Perfumes are also employed in another biblicalparable (2 Cor 2:14-16). The triumphal entry ofRoman generals was accompanied by prisonerswho carried jars of incense so that everybodycould smell these perfumes expressing the vic-tory. In the same way everybody who lives inChrist should spread the fragrance of victory.Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “For we are to Godthe aroma of Christ among those who are beingsaved and those who are perishing. To the onewe are the smell of death; to the other, the fra-grance of life” (2 Cor 2:15-16).

This gospel message blows over its hearers likean aromatic cloud, but its effect can vary greatly.Some of them accept the words which thenbecome a blessing – it is for them a fragrance oflife which engenders everlasting life. For theindifferent and for those who reject the messageproclaimed, it becomes a deadly odour like a pois-onous fog bearing the putrid smell of decayingbodies, a harbinger of death, of eternal perdition.Only a hair’s breadth separates salvation anddoom.

Quote:

Richard Axel, professor of biochemistry and mol-ecular biophysics at the University of Columbia,New York:

“Till now science has only been groping in thedark in trying to discover the rules governing theway our olfactory sense can unlock the immea-surable structure of our memories.”

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34

– not just for connoisseurs

Our taste sense functions only on contact. Thetaste buds are located in the mouth, mostly onthe tongue. There are only four basic tastes:sweet, sour, salt, and bitter. It is remarkable thatall the various tastes we can think of, arise froma combination of these four. We are able to dis-tinguish between the most delicate of gastro-nomic nuances, as is regularly done by profes-sional tasters of wine, coffee, tea, and cheese.But note that the sense of smell also plays animportant role.

Everyday language seems to regard the palate ashaving something to do with the sensation oftaste. We might refer to an exceptional meal ashaving ’tickled the palate’, or speak of a connois-seur as ’having a fine palate’. But taste is actuallylocated on the tongue, which can be divided intofour zones, each primarily sensitive to one of thefour basic tastes. The front of the tongue ismostly sensitive to sweetness, whereas bitter isperceived more to the rear. The edges of thetongue are more sensitive to sour towards therear, and to salty substances towards the tip.

The difference between sweet and sour is soimportant that it finds expression in idiomaticlanguage. A child, a girl friend, or a kitten, are alldescribed as sweet. On the other hand defeat,pain, or a disappointment are perceived as bitter.When we have to bear a heavy load, we speak ofa “bitter pill”.

We can only smell something when it starts toevaporate; in the same way we can only tastesomething if it can be dissolved in water. Othersenses are involved in how we experience thetaste of something. First, the sense of smell (thearoma of the food), then our general chemicalsense (its pungency or “hotness“, like chili pep-pers). Also, our somato-visceral sense (Greeksoma = body, Latin viscera = intestines, innerorgans) which communicates something of the

temperature, structure and consistency of food.The important role of our olfactory sense inenjoying a meal becomes obvious when we havea clogged nose. Odours are much more readilydetected than flavours: for example, we require25,000 times as many molecules to taste a cherrytart than to smell it.

The actual tasting is done by the taste buds, ofwhich there are between 5,000 and 10,000 in thepapillae on our tongues. A papilla is about 70 µmhigh and has a diameter of 40 µm. It is not pos-sible to definitively correlate the taste of a sub-stance with its chemical properties. Differentsugars (like saccharose, fructose, maltose andglucose) all taste sweet, but so do lead salts.

Our high sensitivity for bitter substances like thealkaloids (quinine, caffeine, morphine, nicotine,and strychnine) is noteworthy. Such substancesare often toxic, so our sense of taste providesa vital warning.

We have been given our sense of taste for testingand also enjoying our food. It also has an effecton digestion, by influencing the quantity andtype of the secretions of the digestive (especiallysalivary) glands.

Certain substancescan be tasted evenwhen greatlydiluted, and somethresholds aregiven below.Dissolved inone cc ofliquid, we canstill taste:

0.000 001 g saccharine (sweet)0.000 004 g quinine (bitter)0.000 05 g caffeine (bitter)0.000 01 g hydrochloric acid (sour)0.001 g table salt (salty)

The sense of taste

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The general chemical sense: In addition to smelland taste, we also have a third chemical sense:the general chemical sense. The receptorsinvolved are free nerve endings located in themucous membranes of the eyes, mouth, throat,and nose. They react to irritants as well as to thesame chemicals which give rise to odours andtastes, if these are present in relatively high con-centrations. We can experience a burning sensa-tion (e. g. in the eyes when peeling onions, in themouth and throat when eating something “hotand spicy”), or a stinging (in the nose when cut-ting an onion). We are not really aware of itbeing an independent sense in its own right, butits purpose is to protect us from dangerous sub-stances. There are several responses which lessenthe irritation, like the secretion of tears, mucus,or saliva, or simply closing our eyes.

Flavours mentioned in the Bible: According toJob 12:11 our sense organs have a proving or test-ing function: “Does not the ear test words as thetongue tastes food?” The goodness of God can beobserved by our senses, as written in Psalm 34:8:“Taste and see that the LORD is good.” In 1 Peter2:2-3 we read that recently redeemed personsneed spiritual milk to grow in faith, “so that by ityou may grow up in your salvation, now that youhave tasted that the Lord is good.”

In parables Jesus always described the essence ofheaven in terms of a great festival or banquet.He mentions a wedding feast: “The kingdom ofheaven is like a king who prepared a wedding ban-quet for his son” (Matt 22:2), and: “A certain man(meaning God) was preparing a great banquet (thefestival of heaven) and invited many guests” (Luke14:16). Some of the invited guests made excuseswith serious consequences. They missed entry intoheaven: “I tell you, not one of those men who wereinvited, will get a taste of my banquet” (Luke14:24). The joys of heaven are described in termsof taste. In Luke 12:37 Jesus asserts that He Him-

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� External acousticmeatus

� Styloid process� Styloglossus muscle� Hyoglossus muscle� Hyoid bone � Genioglossus muscle� Lower jaw

(mandible) Tongue Incisor tooth� Palatoglossus

muscle

Muscles of the tongue

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self will serve believers as his guests in heaven: “Hewill dress himself to serve, will have them reclineat the table, and will come and wait on them.”

In the Bible tasting is often employed as ametaphor for both intense enjoyment and suffer-ing. He who lives a life dedicated to God, tastesHis goodness (Ps 34:9, 1 Peter 2:3), and we readin Hebrews 6:4-5 of those “who have tasted theheavenly gift ... who have tasted the goodnessof the Word of God, and the powers of the com-ing age.”

Jesus “suffered death, so that by the graceof God he might taste death for everyone”(Hebr 2:9). This means much more than bodilydeath. By his death He paid the wages of sin(Rom 6:23), He suffered in our place the judge-ment that would have come upon us if we hadno Saviour. His assertion is valid for everybodywho believes in Him, namely: “I tell you thetruth, if a man keeps my word, he will neversee death” (John 8:51, or “taste death” as writtenin verse 52).

Since the essence of eternity is described in verbsdealing with our sense organs, we might also putit like this: Eternity is a place of everlastingobservation through our senses.

Quote:

French proverb: “When you put a tasty morsel inyour mouth, you send a message of joy to yourheart.”

37

Section of a taste papilla(papilla vallata). An enlarged section appears alongside.

Section of a single taste bud.

� Columnar cells� Moat� Taste papilla� Taste bud� Hair-like structures (microvilli)

protrude into the moat.� Epithelium of the tongue� Sensory taste cells Structural cell Nerve fibres� Salivary glands

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– it’s all over the skin

We become aware of the versatility of our tactilesense when we think of such diverse experiencesas caressing, fondling, itching, nibbling, tickling,scratching, and kissing. Or consider some specialsituations like jumping into a cold pool on a hotsummer day, withdrawing your foot from a muddypatch, or the crunching of wet sand betweenyour toes. People who are deaf and blind demon-strate that it is possible to orientate themselvesby their sense of touch. If we had no tactilesense, it would have been like living in vague,dull surroundings where one could lose a leg orburn one’s skin, or get disorientated without evennoticing it.

There are many metaphors in our language whichrefer to touching and feeling. Our emotions arecalled feelings, and when we are moved, we saythat something has touched us. Problems can be“ticklish” or “tough”. Some people have to behandled “with kid gloves”. Music teachers chidetheir pupils for not having enough “feeling intheir fingertips”, meaning that a difficult-to-de-scribe “something” is lacking in their performance.

The physiological term for the transmission ofinformation by means of receptors (Latin recep-tor = recorder) is sensibility (Latin sensibilis =observable). A receptor is the end of a nerve fibre,or a specialised cell, which can detect stimuli andconvert them into neural impulses.

General sensibility: Tremendous amounts ofinformation are detected by receptors and aresubsequently processed in the central nervoussystem. This complex process is known as sensi-bility. The receptors are located in the skin, instructures like muscles and skeletal joints, or ininternal organs, and are respectively known assuperficial, deep, and visceral sensibility (Latinviscera = intestine). As distinct from the otherfour senses (hearing, seeing, smelling and tast-ing), these three types are known collectively as

somato-visceral sensibility. Only a small fractionof all these signals are consciously perceived.Several kinds of receptors can be distinguishedaccording to the stimuli which they detect,namely mechanical, thermal, chemical, osmotic,and polymodal receptors. The latter refer to morethan one type of stimulus.

Sensibility of the skin: We will here restrictourselves to superficial sensibility, namely theperceptions mediated by the skin (cutis). This isa (nearly) watertight covering which protects allbody tissues from physical damage. At the sametime the skin is a highly sensitive sense organwhich can simultaneously detect various stimulithat can be quite independent of one another.A large number of different sensations can beperceived via the skin: the softness of a cat’s fur,the roughness of a masonry wall, the smooth-ness of ice, the pleasant warm sensation of asauna, but also the thorns of a rosebush, or theburning pain of a fresh wound. Strong emotionscan be aroused through the skin, as by a passion-ate kiss or tender caresses. Many properties ofobjects cannot be appraised by hearing, seeing,or smelling, but only by touch, as for example,weight, temperature, hardness, roughness, damp-ness, stickiness, and elasticity. We recognise sur-face structures and shapes by touch.

There are very many sensitive points in the skin,but they are not evenly distributed. They are clos-er together on face and hands than, for example,on the back, which is therefore less sensitive.There are three independent skin senses, namelytouch, temperature, and pain.

Not only do we have unique fingerprints, thepatterns of our skin pores are also unique. Theskin is a dual-layered membrane. The inner,spongy, leathery layer has a thickness of betweenone and two millimetres. It consists essentially ofconnective tissue which is rich in the protein col-lagen. It protects and cushions the body, and itcontains hair follicles, nerve ends, and sweat-

The sense of touch

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A section of human skin.The layers of the epidemis, the dermis, andthe inner skin are clearly visible.

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corpuscle (pressuresensitive receptor)

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Internal rootsheath

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� Sebaceous gland Meissner’s

corpuscle (touchsensitive receptor)

glands, as well as blood capillaries and lymphaticvessels. In contrast, the thickness of the outerlayer, the epidermis (Greek epi = upon, above;derma = skin), is only between 0.07 and 0.12 mm.

Our skin separates our bodies from the outsideworld. It encloses us, gives us our individualshapes, protects us from intruders, cools orwarms us, and conserves our body liquids. Sur-prisingly, it contributes about one sixth of ourbody weight, although the epidermis itselfweighs only about 500 g. The total area of theskin amounts to approximately 1.6 squaremetres. It is watertight, washable, and elastic. Theskin is thickest on the palms of our hands and onthe soles of our feet, and thinnest in the armpitsand on the eyelids.

Our skin – by numbers: One square centimetreof skin contains:

6,000,000 cells100 sweat glands15 sebaceous glands

5,000 sensory corpuscles200 pain points (receptor areas)25 pressure points12 cold-sensitive points2 heat-sensitive points

The most important property of the skin is that itcontains our sense of touch, which is located inthe dermal layer. The outer layer is insensitive,rubs off easily, and causes the ring left in thebath after bathing.

The sense of touch is difficult to investigate. Allthe other senses have a definite key organ whichcan be studied, but the skin is spread over theentire body and cannot easily be delimited or“switched off”. In the case of vision, scientists canobserve blind persons to learn more about see-ing, and they can study deaf people to learnmore about hearing. But this is impossible for thesense of touch.

Touching is ten times as strong as verbal or emo-tional contact. If touching were not pleasant,

living things would not procreate. If we did notenjoy touching and caressing, there would beno sex.

A foetus feels the moist warmth inside the womb;it perceives the heartbeats and the internalrhythms of its mother. The sense of touch is thefirst sense to develop. It functions automatically,before the newborn baby’s eyes even open toobserve the world.

It has been discovered that there are many morekinds of receptors than the four basic onesthrough which we experience warmth, coldness,pain, and pressure. All the different tactile sensa-tions are more complex than these four, and theycause us to respond variously.

Tactile experiences (Latin tactilis = touchable):Mechanical stimuli cause several different sensa-tions: stroking, touching, vibration, pressure, andtension. The fingertips and the tip of the tongueare especially sensitive. The fingertips can feel asharp point if the impression is only 10 µm, andin the case of a vibrating stimulus pressed intothe skin, can feel it even if this is less than 1 µm.

Other functions of the skin: In addition to itsimportant function as a tactile sense organ, thereare several others, of which only a few are men-tioned below:

1 The skin protects passively, as well as actively,against injurious external influences. It candestroy invading infective agents.

2 The skin plays an important role in controllingthe temperature of the body, which should notdeviate from 37° C because most organs functionoptimally at this temperature. Heat loss can beincreased or reduced by increasing or reducingthe flow of blood through the skin’s network ofsmall blood vessels. About three quarters of theheat loss is effected by radiation and conduction.The other quarter is effected by the evaporationof water, partly unnoticed through the skin andthe lungs, and partly by perspiration. The invisibleevaporation through the skin comprises one thirdof the total dermal loss of water.

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3 In addition to sweat, the skin also secretessebum, an oily substance which lubricates thehairs and the epidermis. Sweat-glands are excep-tionally numerous on the hands and the soles ofthe feet. There are about 200 million sweat-glands which secrete approximately one litre ofwater per day through orifices in the skin.

4 The skin also performs a respiratory function,handling between one and two percent of thetotal gas exchange of the body. It absorbs oxy-gen, and carbon dioxide can pass through it inboth directions.

5 Pain acts as a guardian of our health. It is usu-ally invoked indirectly by pain mediating chemi-cals accumulating in body tissues, which thenstimulate free nerve endings.

The Bible and the sense of touch: God has allthe senses which we have. Since we are made inHis image, He blessed us with our various senses.King Belshazzar was told that he had set himselfup against the Lord of heaven, because he“praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze,iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hearor understand” (in the German translation“understand” is rendered as “feel”, Daniel 5:23).Man-made idols are characterised as having nosense organs. In contrast, the living God can see,hear, and feel. The risen Christ wasn’t an imagi-nary figure, but He was so real that He could beseen, heard, and touched. When Jesus appearedsuddenly amongst his disciples, they were fright-ened, because they thought that they were see-ing a ghost. To convince them that He was genu-ine and real, He allowed them to touch Him:“Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself!Touch me and see; a ghost does not have fleshand bones, as you see I have” (Luke 24:39).

John begins his first epistle by testifying that hehas observed the Son of God by means of hisown senses. He is an eye-witness as well as anaural and a tactile witness of Jesus: “That whichwas from the beginning, which we have heard,which we have seen with our eyes, which wehave looked at and our hands have touched –this we proclaim concerning the Word of life...We proclaim to you what we have seen andheard ...” (1 John 1:1,3).

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– in this world and the next

The quality of our lives is determined to a greatextent by our senses. We take them for granted,only thinking about them when they stop work-ing in the way we’re used to. Just having aclogged nose makes a big difference to theflavour of our favourite dish. Permanent impair-ments of one sort or another may force us towear glasses or use a hearing aid. If a sense wehave been used to all our life is lost completely,it can be terrible and frightening, because oursenses, with all their possibilities and limitations,are so closely interwoven with the central ’I’, withour innermost being.

The sense organs of our present body cease tofunction at death. But is it the end; the real andfinal end? The Bible answers this question with aresounding NO! God created us as eternal beingswhose existence will never end. In Luke 16 Jesustells of two people whose earthly existenceended with their death, but both of them had alltheir senses in the next world 1.

One of them was a rich man with only one pur-pose, namely to gather riches and fine clothesand to enjoy the pleasantries of life. He ignoredGod completely. His name is not even mentioned,although many people looked up to him andenvied him his possessions and his influence. Hisidea of life is similar to that of many of our con-temporaries, who also strive towards riches,power and honour and accept these as their due.

The name of the other person, Lazarus, is men-tioned by Jesus. He was poor, undernourished,and not esteemed by his fellows, but he knew

that God cared for him, because he had a livingrelationship with God.

Jesus describes their situations after their death:“The time came when the beggar died and theangels carried him to Abraham’s side. The richman also died and was buried. In hell, where hewas in torment, he looked up ...” (Luke 16:22-23).Both of them died and have left this earth; nowthey find themselves in completely differentplaces. Although they lived in the same city,their present abodes are fundamentally differ-ent. One person lives in glory, and the other intorment.

Life does not end with biological death. On thecontrary, our existence with all our facultiesnever ends, since we are eternal creatures. This isa true fact, whether we believe it or not. We wereborn without our permission. We will all die with-out our permission. And we will exist for everwhether we believe it or not; nobody will ask whatour preferences are in this regard. We experiencethe certainty of eternity in our innermost being,since God has placed this knowledge in ourhearts (Eccl 3:11).

On the day of resurrection our earthly bodywill be changed into an everlasting one: “Thebody that is sown, is perishable, it is raisedimperishable... It is sown a natural body, it israised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body,there is also a spiritual body” (1 Cor 15:42-44).The spiritual body is imperishable, it is eternal,and it has all the sensory inputs and experiencesof consciousness. The Bible mentions two com-pletely different locations for our eternal resi-dence, namely heaven and hell. The former isa glorious life with God, and in the other we willbe estranged for ever from God in the place ofdamnation.

Both heaven and hell are places where our sensesfunction, places of conscious experience. This isnow discussed in terms of biblical affirmations:

Our sense organs

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1 Note: Luke 16:19-31 is often erroneously regarded asa parable, but in contrast to the known parables, thereis no indication that it is one. Furthermore, the namesof actual persons are used (Lazarus, Abraham, Moses).This is a clear indication that it is not a parable.

Heaven:

a) Heaven is a place where we will see and hear:In the first place we will see God the Father andJesus in person: “we shall be like him, for we shallsee him (Jesus) as he is” (1 John 3:2). Further-more: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, nomind has conceived what God has prepared forthose who love Him” (1 Cor 2:9). Here on earthwe are astounded by God’s providence and wis-dom; how much more will we be astonishedwhen we see Him face-to-face in heaven, andenjoy his presence eternally!

b) Heaven is a place where we will taste and smell:The essence of heaven is described in the NewTestament as a great banquet where there will befeasting. At the last supper Jesus told his disciples“I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from nowon until that day when I drink it anew with you inmy Father’s kingdom” (Matt 26:29). Also in theparable of the royal banquet where the essence ofheaven with God as Host is described, we read:“I have prepared my dinner” (Matt 22:4). In Luke12:37 we find another equally important state-ment in this regard: “He will dress himself toserve, will have them recline at the table, and willcome and wait on them.” If the Son of God invitesus to dinner, we may presume that the spread willbe exceedingly rich and excellent.

c) Heaven is a place full of wonderful experiences:When the prodigal son returned to his father, heprepared a feast for him. After everything wasready, we read in Luke 15:24: “So they began tocelebrate.” Another very important aspect ofheaven has now been expressed, namely that it isa place of indescribable and everlasting joy. Every-thing which pleases us will be richly available inheaven – love, peace, friendship, and well-being.

It is noteworthy that Jesus addresses all fivesenses during His last supper. In this way Hereminds us of our salvation which He effected,and consequently also of heaven:

When the Lord’s supper is celebrated, the wordsfor its institution (1 Cor 11:23 ff) are usually read.This involves the sense of hearing.

The bread and the wine are firstly observed visu-ally, then we see them as signs of the Lord’s pres-ence.We accept the bread, using our sense of touch.“Taste and see that the Lord is good“ (Ps 34:8).When we eat and drink, our senses of tasting andsmelling are also involved.

Hell:

a) Hell is a place of thirst and torment: The richman in Luke 16 calls to Abraham: “Have pity onme and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his fingerin water and cool my tongue, because I am inagony in this fire” (Luke 16:24). In contrast, Jesussays: “He who comes to Me, will never go hungry,and he who believes in Me, will never be thirsty”(John 6:35).

b) Hell is a place for remembering: The knowledgeof this life does not vanish when we die. In theplace of damnation the rich man thinks of hisbrothers who lived just as godlessly as he did. Herealises that he could do nothing for them, andthus requests Abraham to send Lazarus to them:“Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to myfather’s house, for I have five brothers. Let himwarn them, so that they will not also come tothis place of torment.” Abraham replied: “Theyhave Moses and the Prophets; let them listen tothem” (Luke 16:27-29). It is a fact that nobodyreturns from death to warn his relatives. Our onlyguide to salvation is the Word of God – the Bible!

c) Hell is a place of darkness: In this life we enjoyvery many wonderful sensations through oureyes and our ears. 83,000 people were present atthe colourful opening ceremony of the centenni-al Olympics in Atlanta on the 19th of July 1996,and 3,500 million people all over the worldwatched the four hour show on TV. About 5,500technicians and others cooperated to producethis magnificent opera-like sound-and-light pres-entation. Why were the spectators prepared totravel so far and to pay hundreds of dollars foran admission ticket? They wanted to see, hearand experience something special. In the sameway heaven can be regarded as an immeasurablysuperior “presentation” of beautiful and glorious

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experiences, with the added and indescribablebonus of having no time limits. By contrast, hellis a place of darkness, offering no positive experi-ences for eye and ear. In the parable of the tal-ents Jesus says: “And throw that worthless ser-vant outside, into the darkness, where there willbe weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 25:30).

When reading the Bible, it is noteworthy thatnobody preached so incisively, so fully, and sooften about hell, as Jesus. Why did He do that,seeing that nobody else has ever loved people somuch as He? It is precisely because of His lovethat He warned against this real place: “If yourright eye causes you to sin, gouge it out andthrow it away. It is better for you to lose one partof your body than for your whole body to bethrown in hell” (Matt 5:29). With these words ofthe Sermon on the Mount Jesus warns us withthe utmost urgency to make sure that we do notend up in that place. We perceive the sameextreme urgency in Matthew 18:8: “If your handor your foot causes you to sin, cut it off andthrow it away. It is better for you to enter lifemaimed or crippled, than to have two hands ortwo feet and be thrown into eternal fire.”

These words of warning from the mouth of Christhave essentially helped to determine the purposeof this book. It is our wish that as many peopleas possible will be saved from hell and won forheaven. The practical details for achieving this areexplained in the second part of this book.

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– more than a high-tech pump

Did you know that the human heart beats100,000 times a day? This amounts to 2,500 mil-lion times over 70 years, pumping enough bloodto fill a skyscraper. Blood flows through the bodyvia a densely branching network consisting of2,500 km of arteries, veins, and capillaries, equi-valent to the distance from Paris to Moscow.

The heart must supply all organs with sufficientblood, while continually having to adjust its out-put to the actual load. When more blood isrequired, it responds by beating faster and byincreasing the volume of blood pumped per con-traction. The quantity of blood pumped by theheart during one beat, is defined as the strokevolume (approximately 70 cm3 in the case of anadult at rest). At 70 beats per minute the dailyvolume pumped is 7,000 litres, enough to fill40 bathtubs.

The heart is a maintenance-free pump whichfunctions unattended throughout life, generallyrequiring no replacement parts. It drives theblood circulation, and has an exceptional abilityto adjust its level of activity to differing loads.The volume of blood pumped per minute by onechamber can increase from 5 litres up to nearly30 litres during strenuous muscular activity. Thisquantity is known as the cardiac output, usuallyexpressed in litres per minute. It should be notedthat both sides of the heart pump equal volumesof blood, otherwise large pressures would buildup on one side of the circulatory system whilethe other side would receive too little blood.

The power output of the heart is approximately1 Nm/s1. In the case of a machine the mass/powerratio is used to measure its efficiency. This meansthe mass required to produce for example 1 kWof energy. Taking the mass of the heart to be 0.3kg, its mass/power ratio is (300 g)/(1 W) = 300g/W = 300 kg/kW. Much lower values obtain formachines. For example:

Electric motor(at 1500 rev per min; 1 kW) 15 kg/kWMarine diesel engine (large ship) 60 kg/kWDiesel engine (heavy truck) 6 kg/kWFour-stroke petrol engine(heavy vehicle) 1.6 kg/kWAeroplane engine (light construction) 0.6 kg/kW

But when working hard, the energy output of theheart can increase appreciably, so that its mass/power ratio approaches that of a mechanicalpump.

The heart, a hollow muscular organ, is located inthe cavity formed by connective tissue betweenthe vertebral column and the breastbone. It iscompletely enclosed in a pouch called the peri-cardium, which extends between the pleural(lung lining) cavities on each side, from thediaphragm up to the large blood vessels. Normal-ly the heart is one and a half times the size ofone’s fist, but it can be significantly larger in thecase of trained athletes. Its mass is between 300and 350 g, which is about 0.5 per cent of thebody weight. In shape it resembles a rounded-offcone, the base of which is also the cardiac base.The septum separates the two halves of theheart, the right half serving the pulmonary circu-lation, whereas the left half independently pumpsblood throughout the whole body. Oxygen-depleted blood from the entire body is receivedby the right half of the heart and passed on tothe lungs (routes 2, 6, 7, 8 in the diagram onpage 51). It is oxygenated in the lungs and subse-quently flows to the left side of the heart whereit is pumped in various directions through thebody (routes 1, 3, 4, 5 in the diagram on page 51).The difference between arteries and veins is notdetermined by the quality of the blood, but by itsflow direction to or away from the heart. Veinscarry blood to the heart, while it is pumped away

The heart

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1 Power: In the SI system the Newton-metre per sec-ond is the unit used for expressing the amount ofwork divided by time. One Nm/s is equivalent to oneWatt (in the case of electricity) and also to one Jouleper second (the unit of heat transfer). We thus have:1 Nm/s = 1 W = 1 J/s.

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� Arch of the aorta� Left pulmonary

artery� Pulmonary veins

(veins from the lungs)� Left atrium� Left coronary artery� Anterior branch of

the left coronary artery� Large cardiac vein� Descending aorta Anterior cardiac veins Inferior vena cava� Right ventricle� Right coronary artery Right atrium� Superior vena cava� Trachea Anterior view of the heart and associated blood vessels

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Anterior view of the contours of the heart and itsassociated large blood vessels.The two halves can be readily distinguished: the right half isin the foreground, partially concealing the left half.

� Aorta� Pulmonary artery� Pulmonary veins� Left atrium� Left ventricle� Inferior vena cava� Right ventricle� Right atrium Superior vena cava

from the heart via the arteries. The arteries leadingto the body carry oxygenated blood, while theblood in the veins lacks oxygen. This situation isreversed for the arteries leading to the lungs andthe veins coming from the lungs.

Although the heart is filled with blood, it stillrequires its own blood supply. Situated on thesurface of the heart, the branches of the coro-nary arteries penetrate its wall. The coronaryveins collect blood from the capillaries in the

heart muscles and carry it back. This circulatoryroute is the shortest in the entire human body.

Looking at the heart from the front, one actuallysees mainly the right ventricle, with the rightatrium above it. Two large veins (the superior andinferior vena cava; Latin vena = vein, cava = hol-low) empty into the right atrium. The aorta arisesfrom the left ventricle and arches over the pul-monary artery issuing from the right ventricle. It

then passes downwards behind the heart.

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The heart and the circulation of blood.Schematic representation of the connections betweenthe two halves of the heart and the minor (pulmonary)as well as the major (rest of the body) circulatorysystems.

� Brain� Thyroid gland� Thyroid artery� Pulmonary circulation� Pulmonary vein� Aorta� Splenic artery� Spleen Superior mesenteric artery Renal artery� Kidney� Intestine Renal vein� Portal vein� Liver� Inferior vena cava� Hepatic veins� Pulmonary artery� Superior vena cava� Thyroid vein

The pumping action of theheart is caused by a rhyth-mic alternation betweenrelaxation and contraction.These are respectively knownas the diastolic (Greek: dias-tole = expansion) and sys-tolic (Greek: systole = con-traction) actions of theventricles (Latin: ventriculus= small chamber). Duringdiastole the ventricles arefilled with blood, and whenthey contract, the blood isforced into the main arteries.The four heart valves, situat-ed at approximately thesame level in rings of con-nective tissue, prevent theblood from flowing back.

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Foetal circulatory system. Neonatal circulatory system.

There are essential differences between the blood circu-lation of a foetus (above left), and that of a newborn(neonatal) baby (above right). Before birth the lungs ofthe foetus are unventilated, so the blood has to bypassthe lungs. A major portion of the blood passes directlyfrom the right atrium to the left through the foramenovale, a hole in the atrial wall, thus bypassing the pul-monary circuit. That portion of the blood which flowsthrough the right ventricle is passed from the pulmo-nary artery to the aorta via the ductus arteriosus,another bypass, and thus also avoids the pulmonary cir-cuit. Before birth, the vital interchange of gases takesplace in the placenta. The two umbilical arteries carryoxygen-depleted blood to the placenta, and oxygenatedblood flows back to the foetus via the umbilical vein.After birth the lungs expand, giving rise to the pul-monary circuit because of the strongly increased flow ofblood. At the same time the foramen ovale and the duc-tus arteriosus are closed, thus establishing the propercycle of blood circulation.

� Arch of the aorta� Ductus arteriosus� Lung� Left atrium� Left ventricle� Bodily capillaries� Placenta� Umbilical blood vessels Liver Right ventricle� Foramen ovale� Right atrium Closed ductus arteriosus� Closed foramen ovale

The heart beats 70 times per minute, and pumpsabout 70 cm3 of blood into the major circuit ateach contraction. This means that the volume ofblood pumped each minute is about 5 litres (70 x70 = 4,900 cm3). This is equal to the total volumeof blood in the body. When physically active themuscles require more blood, so that the pressureand the flow volume of the blood increases. Thevolume per minute can then be raised to 25 litres,meaning that the entire blood volume is pumpedthrough the body five times per minute. This isachieved by a doubling of the stroke volumefrom 70 to 140 cm3 and the rate increases to asmany as 180 beats per minute (140 x 180 =25,200 cm3 = 25 litres).

The human heart is morphologically and func-tionally a masterpiece of its Creator. The focalpoint of circulation, it responds to every demand,even from the most distant corners of the body.The larger blood vessels, arteries and veins, arethe main roads carrying the necessary volumes ofblood, but the capillaries provide the actual nour-ishment. In this cleverly designed network, thearteries branch repeatedly and supply the entirecapillary network with blood. These capillaries inturn combine to form larger and larger veins.

The following table shows that 1,200 million ca-pillaries, with a total length of 1,200 kilometres,must be supplied with blood.

Cross-Total sectional

Type of vessel Number length area Diameter(m) (cm2) (mm)

Aorta 1 0.4 0.8 10.0

Large arteries 40 8 3 3.0

Arterial branches 600 60 5 1.0

Small art branches 1,800 18 5 0.6

Arterioles 40,000,000 80,000 125 0.02

Capillaries 1,200,000,000 1,200,000 600 0.008

Venules 80,000,000 160,000 570 0.03

Small vein branches 1,800 18 30 1.5

Venous tributaries 600 60 27 2.4

Large veins 40 8 11 6.0

Vena cava (superior and inferior) 2 0.4 1.2 12.5

Table 1: Numerical aspects of human blood vessels.

Blood pressure: The pressure against which theleft ventricle must push the blood, is called thearterial blood pressure. The resulting pressurewaves can be felt as pulses when one touchesthe skin over a superficial artery. Arterial pressurechanges continually, varying between a maxi-mum systolic pressure (full contraction of theleft ventricle) and a diastolic minimum (when theaortic valve is open). The systolic pressure is nor-mally about 120 mm (in the old mercury pres-sure, which equals 16 kPa 2), and the diastolicabout 80 mm (= 10.7 kPa).

The heart of a human embryo already startsbeating at 25 days after conception. Its size isthen only 2.5 mm, while the embryo as suchmeasures 6 mm. The heart of an adult manweighs about 320 g and that of a woman 270 g.It is noteworthy that the strict separation of theleft (arterial) and the right (veinous) sides of theheart only commences at birth. In the foetusboth atria are connected by the foramen ovale 3.The Latin word foetus means begotten; in med-ical terms it refers to the embryo at four monthsand later.

Did you know that a near-instantaneous “changeof heart” takes place directly after birth? The twohalves of the heart of a foetus operate in parallel.Both atria and ventricles function together as asingle hollow muscle, and the blood is oxygenat-ed in the placenta. The lungs require very littleblood, since they do not function, and they are

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2 Pressure: The SI unit for pressure is the Pascal (Pa),named after the French mathematician and physicistBlaise Pascal (1623 – 1662). 1 Pa = 1 N/m2 = 1 kg/(ms2).The previously used unit for air pressure, millimetresof mercury (mm Hg), was defined as follows in 1954by the World Organisation for Metrology: “One mmHg is the pressure exerted by a 1 mm column of mer-cury at a temperature of 0 °C and at a place wherethe gravitational acceleration is normal (9.80665m/s2).” The conversion factors are: 1 mm Hg =133.332 Pa, 1 kPa = 1,000 Pa. In medicine, the oldunit is used, for historical and practical reasons.

3 Foramen ovale (Latin foramen = hole): The orifice inthe septum between the two atria of a foetus.

“shunted on a siding” as far as blood circulationis concerned. After birth the two halves work inseries. This changeover is effected by opening thepulmonary circuit and closing the foramen ovalebetween the left and the right vestibules, as wellas closing the ductus Botali 4 between the aortaand the pulmonary artery. The Creator hadplanned this changeover from the parallel foetaloperation of the two halves of the heart to serialfunctioning.

The Bible and the heart: Life depends on theregular beating of the heart, since it is the centralorgan of the circulatory system. It can be regard-ed as the bearer of life and it symbolically repre-sents all vital organs. In biblical idiom the heart isthe symbol of a person’s essential being. Depres-sion (Ps 34:18), sadness (John 16:6), worry (John14:1), distress and anguish (2 Cor 2:4), but alsojoy (John 16:22), are attributed to the heart asthe psycho-spiritual centre of life. “In his heart aman plans his course” (Prov 16:9), will and pur-pose spring from the heart (Nehemiah 4:6: “... thepeople worked with all their heart”), and otherpeople can have a place in our hearts (2 Cor 7:3).Wisdom and truth, but also foolishness can livein the heart (1 Kings 3:12, Ps 14:1, Prov 22:15),just as love (1 Sam 18:1) and hate (Lev 19:17).Since the heart is the symbolic location of ourfeelings, the decision to be obedient or not (Acts7:39) is also ascribed to it.

The functioning of the heart is investigated by aphysician when he obtains an electro-cardiogram(ECG); in the same way God takes a spiritual ECG.He tests the faithfulness of our hearts: “The cru-cible for silver and the furnace for gold, but theLORD tests the heart” (Prov 17:3). Only God knowsus inside and out, as David prays: “Search me,O God, and know my heart; test me and knowmy ... thoughts” (Ps 139:23).

Quotes:

French proverb: “There is no secret in our heartswhich our behaviour does not reveal.”

Chinese proverb: “Deep chasms can be filled, butnever the human heart.“

Hebrew proverb: “He who has a narrow heart,has a wide tongue. Any pain is better than thatof the heart.”

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4 Ductus Botali (Latin ducere, ductum = pull, lead;ductus = connecting passage; Leonardo Botalli was anItalian physician, 1530 – 1571): Ductus Botali = duc-tus arteriosus = connection between the pulmonaryartery and the aorta of a foetus.

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– a universal transportmediumThe blood (Latin sanguis, Greek haima) is thegreat transport medium of the body. While circu-lating, this liquid 1 performs several importantfunctions:

1 Respiration: The blood carries oxygen from thelungs to all body tissues for them to utilise. Atthe same time carbon dioxide is carried from thetissues back to the lungs where it is exhaled. Thisvital function is mainly performed by the redblood cells.

2 Nourishment: The cells of the body continuallyrequire energy and raw materials, and the bloodplays an all-important part by transporting nutri-ents to the individual cells of the body. The pro-ducts resulting from the digestion of food areabsorbed by the blood from the gut (mainly thesmall intestine). The length of the small intestineis between five and seven metres, and its totalsurface area exceeds that of the lungs. If onewere to iron out all its protuberances, its areawould be larger than a tennis court. Nutrients,dissolved in water, are collected by the bloodfrom the small intestine and carried to the liveralong the portal vein (vena portae). Consisting ofa patchwork of about 100,000 hexagonal piecescalled lobules (hepatic lobule, Greek hepar =

liver), the liver is the largest internal organ. Thebasic metabolism of the body takes place in theliver. Employing unique and wonderful processes,the cells of the lobules chemically convert sugar,fats, proteins, and other nutrients. The productsare either stored, re-used, or released. About30 per cent of the blood leaving the heart passesthrough the liver, and from there the nutrientsare distributed throughout the body.

The blood plays another important role in nutri-tion: Superfluous nutrients are stored in certain“depots” and transported to active cells whenrequired.

3 Excretory function: The end products of cellularmetabolism diffuse into the interstitial spacesbetween the cells and from there to the blood.These chemicals are then filtered out by theexcretory organs, mainly the kidneys. (Excretion =the removal or elimination of metabolic products(excreta) which cannot be used by the body, likeurine and sweat; in contrast, the process of secre-tion produces substances which the body needs.)

4 The control of concentrations: The cells of thebody can only function optimally when the pre-vailing internal conditions are within certain lim-its (eg. the concentration of dissolved substancesshould be constant, as well as the temperatureand the acid-base ratio). Certain organs continu-ally monitor these blood values and correct themwhen necessary. The composition of the inter-cellular liquids is kept in equilibrium by inter-changes with the blood.

5 Temperature control: At the normal tempera-ture of the body, 37 °C, all processes functionoptimally. The organs generate heat, but themain component of the blood, water, has a highspecific heat value, so that the heat capacity ofblood is also high. Furthermore, since the bloodflows continually, the transfer of heat is muchfaster than in the case of a non-moving liquid.On the one hand, the blood absorbs any excessheat, which is then dissipated over the surfaceof the body and through the lungs. On the otherhand, circulation of the blood ensures that allparts of the body receive the necessary heat.

The blood

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1 Measures of volume: Many types of volume arementioned in this chapter, and the following conver-sion table may be useful in this respect:1 cubic metre = 1 m3 = 1000 dm3 = 1000 l1 cubic decimetre = 1 dm3 = 1 litre1 cubic centimetre = 1 cm3 = 1000 mm3 = 1 millilitre1 cubic millimetre = 1 mm3 = 109 µm3

1 cubic micrometre = 1 µm3 = 1 thousand millionthof a mm3

1 litre = 1 l = 1 dm3 = 1000 cm3 = 1000 ml = 100 cl1 centilitre = 1 cl = 10 ml1 millilitre = 1 ml = 1 cm3 = 1000 µl1 microlitre = 1 µl = 1 mm3

6 Transportation of hormones: The blood alsoconveys the body’s own chemicals, which are col-lected from their points of origin or their placesof storage. Various hormones (Greek horman =drive, excite) are secreted by the endocrineglands (Greek éndon = inside, krinein = separate,excrete). Many vital processes are controlled byspecial substances in the blood, known as hor-mones. They are produced in certain tissues orglands, taken up by the blood, and transported toother specific tissues or organs, often located atconsiderable distances. There they perform func-tions vital to the organism, although they appearonly in minute quantities in the blood.

Some hormones are:Adrenalin – secreted when the sympathetic nervesare excited, causing blood vessels to contract.Renin and angiotensin – control of blood pressure.Histamine – plays an important role in antigen/antibody reactions.Somatotropin – growth hormone Insulin – controls the processing of the glucoseabsorbed in the intestine, as well as that synthe-sised by the body itself.Male and female sexual hormones.Cortisone – controls (among other things) theimmune response. Thyroid hormones – control heat and metabolism.

7 Defence: The leucocytes (white blood cells) andcertain chemicals (antibodies) protect the bodyagainst toxins and intruding micro-organisms.

8 Coagulation: Blood coagulation affords a vital-ly important protection against loss of blood; italso repairs damaged blood vessels.

Obviously, the blood carries out vitally importantfunctions. It is the raison d’être as well as thehandmaiden of the circulatory system. It supplieseach and every cell with fuel (obtained from thenutrients we ingest), with oxygen, with vitamins,with hormones, and with warmth. Metabolicproducts and excess heat are also carried awayfrom every cell. Blood flows ceaselessly through-out our lifetime. It does not collect at specificpoints, but flows in a never-ending loop throughthe circulatory system. Filling and emptying itself

every second with blood, the heart is the centreof this system.

Composition of the blood: Blood plasma (theliquid component) comprises 56 % of the blood,and solid particles (the blood corpuscles) makeup the other 44 %. Three types of corpuscles canbe distinguished:

Red blood corpuscles

– Red blood cells (= erythrocytes; Greek erythrós= red; kytos = hollowed, convex).Quantity: 4.5 – 5 million per mm3 blood

– White blood corpuscles (leucocytes; Greekleukós = bright, shiny, white).Quantity: 4,000 – 10,000 per mm3 bloodThree types can be distinguished: lymphocytes(30 %), granulocytes (66 %), and monocytes(4 %)

– Platelets (thrombocytes; Greek thrómbos =coagulated blood)Quantity: 150,000 – 350,000 per mm3 blood

Red blood corpuscles: Did you know that everydrop of blood contains 250 million red cells?During its average lifespan of 120 days each ofthese highly specialised cells performs anextremely important task: it absorbs oxygen175,000 times, and discharges carbon dioxide thesame number of times. Its diameter is close toone thousandth of a millimetre. If all 25 million

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million erythrocytes contained in the 5 litres of aman’s blood were laid side by side, their totalarea would cover 3,800 square metres, more thanhalf of a football field.

Human erythrocytes are circular disks, concaveon both sides. Their greatest thickness at theedge is about 2 µm and the average diameter is

24 hours. The production rate is thus 160 millionper minute, or 230,000 million per day. Thisamounts to 2.7 million per second – an astound-ing rate!

One of the most important tasks of the blood isto transport the oxygen absorbed in the lungs toall organs and tissues, at the same time convey-

The various blood cells. The blood cells are pro-duced in the red bone marrow from a common stem cell,the haemocytoblast, and are released into the surround-ing blood after a certain maturation period. Except forthe lymphocytes, which also reproduce in the lymphaticorgans, all blood cells are produced in the red bonemarrow throughout our lifetime.

Neutrophilic granulocyte Monocyte Basophilic granulocyte

7.5 µm (normocyte). The central cross-sectionalshape is like a dumb-bell, only 1 µm thick at thecentre. This characteristic shape provides for thegreatest diffusion area. It also optimally servesanother purpose: They are easily distorted andare thus able to pass through narrow, curvedcapillaries. They can even pass through bloodvessels with a smaller diameter than the averageerythrocyte. Having a volume of 90 µm3, theirbiconcave disk shape has an area of 140 µm2,but if they were spherical, the area would havebeen only 97 µm2.

Erythrocytes do not have a cellular nucleus, sothey are unable to divide and replicate. This meansthat all red blood cells have to be replaced at theend of their lifetime. This renewal, known as ery-thropoesis (Greek poesis = regeneration) takesplace in the bone marrow. It should be noted thatabout 0.9 % of the total complement of 25 millionmillion red blood corpuscles are renewed every

ing the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced there backto the lungs. The erythrocytes are essentiallyresponsible for this function of the blood. The redpigment hemoglobin (abbr. Hb) has the abilityto absorb oxygen in the lung capillaries and sub-sequently release it in the capillaries of the bodytissues. It is also able to bind some of the carbondioxide produced by cellular metabolism andrelease it in the lungs. Hemoglobin thus playsa central role in the transportation of respiratorygases. It is a protein comprising 34 per cent ofthe wet weight of the erythrocytes, water beingthe most abundant component.

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One cell contains 32 pg (1 picogram = 10-12 g)hemoglobin, comprising about 300 million mol-ecules. This red pigment comprises about 95 % ofthe dry weight of erythrocytes. Interestingly, the32 pg per cell in an adult organism is practicallya universal constant for the animal kingdom.In terms of volume the quantity of Hb is about140 g/l for adult women, and 160 g/l for men.

Consisting of four pyrrole rings connected bymethine bridges ( – CH = ), the heme has a biva-lent iron atom at its centre. Oxygen can beattached to the central iron atom withoutchanging its chemical valence. The Creatordesigned this amazing structure without whichhuman life would not have been possible. Con-sider the following:

Eosinophilic granulocyte Platelets (thrombocytes) Small lymphocyte

The body thus has a total quantity of between700 and 960 grams of Hb available in its 5 to6 litres of blood. The percentage of iron in hemo-globin is 0.334 %, so that 3 grams, or 70 %, of allthe iron in the body is located in the hemoglobin.

Each of these Hb molecules is a complex protein,consisting of globin (Greek globus = sphere)which is connected to an iron-containing pig-ment component, heme (Greek haima = blood) bymeans of four polypeptide chains. Because of thefour chains this protein is known as a tetramericprotein (Greek tetra = four). Two of these chainsconsist of 141 amino acids (the α chain ), and theother two have 146 amino acids (the β chain).The normal hemoglobin for an adult is indicatedby Hb-α2β2 or simply HbA. The exact sequence ofthe amino acids in the chains is of crucial impor-tance for the structure of the globin molecule.Small deviations can seriously affect its function.

Normally, in the presence of water and oxygen,the iron in free heme is immediately oxidised totri-valent iron (hematin); it cannot then absorbany oxygen. The Creator prevented this futile re-action by shaping the globin chain to form a pro-tective coat. This chain also has other importantfunctional properties:

In the first place the absorption of oxygen is re-versible, since it does not depend on a chemicalbond. If a chemical bond had to be severed, ener-gy would have been required. Secondly, thequantity of oxygen to be absorbed or releasedcan be regulated, making it possible to supplyvarying levels of oxygen to peripheral organsaccording to their physiological requirements.It can also be stated thus: Human life could nothave existed without the finely tuned propertiesof hemoglobin, which are the result of its welldesigned molecular structure.

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The entire molecule, consisting of 10,000 atoms,has a molecular weight of about 68,000 (com-pare: H2O: 18, CO2: 44, insulin: 41,000). It is pre-cisely folded in such a way as to obtain its char-acteristic near-spherical shape (diameter: 5.5 nm,1 nm = 10-9 m). Each of its four equal sized partsis also roughly spherical.

only diffuse into body tissues when it is physical-ly dissolved. But most of the oxygen transportedby the blood is bound to Hb, maximally in theratio of four oxygen molecules per molecule ofHb. It follows that one gram of Hb can absorb1.36 ml oxygen (Hüfner’s number). The averageman has 15.3 g of Hb per 100 ml blood, and awoman has 14.5 g Hb, so that each 100 ml of aman’s blood can carry 20.8 ml O2 (19.7 ml in thecase of a woman), when all the heme is fully oxy-genated. Hb thus transports 70 times as muchoxygen as that which can be physically dissolvedin the serum. The total amount of Hb in 5.5 litresof blood is between about 745 and 820 g.

Some noteworthy numbers:

The total number of red bloodcorpuscles: 25 million millionThat is, – in one cubic millimetre (mm3): 5,000,000– in one drop of blood: 250,000,000– in one cubic cm (cm3): 5,000,000,000Total surface area of all red blood cells: 3,800 m2

Total number of white blood cells: 35,000 millionTotal number of platelets: 1.25 million million

To get some visual grasp of the immense numberof erythrocytes in our body: If all these red bloodcells were stacked one on top of the other, thestack would reach a height of 40,000 km, the cir-cumference of the earth at the equator. If all 25million million red blood corpuscles were laiddown next to one another, we would have a190,000 km long band which would be nearlyfive times the circumference of the earth.

Red blood cell differences before and afterbirth: Concerning the transport of oxygen in theblood, two requirements must be met rightthroughout the three different stages of thehuman being (embryonic, fetal and adult) consid-ered here. All parts of the body must be suppliedwith the necessary amounts of oxygen; similarly,the CO2 resulting from oxidation needs to betransported away. Each of these various devel-opmental stages has differing circulatory andmetabolic situations, so the capacity of the bloodto transport these gases needs to be different in

Large lymphocyte

When oxygenated, the colour of the blood changesfrom dull purplish (the venous blood depleted ofoxygen) to a bright scarlet (the colour of oxygen-rich arterial blood). Oxygenated Hb is known asoxy-hemoglobin. The theoretical oxygen capacityof the 5 – 6 litres of blood in the body is between1,100 and 1,400 ml, but only 25 % of thisamount is actually utilised. In an equal volume ofwater (5 – 6 litres) at 20 °C only 150 – 180 mloxygen can be dissolved (and even less at 37 °C).When carbon monoxide (CO) is inhaled, itreplaces oxygen, because it binds more tightlywith Hb. This explains the high toxity of evensmall concentrations of CO in the air.

A fraction of the oxygen is transported by theblood in the form of dissolved O2, as is the casewith other respiratory gases. Although this quan-tity of oxygen (0.3 ml per 100 ml blood) isminute, it is quite important, since oxygen can

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each case. We can only stand amazed at how theCreator solved this problem, which is why it isworth giving a little more detail:

Carrying out these specific functions requires anextraordinarily ingenious molecular construction.It is the hemoglobin molecule (Hb), which chemi-cally is a tetrameric iron protein. It consists of aglobin molecule and four heme molecules. Glo-bin consists of four subunits, namely four longprotein chains (two lots of identical type, i.e. twopairs). A heme molecule is attached to each ofthese chains such that the four heme units lie in“pouches” close to the surface of the entire Hbmolecule. Heme is a ringshaped molecule, whichcontains an iron atom at its centre. Hb consistsof 0.334% iron; the total quantity of iron in theblood is about 3 grams, or 70% of the iron in theentire human body.

Protein molecules consist of long chains of vari-ous amino acids, and undergo folding after theyhave been assembled. The characteristic three-dimensional structure each protein adopts, whichgives it its function, depends on the types andsequence of these amino acids. If just a few(depending on the position, even one) of theseamino acids are substituted by others, or aminoacids are added or omitted, the entire geometryof the molecule is affected, and thus also itscapacity for gas transport.

a) In the adult stage (here regarded as com-mencing at birth), our blood contains exactly thathemoglobin (HbA = adult) in which the four pro-tein chains are constructed so as to give theentire molecule the precise affinity for oxygenneeded for us to live. HbA has two each of thealready mentioned α und β protein chains. Thechemical structure of these chains must be veryprecise, or else severe diseases (anemias) willresult. For instance, sickle cell anemia has arisenthrough mutation causing just one single aminoacid residue in the β chain to be replaced byanother. Even this minuscule change results inan aberrant, pathological form of Hb. We can seehere that the sort of tinkering and experimenta-tion with amino acid sequences that evolutionarythinking requires is largely ruled out. The hemo-

globin molecule must be fully functional rightfrom the start.

b) In the embryonic stage (up to 3 months ges-tation) the oxygen transport needs are radicallydifferent. What has the Creator done to cater forthis situation? He has specified the amino acidsequences in two of the protein chains in thehemoglobin molecules such that the spatial con-figuration after folding results in exactly the oxy-gen affinity required. Compared to HbA, insteadof the two β chains there are two ε chains.Embryonic hemoglobin is thus also called Hbα2ε2

c) In the fetal stage (from 3 months gestation tobirth), the oxygen requirements are differentagain. Now the two ε chains of the embryonichemoglobin (Hbα2ε2) are replaced by two γchains. It is now called Hbα2ε2 or HbF (= fetal).Throughout its development, the fetus mustremain richly supplied with oxygen. Exchangesof respiratory gases and energy-laden substancestake place in the placenta. If the fetus had thenormal adult hemoglobin HbA, the blood wouldbe only 60% saturated. Thus the Creator has forthis stage provided the HbF, which is preciselytuned to the coupling of the fetal and maternalcirculation. Because of its special 3-D structure,HbF can take up 20-30% more oxygen from themother’s blood than HbA. The later replacementof HbF by HbA occurs through a remarkableprocess. Already prior to birth, a “switch of pro-gramming” takes place such that at birth the ery-throcytes only contain some 60-80% of fetalhemoglobin. At three months of age, the HbFhemoglobin has been almost completely replacedby the HbA hemoglobin. It is amazing how allthese processes take place in a completely goal-directed fashion, in response to the changing cir-cumstances and needs.

If one were to try to explain the origin of hemo-globin, and the complex machinery for its syn-thesis, from an evolutionary standpoint, therewould be some massively insoluble problems:

● How is it, that in all the three stages of human development described above, theexact chemical makeup (the sequences and

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types of the amino acids in the proteinchains) could be obtained? In a process oftrial and error of various sequences, most ofthe combinations would not transportenough oxygen, which would be lethal. Thusan evolutionary process of “graduallyapproaching” the right combination isexcluded.

● Even if somehow the right molecule could besynthesized to provide for the needs of twoof these stages, death would be certain (andthe evolutionary experiment would end), ifan inappropriate hemoglobin were utilized inthe third stage.

● For each of these three stages, essentially different biological machinery is required. Atthe right time, the production has to switchfrom the ε chain to the γ chain, and then athird time to the β chain. How could thecomplex machinery necessary to control thisproduction sequence itself arise?

The only reasonable answer, and the obvious one,is that everything must have been present andfully functional from the start, in the DNA codingof the first human beings—conceived andplanned by a wise Creator.

Leucocytes: The leucocytes, also known as whiteblood cells or white blood corpuscles, are muchless abundant than the erythrocytes. There areonly between 4,000 and 10,000 of them in onemm3, and their number is variable. They increaseafter a meal or after physical activity. There aremorphologically different kinds of leucocytes;their purpose is to defend the body againstintruders, each in its own particular way, and todefend it to the death, as it were. They die by themillions wherever there is a point of entry forinfection. There are about six thousand millionwhite corpuscles in every litre of blood, one forevery 600 to 1,000 red blood cells. In contrast tothe latter, the leucocytes are complete cells hav-ing a nucleus as well as organelles. They are alsoknown as granulocytes, because in large concen-trations the blood plasma appears to be granular.

Five types can be distinguished, three accordingto their ability to be stained. Sixty per cent of theleucocytes are neutrophilic granulocytes (Greekphilos = friend; they are readily stained by neu-tral dyes), five per cent are eosinophilic (Greekeos = the rosiness of dawn; eosin is a red dyeused for microscopic analysis), and two per centare basophilic (they can be stained with basicdyes). The remaining two kinds of white bloodcells are the lymphocytes (30 %) and the mono-cytes (3 %).

The leucocyte army is an impressive team ofspecialists. While half of them are patrollingwithin the blood, the others are on external duty,guarding the tissues. Bacteria, viruses, fungi andparasites continually enter our bodies throughbreaches of the skin, in the air we breathe, andfrom food in the alimentary canal. They arerecognised as enemies, and, when located, thearmy goes into action. The basophilic granulo-cytes and the lymphocytes fire chemical weaponsat them. Next on the scene are the neutrophils,the eosinophils, and the monocytes. They indi-vidually surround the intruders and absorb anddigest them. Remarkably, this secret army is ableto clearly distinguish between friend and foe,between the body’s own substances and foreignmatter.

Thrombocytes: A healthy adult has between150,000 and 350,000 platelets in a cubic mm ofblood. These thrombocytes have no nucleus, theyare flat, and are irregularly rounded in shape.They measure between 1 and 4 µm in length,with a thickness of 0.5 – 0.75 µm, and comprisecell fragments enclosed in a membrane. Continu-ously replenished by the bone marrow, theiraverage lifespan is between 5 and 11 days. Theyare normally inactive, but can be activated bycontact with e.g. roughened surfaces, such aswhen a blood vessel is cut or injured, and by cer-tain blood coagulation factors. When activated,they are able to release substances necessary forblood clotting. When blood loss commencesthrough injury, many platelets accumulatingtogether form a mass which “plugs” the defect.In the process, they disintegrate, releasing sub-stances that trigger off coagulation.

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The Bible and blood: Having explored the fun-damental importance of the blood for all physio-logical processes in the body, we now have anentirely new approach to biblical passages whichmention blood. We read in Deuteronomy 12:23:“the blood is the life”. Consistent with what wehave now learned of the vital role of blood, theBible regards blood as the seat of life.

After Cain had killed his brother Abel, Godaccused him with the words: “Your brother’sblood cries out to me from the ground” (Gen4:10). In Genesis 37:27 the following turn ofphrase is used to indicate family relationship: “...our own flesh and blood”. Human life is preciousto God, Who prohibits human sacrifice (Deut18:10) and cannibalism. Anybody who shedshuman blood, violates God’s image and thus theCreator Himself, Who will then avenge the shedblood: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by manshall his blood be shed; for in the image of Godhas God made man” (Gen 9:6). God empoweredhuman authorities to fulfil this task; they havebeen commissioned by God to bear the sword toredress evil. When the authorities justly punishevildoers, they do so for our benefit (Rom 13:1-4).

The blood of the martyrs (the prophets and oth-ers who were witnesses for Jesus) is especiallymentioned. In Matthew 23:35 Jesus accuses thescribes and the pharisees: “And so upon you willcome all the righteous blood that has been shedon earth, from the blood of righteous Abel...” InRevelation the blood of the witnesses of Jesus ismentioned often, those who lost their lives forthe sake of the Word of God (Rev 6:10, 16:6,17:6, 18:24, and 19:2).

In the Old Testament God emphasises the valueof blood. Before the exodus of the Israelites fromEgypt, God told them to smear the blood of thepassover lamb on the tops and sides of theirdoorframes. “The blood will be a sign for you onthe houses where you are; and when I see theblood, I will pass over you. No destructive plaguewill touch you when I strike Egypt” (Exodus12:13). In all other houses the firstborn died.

This was a concealed reference to the saving

blood of the perfect Lamb, namely the blood ofJesus. In the eyes of God there is no forgivenesswithout the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22).The Son of God thus had to be incarnated inhuman form to bring the only sacrifice thatcould save us. After He had risen from the dead,He asked the disciples going to Emmaus: “Did notthe Christ have to suffer these things and thenenter his glory?” (Luke 24:26). The blood of Jesus(Hebr 10:19, 1 John 1:7) as well as all its syn-onyms like the blood of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:2),the blood of Christ (1 Cor 10:16, Eph 2:13, andHebr 9:14), and the blood of the Lord (1 Cor11:27), occupy a central place in the New Testa-ment. All these concepts are abbreviations for theblood shed by Jesus Christ, his death and self-sacrifice on the cross of Calvary for the sins ofa lost humanity. The real meaning of the blood ofJesus can be summarised as follows:

1 The blood which Jesus shed for us is the priceHe paid for our salvation. It is the only way ofobtaining eternal life: “For you know that it wasnot with perishable things such as silver or goldthat you were redeemed..., but with the preciousblood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18-19). “Nothingimpure will ever enter it (heaven)..., but onlythose whose names are written in the Lamb’sbook of life” (Rev 21:27). We can only enter heav-en when we are purified, and this has beenaccomplished by Jesus: “The blood of Jesus, hisSon, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

2 The sacrifice of Jesus paid our debts beforeGod. Not only are our personal sins taken away,but Jesus bore the punishment for the entire losthuman race: “Look, the Lamb of God, who takesaway the sin of the world” (John 1:29). The wide-reaching impact of Jesus’ act of redemption isexpressed clearly in Romans 5:18: “Just as theresult of one trespass was condemnation for allmen, so also the result of one act of righteous-ness was justification that brings life for all men.“His sacrifice is sufficient for all humanity. Unfor-tunately only a few avail themselves of thisopportunity (see Matthew 7:13-14, and para-graph 7 below).

3 The result of man’s sin was a deep, unbridge-

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able chasm between the holy God and sinfulman. But through Jesus we are redeemed in thesight of God, “by making peace through hisblood, shed on the cross” (Col 1:20b), and wemay now have fellowship with the Father andwith his Son, Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3).

4 The blood of Jesus sealed the “New Covenant”:“In the same way, after the supper He took thecup, saying, This cup is the new covenant in myblood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20).Our fellowship with Jesus Christ becomes visiblein the Lord’s supper. We must always remind our-selves of his sacrifice: “This is my body, which isfor you; do this in remembrance of me... This cupis the new covenant in my blood; do this, when-ever you drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Cor11:24-25). At the same time it proclaims a mes-sage lasting until His second coming: “For when-ever you eat this bread and drink this cup, youproclaim the Lord’s death until he comes”(1 Cor 11:26).

5 Jesus’ sacrifice protects us from all future judg-ments of God: “Since we have now been justifiedby his blood, how much more shall we be savedfrom God’s wrath through him!” (Rom 5:9).

6 With His blood Christ saved and freed us fromthe power of the devil and of all other evil forces.We have also been liberated from the slavery ofsin; the enemy cannot touch us any more. Theblood of Jesus conquered all hostile powers, andwe may also live in this victory: “Death has beenswallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is yourvictory? Where, O death, is your sting? ... Butthanks be to God! He gives us the victorythrough our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 15:54, 55,57). We are protected against the wiles, thetemptations, and the violence of the enemy. It issaid of those who have suffered severe adver-sions but kept their faith to the end: “They over-came him [the accuser, the enemy] by the bloodof the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;they did not love their lives so much as to shrinkfrom death” (Rev 12:11).

7 Although Jesus’ act has redemptive power forall people, it still has to be accepted personally.

His sacrifice is not all-inclusively, automaticallyvalid for everybody. God only gives His forgive-ness, His salvation, His peace, and Himself tothose who really desire it. He regards our free willvery seriously, so that his great gifts are onlyavailable to those who “call on the name of theLord”, only they “will be saved” (Acts 2:21).

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Quote:

Dr Don Batten, B.Sc. Agr. (Hons), Ph.D.,in the magazine Creation ex nihilo(Vol. 19, No. 2, 1997, p. 25):

“Blood was originally created to do what it doesand what it does do it does marvellously well –just as it was designed to do! Such a complexsystem did not arise through a series of acci-dents following the enclosure of some seawater,as some evolutionists might want to believe. Norcan accidents improve it – they only destroy. Letus give our Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ, thehonour that is rightfully His for creating ourblood with all ist wonderful functions!”

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– marvels of filtration

The human kidney, weighing between 120 and160 g, is a complex physico-chemical factorywhich is essential for purifying the blood (Dia-gram p 68). The two kidneys are located on eitherside of the backbone in the region of the loins.They control the fluid balance of the body andkeep constant the composition and volume of theextra-cellular liquid in which all the cells of thebody are bathed. In this way the functioning of allthe cells of the body is optimised. When there istoo much liquid or too much of dissolved sub-stances, the kidneys ensure that excesses are elimi-nated. If there is a shortage of water, the kidneysreduce the excretion of water without affectingthe essential elimination of metabolic end-prod-ucts. All these processes are carried out in sucha way that the kidneys control the water and saltcontent of the blood and excrete the waste prod-ucts of protein metabolism (urea) and purinemetabolism (uric acid), as well as any toxins.

For this purpose, blood flows through the kidneysat an astounding rate – 1.2 litres of blood eachminute, which is four times their own weight. Thespecific perfusion of an organ is a term indicatingthe amount of blood flowing through it perminute in proportion to its weight. This amountsto (1,200 cm3 blood/min)/(280 g kidney weight) =4.3 cm3/(g x min). This is appreciably higher thanfor the other major organs like the brain, liver, orheart muscle. Every day 1,700 litres of blood flowthrough the kidneys. This is more than twentytimes the entire body weight and 340 times thetotal amount of blood in the body, which is about5 litres. The quantity of blood passing throughthe kidneys in one hour is 15 times the entire vol-ume of the blood in the circulatory system.

There are about 2.5 million renal glomeruli (Latinsingular glomerulus = the diminutive of glomus= cluster; plural: glomeruli) which, together witha similar quantity of renal tubules (having a totallength of nearly 100 km), contribute to a cleverly

designed physical filtering process, actuallya molecular sieve.

The volume of liquid filtered by the glomeruli perunit of time provides a measure of the excretorycapacity of the kidneys. This is called the glomeru-lar filtration rate (GFR) which is about 120 cm3

per minute. This means that approximately 180litres, which is 60 times as much as the volume ofall the blood plasma (the liquid part of the blood,being about three litres), are filtered and purifiedevery day. The total volume of extra-cellular fluidin the body (including blood) is about 14 litres, soeven this amount passes 13 times per daythrough the kidney filter. The renal glomeruli thusexcrete 180 litres of ultra-filtrate (primary urine)per day. This high volume is required to properlyexcrete metabolic products through the capillarywalls. But if this enormous quantity of urine werepassed directly, the water loss would be horren-dous. This volume of urine would fill 18 bucketsa day, and we would never be able to leave thetoilet. What’s more, we would have to drink asimilar quantity of water each day.

However, the all-wise Creator set up an ingeni-ous principle whereby more than 99 per cent ofthe water and the major portion of other vitalsubstances are returned to the body. As the fil-trate travels further along the renal tubules (dia-gram page 69), water, glucose, and sodium chlor-ide are recovered and returned to the blood. Therecovery ratio is about 100:1, so that onlybetween 1 and 1.6 litres of urine are eliminated,depending on the quantity of ingested liquid andon other water losses (e. g. sweat).

In cross-section (diagram p 69), the kidney dis-plays an outer granular cortex and an inner, radi-ally striped medullary layer. The nephron (Greeknephron = kidney) is the smallest functionalrenal unit. It comprises the glomerulus, togetherwith the blood-transporting arterioles, the renaltubule, and the papillary duct (left part of thediagram on page 68). Granular in appearance, therenal glomeruli are an extremely well-designedapparatus. The vas afferens1 (diameter between20 and 50 µm), conveying the incoming blood,branches into a bundle of very fine capillaries

The kidneys

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� Renal artery� Adrenal gland� Renal vein� Ureter� Aorta� Inferior vena cava� Renal cortex� Renal pyramid Renal pelvis

Minor renal calyx� Renal capsule� Glomeruli in the cortex Major renal calyx� Renal medulla

with a diameter of only 7 µm = 0.007 mm. Thetiny vessels in this clump (about 30 loops; see theright hand part of the diagram on page 69) sub-sequently combine to form the vas efferenswhich carries the blood away. This is a marvel-lously constructed system.

The tuft of blood vessels is enclosed in a double-walled container known as Bowman’s capsule,whose diameter is only about 0.17 mm. The placewhere the blood enters and leaves, is called thevascular pole. The urinary pole, where a singleconduit emerges, is located at the other end of

the capsule. The walls of the looped capillariesact like a filter with extremely fine pores. Theseallow water and other small molecules to besqueezed out through them, but blood corpusclesand large protein molecules cannot pass through.

The result of this ultra-filtration is that 180 litresof “primary” urine is pressed from 1,700 litres ofblood during a 24 hour period, comprising a lossof about 10 per cent by volume. But most of this“loss” is recovered by means of the retro-absorp-tion taking place in the renal tubules, tiny tubeswhich extend from the urinary poles of the cap-sules. Water, glucose, and other substances arerecovered from the primary urine and returned tothe blood. A renal tubule starts with a convolutedsegment which joins directly to a straight seg-

1 Vas afferens, vas efferens (Latin vas = vessel;affere = bring in; effere = take away): The vas affer-ens leads from the interlobular arteries into the renalglomerulus, and the vas efferens leads back out ofthe glomerulus.

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foundation of purification; in the Word of Godthe church is told that “Christ loved the churchand gave himself up to her to make her holy,cleansing her by washing with water through theWord” (Eph 5:25-26).

We cannot live without kidneys. If someone’s sinshave not been forgiven, and all the accumulateddross is not eliminated, then he is spiritually dead.Nobody can have everlasting life without spiritualkidneys, as Jesus said: “Let the (spiritually) deadbury their own (physically) dead” (Matt 8:22).

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Detail of a human kidney.Left: A nephron, the functional unitRight: Enlarged cross-sectional viewof a renal glomerulus

� Convoluted segmentsof a renal tubule

� Glomerulus� Incoming blood� Outgoing blood� Vascular pole� Bowman’s capsule

(diameter 0.17 mm)� Urinary pole� Primary urine

Glomerular tuft(capillaries)

Straight (ascendingand descending)segments of the tubule

� Loop of Henle� Papillary duct

ment, followed by the thin loop of Henle. Thisleads into another convoluted segment, the distaltubule (see the left diagram on page 69). This dis-charges urine into a minor collecting duct, whichbecomes a larger collecting tube (the papillaryduct). Bundles of these end in bulges of the renalmedulla (renal papillae). These in turn are incorpo-rated in cuplike extensions (renal calyces) ofthe renal pelvis (diagram page 68), where theydischarge their urine. This is subsequently carriedto the bladder by the ureter.

Continual contemplation of God’s Word acts inour lives like purifying kidneys, as Jesus told hisdisciples: “You are already clean because of theword I have spoken to you” (John 15:3). Theredemptive power of the blood of Jesus is the

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– our body’s 100 millionmillion building blocks

Did you know that the human body consists ofapproximately 100 million million cells, each ofwhich contains 10,000 times as many moleculesas there are stars in the Milky Way? Note that theMilky Way comprises at least 100,000 millionstars.

The smallest building blocks of the human body,as well as of plants and animals, are the cells.Body structures consist of cells, along with inter-cellular material. In the case of unicellular organ-isms (protozoa), the cell is the entire organism. Acell is the smallest possible morphological entitycapable of independent life. In metazoa (many-celled creatures) the cells are the basic functionalorganic units, or building blocks, which make upthe whole organism. Cells differ widely in regardto size, shape, and function.

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� Cell membrane� Section of

a dendrite� Cytoplasm with

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Schematic diagram of a neural (nerve) cell.

The cells

Size: The sizes of human cells vary considerably.Very few of them are visible to the unaided eyeor with a magnifying glass. The largest cells, theova (egg cells), become just barely visible at adiameter of 0.15 mm (150 µm) or more. (1 µm =1 micrometre = 1 thousandth of a millimetre).Many of the larger neural (nerve) cells have adiameter of between 0.12 and 0.2 mm = 120 to200 µm. Many neural cells have extensions(processes) up to one metre or more in length,but their diameter is only a few micrometres. Thesizes of most other human cells vary between5 µm and 20 µm, depending on the tissue type.Even so, some neural cells and some giant cells inbone marrow can measure up to 80 µm or more,several times the average cell size. Measuring4 to 5 µm, the glial cells (Latin glia = glue) are,along with sperm cells, among the smallesthuman cells. The diameter of the “heads” ofsperm cells is between 3 and 5 µm. With theiraverage diameter of 7.5 µm, the red blood cor-puscles also count among the smallest cells. Themedian cell size is between 30 and 50 µm.

Shape: Because of their special functions theshapes of most cells differ widely. They are emi-nently suited to their locality. Cells occurring incovering layers, like an epithelium, can be cubical,flat, or prismatic, and are as densely packed astheir shapes allow. Many cells are spherical, orspindle shaped like those in the smooth muscletissue. Nerve and connective tissue cells can havelong, branching processes.

Multitasking: Even though the basic plan of allcells is the same, they may differ significantlyaccording to their function. Every kind of cell isspecialised to perform certain tasks in the organ-ism. The red blood cells (erythrocytes) transportoxygen, the nerve cells carry information, glan-dular cells secrete specific substances, musclecells are responsible for body movements, andsex cells serve reproduction. The various func-tions of a cell are all coded for by way of specificgenetic information, stored in certain sections ofthe DNA (desoxyribonucleic acid) of the cell itself.Pre-programmed here are processes like cell divi-sion and the synthesis of all the necessary pro-teins. These two processes are essential prerequi-

sites for the development of a multi-cellularorganism from a fertilised ovum. It is remarkablethat such diversified cells as are found in thebrain, lungs, muscles, or liver, all develop fromundifferentiated precursors. Cells with differentfunctions also have different “life expectancies”.Some cells last for only a few hours or days (egintestinal epithelial cells), and others, like neuralcells, live as long as the organism itself.

Number: The estimated total number of cellsconstituting the human body is an astonishing100 million million (1014)! It is practically impos-sible to visualise a number like 1014. To count upto this number, counting non-stop at the rate ofone per second, day and night, would take threemillion years. The number of red corpuscles inthe blood, the most numerous of all the celltypes, is 25 x 1012 = 25 million million. But, unlikeall other cells, they have neither a nucleus norcellular organelles. The total number of braincells is about hundred thousand million.

Taking the average size of a cell as 40 µm, all thecells of a human body, placed side by side, wouldform a chain reaching 100 times around theequator.

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DNA– information storagetechnology way beyondcomputers

The body’s most precious substance is storeddeep inside the cells, in the tiny nucleus, namelythe genetic information, known as the genome.If this information were to be written downusing the alphabet, it would fill one thousandbooks, each having 1000 pages with 3,000 lettersto the page. The human genome (inherited ma-terial) consists of three thousand million genetic“letters”. If all these letters were typed in one line,it would extend from the North Pole to the equa-tor. A good typist working 220 eight-hour daysper year, at a typing speed of 300 letters aminute, would require 95 years for this task –much longer than her entire working life!

Taking into account the time required for plan-ning and testing up to the implementation of thefinal system, a scientific programmer produces40 symbols of program code per day on average.It would thus require a team of 8,000 program-mers, devoting their entire career to this project,to program the human genome. But no humanprogrammer knows how to structure this pro-gram and fit it into a DNA fibre measuring onlyone metre if stretched out. 1

Storage density: The storage medium of geneticinformation is the double stranded DNA (chemi-cal name: de(s)oxyribonucleic acid; see diagramon page 74). The volume 2 of human DNA isextremely small, only three thousand millionthsof a cubic millimetre (3 x 10-9 mm3). Its storagedensity is enormous, many magnitudes higherthan the latest computer chips. In fact, it is thehighest known. Let us try to visualise it:

If one could stretch out the head of a pin meas-uring 2 mm in diameter until it became a threadhaving the same thickness as a DNA molecule, itwould be 33 times as long as the equator! Couldyou have imagined that?

If the genome information were in printed form,it would require 12,000 paperbacks of 160 pageseach. Compared to the current 16 Megabit com-puter chips, a human DNA strand stores anamazing 1,400 times as much information.

To get a further idea of the almost unimaginabledensity of information in the DNA molecule,imagine you had just enough DNA to fit into apinhead. Now imagine the information containedin an ordinary pocket paperback of 160 pages.How many such lots of information could youstore in this tiny amount of DNA? The answer is15 x 1012 (15 million million). If you actually hadthat many of these books and put them on top ofone another in a pile, this would be 500 times ashigh as the distance (384,000 km) from the earthto the moon! To put it another way – if you dis-tributed these books equally among the roughly6 billion people on Earth, each person would get2,500 copies!

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The DNA molecule. Schematic representation of thethree-dimensional double helical structure of DNA(DNA = desoxyribonucleic acid). Two polynucleotidestrands are spirally wound round each other, thus form-ing a double helix. The base pairs, coupled by means ofhydrogen bridges, are arranged in a plane perpendicularto the helical axis. Base pairs comprise either adeninewith thymine, or cytosine with guanine. It follows thatthe molar quantity ratios are A:T = C:G = 1:1. The dis-tance from one spiral loop to the next is 3.4 nanometres(nm), the diameter is 2 nm, and the distance between thestacked base pairs is 0.34 nm (1 nm = 10 -9 m = one thou-sand millionth of a metre or 1 millionth of a millimetre).

1 Total length of the DNA strand (germ cell):L is equal to (the number of letters) x (the distancebetween letters) = 3 x 109 x 0.34 x 10-9 m = 1.02 m

2 Volume of the DNA strand (germ cell):V = (π/4) x (2 x 10-9 m)2 x 1.02 m = 3.2 x 10-18 m3

= 3.2 x 10-9 mm3 = 3.2 µm3

1 m3 (cubic metre) = 109 mm3 (cubic millimetres)1 mm3 = 109 µm3 (cubic micrometres)

Structure: The total amount of genetic informa-tion can be compared to a library, where singlebooks represent chromosomes, and their chap-ters are the genes. Genes are like entries in agigantic encyclopedia. There are 23 pairs of chro-mosomes in the nuclei of our somatic (body)cells, making up the diploid (Greek diplóos =double) number of 46 chromosomes. Single chro-mosomes can be distinguished according to theirtotal length, the length of the chromosomalarms, and the position of the centromere, thepoint at which they are constricted. With theexception of the sex chromosomes, the chromo-somes from each parent correspond to thosefrom the other parent in regard to the type andsequence of the hereditary characteristics.Women have two equal sized sex chromosomes(XX), but men have a larger and a smaller sexchromosome (XY).

The 23 human chromosome pairs comprisea double complement of approximately 100,000inherited characteristics or genes. Every geneoccurs twice, one derived from the mother, andthe other from the father; they are thus knownas diploid chromosomes. In contrast to the bodycells, the germ cells (egg and sperm cells) havea single complement of chromosomes, called hap-loid (Greek haplous = single). Since the 30,000genes are shared among 23 chromosomes, eachchromosome is made up of about 1,300 genes.

The DNA molecules of bacteria, when stretchedout, are around one millimetre long. This corre-sponds to around 3 x 106 nucleotide pairs. Thewell known bacterium E. Coli has 7.3 x 106

nucleotide pairs. In human body cells the totallength of the DNA is around 2 metres, about6 x 109 nucleotide pairs.

We must distinguish between the gametes or sexcells (which carry the information of heredity tothe next generation) and the somatic or bodycells. In the gametes (sperm and egg cells) thetotal length of the DNA threads is around 1 m,divided into 23 chromosomes. That represents3 x 109 nucleotide pairs. These can constitute 109

words (triplets, each of three chemical letters).The nucleotides are the four chemical letters of

the genetic alphabet, called Adenine, Guanine,Cytosine and Thymine. Human body cells carrya dual batch of hereditary information – onefrom the father and one from the mother. Sothey have 2 x 23 = 46 chromosomes, corres-ponding to a DNA length of 2 metres (6 x 109

nucleotide pairs).

The number of possible genes can be estimated.We start with an average sized gene product(protein), and look at the number of DNA build-ing blocks (nucleotides) needed to code for thatnumber of amino acids. For example, humanhemoglobin, the pigment in red blood cells. Thealpha chain has 141, the beta chain 146 aminoacids. Each amino acid needs three nucleotides tocode for it, so that means for both chains weneed 3 x (141+146) = 861 nucleotide pairs.Therefore our DNA should theoretically be able tocode for 3 x 109/861 genes coding for proteinsthe size of hemoglobin. In reality, however, themajority of the DNA consists of sequences whichdo not code for proteins, and their function isstill unclear today (though some hints may begradually emerging). Only 50,000 to 100,000genes actually code for proteins. To put it an-other way: Only about three percent of thegenome actually codes for proteins such asinsulin or hemoglobin. Such program codes areidentical for all people. Remarkably, in mostinstances, more than one gene codes for a givencharacteristic (e. g. eye colour).

It seems necessary to assume that in addition toits protein coding portions, DNA contains count-less additional levels of structure and function.Such stored information concepts are just asmuch required to code for the development ofthe smallest organelles such as the mitochondriaand ribosomes, as for building the large organs(e. g. heart, kidneys, brain) and the overall inte-grated organism. As yet, no one has been able todecode this incredibly complex system. Perhapssome light will be shed on this by research overthe next few years.

If the total paternal contribution to heredity iscontained in a sperm cell, and the maternal in anegg, then this would have to not just involve the

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total anatomy and physiology of a human being,but also our numerous predispositions and gifts.For example, musical ability, aggressiveness, orlanguage aptitude. Are the non-material charac-teristics of people, for example, the ability tolove, or experience joy, in fact reducible to beingdescribed by a nucleotide sequence? Here we stillface major scientific mysteries.

Information processing: Our 30,000 genes pro-vide exact instructions to each cell for manufac-turing everything required for it to carry out therole for which it is programmed; whether hor-mones, enzymes, mucus, sebum, the weapons ofthe immune system, or the impulses in the nervecells of the central nervous system.

One might well ask at this point: How is thisinformation decoded, and how are these abstract“words” translated into concrete protein mol-ecules? This never-ending process takes placeinside an unimaginably small space, namelywithin the cells, each measuring only a few hun-dredths of a millimetre. Special protein moleculeslocate a particular piece of information – a gene –copy it, and prepare a messenger, a chemical rela-tive of DNA called messenger-RNA. This mRNAthen travels from the control centre in the nu-cleus out into the cytoplasm, to the ribosomes.These small granular bodies are where proteinsynthesis takes place. When these RNA messen-gers arrive here, they specify the sequence inwhich the 20 types of amino acids, the buildingblocks of all proteins, are to be assembled. Pro-tein molecules are constructed here “block byblock”, just as a house is built brick by brick; theyare subsequently dispatched to carry out theirvarious vital functions.

The next important step, namely the formation ofspecific structures like cells and organs fromthese protein molecules, is very complex, and isnot yet fully understood. But we do know that itis somehow encoded in our genes*, and it largelydetermines what we are. Our genes ensure thatwe become human beings rather than animals.Our gender, the colour of our eyes, skin and hair,and to a great extent our size, are all determinedby our personal genome. It sets parameters for

our intelligence and, to a large extent, determinesour never-to-be-repeated unique personality. Allthese patterns are set at the precise moment inwhich the male chromosomes in a sperm cellmeet up with those of a female egg cell (ovum).The moment of fertilisation truly is the startingpoint of our life.

A comparison: Each of our approximately 100million million (1014) cells has the following maincomponents: a cell membrane, many pores andchannels in this membrane, many mitochondriafor regulating the flow of energy, many ribo-somes which translate genetic information intoproteins, and a nucleus containing the geneticinformation in the form of DNA.

Nowadays many people are familiar with theparts of a personal computer (PC), like hard disk,read/write head, interface, and network card. Toexplain the performance and complex function-ing of a biological cell, Zoltán Takács, a biophysi-cist, compared the processing and storage of in-formation in a cell with what happens inside acomputer. If a cell in simplified form is regardedas a computer, we have the following analogies:

– The cell membrane would be the computerhousing, but it is only 10 nanometres thick(= one hundred thousandth of a millimetre).

– The pores and channels are the interfaces.– The mitochondria comprise 800 network

cards.– A ribosome would be a central processing

unit (CPU), but a biological cell has more thansix million CPUs.

– The nucleus would correspond to a hard drive.There would then be 23 different hard disks(= chromosomes), each of which has its ownbackup disk. The storage capacities of these23 disks add up to about 1 Gigabyte. Biological“hard disks” are actually not hard, but can per-haps be regarded more like ”floppy disks”; the46 strands of DNA do not rotate arounda fixed spindle, but occur as loose clusters inthe nucleus.

– The diameter of this biological computer isabout 20 micrometres (= two hundredths ofa millimetre).

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It is obvious from even this small number of factsabout ”biological computers“ that, next to thecomparatively simple computers of our owntechnology, they are masterpieces of miniaturisa-tion, complexity, and design perfection.

All cells in our body carry the same information,regardless of their locality (e. g. kidney, liver, orarm). But different cell types access and processdifferent sections of the available information. Asin the case of physical computers, the originalinformation is not transferred to the CPUs.Copies are made and transported. In a computerthe read/write head is positioned at the begin-ning of an application program on the hard diskto copy it. But in a cell several reading headsbegin at different locations to make copiessimultaneously, so that the various pieces ofinformation required for a certain type of cell areread from all the “hard disks” at the same time. Abiological computer performs two kinds of “com-putations”: It provides the information for pro-tein synthesis as described above, and it repli-cates itself by means of cell division.

The Genome Project: Scientists from all over theworld instigated an ambitious project, intendedto run 15 years, to chart the human genetic codeand decipher it letter by letter (this is known assequencing). The Human Genome Organisationwas founded for this purpose and boasts about1,000 members in 50 different countries. Theproject officially began on 1st October 1990. Theeffort required to determine the letter sequenceof human DNA was originally estimated as beingthousands of man-years. We have already gotsome idea of the enormous amount of informa-tion contained in the entire sequence. Our genescontain the complete human construction plan.There, in code, we find instructions about howour eyes, ears or heart and all the physiologicaldetails of our bodies are formed, as well as allour abilities.

By the end of the year 2000 there was alreadymuch media euphoria about the completesequencing of the human genome (the entiregenetic information of human beings). Headlinessuch as “Life’s blueprint deciphered”, and varia-

tions on the same theme, were abundant. Asso-ciated with this, we were given a picture of abrave new world, in which all would now be pos-sible: synthetic genes against AIDS would be pro-phylactically inserted into bloodlines. Alzheimer’spatients would receive transplants of geneticallymanipulated brain cells; cancer cells would, fol-lowing the introduction of new genetic material,simply consume themselves; and gene-vaccinat-ed transplant organs would no longer be rejectedby the recipients.

Reports like this are extremely impressive but areunfortunately not quite true. What is the realstatus of the research? At the end of 2001, only90 % of the letters of the genome have beendeciphered. The remaining 10 % has not yet beendeciphered with the required accuracy. It waspresumed that 100,000 genes were distributedamong the 23 chromosomes. Now it is thoughtto be more in the region of 30,000 to 40,000.

What have we gained if, as is hoped, we have thecomplete succession of ACGT letters for thehuman genome by 2003? Will we then possessthe programme for life? Will we know how ourcreator coded our brains, for example? Not in theslightest! What we will have is comparable to thecomplete text of the Bible without commas andfull stops, in a language which we do not under-stand. It is therefore like a book that no-one caninterpret. The actual work of translating the text(the semantics) won’t even have begun. It isunclear whether we will ever be able to decipherthe genome. The Egyptian hieroglyphics werefinally decoded because the Rosetta stone wasfound with a text in Greek, demotic and hiero-glyphics. After a long period of research, thehieroglyphics were finally deciphered on thebasis of the Greek text. There is no such stoneavailable to us for the human genome.

However, there is one very important thing we doknow: nowhere is the information so denselystored as in the DNA molecule. As information isa mental not a material quantity, we deduce thatthis information cannot have developed withinthe material. An intelligent creator has to bebehind it.

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The structure of the DNA molecule: Chemi-cally and structurally the DNA molecule is one ofthe most complex and versatile of molecules, anecessity in view of all its functions. This versatili-ty is necessary to provide for all its functions. Itlooks like a double helix from the outside (Greekhélix = spiral) comprising two intertwined spiralstrands. Each strand is a long molecular chain,and the two strands are essentially parallel, inter-twined in a right-hand spiral. The genetic codecomprises four chemical letters adenine (A), gua-nine (G), thymine (T), and cytosine (C). Manygenes do not consist of a continuous piece ofDNA, but are made up like a mosaic of severalseparated segments.

In all cells, the genetic information stored in theDNA molecules controls protein synthesis, andanother nucleic acid, ribonucleic acid (RNA), han-dles the transfer of all the information. In gener-al, all cells of an organism contain identical DNAmolecules, but not all genes are active at thesame time in all the cells.

Proteins: Proteins are the workhorses of life. Ifwe regard the DNA molecule as the blueprint oflife, then the many different kinds of proteins arenot only the bricks and mortar, they make up therequired tools as well as some of them being themanual labourers which perform the actual con-struction jobs. Our genes provide the conceptualfoundations (they store the “software”), but weare what we are (the “hardware”) because of ourproteins. Both DNA molecules and proteins con-sist of long chains made up of strings of sub-units, but their functions are fundamentally dif-ferent. DNA molecules comprise the geneticarchives. On the other hand, proteins exhibit anunimaginable diversity of three-dimensionalshapes, reflecting their multiplicity of functions.Some of the tasks of proteins are that they serveas structural elements for the body, as messengermolecules, as receptors for messengers, as indi-vidual cell identifiers, and as substances defend-ing against cells bearing foreign identifiers. Prob-ably the most important proteins are theenzymes, which control the rate of biochemical

processes by acting as catalysts. Certain enzymescan accelerate some reactions a millionfold oreven more. Enzymes are also indispensable forthe actual process of converting genetic infor-mation into its resultant products and processes.

Structure and chemistry of proteins: Althoughthere are many amino acids, the Creator choseonly 20 of them from which to construct all con-ceivable proteins (and thereby the structures)necessary for life. In the genetic code, three let-ters specify one amino acid, and every proteinconsists of an exactly determined sequence ofamino acids. All the physical and chemical prop-erties of an individual protein are determined bythe length of the chain and the specific sequenceof amino acids. The spatial disposition or foldingof the chain is especially important. Proteins foldin such a way that the free energy is kept to aminimum; this means that a protein assumes themost “comfortable” shape. In principle one canonly deduce the three-dimensional structure ofa protein from the amino acid sequence, if all theforces acting on all of its thousands of atoms areknown, as well as their effects on the surround-ing molecules of the solvent. Such calculationsare impossible in the present state of our knowl-edge, even using the most powerful computersystems**. But when the Creator made all livingorganisms, He constructed each and every pro-tein in such a way that all the desired propertieswere obtained.

* With a possible inherited (maternal) contributionfrom the cytoplasmic structure of the egg cell.

** Remarkably, it now appears that the folding of manyproteins after their construction (which would oftenbe too slow if left to the physical forces acting on aparticular protein’s components) is aided by speciallytailored ”chaperone” molecules.

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– the most complex structurein the universe“For thousands of years people have tried tounderstand the brain. The ancient Greeks thoughtit was like a radiator to cool the blood. In thiscentury it has been compared to a switchboard,a computer, and a hologram – and no doubt itwill be likened to any number of machines yet tobe invented. But none of these analogues is ad-equate, for the brain is unique in the universeand unlike anything men have ever made.” (Robert Ornstein / Richard F Thompson: TheAmazing Brain. Houghton Miffin Company,Boston, 1984)

The human brain, located inside our skull andweighing about 1.5 kg, is described by professorsRobert Ornstein (University of California) andRichard F. Thompson (Stanford University) in theabove words. It can rightly be called the mostcomplex physical structure in the universe.

The brain is the central controlling organ of ournervous system. It controls, watches over, andcoordinates nearly all the processes occurring inthe body. It collects, evaluates and stores sensoryimpressions, and effects meaningful responses.

Practically nothing is known about the wayinformation processing actually takes place inthe brain. Nobody knows how the perceivedsemantic information is derived from the incom-ing electrical signals. We do know that certainactivities originate in the cerebral cortex (theouter layer of the cerebrum), and we also knowthat certain memories are stored there. But wedo not know how they are stored, nor how werecall specific memories. We also do not knowhow novel ideas originate, nor what happens inthe brain when something new is learnt. The littlewe do know about the functions of various partsof the brain has essentially been obtained byobserving the changes resulting from brain dam-age or tumours. The only real knowledge we have

of the brain is on the statistical level, like thenumber of structural elements and the estimatednumber of interconnections. Even this statisticalinformation highlights the astounding propertiesof the most complex structure in the universe.

The number of structural units: The brain com-prises about one hundred thousand million nervecells (100 x 109). The term “neurons” coined byW. von Waldeyer in 1891, is used as a synonymfor nerve cells. They are the structural elementsof the brain, and their number is of the samemagnitude as the number of stars in our localgalaxy. No two of them have exactly the sameshape. In addition to this immense number ofneurons, there are also one hundred thousandmillion other cells, providing metabolic functionsand structural support.

Every neuron is connected to thousands of oth-ers by means of synapses (Greek synapsis = con-nection). Even though each nerve cell is not indirect contact with every other one, it is indirect-ly linked with all others via intermediate connec-tions. It follows that the number of possiblepathways linking the nerve cells in every humanbrain is extremly large: 5 x 1021 (= 5,000 millionmillion million). It would require 40 printed pagessimply to list the number of direct connections ofa single neuron. In order to list all direct neuronallinks, 40 pages times the number of neurons =4000 x 109 pages, would be required.

Assuming that one book comprises 400 pages,the required number of books would be 4000 x109 / 400 = 10 x 109. This result is breathtakinglylarge. Such a list would require a library contain-ing ten thousand million books of 400 pages. Thelargest library in the world, namely the Library ofCongress in Washington, contains about 20 mil-lion volumes. This means that we would require500 such libraries just to list the direct connec-tions in the human brain!

The number of synapses is thus appreciablygreater than the number of neurons. One neuronreceives information from several hundreds, upto thousands, of other neurons, and transmits itto a similar number of other nerve cells.

The brain

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1 Cortex: Latin cortex = bark, crust, shell. The wordcortex is used anatomically to indicate the outer layeror surface of an organ. In the brain there is the cere-bral cortex, and the cerebellar cortex; the kidneyshave the renal cortex.

Neurons are the building blocks of the brain.They possess the same genes as other body cells,they are constructed along similar lines, and theyare kept alive by the same biochemical processeswhich support other cells. But they differ in someessential aspects, making them the most extra-ordinary cells in a living organism. The differencesinclude shape, type of cell membrane, and thepresence of a structure known as a synapse. Thecell membrane has the ability to produce neuralsignals, and in the synapses these signals are car-ried to other nerve cells by means of transfersubstances called neurotransmitters.

During the development of the organism from afertilised ovum, neurons are formed at the astound-ing rate of 250,000 per minute over nine months.It used to be thought that neurons do not subdi-vide after an embryo is fully developed. Thus, thenumber of nerve cells formed up to the momentof birth had to last one’s entire lifetime. Recentevidence indicates that at least some nerve cellsmay be replaced in the adult organism after all.

With between ten and fifty thousand connec-tions per nerve cell, the entire system forms animmeasurably complex branched network. If itwere possible to describe it as a circuit diagram,then even if each neuron were represented bya single pinhead, such a circuit diagram wouldrequire an area of several square kilometres!Compare this to the complex engineering draw-ings which are often produced according tothe DIN-A0-Format on only one square metre(841 mm x 1189 mm). Such a circuit diagram ofthe brain would be several hundred times morecomplex than the entire global telephone net-work. In reality, nobody really knows anythingmuch about the internal connections of the brain.

The total length of the nerve fibres in the greaterbrain (cerebrum) is about 500,000 km, with someauthors even estimating it to be as much as onemillion km. Our “command centre“, the brain,would be useless if there were no links to thebody. Outside of the brain the total length ofnerve fibres is 380,000 km, which is equal to thedistance of the moon from the earth. They forma branching network throughout the body, con-tinually carrying information and commands to

and fro between the brain and all our other parts.In places the thickness of these fibres is only onethousandth of a millimetre, but messages travelalong them at a speed of about 40 metres persecond or 144 km/h. This is equal to the speed ofa hurricane-force wind (force 12).

Processing speed: The incredibly dense neuronalnetwork can process signals at a very high rate.The brain can do 1018 = 1 million million millioncomputations in a second, which is a hundredmillion times as fast as the fastest super com-puter at time of writing (1010 calculations persecond). The most fascinating aspect, however, isnot the actual physical performance of the brain,but its ability to process these unimaginably vastquantities of information in unique ways whichwe cannot yet fully comprehend.

Energy consumption: The brains of dogs andcats are responsible for between five and six percent of the energy consumption of the entireanimal. This is more or less true for all mammals(regardless of body size), with the exception ofprimates (apes, monkeys, etc.). In rhesus mon-keys, the percentage is about nine, but forhumans it is an impressive 20 per cent. Our brainrequires about 20 Watts, which is one fifth of theenergy (100 Watts) consumed by the whole body.The brain of a growing embryo requires a muchgreater proportion of energy, namely 60 per cent.

Structure: The cerebrum occupies the greaterpart of the brain’s volume. It consists of twohalves or hemispheres, each of which is respon-sible for the functioning of the opposite half ofthe body. The two halves are connected via thecorpus callosum, which is essentially a broadcable made up of 300 million nerve fibres. Eachhemisphere is covered by a three millimetre thicklayer of nerve cells. This layer, the cerebral cortex,is intensely convoluted and has a total surfacearea of about 2,200 cm2. The cortex 1 enables usto organise, to remember, to understand, to com-

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Vertical section through the brain

� Corpus callosum� Anterior commissure� Thalamus with

anterior nucleus� Olfactory bulb with

olfactory nerves� Optic chiasma� Pituitary gland� Pons� Spinal medulla Medulla oblongata Cerebellum� Pineal body� Great cerebral vein Sensory cortex� Central sulcus� Motor cortex

municate, to evaluate, and to be creative andinventive.

Between the brain stem and the cortex are vari-ous structures which play a major part in theregulation of such things as body temperature,blood pressure, pulse rate, blood sugar and elec-trolyte levels, among others. The hypothalamusand the pituitary gland play an important role inthis system. The former can be regarded as the“brain” of the brain. The size of a pea and weigh-ing only about four grams, it is the most complexand amazing part of the brain. It controls eating,drinking, sleeping, alertness, body temperature,the equilibrium of many physiological processes,pulse rate, hormones, and sexuality. It also con-trols the most important gland in the brain,namely the pituitary gland, by means of a combi-nation of electrical and chemical messages. Thepituitary in turn controls many body functionsthrough hormones, which are chemical sub-stances carried by the blood to specific targetcells. The targets of the pituitary’s hormones areoften other hormone-secreting glands (e.g. thethyroid and adrenal glands). The pituitary actssomewhat like a hormone symphony conductor,regulating the ’instruments’ which regulate otherfunctions.

Information storage: At the cellular level, thereare basically two kinds of information storage.One type is the unimaginably large quantity ofgenetic information contained in the DNA mol-ecules of all cells. The second kind of storagetakes place in the brain, which also involves anenormous amount of information. In the first ofthese, the amount of (genetic) information isfixed at conception. The second type occursthrough experience and learning. Each of usacquires an ever-increasing amount of mentallystored information throughout our lifetime.Every person’s uniqueness is not least to do withtheir mind, in which the memories, events andexperiences of a lifetime are stored. Our ability tolearn, which varies between individuals, obviouslydepends on properties of the complex cerebralnetwork. These properties themselves areundoubtedly determined to a great extent byour genes.

The entire vocabulary of all languages we havemastered, as well as their complete grammaticalstructures, are stored in our brain, enabling us tofreely and flexibly use language. The storage ofvisual images is unique in the way these mem-ories may be recalled clearly at any time. Animportant additional aspect of that which makesus human is our ability to imagine and to fanta-sise, both of which somehow involve the brain.

Memory/Mind: Memory is the ability to storeand recall mental information. Without this pro-cessing ability, we could neither see, nor hear, northink. We would not be able to express our feel-ings in language, nor would we be aware of ourpersonal identity. We would be intellectually deadbiological machines.

An adult knows the meaning of between 20,000and 100,000 words, which could be appreciablymore if he/she has some knowledge of foreignlanguages. Living in society requires familiaritywith many common customs – how to negotiatecity traffic, how to buy and sell, how to use atelephone, and how to check in at a hotel. Inaddition, we have at our disposal a considerableamount of specialised knowledge gained duringeducation, and in our professional life. Duringleisure times we occupy ourselves with varioushobbies and recreational activities. All this infor-mation is at our mental beck and call. Considerthe task of trying to construct a similar source ofknowledge, just as comprehensive and able to beaccessed with the same blindingly fast precision.We begin to catch a mere glimpse of just howamazing and fascinating our mind really is.

Just consider the following questions: DidArchimedes have hands? Did Harrison Ford par-ticipate in the Boer War? What was Bach’s tele-phone number?

If our brain were merely a computer system witha large hard disk that could only access a store ofpreviously learned information, then the abovethree questions could only be answered with “Idon’t know”. But we possess the crucial (andunderrated) ability of deductive thought (see alsothe chapter “Like God, we can think”).

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Horizontal section through the brain (cerebrum andcerebellum). The plane of section is shown in the inset (b).

� Fornix� Grey matter of the

cerebral cortex� White matter of the

medulla� Corpus callosum� Geniculate body� Thalamus

� Optic chiasma� Optic radiation Pineal gland Lamina quadrigemina� Third ventricle� Posterior horn of the

lateral ventricle Auditory radiation

� Claustrum� Lentiform nucleus� Globus pallidus� Head of the caudate

nucleus� Anterior horn of the

lateral ventricle

� Schlucken� Zunge� Kiefer� Lippen� Gesicht� Augapfel, Lid� Braue� Hals Daumen Zeigefinger� Mittelfinger� Ringfinger Kleinfinger� Hand� Handgelenk� Ellenbogen� Schulter� Rumpf� Hüfte� Knie� Knöchel� Zehen

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The motor and sensory cortex, indicating the represen-tation of body regions. Note that those parts of the bodywhere the muscles have to carry out more differentiatedactions are represented by relatively large cortical areas.For example, the area occupied by nerve cells supplyingthe hand is exceptionally large. This is because a largenumber of neurons is required for such delicate andcomplex movements as violin-playing, writing, or per-forming a delicate surgical operation.

Motor cortex –body movements

� Swallowing� Tongue� Jaw� Lips� Face� Eyeball, eyelid� Eyebrow� Neck Thumbs Index finger� Middle finger� Ring finger Little finger� Hand� Wrist� Elbow� Shoulder� Torso� Hip� Knee�21 Ankle�22 Toes86

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� Genitalia� Toes� Foot� Leg� Hip� Torso� Neck� Head Shoulder, arm, elbow Forearm� Wrist� Hand Little finger� Ring finger� Middle finger� Index finger� Thumb� Eye� Nose� Face�21 Lips�22 Teeth, gums, jaw�23 Tongue�24 Throat�25 Abdominal cavity

Sensory cortex –bodily sensation

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The fact that Archimedes had hands has neverbeen stored anywhere in our brain, but we canimmediately answer this question in the affirma-tive. We deduce that if he did not have hands,this fact would have been common knowledge.In regard to the second question, there may bemany unknown men involved in the Boer War,but from the fact that the well-known actor Har-rison Ford was born well after it ended, we candeduce that he definitely did not take part in it.And what about Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685 –1750) telephone number? A computer wouldsearch through long lists of phone numbers, andthen report that this composer either did nothave a telephone, or that his name had not yetbeen entered. But we know when the telephonewas invented, so we can quickly conclude that hecould have had neither telephone nor phonenumber.

Interpretation instead of mere data acquisi-tion: Our senses carry a million times moreinformation to the brain than it is able to con-sciously process. And the brain does not merelyregister the observed realities around us like acamera or a tape recorder. Our brain reduces theflood of external data signals, simultaneouslyinterpreting them and constructing a very per-sonal inner world. This internally created realityis generally quite distinct from the outside world.A red rose is actually a physical structure whichreflects light of a specific wavelength. Only in ourbrain is there such a thing as the colour red,along with the knowledge that this structure isa flower. Our brain compares these signals fromoutside with what it has already stored aboutroses previously seen. At the same time, mem-ories of associated events and emotions areawakened. Our nerve cells not only produce animage of a rose, they evaluate it as well. An imageof a red rose can cause us to recall its fragrance,and perhaps also some tender memories of agreat love. All these things happen without anyconscious involvement. The American neuro-physiologist, Benjamin Libet, discovered that ourconsciousness lags about half a second behindthe activities of the brain. By the time we areconscious of making a decision about something,our brain has long since analysed and evaluated

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all the information from our surroundings rel-evant to that situation.

Up to now we have ascribed all mental propertiesto the brain’s physical make-up alone. But in thenext chapter it will be shown that such a view isnot really adequate to encompass all its functions.

In spite of many research findings, the brainis still mostly like a vast blank “unknown ter-ritory“ on our map of scientific knowledge.

Some quotations by scientists researching thehuman brain:

“The more precisely neuro-scientists try todescribe the functioning of our brain, the clearerit becomes that all their measurements and mod-els do not encompass the central aspect of con-sciousness, namely the subjective appreciation ofqualities like colour and scent, a moment ofreflection, or an emotion.”(David J Chalmers: The puzzle of conscious per-ception, Spektrum der Wissenschaft, Feb 1996,page 40)

“At the present stage, with a reasonable start inunderstanding the structure and workings of indi-vidual cells, neurobiologists are in the position ofa man who knows something about the physics ofresistors, condensators and transistors and wholooks inside a television set. He cannot begin tounderstand how the machine works as a wholeuntil he learns how the elements are wired to-gether and until he has at least some idea of thepurpose of the machine, of its subassemblies andof their interactions. In brain research the first stepbeyond the individual neuron and its workings isto learn how the larger subunits of the brain areinterconnected and how each unit is built up.”(David H Hubel: The Brain. Scientific American,Vol. 241, No. 3, Sept. 1979, p. 44)

“After thousands of scientists have studied thebrain for centuries, the only adequate way todescribe it is as a miracle.”(Robert Ornstein / Richard F. Thompson:Our brain – a living labyrinth. Houghton MiffinCompany, Boston, 1984)

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– man is more than justmatterAt this stage the reader might be under theimpression that man might be a very complexstructure, but in the final analysis we are nothingmore than matter. In fact, there is a philosophicalview called materialism in which man is regardedas just that: nothing more than a collection ofmaterial substances. This concept is just one ofseveral so-called monistic worldviews.

Monism (Greek mónos = sole, single) denotes adoctrine of one-ness. A German philosopher,Christian Wolff (1679 – 1754) introduced thisconcept. According to the strict monistic viewthere are no separate realms of being; it attemptsto explain everything via a single unifying princi-ple. For example, the belief that everything thatexists is God. Materialism, which denies the exist-ence of any God or supernatural realm, is classi-fied as a monistic philosophy, since all phenom-ena are thought to be explained in terms of oneprinciple – i.e., the inherent properties of matter.This view is also apparent in the writings ofFriedrich Engels (1820 – 1895), the co-founder ofMarxism: “The material world which can beobserved by our senses, to which we ourselvesbelong, is the only reality ... matter is not theresult of mind, but mind is merely the highestproduct of matter.”

The widely proclaimed evolutionism of our pres-ent day is also a monistic philosophical system.The basis of evolution is pure materialism, and noplan or purpose is recognised. The consequencesof evolutionism have been described as followsby Carsten Bresch, a geneticist of Freiburg (Ger-many): “Nature seems to be a purposeless andmeaningless machine. Have we paid for our newintellectual freedom by relinquishing the mean-ing of our existence? Half-knowing man standsalone, uprooted in the limitless expanse of an icyuniverse – lost in the chain of generations. Hecame from nothing – and is going nowhere.

What is the purpose of it all?” (from “Zwischen-stufe Leben – Evolution ohne Ziel?”; “Life as tran-sition – evolution without purpose?”).

It should be obvious that monism is unable toexplain life in all its diverse manifestations. Tak-ing the human brain as an example, Sir John C.Eccles (1903 – ), an Australian Nobel Laureateand brain researcher, rejected monism, and pro-pounded the dualistic view of man.

Dualism: (Greek duo = two). According to thisview reality consists of two opposite realms ofbeing, like for example matter and mind. On thebasis of his brain researches, Eccles describes

Body, soul, and spirit

Figure 1: Optical illusions of regular figures which havehad supplementary lines added.

man as a dualistic being. We will pursue this ideafurther, since he has (unintentionally!?) built abridge to the biblical view of man.

Figure 1 contains several examples of sensoryillusions. Looking at these sketches can beirritating:

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– The distances between the arrow tips areequal. But the directions in which they pointmake them appear unequal (illusion of length).

– The second row of figures contains twoequal-sized circles which nevertheless appearto be different in size (illusion of size).

– The two sets of parallel lines seem to con-verge or be crooked (illusion of direction).

– In the lower part of the diagram the circle aswell as the square seems to be distorted (illu-sion of shape).

In Figure 2 we see three men walking along astreet. The person in front seems to be the tallestone, and the one in the rear the shortest. This is

an illusion, since all three of them are the sameheight. The surrounding perspective lines makethem appear to be of different sizes.

The three diagrams in Figure 3 do not mislead oursenses, but, in contrast to Figures 1 and 2, theyconfront our perception with more than onepossible interpretation:

The semi-opened book can either be seen fromthe inside or from the outside.The staircase can either be seen as ascendingsteps, or as viewed from the underside.The cubical block is even more complex, sincethere are three possible ways of “seeing” it.

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Figure 2: Are these three men thesame size? (Example of an opticalillusion).

Figure 3: Illusions of perception. Each ofthese three geometric figures can be inter-preted in more than one way.

Figure 4: Young girl or old lady?(Example of an illusion ofperception).

Mind

External ➨information ➨

through ➨the ➨

sense ➨organs ➨

➮ Knowledge➮ Inventions➮ Fantasy➮ Programs➮ Encoding systems➮ Strategies➮ Concepts➮ Ideas➮ Plans➮ Thoughts➮ Goal setting

External sense

Experiencing

Light

Colour

Sounds

Smells

Pain

Touch

Inner sense

Thoughts

Feelings

Memories

Dreams

Imaginings

Intentions

Liaison brain

my-selfmind

will

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ld 1

Wor

ld 2

a) A small cube lies in the corner of a room or isfixed to the ceiling.b) A small cube is placed in front of the largerone, at one corner.c) Similar to b), but now there is a cubical hollowin one corner of the large cube.

And what do we see in Figure 4? A young womanor an old one? Both are possible. This is also anexample of an illusion of perception.

John Eccles draws conclusions from these. Eventhough a diagram can be interpreted in morethan one way, we can be sure of one thing: thereis only a single, unambiguous image on the reti-

na which is then electrically transmitted to thebrain. Here the optical image corresponds to aprecisely defined neuronal connection – what-ever form that may take. From this Ecclesdeduces the existence of another independententity which observes and interprets the actualbrain connections. He calls this interpreter themind (others might call this the soul).

Brain and mind can exchange information, butthe mind has the freedom to interpret one specif-ic picture in various ways. This dualism is illus-trated graphically in Figure 6 (World 1 and World2). World 1 represents the required material part– the brain, and World 2 depicts the nonmaterial

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Figure 6: The dualistic view of man. On the one side wehave the material aspects (the body with all its anatomi-cal details), and on the other side is the non-materialpart (the I, the self, the mind, and the will). Eccles postu-lates the presence of a liaison brain, which is “observed”and interpreted by the non-material part.

Figure 5: The interactions between brain and mindaccording to the dualistic view of man.

Sourceof

information

Brain(Intelligence)

Spiritfrom God

Bodyfrom the ground

94 Figure 7: The biblical view of man. Human beings were createdwith a body, a soul, and a spirit.

ORIGIN OF MAN

Genesis 1:26: “Let us make man...”

Body – soul – spirit

Genesis 2:7: “the Lord God ...

1. Plan

2. Execution

formed manfrom the dustof the ground

3. Result

and the man became a living being.”

and breathedinto his nostrils

the breath of life,

*

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MAN’S STRUCTURE

Figure 8: The three common and strongly divergent views of man. The sources of informationare fundamentally quite distinct. Monism is purely a philosophical view, dualism can bededuced from scientific research, but biblical trialism can only be known by revelation.

Monism Dualism Trialism

The boundary ofscientific research

Materialistic Interaction Biblical viewtheories theories of man

• Materialism• Behaviourism• Evolutionism

• Wilder Penfield • Karl Popper• John C. Eccles

(* these authors call it mind)

aspect – the mind, which, according to Eccles,includes the I, the self, the psyche, and the will.Both components are interconnected via theexternal sense (experiences of which we are madeconscious through our sense organs) as well as bymeans of the inner sense (thoughts, feelings,memories, dreams, imaginings, and intentions).

It is not hard to draw some straightforward sci-entific conclusions from this. The dualistic viewof man, equipped with this complex organ, thebrain, is graphically illustrated in Figure 5, whichindicates both the material and nonmaterialcomponents. It is obvious from this representa-tion that knowledge, strategies, thoughts andpurposes cannot have a material origin.

At this point, we have reached the limits of sci-entific research, because questions of man’s ori-gin, and destiny after death, cannot be resolvedby this model. But Eccles did have some inklingof the truth when he wrote: “The components ofour existence in World 2 are not of a materialnature and are thus not necessarily subject to thedissolution that destroys all the World 1 compo-nents of an individual at the moment of death”(from: Eccles, Zeier: Gehirn und Geist [Mind andBrain], München 1980, p 190).

To know more about how man is really made up,we need to ask Him Who made human beings.For this purpose we consult the Bible, where thisimportant question is answered on the very firstpage. God is the ultimate First Cause. And Hecreated everything, as stated emphatically inGenesis 1:1: “In the beginning God created...” The purpose of this creation was human beings,as God had planned. We read in Genesis 1:26:“Let us make man...” If, like me, you have an engi-neering frame of mind, you will particularlyappreciate God’s conceptual framework for thevarious stages of man’s creation:

1. Plan2. Execution3. Result

These steps are illustrated in Figure 7. The oneverse, Genesis 2:7, is a masterpiece of concise

and exact formulation which is at the same timepacked with information.

Execution: Adam was created in two phases:

In the first place God made his body from thesubstance of the earth. Our bodies comprise thesame chemical elements as those found in theground. It was quite a sensation when it was dis-covered in the 19th century that organic sub-stances consist of the same elements as inorgan-ic matter.

The second important component was addedwhen God “breathed into his nostrils the breathof life”. Only after this nonmaterial spirit hadbeen infused into the physical body, did this newcreation become a human being. This spiritshould not be confused with the Holy Spirit. Itshould also be noted that the nonmaterial part,called mind by Eccles, is actually the soul in thebiblical sense.

Result: After the two different parts, the “earthlybody” and “the spirit breathed by God”, had beenjoined, an entirely new creation came into being,namely the soul: “and the man became a livingsoul” (King James version). The result of this crea-tive act of God, the joining of two differentworlds, is illustrated in Figure 7. When these twocompletely different components are joined, theresult of this union is the soul. The word “soul” asused in the Bible, has two meanings. It includesthe entire human being, and it also describes oneof the three components: body, soul, and spirit(1 Thess 5:23). This triadic combination describesman’s total reality. We exist because God willed itso. He planned it, and carried out His plan pur-posefully.

Trialism: In light of the above biblical affirma-tions, it should be obvious that Eccles’ dualism,although an improvement on monism, is stillinadequate for a complete understanding ofhuman beings. Because the Bible mentions threedistinct human components, we introduce theconcept of trialism (Greek tri = three) (Figure 8).The fact that the joining of two components maygive rise to a third and new phenomenon, can be

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explained in terms of a technological analogue:When an electrical current (considered as beingspirit) flows though a lamp (representing thebody), a third entity is produced, namely light(the phenomenon of a new soul).

Man’s fall into sin: Without the trialistic biblicalview of man, some fundamental biblical conceptswould remain a mystery. In the garden of EdenGod gave a single commandment: “You are freeto eat from any tree in the garden, but you mustnot eat from the tree of the knowledge of goodand evil, for when you eat of it, you will surelydie” (Gen 2:16-17). After they had sinned, Adamand Eve still lived on, but their spirit which wasin direct communication with God, died immedi-ately. The close communion with God ended, andas a result of their sin, physical, bodily deathentered the world – “the wages of sin is death”(Rom 6:23). They not only died spiritually thatday, they began to die physically from then on.The end result is that eternal death awaits everyperson, but that does not mean that his/her exist-ence will be ended (Luke 16:19-31). It means thatman will for all eternity be separated from God.God’s wrath remains on him, since “the result ofone trespass was condemnation for all men”(Rom 5:18).

Salvation: But, praise God! He has providedeverything necessary to make it possible for us toleave the train of death in which all of us aretravelling towards eternal doom. How this hap-pens, how our dead spirits can be revived, is dis-cussed fully in the second part of this book.

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Part 2

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Having learned of the many astonishing detailsof our body discussed in Part 1, there is no doubtthat a human being is a masterpiece of designand construction. It would thus be foolish toassume that we developed from matter by meansof blind material processes. Since the beginningthe burning question has been: What is man? Ifwe deny the fact of creation, we stumble aroundin the undergrowth of evolutionary thought sys-tems without getting to the truth. When con-sidering the works of the Creator, one inevitablymust infer that He exists, since “God’s invisiblequalities ... have been clearly seen, being under-stood from what has been made” (Rom 1:20). Itfollows directly from His works that God exists.

But what about the other source of information,the Bible? Can we believe everything writtenthere? Notwithstanding widely held opinions, theBible is not merely an ancient collection of humanideas gathered over a time span of 1,500 years.On the contrary, God used about 45 people whomHe selected to transmit His thoughts to us: “AllScripture is God-breathed and is useful forteaching, rebuking, correcting and training inrighteousness” (2 Tim 3:16). This assertion isunderlined by Peter in 2 Peter 1:21: “For prophecynever had its origin in the will of man, but menspoke from God as they were carried along bythe Holy Spirit.”

When Jesus prayed to his Father, He also con-firmed: “Your word is truth” (John 17:17), andPaul stated “I believe everything ... that is writtenin the Prophets” (Acts 24:14). We base our fur-ther deliberations on these fundamental asser-tions which affirm the truth of all biblical state-ments. (Two other books by the present authordeal more fully with the veracity of the Bible,namely So steht’s geschrieben (It is written);[Hänssler-Verlag, Neuhausen], and Questions Ihave always wanted to ask [CLV, Bielefeld]).

The Bible is the only source which describes andencompasses all aspects of humanity. In the very

first chapter we read that we were created in theimage of God.

Man: The image of God?

1 The creation of man was based on a pre-conceived plan: “Let us make man in ourimage, in our likeness, and let them rule overthe fish of the sea and the birds of the air, overthe livestock, over all the earth, and over all thecreatures that move along the ground”(Gen 1:26).

The plan was immediately implemented:

“So God created man in his own image, in theimage of God He created him; male and femaleHe created them” (Gen 1:27).

This plan entailed and established several facts,namely:

– This plan was implemented after all the ani-mals had been created. Man was thus a dis-tinctly new creature, not related in any way tothe animal kingdom, despite all evolutionaryideas in this regard.

– Not only God the Father was involved in thiscreative act, but also the Son and the HolySpirit, as indicated by the plural form.

– Man was made to rule over the (physical) crea-tion. He is its regent, having been given theresponsibility of its upkeep. His task is to carefor all of creation.

What does it mean, to state that man was madein the image of God? God created man accordingto His own ideas and thoughts, in His likeness,reflecting God’s own properties and qualities. Wewere made for communing with God and withour beloved spouse. We bear God’s seal and Hishandwriting, as it were; we were made to serve

What is man?

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and love God and our partner in marriage. Weare meant to reproduce further copies of God’simage.

God has provided us with exceptional abilitiesfound nowhere else in the universe, to remind usof our Creator. This concept is clearly expressedin Psalm 8:5: “You made him a little lower thanthe heavenly beings, and crowned him with gloryand honour.” We were created for the purpose ofbeing the image of God – similar to Him!

2 Each and every person is a unique image ofGod: God did not merely create humankind ingeneral, but He carefully made each individualwith his/her distinctive external and internalcharacteristics. All of us can be distinguished bydate of birth, size, weight, skin-, eye- and haircolour, plus very many other details. I am sounique that I cannot cross a border with some-body else’s passport. My cares and joys, my ideas,thoughts and feelings are so unique that nobodyelse in the whole world is like me. The Germanhistorian Leopold Ranke (1795 – 1886) asserted:“Every person is a separate thought of God.”

3 Who is our Creator? The New Testament pro-vides further insights to creation by describingthe person of the Creator: “In the beginning wasthe Word (Greek: the Logos), and the Word waswith God, and the Word was God. He was withGod in the beginning. Through him all thingswere made; without him nothing was made thathas been made” (John 1:1-3).

Who or what is this Word? At this point it is notyet clear. But we are given to understand thatabsolutely nothing in the entire universe isexcluded from this act of creation, not the earth,nor the tiniest blade of grass, nor man. This secretis partially decoded in verse 10. We are told that itwas a person who once resided on this our earth:“He was in the world, and ... the world was madethrough him.” But who is “He”? The full revelationis given in verse 14: “The Word became flesh andmade his dwelling among us. We have seen hisglory, the glory of the One and Only, who camefrom the Father, full of grace and truth.” It fol-lows that the Son of God, Jesus Christ, is our

Creator. “His Son, whom he appointed heir of allthings, and through whom he made the universe”(Hebr 1:2). In Colossians 1:16-17 Jesus’ creativeactivities are taken a step further, including the asyet for us invisible world:

“By him (Jesus) all things were created: things inheaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whetherthrones or powers or rulers or authorities; allthings were created by him and for him. He isbefore all things, and in him all things holdtogether.”

The question of our origin has now been answeredcompletely and finally: Jesus Christ is our Crea-tor! For many readers this may come as a sur-prise, but it is the unequivocal teaching of theNew Testament. Consequently, any idea aboutman’s origin that does not mention nor acknowl-edge this Creator, is intrinsically false.

After man’s sin, which will be discussed morefully in later chapters, he became separated fromhis Creator. At the same time many characterist-ics of God’s image were lost. Only Christ stillrepresents the complete image of God, as assert-ed in the following three quotations from theNew Testament:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born over all creation” (Col 1:15). “Christ ... is theimage of God” (2 Cor 4:4). “The Son is the radi-ance of God’s glory and the exact representationof his being” (Hebr 1:3).

In spite of the heavy losses sustained throughman’s fall into sin, an appreciable fraction of theoriginal image, derived from God, has survivedthe separation. All God’s attributes are completeand present in the highest degree in Him; wewere also intended to have His attributes, albeitat a level which is a “little lower” (Ps 8:5). This issummarised in the following ten aspects:

Like God, we can speak

God is a speaking God: “And God said” appearsten times in the creation account. We read in

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Genesis 1:28: “God blessed them and said tothem.” God spoke to Adam and Eve. Man isaddressed by God, and is called to respond. Noanimal can speak! Only two exceptions are men-tioned in the Bible, the serpent in the garden ofEden, and Balaam’s ass. But both of these ani-mals were controlled externally; the serpent bythe devil, and the donkey by God.

Only man has the gift of speech, a characteristicotherwise only possessed by God. This separatesus clearly from the animal kingdom. We are ableto use words creatively, but we are unable to cre-ate anything by speaking, as God can do. Ourwords can bless and benefit other people, butthey can also be destructive. We are able toexpress all our feelings in words, and we canenter into trusting relationships like no otherbeings on Earth. In addition to the necessary“software” for speech, we have also been provid-ed with the required “hardware”:

The morphological conditions for speech are notlocated in a single organ. We require a voicebox(larynx) for producing sounds, a suitably shapedthroat and mouth working together with thetongue, as well as a highly complex control sys-tem (the brain), all functionally coordinated witheach other. If only one of them is missing, speechis impossible. In the Middle Ages, peoples’tongues were cut out to prevent them from talk-ing. The sounds produced by the vocal cordstravel upwards and are shaped in the throat andmouth to form specific phonemes (speechsounds). This requires movements of the tongue,fine-tuned with those of the lips. In addition,various resonant passages of the oral cavity con-tribute to the formation of understandablesounds. Each and every one of the 600 possiblesounds occurring in the different human lan-guages requires precise movements and exactlyshaped tongue positions. In 1756 Johann PeterSüßmilch (1707 – 1767) established that mancould not have invented speech without therequired mental abilities, and, conversely, thatthought in its turn depends on the previous exist-ence of speech. The only possible solution for thisparadox is that God has given man the abilityto speak.

Characteristics of human speech:

– We can create new words and can link asmany discrete phonemes together as we like,producing acceptable new sentences.

– We are able to construct sentences which wehave never before uttered.

– We can understand sentences which we havenever heard beforehand.

– An unlimited number of thoughts can beexpressed in human speech.

Systems used for communication among animalsare fixed and limited. No creative communion ispossible, and only severely limited concepts canbe expressed (for example food, danger, and sex-ual attraction). These cannot be compared tospeech.

Like God, we can think

God is the source of all thought. No one advisedHim, since wisdom originates with Him: “Oh, thedepth of the riches of the wisdom and knowl-edge of God! How unsearchable his judgments,and his paths beyond tracing out! ’Who hasknown the mind of the Lord? Or who has beenhis counselor?’ ” (Rom 11:33-34).

God compares his thoughts with ours in Isaiah55:8-9: “ ’For my thoughts are not your thoughts,neither are your ways my ways’, declares theLord. ’As the heavens are higher than the earth,so are my ways higher than your ways and mythoughts than your thoughts’.”

However, despite this enormous distance fromGod, we too can think, consider, and contem-plate. We are able to ponder fundamental issuessuch as life, death and wisdom, as stated inPsalm 90:12: “Teach us to number our daysaright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

We have the ability to handle widely differingcategories of thought, like inferential logic,causality and complementarity. The followingability is very important in our daily lives and inall sciences:

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Deductive logic: This is the formal logical processof coming to a particular conclusion from gener-al premises. For example: “If A, and B, (the prem-ises) then C (the conclusion)”. This conclusion isa new statement, deduced solely by means ofthought processes. In both the natural sciencesand the humanities, deductive thinking plays animportant role in the acquisition of new knowl-edge and insights.

This principle should also be applied when read-ing the Bible. Many of God’s thoughts wouldremain a closed book if deductive logic were notemployed. If all implied conclusions had to beexpounded in the Bible, it would have had toconsist of many volumes. But God has given usonly this one Book and also the gift of logicalthought, so that we can deduce many things forourselves. Three important examples follow:

1 Wives for Adam’s sons: The frequently askedquestion about wives for Adam’s sons is notanswered explicitly in the Bible. But it is not ne-cessary, since the answer can easily be inferred.We read in Genesis 5:4: “Adam lived 800 yearsand had other sons and daughters.” He couldhave had a very large number of children! Theonly marriages possible were those betweenbrothers and sisters, as well as their offspring. Itwould take many centuries after the Fall for thegenetic copying mistakes (mutations) to build upto a level which would make close intermarriagebiologically harmful. Abraham was still able tomarry his half-sister; marriages between closerelatives were only prohibited by God centurieslater, at the time of Moses (Leviticus 18).

In the next example Jesus teaches us somethingabout deductive (or inferential) thinking:

2 God is not a God of the dead: When Hecalled Moses, God said: “I am the God of yourfather, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac andthe God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:6). The way Jesususes these words inferentially, as a basis for thedoctrine of the resurrection of the dead, is quiteastounding. We read in Matthew 22:31-33: “Butabout the resurrection of the dead – have younot read what God said to you (Ex 3:6), ’I am the

God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the Godof Jacob?’ He is not the God of the dead but ofthe living. When the crowds heard this, they wereastonished at his teaching.” Since God is life, Hecan only be God of the living. But Abraham, Isaacand Jacob have died, so He can only be their Godif they still exist.

Here is a third example of deductive thought:

3 Concluding from creation that there is aCreator: Romans 1:19-20 especially exhorts usto apply our deductive abilities. The reasoning isas follows: By observing the objects and lifeforms in the universe around us, we can con-clude that there must be a Creator: “What maybe known about God, is plain to them, becauseGod has made it plain to them. For since the crea-tion of the world God’s invisible qualities – hiseternal power and divine nature – have beenclearly seen, being understood from what hasbeen made, so that men are without any excuse.”

This illustrated book relies on the created gift ofdeductive thought. Not by way of proof, but bycontemplation and consideration of God’s works,one may discover for oneself that there must bea Creator. To avoid this conclusion, one needs toundertake substantial intellectual contortions.

Like God, we can write

The Bible mentions only two occasions when Godwrote something. The first time was on MountSinai when He gave Moses the Ten Command-ments: ”When the Lord finished speaking toMoses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the twotablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stoneinscribed by the finger of God” (Ex 31:18). Thesecond time was at the feast of king Belshazzar:“Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appearedand wrote on the plaster of the wall, near thelampstand in the royal palace. The king watchedthe hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and hewas so frightened that his knees knocked togeth-er and his legs gave way” (Dan 5:5-6). “Thereforehe sent the hand that wrote the inscription. Thisis the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE,

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TEKEL, PARSIN. This is what these words mean:God has numbered the days of your reign andbrought it to an end. You have been weighed onthe scales and found wanting. Your kingdom isdivided and given to the Medes and Persians”(Dan 5:24-28).

The Bible mentions only one case of Jesus writ-ing, when an adulterous woman was brought toHim: “But Jesus bent down and started to writeon the ground with his finger” (John 8:6, 8). Godand Jesus both wrote with their fingers!

Various writing systems have been devised byman, who is now able to record thoughts andideas. The invention of writing is one of thegreatest achievements of the human intellect.The human memory span is brief and the storagecapacity of the brain, though vast, is limited.Both these problems are overcome by recordinginformation in writing. Written information cancommunicate over vast distances; writtenrecords may last for many years, even centuries.Only nations possessing the skill of writing candevelop literature, historiography, and high levelsof technology. Nations and tribes without writingare thus restricted to a certain level of culturaldevelopment. Written language offers the possi-bility of storing information so that inventionsand discoveries (like medical and technologicaladvances) are not lost, but can be developed evenfurther.

Like God, we are creative

God created everything, and the results of Hiscreative acts exhibit such advanced concepts thatwe stand amazed. Here also, His thoughts, asexpressed in the works of creation, are very muchhigher than ours. One only has to consider theingenious information storage system in DNAmolecules, or the incomprehensible wonders ofthe brain.

Like God, we are also able to create and to invent,although at a distinctly different level. Man’screativeness – a gift of God – is obvious when oneconsiders writing and literature, various techno-

logical achievements (like automobiles, computers,and moon rockets), as well as the multitudes ofnew ideas and solutions to problems.

Like God, we can appreciateand create beautiful things

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus points out animportant characteristic of his creation: “See howthe lilies of the field grow. They do not labor orspin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in allhis splendour was dressed like one of these”(Matthew 6:28-29). God made his creation aes-thetically very pleasing. Just consider the richcolourfulness of blossoms, butterflies, beetles,birds, barracuda and other fishes, or the varietyof forms displayed by snowflakes, flowers, orleaves.Our ability to appreciate form and beautyis also a gift of God, as is artistic talent. Some ofus can create music, literature or paintings, whileothers can appreciate and enjoy these works ofart. Our clothes, homes and gardens are not onlychosen on practical grounds, but also for aes-thetic reasons.

Like God, we have our own will

God’s will is mentioned very frequently in theBible, the first time being “Let us make man.” Thisemphasises His will in creation. Our salvation isalso grounded in God’s will: God “wants all mento be saved and to come to a knowledge of thetruth” (1 Tim 2:4). Something of God’s free will isapparent in Romans 9:18, 21: “God has mercyon whom he wants to have mercy, and he hard-ens whom he wants to harden ... Does not thepotter have the right to make out of the samelump of clay some pottery for noble purposesand some for common use?” Another importantpassage in this regard is 1 Corinthians 1:26-29:“Brothers, think of what you were when you werecalled. Not many of you were wise by humanstandards; not many were influential; not manywere of noble birth. But God chose the foolishthings of the world to shame the wise; Godchose the weak things of the world to shame thestrong. He chose the lowly things of the world

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and the despised things – and the things that arenot – to nullify the things that are, so that noone may boast before him.” It becomes clear thatGod’s will is involved, whenever one comes tofaith. The way this happens, and to what extent,remains for us an unfathomable mystery. But it isnonetheless certain that, just as God has a freewill, we also have been given a free will:

– God did not create puppets which can only dowhat the puppeteer wants.

– He did not create robots which functionaccording to pre-determined programs.

– He did not create trained creatures, mindlesslycarrying out their practised routines – we arenot performing circus animals.

We have to keep in mind that our will has alsobeen adversely affected in this fallen world. Eventhe great apostle Paul confesses: “For what I do isnot the good I want to do; no, the evil I do notwant to do – this I keep on doing” (Rom 7:19).

We have been given great freedom, with theresult that:

– We can choose between heaven and hell.A greater range of choice can scarcely beimagined.

– We can wage wars, but also live in peace.– We can do good or evil. This covers a very wide

area – from the horrors of Auschwitz to thesacrificial services of many a missionary.

God observes everything with great patience, butHe will eventually and definitely judge every-body: “The dead were judged according to whatthey had done as recorded in the books” (Rev20:12).

Like God, we can evaluateand judge

God evaluates our lives in judgment: “we will allstand before God’s judgment seat” (Rom 14:10).And we read in 2 Corinthians 5:10: “For we mustall appear before the judgment seat of Christ,that each one may receive what is due him for

the things done while in the body, whether goodor bad.” We too are able to analyse our life andsituations, to set priorities, and to evaluate com-pleted tasks and solutions. But we should notjudge and condemn one another: “So then, eachof us will give an account of himself to God.Therefore let us stop passing judgment on oneanother. Instead, make up your mind not to putany stumbling-block or obstacle in your brother’sway” (Rom 14:12-13).

Like God, we can love

“God is love”, as we read in 1 John 4:16. If webelong to God, we will also radiate love: “All menwill know that you are my disciples, if you loveone another” (John 13:35), and all Christiansshould be recognised by their love: “Do every-thing in love” (1 Cor 16:14). The well-knownBritish evangelist Charles H. Spurgeon (1834 –1892) put it this way: “As long as you live, doeverything for the love of Christ. Let your handsand fingers work love, let your brain and eyesradiate love, fight in love, pray with love, speaklovingly, and live a life of love.”

Love, compassion and mercy are related. Herealso God is the First Cause: “Praise be to the Godand Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father ofcompassion” (2 Cor 1:3). Consequently, weshould also practise this ability: “Be merciful, justas your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36).

Like God, we can be faithfuland true

Another characteristic of God is faithfulness: “Ifwe are faithless, he will remain faithful, for hecannot disown himself” (2 Tim 2:13). His faithful-ness never falters. What God has promised, Hewill carry out. During Old Testament times Godcontinually promised that the Saviour wouldcome. This promise was fulfilled when Jesuscame at the most appropriate moment: “Butwhen the time had fully come, God sent his Son”(Gal 4:4). God also made several covenants withpeople, like that with Noah (Gen 8:21 – 9:17),

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with Abraham (Gen 15:7-21, 17:3-14), and onMount Sinai (Ex 19 – 24). There never was a bet-ter covenantal partner than God Himself.

Faithfulness implies an inner attitude whichkeeps us to our promises and duties. This funda-mental trustworthiness is closely connected withtruth and righteousness. The phrase “in goodfaith” refers to an oral treaty which is regardedas being just as binding as a written one. Allhuman faithfulness is based on and derives fromGod’s good faith. Marriage as an institution ofGod is founded on faithfulness. He expects us tobe true in our daily life and also to Him: “Befaithful, even to the point of death, and I willgive you the crown of life” (Rev 2:10).

We are able to commune with God,just as He communes with us

To have communion with somebody, means tohave a very close mutual relationship of give andtake. According to Colossians 1:16 we have beencreated by and for Christ. This was the purpose ofcreation and we have been made to have com-munion with our Creator. But this relationshipwas destroyed by man’s fall into sin, like a brokenmarriage. In both cases the partners have losttheir original close communion, resulting in tearsand heartache.

Only by way of a thoroughgoing repentance andconversion to Christ (see following chapter) cancommunion with God and his Son be restored. Inthe New Testament a short formula is used todescribe this restored relationship with our Crea-tor, namely being “in Christ”. This phrase is used80 times, for example in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “ifanyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Thisnew relationship is close and intimate, asdescribed by Paul in Galatians 2:20: “I no longerlive, but Christ lives in me”. The purpose of crea-tion has been restored. Whoever belongs toChrist will also want to regularly fellowship withother Christians.

Paul describes believers, with their various natu-ral and spiritual talents, as being members of one

body, and all together they are members of thebody of Christ (1 Cor 12:27). When partaking ofthe Lord’s Supper, we celebrate our communionwith Christ. The apostle John describes therestored communion in the following words: “sothat you also may have fellowship with us. Andour fellowship is with the Father and with hisSon, Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).

The consequences of communion with Christ arefar-reaching:

– we share Christ’s life (Rom 6:8)– we share His resurrection (Col 2:12)– we are co-heirs with Christ (Rom 8:17)– we will be raised in His glory (Rom 8:17)– we will reign with Him (2 Tim 2:12).

Further human characteristicswhich distinguish us from the animals

The above ten aspects are only true for humanbeings, and clearly separate us from the animals.We want to emphasise this here, since we are con-tinually bombarded, in many ways, with the ideathat we have descended from some line of ani-mals. A few further aspects of being human are:

– We are historical beings. We record pastevents, retell them, contemplate them, andsometimes we even learn from them.

– We yearn to know a cause for things, to havean explanatory world and life view for all ofreality. Only human beings are concerned withtheir origin, with the purpose of life, and withwhere we are going.

– Only human beings contemplate death andbury our dead. Eternity has been put in ourhearts (Eccl 3:11). One look at the pyramids ofGizeh establishes this fact. The Egyptians knewof life after death, and they tried to provide forit according to their ideas.

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We read the following words of Jesus in John4:24: “God is spirit, and his worshippers mustworship in spirit and in truth.” And in the firstcommandment God prohibits the making ofphysical structures supposed to represent Him:

“I am the LORD your God ... You shall not makefor yourself an idol in the form of anything inheaven above or on the earth beneath or in thewaters below” (Ex 20:2, 4).

Nevertheless, the Bible frequently refers to God’ssense organs, and also to His mouth, His hand,His arm, His finger, and His heart:

Ear: God can hear. The Psalmist experienced thispositively: “Because he (God) turned his ear tome, I will call on him as long as I live” (Ps 116:2).King Hezekiah prayed that God would listen andlook: “Give ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes,O LORD, and see” (2 Kings 19:16). God heard thecries of the oppressed nation (Ex 3:7), their tearsand groans (Psalm 6:9; Ps 102:20), their grum-bling (Ex 16:7, Numbers 12:2), but also theirprayers and pleas (1 Kings 8:28; 1 Kings 9:3).These can be summarised in the words of thePsalmist: “Does he who implanted the ear, nothear?” (Ps 94:9).

Eye: God’s eyes miss nothing: “For the eyesof the LORD range throughout the earth tostrengthen those whose hearts are fully commit-ted to him” (2 Chron 16:9). God even sees every-thing that is concealed from us: “your eyes sawmy unformed body” (Ps 139:16). He perceives thefuture and everything else which is invisible forus. Nobody can hide himself from God’s eyes(Ps 139:3, 7).

Mouth: God does have a mouth, since in the crea-tion account the words “And God said” appear

ten times. Everything coming from God’s mouth,is, by definition, His Word. We cannot live apartfrom His Word: “man does not live on breadalone but on every word that comes from themouth of the LORD” (Deut 8:3). God gave us amouth as well: “Who gave man his mouth? ... Is itnot I, the LORD?” (Ex 4:11).

Hand: God says: “See, I have engraved you onthe palms of my hands” (Is 49:16). Not only arethe names of those who believe in God written inthe book of life, but they are entrusted to Hishand as well. Jesus “was pierced for our trans-gressions, he was crushed for our iniquities”(Is 53:5). His hands and feet were pierced becauseof our sins. The above mentioned text (Is 49:16)can thus be interpreted as: “We are engraved inthe hands of Jesus”. God cares for us, but also forall creatures. According to Psalm 145:16 every-thing is a gift from God’s hand: “You open yourhand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”God’s hand is also involved in his works of crea-tion, as mentioned frequently:

Psalm 19:1: “...the skies proclaim the works of hishands.”Psalm 102:25: “the heavens are the work of yourhands.”Psalm 8:6: “You made him ruler over the works ofyour hands.”

When the “good news about the Lord Jesus”(Acts 11:20) was told in Antioch, many peoplebelieved, because “The Lord’s hand was withthem (the apostles), and a great number of peo-ple believed and turned to the Lord” (Acts 11:21).

Arm: God’s arm symbolises His great power. Heled the Israelites out of Egypt with His strongarm (Acts 13:17: “with an high arm brought hethem out”, King James Version). God reminds

Does God also havesense organs?

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doubters of His unlimited power: “Was my armtoo short to ransom you? Do I lack the strengthto rescue you?” (Is 50:2). God’s arm is also men-tioned in regard to creation: “With my great powerand outstretched arm I made the earth and itspeople and the animals that are on it” (Jer 27:5).

Finger: God wrote the Ten Commandments withHis finger (Ex 31:18). But the entire universe isalso the work of His fingers: “When I consideryour heavens, the work of your fingers, the moonand the stars, which you have set in place” (Ps 8:3).

Heart: There are people who are especially closeto our heart; similarly, when something moves usdeeply, we are touched to the heart. This is alsosaid of God. The phrase “He has watched overyour journey through this vast desert” (Deut 2:7)is rendered in the German translation as “zuHerzen genommen” – He has taken their journey“to His heart”. David found favour in the eyes ofGod, and He testified about him: “I have foundDavid son of Jesse a man after my own heart; hewill do everything I want him to do” (Acts 13:22).

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Job said about his servants: “Did not he whomade me in the womb, make them? Did not thesame one form us both within our mothers?”(Job 31:15). God knew Jeremiah even before hisconception: “Before I formed you in the womb,I knew you, before you were born, I set you apart;I appointed you as a prophet to the nations”(Jer 1:5). Isaiah also asserts: “Listen to me, youislands; hear this you distant nations: Before Iwas born, the LORD called me; from my birth hehas made mention of my name” (Is 49:1).

As early as the embryonic stage God alreadyknows our life history: “For you created myinmost being; you knit me together in my moth-er’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully andwonderfully made; your works are wonderful,I know that full well. My frame was not hiddenfrom you when I was made in the secret place.When I was woven together in the depths of theearth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All thedays ordained for me were written in your bookbefore one of them came to be” (Ps 139:13-16).

Paul asserts that God set him apart from birth,and called him by His grace (Gal 1:15). Even still-born babies and miscarriages are mentioned inthe Bible:

“A man may have a hundred children and livemany years; yet no matter how long he lives, ifhe cannot enjoy his prosperity and does notreceive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child isbetter off than he. It comes without meaning, itdeparts in darkness, and in darkness its name isshrouded. Though it never saw the sun or knewanything, it has more rest than does that man”(Eccl 6:3-5).

We should realise that God already knows ourlife history from the moment of conception

when we are microscopically small, an unformedzygote. My career, my place in life, my vocation –God knows everything beforehand. This does notmean that our destiny is fixed so that we cannotdo anything else. No, the Bible does not acknowl-edge such fatalism, since “It is for freedom thatChrist has set us free” (Gal 5:1). The prodigal sonhad the freedom to leave his father’s house, butafter he had come to his senses, he had the free-dom to return. In his omniscience God knowsbeforehand what we will decide.

Every person –known to God?

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The attributes of God shared by man when hewas created were to a great extent marred by sin.The Bible frequently emphasises the drasticchanges involved:

Romans 3:22b-23: “There is no difference, for allhave sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

Jeremiah 16:4: “They will die of deadly diseases.They will not be mourned or buried, but will belike refuse lying on the ground... their dead bod-ies will become food for the birds of the air andthe beasts of the earth.”

Psalm 144:4: “Man is like a breath; his days arelike a fleeting shadow.”

Ecclesiastes 3:19: “Man’s fate is like that of theanimals; the same fate awaits them both: As onedies, so dies the other.”

Romans 1:21: “their foolish hearts were darkened.”

Ephesians 4:18: “They are darkened in their under-standing and separated from the life of God.”

Being far from God, human thought is subject toall possible fallacies and confusions. This is veryobviously the case for evolutionary ideas, ideolo-gies, manmade religions, and all possible atheisticsystems. Thus we find many scholars givingdecidedly negative evaluations of humanity:

Friedrich von Schlegel (1772 – 1829), who was aGerman cultural philosopher and linguist: Man isultimately no different from any animal, plant orrock.

The German nihilistic philosopher, FriedrichNietzsche (1844 – 1900): Man is a brute as wellas a super-animal. He is merely a “cosmic fringe-dweller”.

The American geneticist of Russian extraction,Theodosius Dobzhansky (1900 – 1975): Man isthe only product of evolution that has attainedthe insight that he came into this universe, fromthe animal kingdom, through evolution.

Jaques Monod (1910 - 1976), a French bio-chemist and Nobel laureate: Man is a gipsy at theedge of the universe.

The atheist Theo Löbsack: Man is only an “evolu-tionary aberration”.

Ludwig E. Boltzmann (1844 – 1905), who wasprofessor of theoretical physics at the Universityof Vienna, was completely committed to Darwin-ism. He regarded the idea (that life originatedwithout a Creator), as the grandest concept ofthe century: “In my opinion Darwin’s theorypromises only the best for philosophy. If you askme whether this time (the 19th century) shouldbe called the iron age or the steam age or theage of electricity, I would immediately reply thatit should be known as the age of a mechanisticview of nature – it will be known as the age ofDarwin.”

Today steadily increasing numbers of scientistsregard the theory of evolution as the greatestfallacy of the century. (This topic is discussedmore fully in two other books of the presentauthor, namely: In the Beginning was Informationand Did God Use Evolution? We will thus not pur-sue it further here). However, the followingexample illustrates the compulsion exerted by

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evolutionary thought. It concerns the difficultiesof human birth. Josef H. Reichholf discusses thisin an article “Difficult birth for humans – easy inthe case of animals” (in the German magazineNatur, July 1989, p 57 - 59). He describes thebirth process in the case of some mammalsunder the heading “Privilege of the animals: Birthwithout pain”.

1 Giraffe: “The newborn calf falls from a heightof more than two metres. But the entire birthproceeds with very little drama, in relaxed andtranquil fashion.”

2 Gnu: “The heavily pregnant cow moves alongwith the herd, only drawing apart just before giv-ing birth to a large, well-developed calf, withouthaste or complaint. She licks the calf dry, mas-sages him, and helps the gangly newborn gnuonto his feet as necessary. From then on, he canmanage on his own. The actual birth takes only afew minutes, but even this can be too long shoulddanger threaten. Then the cow simply interruptsthe birth process and runs along, with the calfalready protruding, until it can emerge in safety.”

3 Seals: “On the other side of the earth, the nor-mally slender female seals, their bodies now dis-tended, waddle clumsily over the lava rocks ontothe beaches of the Galápagos islands. There, dur-ing the weeks before Christmas, they await thebirth of their pups. Seals also give birth rapidly,which might be expected in view of the ease withwhich the streamlined body of the newborn over-comes the narrowness of the birth canal. Theprocess is smooth and precise; only a matter of afew seconds, involving neither pain nor difficulty.”

After considering other animals as well, Reichholfconcludes: “Wherever we observe the birth ofmammals, it seems to be relatively effortless andappropriate to their way of life.” Then he comesto human beings:

“Only man doesn’t fit this pattern. Usually onlyone baby is born, and it involves a lot of pain.And worse still – without assistance, the mother-to-be is practically helpless, especially if it is herfirst child.” Then Reichholf again asks the ques-tion as to the “why” of the difficulty of humanbirth. He answers as follows:

“Why is it so hard for humans, of all creatures, tocome into the world? This end-product of evolu-tion regards itself as the crown of creation. Yetone has the impression that something musthave gone wrong, something important, duringman’s descent. This is the logical conclusion fromcomparison to the other higher mammals.”

Reichholf’s observations are perfectly correct, buthis conclusion is erroneous. Nature neverexplains itself. We thus require an external sourceof information. And the moral of the above is:Without the Bible, we are left to grope in thedark as far as most aspects of life are concerned.No biologist or gynaecologist can really explainwhy human childbirth is so difficult and painful.It is a direct consequence of man’s sin. In theoriginal creation painless birth was provided. Butafter they had sinned, God told Eve: “I will greatlyincrease your pains in childbearing; with painyou will give birth to children” (Gen 3:16).

The real damage caused by the theory of evolu-tion is not so much that, seen through thoseglasses, many facts concerning life and naturecannot be explained satisfactorily. The real harmis that it is associated with a rejection or distor-tion of the Bible. Paul’s assertion that he believeseverything that is written (Acts 24:14), is alsovery important for us, as will become clear insubsequent chapters where the question of oursalvation is discussed.

– a distorted image

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Today many people ask -who is Jesus?Sixty thousand biographies have been writtenabout Jesus Christ. No other historical person hasbeen portrayed as frequently as He. NapoleonBonaparte (1769 – 1821) said that people will forever speak of Jesus, and many will die for Him.“But well after I am gone, nobody will speak of me(Napoleon), nor would they die for me anymore.”

Nobody had to die for Jesus; He has never askedthat of anybody. But it is true that, nevertheless,thousands and even millions of people willinglysacrificed their lives for Him. They only had toutter one word of retraction to be set free. Butthey remained faithful and accepted death ratherthan to disavow Him. They did this because theyloved Him; never were they coerced.

Napoleon’s soldiers were forced to die for him,but today nobody would even consider dying forNapoleon. The historian Kenneth Scott Latourettecame to the conclusion:

“As the centuries pass the evidence is accumulat-ing that, measured by His effect of history, Jesusis the most influential life ever lived on this plan-et. That influence appears to be mounting.” (American Historical Review, LIV, January, 1949).

Is Jesus the Son of God?Consider the following verdicts:

1 God: When Jesus was baptised, a voice sound-ed from heaven. It was God Himself Who said:“This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am wellpleased” (Matt 3:17). God refers to His Son, so Hemust be Jesus’ Father. On the mountain of thetransfiguration God repeated this assertion:

“This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”(Mark 9:7).

2 Peter: He was a follower of Jesus and observedeverything closely. He knew all the deeds ofJesus, all his words, his way of life, and his deal-ings with people. When Jesus asked this disciplewho He was, Peter replied: “You are the Christ,the Son of the living God” (Matt 16:16).

3 A Roman centurion: A Roman centurion wasin charge of the crucifixion of Jesus. He had trav-elled widely in the great Roman empire, whichextended from England to North Africa, and fromSpain to the Orient. He had fought in many bat-tles, and was often in charge of crucifixions, thehorrible and extremely painful Roman method ofexecution. Time after time it ws the same: personsnailed to a cross started to curse and scold. Theyaccused those who brought them. It was alwaysa scene of horror, groaning and agonised anger.

For the first time in his life he now experiencesa crucifixion where everything is different. No evilwords come from the Man on the cross, no re-proach or accusation. On the contrary: He praysfor the spectators. This is all the more astounding,since the people are still mocking and tauntingHim. His response is quite different to that of anyother person. He calls on God, praying: “Father,forgive them, for they do not know what they aredoing” (Luke 23:34). The centurion also hears Jesus’barely comprehensible promise to the criminal whohas confessed his guilt: “I tell you the truth, todayyou will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Thecenturion pays close attention to every word ofthis Man in the middle, and comes to the conclu-sion: “Surely he was the Son of God!” (Matt 27:54).

For Christians the double name Jesus Christ isthe briefest declaration of faith, since it means

A very special man:Jesus

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that Jesus of Nazareth is the promised Christ(anointed one or Messiah – Hebrew mashiyach).Jesus’ favourite title for Himself was the Son ofMan. In this way He confirms but also concealsHis position as Messiah (e. g. Matt 8:20, John3:14). By choosing this title, He emphasises twoaspects:

Firstly, that He was a human being, a descendantof human forebears. Both genealogies inMatthew 1:1-17 and Luke 3:23-38 confirm this.

Secondly, Jesus confirms and describes His sec-ond coming in glory in the following words: “Foras the lightning comes from the east and is visi-ble in the west, so will be the coming of the Sonof Man... They will see the Son of Man coming onthe clouds of the sky, with power and greatglory” (Matt 24:27, 30). With these words, Jesuswas identifying with the prophecy in DanielChapter 7 verse 13: “there before me was one likea son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.”

The Bible testifies that Jesus exists from eternity(Everlasting Father, Isaiah 9:6) to eternity: “JesusChrist is the same yesterday and today and for-ever” (Hebr 13:8). When He was on earth, He washere both as God’s Son and as a human being.This is expressed clearly in Philippians 2:6-7:“Who, being in very nature God, did not considerequality with God something to be grasped, butmade himself nothing, taking the very nature ofa servant, being made in human likeness.”

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The greatest catastrophe that ever befell humani-ty was not the Second World War, neither was itany of history’s mass famines, nor even one ofthe great plague epidemics. It was man’s fall intosin. Not just thousands or millions of people, butthe entire human race was struck by the deadlytorpedo of sin. Sin has one very malicious prop-erty. It spreads like a virulent epidemic, causingdeath and destruction ever since the very firsttransgression. All human beings are infected bythis horrible disease. During the course of our lifewe contribute in no small way to the multiplica-tion of sin’s effects. Sin is a law unto itself, sothat in our fallen nature, we cannot avoid it.Thuswe read in Romans 7:19: “For what I do is notthe good I want to do; no, the evil I do not wantto do – this I keep on doing.”

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God is calling everyone What is sin? First and foremost, sin is our sepa-ration from God. Our sinful acts are conse-quences of this general condition. “All wrongdo-ing is sin” (1 John 5:17).

The Ten Commandments, as given by God in Exo-dus 20:1-17, are like a mirror by which we canjudge our deeds. Jesus expounds the Command-ments in depth in the Sermon on the Mount(Matthew chapters 5 to 7). Not only is the actualdeed sin, but also the preceding thoughts in ourheart. The slightest deviation from theseunchangeable standards of God is sin, and bythis standard, nobody is righteous. Even when weneglect to do good, it is also sin in the eyes ofGod: “Anyone, then, who knows the good heought to do and doesn’t do it, sins” (Jam 4:17).

All unbelief is sin, as we read in Romans 14:23:“everything that does not come from faith is sin.”

In our time occult practices like fortune-telling,pendulum swinging, and spiritism, have increasedto an alarming extent. In many bookshops thereare extensive collections of esoteric literature,and the souls of many readers are poisoned bythese books. God warns against these abomina-tions: “do not learn to imitate the detestableways of the nations there. Let noone be foundamong you who sacrifices his son or daughter inthe fire, who practises divination or sorcery,interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or castsspells, or who is a medium or spiritist or whoconsults the dead. Anyone who does these thingsis detestable to the Lord” (Deut 18:9-12).

But the chief sin in the eyes of God is that peo-ple do not believe in His Son and do not followHim. Jesus says that it is the one greatest sin if“men do not believe in me” (John 16:9). The realnature of sin and its effects becomes clear in theGreek word, hamartia, used in the New Testa-ment. It means to miss the target. Through oursin we miss our life’s purpose as intended byGod, like an arrow which does not hit the centreof the bulls-eye. If we enter eternity with oursins, then we are lost, and will experience perdi-tion and eternal death (Prov 14:34b, Rom 6:23a).God has said that He will not admit one singlesin into His heaven: “No longer will there be anycurse” (Rev 22:3). If God were to allow sin in Hisheaven, then even this place of glory would soonbe devastated. Were sin to enter, the same fate ason earth would befall heaven: strife and fighting,enmity and jealousy, illness and suffering, dis-tress and death. But heaven must remain heaven;a place of eternal joy and a place where everyoneloves each other. How many people really love ushere on earth? In most cases we can count themon the fingers of one hand. And, when asked,many people would say: “Nobody loves me; I amalone.”

God Himself solved the problem of sin throughJesus: “God made him who had no sin, to be sinfor us” (2 Cor 5:21). No human being can bear hisown sin, because sin cannot be compensated for

nor be erased by means of good deeds or reli-gious rites. There is no medical remedy for sin,but the one Person Who could erase sin, didexactly that. We read that Jesus “himself bore oursins in his body on the tree” (= the cross on Cal-vary, 1 Peter 2:24). Because of this sacrifice, thepossibility of salvation is there for everyone,without limit, be they:

– young or old– rich or poor– male or female– illiterate or a Nobel prize-winner– black, white, yellow, or red – God does not dis-

tinguish between races– American, British, French, German,

or Russian – with God, there are no nationalboundaries

– speakers of Arabic, Chinese, English,or German – God knows no language barriers

A wider range can hardly be imagined. God’s planof salvation, based on love and a free will, is notjust available for 5 % or 10 % or 20 % of allhuman beings, but for all 100 %: Jesus “is theatoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only forours, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1John 2:2). The great tragedy is that only a rela-tively small fraction of all people find salvationby turning to Jesus (Matt 7:13-14, Luke 12:32).The rest stay on the old, wide road leadinginevitably to damnation.

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Two maritime parables:the Gustloff and the Titanic

In the discussion which follows we will be look-ing at rescue from fatal danger. Two dramaticoccurrences from the 20th century will serve asexamples.Firstly, we will take a look at the greatest shippingcatastrophe of all time, as far as the number offatalities goes: the sinking of the Gustloff duringthe Second World War.

It was Tuesday 30th January 1945. The ship Wil-helm Gustloff was at sea, extremely overloadedwith 10,582 passengers. Most of them wererefugees (8,956 or more) from East and West Prus-sia, Danzig-Gotenhafen (Danziger Bay), Memellandand East Pomerania. They were fleeing from theRed Army, hoping to get to the West. It was minus18 ºC and the sea was rough. The Soviet submarineS-13 was lying north of Stolpmünde in EastPomerania. On this icy cold winter evening, thelookout in the partially submerged submarine sawthe outline of a large ship. The Gustloff was hit bythree torpedoes at about 9 p.m. and sank within anhour. The extent of the catastrophe is enormous:9,343 people lost their lives. Only 1,239 could besaved. This is 6551 more than died in the terrorattack on the twin towers of the World Trade Cen-ter in New York on the 11th September 2001.(Literature: Heinz Schön: SOS Wilhelm Gustloff -Die größte Schiffskatastrophe der Geschichte,Motorbuch Verlag, 1. Auflage 1998, 254 S.)

The ship was named after Wilhelm Gustloff, aSwiss Nazi Party functionary who had been mur-dered in 1936. It was used by the “German LabourFront” as their flagship for the “Strength ThroughJoy” movement. With a gross registered tonnageof 25,484, this luxury liner had a capacity of near-ly 1,500 passengers. When war broke out, it servedas a hospital and as barracks for the naval contin-gent stationed at Gotenhafen. As the war frontmoved nearer, it was one of the ships assigned totransporting refugees and soldiers towards theWest. Damaged by bombs and overloaded, it couldonly manage 12 knots, compared to its originalcapability of 15.5 knots (29 km/h).

At the time there was only a low risk of enemysubmarine activity, so only one destroyer escortedthe ship, and a zig-zag course was deemedunnecessary. After being hit, the ship listed 15degrees, where it stayed for about 20 minutes,then it keeled over further and further beforefinally sinking. Because there were nowhere nearenough lifeboats, most passengers faced certaindeath. Only 1,239 people could be rescued fromthe icy waters.

The eyewitness and survivor of this catastrophe,Heinz Schön (1926 – ) gives us this graphic sketchof the sinking:

“At 10:16 p. m., sixty minutes after the first torpe-do hit, which was followed straight away by twomore, the Gustloff readies herself to die. No oneknows that the death struggle of this ship willlast a mere two minutes more. Nobody has anyidea, how many people have already had to die onthe Gustloff in the last sixty minutes, torn apartby torpedoes, suffocated by the gases of detona-tion, battered to death by falling furniture, tram-pled to death in the stairways, drowned in theforeship, in the corridors, the chambers, the hallsand in the lower promenade deck, which becamea ’glass coffin’”.

And then he describes the final minute:

“Now the minute of death has arrived for the Gust-loff. For all still on board her, there will be no morerescue. They don’t want to die, but death isinevitable. I also am fighting for life in the chillyBaltic Sea. Next to me hundreds of people arestruggling desperately in the icy waters, clutchingonto the rims of boats, with whose occupants theyfight as they search for some sort of a handhold.But the relentless cold soon immobilizes theirlimbs. The sea tosses these hapless people aroundlike toys. With gurgling cries for help, countlessnumbers have already sunk under the waves or arehanging lifeless in their bouyancy vests.

“I’m amazed to still be conscious. My eyes try topenetrate the darkness. The massive swell lifts meto towering heights, only to let me sink again intodeep wave valleys. Will no rescue come? If shipsdon’t arrive soon, then all those struggling in the

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water here will soon be death’s prize. I wasn’t toknow that at this very moment, only about 100metres from the stricken vessel, the torpedo boatLöwe was already taking the first of the survivorson board.

“Many sets of eyes are now staring at the sinkingcolossus as she readies herself for dying; now thevery second of her death has arrived for the ship. Aloud booming sound comes from the Gustloff, asthe last bulkheads are broken. The ship is listingmore and more, as the screaming of those still onboard reaches a crescendo. As the wreck tilts evenfurther, suddenly the unexpected happens. As ifcontrolled by a ghostly hand, in an instant theentire ship’s lighting comes on – the vessel shinesin full splendour, looking like a magnificent appari-tion. The Gustloff goes down with full festive light-ing. As if illuminated by the glow of her carefreedays of peacetime, reflected a thousand-fold in thefoaming ocean, the sinking coffin tips towards thewaves and plunges into a watery grave. Blinded bythe light, clusters of writhing people, bunched likegrapes, spill overboard from the twenty metre widesundeck, a scream of despair on their lips beforethey hit the water.

“What now - another ghostly happening? Theship’s siren starts operating, all by itself, heraldingthe end of the Gustloff. A long drawn-out howl-ing sound fills the air, then becomes weaker andhoarser. Then the howling siren is choked off, thelight extinguished. The ship is dead – it sinksfinally into the surging waters. A massive moun-tain of water crashes over the Gustloff, extin-guishing the very last death cry.”

(Heinz Schön: Die Gustloff-Katastrophe, Motor-buch Verlag Stuttgart, 4. Auflage 1995 pp 332,335-336)

Another never-to-be-forgotten tragedy of mari-time voyaging, one which is probably the best-known worldwide, occurred in the year 1912. Itwas the sinking of the . On her maiden voy-age, she was already set on a course to her death.

The trauma of this story has remained to this day.The Titanic was regarded as the most significantship of 1912. Costing more than seven million

dollars, she was the largest movable object evermade by human hands. She was a skyscraperamong ships, an oceanic giant four street blockslong, and eleven stories high. The shipping com-pany, White Star Line, was exceptionally proud ofher, giving this luxury liner the label “unsinkable”.The bulkheads to her 16 compartments could beindividually closed to make them watertight; evenif two of these compartments filled with water,the Titanic would float on. This was one of thereasons why the usual safety requirements wereonly partially fulfilled. For instance, there wereonly enough lifeboats for every second person onboard.

On April 10, 1912 the Titanic left Southampton inthe south of England on her maiden voyage,bound for New York. Among the more than 2,200people on board were some of the richest peopleon earth. Also some of the poorest, wanting tomake a new life in America. Both the famous andthe forgotten were on the passenger list. A suitefor the journey cost 5,000 dollars. Not surprising-ly, morale and atmosphere on board was excel-lent; after all, the ship was the world’s fastest andsafest, catering for its passengers’ every possibleneed. No one imagined that any harm could befallher. Iceberg warnings, among them those fromthe German ship Amerika, were widely ignored,since the Titanic was supposed to be especiallyinvulnerable to iceberg damage.

On the night of April 14, the world’s first and only“unsinkable” ship was about 400 nautical mileseast of Newfoundland. Not a single cloudobscured the glittering stars on this moonless,bitterly cold night. The unusually dead calm con-ditions made the surface of the Atlantic appearlike a sheet of polished glass. At 11:40 p. m. onSunday, April the 14th, 1912, as the Titanic knifedthrough the smooth black sea, her starboard(right) side scraped along a massive iceberg, pro-truding about 30 metres above the water. A hor-rendous, 91 metre long gash opened up in the269 metre long hull.

The Titanic was now a death ship, with no one yetaware of it. Most of the passengers were in theircabins. A few crew members still sat talking in thefirst class dining salon on D deck. As they spoke,

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a vague grinding sound, not particularly loud atfirst, came from somewhere deep within the ship.The faint jangling of cutlery, laid out for tomor-row’s breakfast, provided the only other hint ofany disturbance on this so-far-flawless cruise.

Passengers woken by the bump tried to somehowcorrelate it with familiar events. Someone said’That’s funny – we’re docking!’ Another thoughtthat a heavy wave must have struck the ship. Onewoman, awoken by the grinding scrape, said itwas ’as if a giant finger was dragged along theflank of the ship’. Mrs Astor, the wife of the rich-est man on board, thought there must have beena mishap in the kitchen.

Other than that, there was nothing apart from thissound, grotesque in its apparent harmlessness.Some called it a scratching, others a scrapingsound, still others a dragging or even a grindingnoise. Most passengers slept through and heardnothing. Some leaving the smoking loungestepped out on deck just in time to be able tocatch a glimpse of the iceberg scraping alongside.In the next instant it had disappeared into thedarkness. The momentary excitement soon settled;the Titanic still seemed as massive and solid asever, and it was much too cold to stay outside anylonger. A card game seemed in order.

Till now, it had been a cruise of the purest pleas-ure – a liner on its maiden voyage, everythingnew and shiny. The confidence which reignedsupreme aboard the mighty vessel had been mostprofoundly expressed by one steward to a MrsCaldwell: “Even God couldn’t sink this ship.” ButTitanic’s death warrant had been signed. CaptainEdward John Smith didn’t hurry to the radio toannounce the collision, but went first to notifythe billionaire, John Jacob Astor, before anyoneelse. This is when Astor is supposed to haveuttered the now-famous words, “I ordered ice,indeed, but this is ridiculous!”

Over the next two and a half hours, the bow sankever deeper, until the enormous weight of thenow-protruding stern caused the vessel to sud-denly break in two. The now-separated bow sec-tion sank first. Shortly after, the stern rose almosthorizontally out of the water, before this portion

of the ship, too, plunged down towards the floorof the icy Atlantic, 3,821 metres below. Since boil-er operators and machinists had been instructedto keep the machinery for power generationgoing as long as possible, all the Titanic’s lightswere shining brightly, some even staying on whilealready under water. This eerie illumination of thesilent catastrophe continued right up to just twominutes before the ship sank completely beneaththe ocean surface.

1522 people lost their lives; only 712, barely athird of those on board, were rescued. The pro-portion of those rescued was significantly differ-ent according to their class (first class: 62%; sec-ond class: 42.5%; third class: 25.5%). Almostanything else might have seemed conceivable –the champagne running out, an epidemic break-ing out among the third class passengers, perhapseven the bandmaster falling asleep. But no onewould have dreamt for a minute that this proudship would, on the night of the 14th through 15th

April, 1912, after contacting an iceberg, simplysink and plunge 1500 people into an icy grave inthe North Atlantic.

It was precisely 2:20 a. m. on the 15th April 1912when the mighty vessel sank into the depths ofthe sea. Since that moment, the Titanic has be-come a metaphor for pride preceding a downfall.

In 1985, 73 years after the catastrophe, the wreckwas located, at a depth of 3,800 metres, by RobertBallard, underwater geologist at the Woods HoleOceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, USA.Situated south of Newfoundland, it was strewnover an area the size of the city of London. Rest-ing in the ocean depths, the Titanic is like someirresistible emotional powerhouse. Her tragicstory, revisited over and over, has spawned thou-sands of books, and some three dozen films –including the 1997 epic by American directorJames Cameron.

Cameron’s blockbuster film “Titanic” turned thecatastrophe into a box-office bonanza. Millions ofmoviegoers worldwide shared the experience ofbeing on board the most renowned passengerliner of all time during an elaborate cinematicreconstruction of her sinking. With the largest

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single set yet constructed, Cameron’s film was themost successful in the history of the movies. Thereal Titanic cost a handsome 7.5 million dollars 85years before – the screen version devoured 200million dollars, making it the most expensive filmof all time. It took only 26 days to recover thesecosts at the box office. Director Cameron said ofthe original catastrophe, “The Titanic is a dramaabout faith in technology, and the bankruptcy ofeverything she promised in the name of progress.I regard this story as a perfect characterisation ofour 20th Century. We are all in a sense living on akind of Titanic.”

Both these big ships seemed safe and secure totheir passengers, but from a particular momenton, they were set on a course of death, theirdoom sealed and certain. The only possibility ofescaping death was via the lifeboats, of whichthere were insufficient for the large number ofpeople who needed them. In both cases, therewas ample time for rescue.

Both these maritime tragedies, the Gustloff andthe Titanic, have significant lessons for us:

– Just hours before their doom, people imaginedthemselves to be in great safety.

– In the midst of deadly danger, rescue was pos-sible. But it required making a switch, a trans-fer, the boarding of another vessel.

We can use these historical occurrences to draw aparallel with another catastrophe, the greatestone ever experienced by mankind, namely the Fallinto sin. The torpedo strike (or iceberg gash) suf-fered by the ship of humanity at the Fall set itirrevocably on a path to doom, just as surely asfor each of the two ships. Those who stay onboard, that is, keep living just as they have been,will sink with mathematical punctuality at the tri-bunal of God. It is the Creator’s damning verdictupon sin which brings eternal lostness in itswake: “Just as man is destined to die once, andafter that to face judgment“ (Hebr 9:27). Here too,only a lifeboat can help. Fortunately, there is sucha lifeboat – provided by God Himself! Here, also,you need to make the required transfer, to boardthe vessel, in order to be saved.

Let us now apply several aspects of the accountsof the Gustloff and Titanic to the ship of humani-ty. This ship is carrying various groups of people:Evangelicals and Catholics, churchgoers and non-churchgoers, atheists and Buddhists, Muslims andHindus. The representatives of all the world’s reli-gions and all its political parties are on board, aswell as followers of all manner of schools ofphilosophical thought. The exhortation to get onboard the lifeboat applies to all of them – fromwherever anyone might be. May what followsbecome a saving wake up call, that we mightescape being eternally lost. The Bible speaks dra-matically of this escape: “How shall we escape [i.e.escape hell, escape eternal damnation] if weignore such a great salvation [i.e. God’s lifeboat,Jesus Christ]?“ (Hebr 2:3).

Although the passengers represent widely differentsystems of thought, they all have one thing in com-mon – the ship they are on is doomed. The onlyway they can be saved is if salvation comes fromoutside. Man’s salvation is thus the main theme ofthe Bible. Some important points in this regard:

– God has devised a plan of salvation which isavailable to every human being, in contrast tothose on board the Gustloff or the Titanic.

– God has prepared an enormous lifeboat, knownas “Jesus Christ”. There is room for everyone onthis lifeboat.

– There are no alternative lifeboats (John 14:6,Acts 4:12). Only this one boat is standing by.

– At the Gustloff sinking, dramatic scenesunfolded. Those who did manage to reach oneof the overloaded lifeboats were pushed awayby force, to keep the entire boat from capsizingand sinking. But nobody is ever pushed awayfrom lifeboat Jesus!

God informs us: God has made it known tohumanity that they are passengers on a ship ofdoom, and He Himself prepared the lifeboat.Nobody who wants to be rescued will be turnedaway; sufficient provision has been made for all.Those who want to be saved will eagerly boardthe lifeboat.

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Too simple? People often object that this is fartoo simple. Surely salvation cannot be such a sim-ple matter! But the mere fact that our rescue is sosimple for us, demonstrates that God Himself isworking. It was however very costly for Him. Godsaid through the prophet Isaiah: ”you have bur-dened me with your sins” (Is 43:24). In compari-son, the creation of the universe was a simpletask, as we read in Psalm 8:3: “When I consideryour heavens, the work of your fingers.” We donot have to swim three times around the floun-dering ship in icy waters to qualify for admissioninto the ark of salvation.

Not applicable: One aspect of these two parablesdoes not apply to today’s situation: At some pointeverybody on either ship knew that it was doomed,and they tried to leave the ship in panic. If ever inour lives we should be in a similar position, wewould know exactly where we were – whether onthe sinking ship or already in a lifeboat. But, in con-trast, many people today are in one of two dread-ful, tragic situations (T1 and T2 below):

T1: Modern man in general does not believe thathe is sailing on a doomed ship. People like themusic on board and are feasting at the buffet.They are not conscious of any danger and are notinterested in a lifeboat.

The main purpose of this book is to convince you,dear reader, that you are in deadly danger, and topoint the way to the lifeboat standing by. Theprocess of transferring from the ship of death tothe ark of salvation is known in the Bible by aspecial term, namely conversion! No rescue ispossible from a sinking ship without boarding alifeboat. This is also the case for eternal life, sinceit cannot be obtained without repentance. Jesussays in Luke 13:3: “unless you repent (changeyour course, leave the doomed ship by turning toJesus), you too will all perish.”

T2: There is another fatal situation on the ship ofdeath: Some people say that they are already safein a lifeboat, although they have not yet made thetransfer. For them the danger is very great, becausethey see no reason for changing. In this way theymight miss the lifeboat altogether and rush head-long into destruction. Who are these people?

– In the first place there are those who believe inGod, but have never turned to Jesus, neverbeen truly converted. This includes manymembers of mainline churches, and even pas-tors and elders who have never yet experi-enced a real breakthrough of faith. They areensnared in traditions and customs, and knownothing of a living relationship with Jesus.

– Furthermore, there are people who actuallyserve Jesus, but who have also never reallybeen converted. Recently somebody told methat he wanted to serve Jesus by studying the-ology, but he shied away from conversion,from a personal relationship with Jesus.

After speaking on the subject, I have repeatedlymet such people who have recognised their plightfrom the talk, and have then repented fully.

People who belong to this group and do notrespond to the call, will one day be judged byJesus with the words He prophesied in the Ser-mon on the Mount: “Not everyone who says tome, ’Lord, Lord’, will enter the kingdom of heav-

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The Gustloff: The Wilhelm Gustloff – pride of the”Strength-Through-Joy” fleet, seen from above, 1938(Reproduced from Die ”Gustloff”-Katastrophe, by HeinzSchön, Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart, p 88).

en, but only he who does the will of my Fatherwho is in heaven. Many will say to me on thatday, ’Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in yourname, and in your name drive out devils and per-form many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly,’I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”(Matt 7:21-23).

Isn’t this remarkable? There are people whohave acted in the name of Jesus, and still theyare lost. We can summarise the above words ofJesus in terms of our parable: You have never leftthe ship of death! That is the reason why you willalso perish like the unbelievers travelling on thesame ship.

It is obvious that there are different groups onthe ship of doom; these will now be discussed.The fate of every one of us is tied to this ship. Inall, four groups of people can be distinguished(P1 to P4), and you, the reader of this book,inevitably belong to one of these groups:

P1. You are one of those who already, at somepoint in your life, understood your position andconfessed. You have stepped over and you cansay with great certainty that you have boardedthe lifeboat. In this lifeboat there is a list of pas-sengers, comprising the names of all those whoboarded. The Bible calls this list the “Book of Life”.Only those persons whose names appear in thisbook will reach the safe shore, heaven. Jesusonce told such people “rejoice that your namesare written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). If your nameis included, I rejoice with you!

P2. Up to this point you did not know where youwere, but it has now become clear to you thatyou are still on the doomed ship. If you leave theship of death forthwith by accepting Jesus rightnow, you are rescued immediately. The simpleand practical way of doing this is explained fullybelow in the chapter “Getting your name in the’Book of Life’”. The conversion of all persons men-tioned in the New Testament always takes placeat a specific time and place.

Right now, wherever you are, note the date froma calendar or your watch. Nobody ever moves

gradually from the doomed ship to the lifeboat.The actual decision and the transfer is alwaysinstantaneous, although it may be based on pre-vious knowledge and belief. Today may becomethe greatest day of your life. The only require-ment is that you must make a real decision andact accordingly. The example of the prodigal sonillustrates this. The moment he realises his loststate, he says “I will set out and go back...” (Luke 15:18).

P3. You are one of those who thought they weresafely in a lifeboat, but were not. Through theHoly Spirit, you have been made aware of yourtrue situation. If you are one of these, confessyour error and change today. As established earli-er in T2, this group may include people who serveJesus and consequently assume that they cannotbe on the ship of death (see T2 and the Sermonon the Mount, Matthew 7:21-23). The Gustloffdid not sink immediately, but it took 62 minutesafter the torpedoes had hit. Rescue was onlypossible during this period. In the same way Godgrants us our entire life for conversion, but noone knows how long that will be. In biblical lan-guage this is known as the time of grace.

P4. You are one of those who think the ship isnot in danger. So why would you climb aboard alifeboat? I sincerely wish that none of the readersof this book belongs to this group. Why not?

People in this fourth group have even developeda scientific theory (or accepted it ready-madefrom others), which asserts that the doomed shipcannot go down. They have declared it to beunsinkable. This was also said of the Titanicwhich sank on its maiden voyage. The followingtwo examples may clarify the issue:

– Recently after a lecture a student told me thatthere was no hell. When I asked him how heknew this, he replied that that was what hispastor taught. In other words, the doomedship can’t sink. What a tragic fallacy!

– When Jesus cried out on the cross: “It is fin-ished” (John 19:30), it meant that the lifeboatwas ready. The requirements for the salvation

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of everybody had now been met. I recentlyattended a lecture by a professor of theology,who stated that Jesus never uttered thosewords on the cross. What he was ultimatelysaying was that the completion and existenceof the lifeboat was being scientifically/theo-logically ignored.

Those in group P4 will receive the wages of livinga lie: “If anyone’s name was not found written inthe book of life, he was thrown into the lake offire” (Rev 20:15).

The chapter about the book of life has been espe-cially written for people in groups P2 and P3.Please read this section as a special personalmessage to you.

The Gustloff and the Titanic:further detailsThe ship Wilhelm Gustloff: The keel of “ShipNo 511” was laid in August 1935, and it was

launched on the fifth of May 1937 in the ship-yard of Blohm & Voss in Hamburg, in the pres-ence of Adolf Hitler. Its length was 208.5 m, itsbeam measured 23.5 m, and its gross registeredtonnage was 25,484. It was powered by foureight-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines drivingtwin propellers. During the 17 months from itsmaiden voyage until August 1939, it undertook44 voyages carrying a total of 65,000 tourists.After the catastrophe of 30 January 1945 onlyone fifth of the passengers (1,252 persons) wererescued; in all, 9,343 people perished.

The man Wilhelm Gustloff: He was born on the30th of January 1895 in Schwerin near Hamburg,exactly 50 years, to the day, before the ship sank.The Nazis seized power in Germany on the 30thof January 1933, and exactly 12 years later theship came to grief. Gustloff joined the Nazi Partyin 1929, and he became the national groupleader for Switzerland in 1932. On the 4th ofFebruary 1936 he was fatally wounded in hishouse in Davos, shot by a 27 year old Jewishmedical student. This student, David Frankfurter,arrived in Davos on the 30th of January 1936.Interestingly, the same date turns up four times.

On February the 12th Wilhelm Gustloff wasburied with great fanfare as ordered by Göbbels,the Minister of Propaganda. There were 35,000mourners in Schwerin, including many VIPs ofthe Third Reich. In his funeral oration Hitler saidthat Gustloff’s death would be an eternal legacyfor future generations of the German nation. Hehad thus decided to name this, the first workingship commissioned by the Nazi Party, the Wil-helm Gustloff. This ship is a reminder of one ofthe darkest chapters of German history.

The shipTitanic: Some figures: 46,328 grossregistered tonnage, displacement at a waterlineof 10.51m: 66,000 tonnes, overall length: 268.68metres, width: 28.19 metres, height: 18.44 metresfrom the water surface to the boat deck, or 53.33metres from the keel to the tip of the four mas-sive smokestacks, drive: 3 propellers; the middleone was driven by a turbine. This propellerweighed 22 tonnes, with a diameter of 5 metres.The outer two propellers were driven by piston

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The sinking of the Gustloff: Hit by three torpedoes,the Wilhelm Gustloff sinks while listing badly to port.Those of the 6,600 passengers and crew who are stillalive now begin a life-and-death struggle for survival.(Drawing by H. Rathe, based on information given by eyewitnesses and by Heinz Schön, one of the survivors;reproduced from his book Ostsee ’45 – Menschen,Schiffe, Schicksale [The Baltic Sea 1945 – People, ships,and their fates], Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart, p 220).

engines and at 7.16 metres diameter, weighed 38tonnes. The ship’s engines produced a staggering36,800 kW of power. It could store 6,000 tonnesof coal. Its daily consumption of coal wasbetween 620 and 640 tonnes, that is 7.3 kg eachsecond! At full steam the Titanic could travel at24-25 knots (44.5 to 46.3 km per hour).

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Personal testimonies:Jesus found through a book

Many readers may now be asking: “How can Irepent? How can I disembark from the ship ofdeath? That’s what I really want to do! Could I usethis book to help me do that?” The basic answergiven by the Bible is that you must first hear themessage of Jesus’ redemption: “faith comes fromhearing the message, and the message is heardthrough the word of Christ” (Rom 10:17). First ofall the message of Jesus must come to us. Thiscould happen through listening to an evangelisticsermon followed by pastoral counselling, by talk-ing with an experienced Christian, or even byreading an evangelistically oriented book.

That is precisely the purpose of this book – toshow you, in detail, the way of turning to Christ.The necessity of salvation was dealt with in theprevious chapter. The process of redemption isexplained in detail in the next chapter. But firstI want to let a few people tell about their ownconversions. The first testimony is of a man whocame to faith in an unusual way by reading aNew Testament obtained from the Gideons (aninternational association which distributes Biblesin many countries of the world).

From Auschwitz to Christ

From 1942 to 1944, a certain man had to operatethe cremation ovens at Auschwitz. A Polish Jew,he spent nearly six years in the concentrationcamp. Though he hated Germans intensely, hehad of necessity learnt their language.

Eventually he emigrated to Israel, broken in spiritand incapable of doing any work. After a long timehe got a job at the tunnel of Hezekiah. This tunnelwas commissioned by King Hezekiah, to channelwater under the city of Jerusalem from the Gihonspring to the pool of Siloam. At this pool, Jesushealed the man who was born blind (John 9:7).

And it was here that this Jew found a trilingualNew Testament (German, English and French) ofthe Gideons, left behind by a tourist. He wanted

to throw it away, since he could only read theGerman portion, and did not want to be remind-ed of this hated language. He said later that hewas inexplicably prevented from throwing itaway. He found that he could not discard it, andhe read it secretly while waiting for new groupsof tourists. Eventually he had worked throughthe entire text, from cover to cover. He had neverbefore heard of this Jesus Christ, but after read-ing just the Gospel of Matthew, which he callsthe gospel for the Jews, he realised that Jesus isthe long-awaited Messiah of the Jews.

For several years this New Testament providedhis only spiritual nourishment. He did not knowany Christian, until the day that he met a Germanyouth who asked him to forgive the Germans forall the wrong done to the Jews. This opened hisheart and for the first time he testified that he,too, believed in Jesus Christ. He then joyfullyshowed the youth his well-read Gideon New Tes-tament, saying: “I believe in this Jesus. What weread here, is the truth. This Jesus is my Lord.”

Further examples: After lectures in many differ-ent places I often meet people who tell me theycame to faith through some special book. Thefollowing are brief testimonies from some ofthese, from various backgrounds, of how theywere converted. I would emphasise that thesethree examples were chosen subjectively. Theyare not meant to represent any “standard” wayto come to Christ, which as already mentionedcould either be through a sermon, or a conversa-tion with a Christian, or a book, for example.Their sole purpose is to help you with the stepnow in front of you. Such a decision must bedeliberate, and in most cases it involves an innerstruggle. I therefore trust that the following per-sonal testimonies might help you.

A book that caused a restless night

I found faith in Jesus Christ at five o’clock in themorning of the 3rd October 1992. My name isAnja Raum, I am 36 years old and am now themother of three children. My life was stronglyaffected by various circumstances – our firstbaby, giving up my career as a teacher, moving to

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strange surroundings, and the affliction of ourdaughter with neurodermatitis. I questioned themeaning of life, and wondered where my ownlife was headed. At that time I was speaking onthe phone with my friend Jutta, who I knew wasa Christian. During the conversation I asked herwhy the Christian faith was the only real truth,and what about all the other religions. Are theyall false? Jutta sent me a copy of the book WhatAbout the Other Religions?. I immediately startedto read it. That first night the difference betweenthe Christian faith and the other religions alreadybecame clear, when I read the illustrative com-parison, of God being on the summit of a moun-tain. In all the other religions people try to comecloser to God by their own efforts, by means ofgood works, and by performing traditionally pre-scribed rites. It is only in the Christian faith thatGod comes down to man, in the person of JesusChrist, and restores communion with Him whenone accepts, by faith, Jesus’ redemption and for-giveness.

The next evening I read further, and for the firsttime I understood what the consequences wouldbe if I rejected this gift. It would mean that Istand guilty before God’s judgment, that a sec-ond death will follow the first, involving eternalseparation from God. This really struck me, un-settling me deeply. I went to bed with this unease,intending to sleep over it; at the same time Ilonged to be secure in God. At 5 o’clock in themorning I made my decision. For the first time inmy life I really prayed in earnest – only a fewsentences. I prayed that Jesus would take my lifein His hands, and told Him that He died on thecross for me also. Since then I live in the joy andcertainty that Jesus is the Truth. His Word, theBible, has become very important for me, as hasfellowship with other believers who have likewiseexperienced conversion. I was baptised on the20th of March 1994, on the confession of myfaith. Before my conversion I would never havethought that I would eventually become a moth-er of three children. I had been very afraid ofbeing dependent on a man. I was also afraid ofthe closeness and exclusivity of nuclear familyties. Now God has blessed me with a familyincluding three children, and, above all, with

trust and confidence about our future. My lifenow has a purpose and a wonderful goal, to livefor God, and to learn to love Him more and more.Anja Raum (Rödermark, Germany, aged 36)

Through babywear to faith

In my search for God and the meaning of life,I didn’t find answers in the church, and I didn’tunderstand what such formal religious beliefshad to do with me. Consequently, I turned toeastern beliefs and to esoteric teachings, such asastrology, spiritualism and the like. At the heightof my esoteric blindness, my husband was trans-ferred to a remote rural town near the Dutchborder, and I found myself completely isolated.We had very little contact with others, and myfalse esoteric beliefs caused me much anxietyand confusion. During that time of distress I waslooking for clothing for my baby and I wasbrowsing through a mail-order catalogue of afirm specialising in natural products. Quite unex-pectedly for such a catalogue, I read a piece writ-ten by the lady who owned the firm. She describedher personal relationship with Jesus Christ andthe inner peace and happiness she had therebyobtained. I was deeply impressed by her testi-mony, and longed for the same peace for myself.A few books were also listed in the catalogue,and, amongst other things, I ordered a Bible, thebook Questions I have always wanted to ask, anda book about Christian child-rearing.

I subsequently obtained a book catalogue, andfor the first time I learned about books whichunambiguously and clearly expounded the Chris-tian position against esoteric/occult teaching likeastrology, soothsaying, and so on. Because all myprevious involvement with esoteric matters hadonly ever dragged me down, I was happy to findout that God regards these things as abomina-tions and unequivocally forbids them. I subse-quently destroyed all occult books and objectsand broke off all contact with those people. Iobtained a clear Christ-centred orientation byreading the books I had ordered. The book Ques-tions I have always wanted to ask was very help-ful, because it clarified many questions whichtroubled me, seeing that I had no Christian

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friends whom I could consult. The book served asa substitute friend. What was even more impor-tant: It showed me in a very practical and step-by-step way how to pray and how to entrustone’s life to Jesus Christ. I followed these instruc-tions carefully. It was very important for me tosee from this book that all my steps were basedon the Word of God and did not depend on myown feelings. It also dealt beforehand with doubtsthat might eventually have arisen. On a certaindefinite and unforgettable day in September1994 Jesus Christ became my Lord and Saviour.

Ever since Jesus has become my Lord, I havebeen free from all the negative influences whichplagued me when I had dabbled in the occult.I have experienced the living Jesus Who helps ustoday the moment we are prepared to entrustourselves entirely to His hands. The time wespent in that remote town (which we have mean-while left), now seems to me like an exile given tome to come to my senses and to find God. I amgrateful and happy that God arranged things insuch a way that I acquired all the books whichhelped me to find salvation, and provided practi-cal guidance about praying to Jesus Christ andaccepting Him as Lord and Saviour, which I foundin the book Questions I have always wanted to ask.Astrid K. (Münster, Germany, aged 35)

Questions looking for answers

My wife Carola, and I, Lutz Meyer, accepted theChristian faith about five years ago. We are verygrateful to God that we jointly came to savingfaith, and I would like to briefly describe this:

I had no contact with the Christian faith formany years after participating in children’s hoursand in the activities of Christian youth organisa-tions in my young days. Even when I was con-firmed at a later stage, it was purely a formality,done because everybody else did it. But it did notin any way affect my relationship to God. Thisgodless condition lasted until I was 27 years old.At that time I was already acquainted with mypresent wife. She experienced strong rejectionduring her teacher training course because of herconservative moral attitude – lecturers and fel-

low students simply assumed, incorrectly, thather stance reflected her Christian beliefs. Godused this situation to make us question things.We looked for reasons for the emphatic rejectionof, on the one hand, marriage, conjugal fidelity,family, the traditional roles of husband and wife,and, on the other hand, the intense rejection ofChristianity. Because we were considering afuture together as marriage partners, based onclassical family roles, we grew curious. Was therea possible connection between our perception ofthe roles of husband and wife and the Christianfaith? The aggressive approach taken by othersprompted us to deeply question such things. Weactually got into some rather hard discussionsamong ourselves, but without having any realbasis to go on.

At that time we became acquainted with a refugeefamily through a practical assignment of mywife. Through these people, we came to under-stand the connection between our ideas aboutfamily, and the Christian faith. We are very grate-ful to God for the witness and prayers of thisfamily, which were a great help on our way tofinding faith. God used this circumstance toinvolve us more and more with Christianity forjust over a year.

As a mechanical engineer I was interested in sci-ence, and I wanted to resolve for myself thequestion of “creation versus evolution”. If I wasgoing to believe the Bible, and finally have solidground beneath my feet, I needed to believe itfrom beginning to end. I was not interested inphilosophies and religious theories anymore;these only produced partial answers. Books likeDid God Use Evolution? and What About theOther Religions? were a great help at that time.

After God had made it abundantly clear to us invarious ways that we needed to be converted,certain questions still blocked the way, probablybecause of ignorance. Questions like: Have wereally come far enough? Do we know enough?Have we changed sufficiently? Here we weregreatly helped by the book What About the OtherReligions? It showed clearly that our conversiondid not depend on any prerequisites on our side.

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We read the sections on repentance and rebirthonce more; together we confessed our guiltbefore God and received forgiveness and eternallife, being for ever grateful for God’s provision onCalvary. It was a great help in our situation thatthe way of salvation is described very clearly inthis book, as well as the practical steps requiredfor repentance and conversion. In our case,where conversion did not take place in the pres-ence of an experienced Christian, the assistanceprovided by the book, even an already formulatedprayer which we used as a guide, was veryimportant. We also became aware of the import-ance of belonging to a Bible-based church. Wehave now joined a free evangelical congregationin Lemgo.Carola and Lutz Meyer (Kalletal, Germany, aged25 and 34 respectively)

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... how does this happen? Or: How do we board thelifeboat?

You will have noticed from the above personaltestimonies that each of them was in a differentsituation before coming to saving faith. Everyperson’s life is unique, just as all snowflakes aredifferent. There can never be two life stories thatare the same, we have one significant thing incommon when we leave the ship of death andboard the lifeboat, namely that we are nowassured of salvation. The practical details of thetransfer are now discussed.

When we wish to turn to Jesus Christ, we canknow that He is already expecting us: “Here I am!I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hearsmy voice and opens the door, I will come in”(Rev 3:20). First of all we should pray to Jesus toforgive all our sins. Such a prayer1 could forexample go like this:

“Lord Jesus, it has now become clear to mewho You are. I know that God created thisworld and all life through You. You also mademe – my body with all its many functions. Youhave given me my sense organs for observingthe world, as well as my soul and spirit forknowing You. I believe that You are the Son ofGod and that You were nailed to the cross onCalvary, where You died on account of my sins– all my actions and thoughts which are sinfulin your eyes, and make me guilty before You.Because You were completely sinless, deathcould not hold You. You arose from the graveand live now. You are the great Lord over allthings! I pray now for You to also be my per-sonal Lord and Master.

I know that with the guilt of my life’s sin, I can-not for one moment stand before You and theliving God in the place of judgement. But Youcame into this world to save lost sinners. Yourdeath on the cross was the price paid for meso that I might go free and not be punished. Inthat fact I trust. My entire life is an open bookbefore You. You know all the errors of myways, every false inclination of my heart, andmy previous indifference towards You. So nowI ask You – please, take away all my guiltbefore You and forgive all my sins; everythingthat I can think of, as well as everything thatdoesn’t come to mind right now. Take all thosethings away from me. I thank You that You aredoing that right now. You are the Truth, there-fore I trust the promises in Your Word. Amen.”

Now you have done what we read in 1 John 1:9:“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just andwill forgive us our sins and purify us from allunrighteousness.” There are two very importantmatters from this fundamental verse which weneed to take to heart and emphasise:

Getting your namein the “Book of Life”

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1 About prayer: If we want to tell somebody some-thing, then we do it in our own words and accordingto our own individual style of speech. When prayingto Jesus for salvation, we do exactly the same. A per-sonal conversation with God and Jesus Christ isknown as prayer. We simply mention our request(desiring to be saved, or asking for forgiveness) andthank Him for the salvation promised in his Word. Theprayers given here are definitely not fixed ritualisticformulas. Rather, they are possible examples. You, thereader, should pray in your own words, according toyour own situation. If you are inexperienced and donot know how and what to pray, you may use theexamples as your own prayer, after familiarisingyourself with the contents.

1 Certainty: Jesus is faithful, meaning that Healways keeps his promise to forgive the sins ofanybody who prays for remission. We do notalways do what we say, but anything Jesus haspromised is forever certain. All your transgres-sions have now been pardoned. If you were todoubt this, something evil would have transpired:you would be calling Jesus a liar. But if youbelieve that you have now received forgiveness,then you honour the Lord Jesus Christ (possiblyfor the very first time). Through this, youacknowledge what He said about Himself: “I amthe truth” (John 14:6). The certainty of pardon isso exceptionally important for a true conversion,that Peter emphasises: “For you know that it wasnot with perishable things such as silver or goldthat you were redeemed,... but with the preciousblood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18-19). The word knowis crucial. God now commands us to go forthsecure in the knowledge of forgiveness.

2 All sin is removed: Note the very importantlast two words of 1 John 1:9: He will “purify usfrom all unrighteousness”. Imagine for a momentthat this sentence included a statement that Hewould purify us from 99.999 % of our sins. Let usfollow this through logically. If I were to dietonight, would I go to heaven? Of course not,because 0.001 % of our sins would be enough tobe barred from heaven. God does not allow thefaintest taint of sin in His heaven. That is why wehave to be cleansed 100 %, as this passageasserts. He takes all our sins away – everythingfrom childhood to the present day, including sinswhich are still hidden.

But what about tomorrow and the day after? Willwe then be totally free from sin? Or can sin againenter our life so that evil starts all over? Does thismean that the present thoroughgoing pardon isworthless? These questions deserve answers.

Eternal life becomes ours at conversion. At thesame time our earthly life is changed; it is nowcharacterised by a radical break with sin. This canbe illustrated as follows in railway terminology:“Before our conversion, when we sin, we arecompletely ’on track’, but afterwards, every sinfulact or thought is like a railway accident, a derail-

ment from our new path.” A saved person is set“free from the law of sin and death” (Rom 8:2).He no longer needs to sin. Even a converted per-son will not live a totally sin-free life, but thestatus of sin has changed completely. Accidentsare not included in a railway timetable, but theydo happen. In such a case the authorities investi-gate the rails, the signalling system, the technicalequipment of the train, and the conduct of theengine-driver. Everything possible is done to pre-vent a repetition. It is the same in the case of sin.War has now been declared on sin (read forexample 1 John 3:7-10 and Hebr 12:4).

This new life also finds expression in a changedway of life. Those who have found peace with Godwill reflect this in their present life. Not only dowe ourselves benefit from this change, but alsothose around us. The epistle to the Colossiansstrikingly compares this change to the taking offof an old garment and putting on a new one.

“But now you must rid yourselves of all suchthings as these: anger, rage, malice, slander andfilthy language from your lips. Do not lie to eachother, since you have taken off your old self withits practices and have put on the new self, whichis being renewed in knowledge in the image of itsCreator... Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holyand dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compas-sion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.Bear with each other and forgive whatever griev-ances you may have against one another. Forgiveas the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtuesput on love, which binds them all together inperfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in yourhearts, ... Let the word of Christ dwell in yourichly” (Col 3:8-16).

After you have been released from all your sins atthe foot of the cross, you can then ask Jesus tocome into your life. Do not fear that He willsomehow exploit you. There are many historicalexamples of people being enslaved, deceived,exploited and abused by their kings, emperorsand political leaders. Not so in the case of Jesus.He is the good Shepherd who loves us more thananybody else could love us. Of Himself He said:“The good shepherd lays down his life for the

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sheep... I am the good shepherd; I know mysheep and my sheep know me... My sheep listento my voice; I know them, and they follow me. Igive them eternal life” (John 10:11, 14, 27, 28). Hewants to guide our life in the best way; He bringsus to the Father and gives us heaven as a gift. Soyou should hand your entire life completely overto Him. Give Him more space than just a fifty-fifty share; all aspects of your life must belong toHim, and you will be richly blessed. This is theone and only way to become a child of God. Onedoes not qualify through membership of achurch in which one was born and raised, neitherwill any good deed, or being baptised as a baby,ensure that you become a child of God. The onlyway is by making a deliberate decision to cometo Jesus, beginning with a prayer. This secondprayer can be formulated along the followinglines, modified according to your thoughts andpreferences:

“Now, dear Lord Jesus, I pray that You willenter my life. Lead me along the way whichYou will show me through my reading of theBible and by means of your guidance in mylife. I know that You are the Good Shepherdand that You always intend the best for me. Itherefore entrust You with all areas of my life.I don’t want you to be a mere sailor on theship of my life, I want you to be the Captain.You know all the rocks and currents whichmight wreck my life. Please steer my shipthroughout my life. I entrust everything toyou: My thoughts and acts, my career, myleisure time, my plans, my finances, my health,my illnesses, my joys, my worries ... Grant methe power to make a clean break with my pre-vious sinful life. And if I stumble now andthen, let me recognise these immediately asmishaps and confess them immediately to You.Please order my life and give me new habitsinvolving You, under your blessing. Change mydisposition towards You and the people I comeacross. Make my heart obedient to You andplease open the Bible for me so that I may cor-rectly understand your Word. I want toacknowledge You as Lord of my life and to fol-low You from now on. I wish to stay close toYou. Amen.”

What has now happened? If this prayer, or asimilar one freely composed by you, has beensincere and really came out of your heart, thenyou have just become a child of God. This isnot human wisdom, but God Himself confirmsit: “to all who received him (Jesus), to thosewho believed in his name, he gave the right tobecome children of God” (John 1:12). Some-thing great has now happened, and this is avery important day in your life, even if youperhaps cannot realise it at the moment. Thestep you took today, is compared in the Bibleto being born (a rebirth, since you have alreadybeen born physically). This day of your decisionhas eternal significance. You have received thewhole of heaven as a gift.

Eternal life is now yours. Nobody can take awayfrom you what Jesus earned for you and has justnow given you as a gift. God is not your Judgeanymore, but has become your Father, and Henow sees you as being free from sin, as if youhave never sinned in your life. The whole of heav-en took part in this momentous event of yourconversion. One person has left the ship of deathand has boarded the lifeboat. Jesus says of this inLuke 15:10: “I tell you, there is rejoicing in thepresence of the angels of God over one sinnerwho repents.” In heaven it is not important whichteam wins the world series, who steps onto thewinner’s podium at the Olympic Games, or whenthe President of the USA holds a meeting withanother world leader. But the fact that you havefound the way to your eternal home resoundsthroughout heaven with great joy. Recently, whenI asked somebody after his conversion what washappening in heaven right now, he replied spon-taneously: Joy, a thousand times over!

The Holy Spirit has now also entered into you. Heplays an important role in your life. It is He Whotestifies in your heart that you are a child of God(Rom 8:16). He assures you that God’s Word istrue and He guides you deeper into Scripture.Jesus calls the Holy Spirit “the Spirit of truth”(John 14:17).

Now you can be quite certain that you have beenaccepted by the living God as His child – you

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have been adopted into the family of God. Didyou give or pay anything for this privilege? No,you have received everything as a gift; the Biblecalls this grace. What does a child say whenreceiving a piece of chocolate? Thank you! Youshould do this, too, because God has given youthe whole of heaven as a gift. Here, too, a shortexample of a prayer of gratitude may be helpful:

“Dear Father in heaven, You have now becomemy Father, and I can now be your child. Youhave freed me from all sin and guilt throughyour Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Lord Jesus, Ithank You that You have saved me also.Amen.”

Now the fulfilled life, which God promises,begins. In the Bible your present state is regardedas being like that of a newborn baby. Just as anewborn already belongs to a family, you nowbelong to the family of God. Newborn babies arein a critical stage of life – think of sudden infantdeath syndrome, for instance. This is also possiblein the realm of faith. The birth (conversion) hasbeen successful, resulting in real new life. At thisstage nourishment (milk) and good care areessential. Naturally, here too, God has provided.He has done everything necessary for you to beable to develop properly. “Infant death“ is avoid-able by following God’s directions. Your spiritualdevelopment will be healthy and sound if youtake the following five points to heart:

1 Reading the Bible: Your decision was basedon the words of the Bible, which is the only bookauthorised by God. No other book can comparein regard to authority, truth, wealth of informa-tion, and source. Reading this Word is essentialnourishment for your new life. This aspect isexpressed clearly in 1 Peter 2:2: “Like newbornbabies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it youmay grow up in your salvation.” The words of theBible are this milk. To be informed of the will ofGod, you should cultivate the habit of readingthe Bible daily. The best place to start is with oneof the gospels; John is especially suitable. Do notbegin with the books of Deuteronomy or withEzra. When learning mathematics, one does notstart with integral calculus. This is something for

later, after mastering the essentials. You shouldmake it a beloved daily habit to read somethingin the Bible. We don’t forget breakfast or brush-ing our teeth, because these activities have afixed place in our daily rhythm; we should be justas consistent about the Bible.

2 Prayer: Just as we speak to people whom weencounter in our daily familiar surroundings, likeour marriage partner, our business colleagues,neighbours and friends, so we should also speakto God, as we are reminded in Colossians 4:2:“Devote yourselves to prayer.” According to theBible prayers can only be addressed in one of twoways: To God (Col 4:3) Who is now your Father,and to the Lord Jesus (Col 2:6-7) Who is yourSaviour, your Good Shepherd, and your Friend –yes, your everything. Prayers to any other person(or thing) people might suggest are unbiblical.Being merely human inventions, they do not arisefrom the will of God. If you have previously beenaccustomed to directing your prayers elsewhere,discard such practices immediately, so that youmight not act contrary to God’s declared will.

Prayer will change you, and you will find abun-dant power through prayer. All everyday matterscan be prayed for; all your joys and worries, plansand intentions. Thank the Lord for everythingthat concerns you, and pray for the needs of oth-ers around you, especially that they would alsocome to a living faith. Bible reading and prayercomprise a “spiritual circulation” which is essen-tial for a healthy life of faith.

3 Communion: We have been created to havefellowship with others. Seek out and cultivatecontact with other true Christians. Note thatmany people call themselves Christians, but youare required to have fellowship with born-againbelievers. You will find that you can only reallypray and converse with true believers. When aglowing coal is removed from the fire, it diesquickly. Our love for Christ will also cool off if itis not kept burning through fellowship withother born-again Christians.

Check out the church into which you were perhapsborn, or which you are thinking of now attending,

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to make sure that the entire Word of God isbelieved. This cannot be taken for granted, espe-cially these days. If they teach that one must beconverted in order to be saved, then that is a goodsign. But if these sorts of words never feature, andthey concentrate only or mainly on political, eco-logical and social matters, then stay away – thereis “death in the pot” (see 2 Kings 4:40). Leave sucha place; traditions cannot save us, no matter howvenerable. Rather, join a fellowship which is faith-ful to the Bible, and become active there. A good,lively congregation, where the entire Bible isbelieved, is an essential prerequisite for our faithand for a healthy spiritual growth. Take very care-ful note of this point number three, because manyhave withered here, although they once madea genuine profession of faith.

4 Obedience: When reading the Bible, you willfind many helpful instructions for all realms oflife and also for communion with God. If youpractise what you have learned, you will findgreat blessings. The best way to express our lovefor God, is to obey Him: “This is love for God: toobey his commands” (1 John 5:3).

5 Witnessing: You are now safe and secure inthe lifeboat. The ship of death cannot pull youdown into the abyss any more, but many peopleare still travelling on the doomed ship. You shouldnow help many of them to board the lifeboat. Tellothers what Jesus Christ means for you. Peoplewho have not yet accepted the saving truth ofthe gospel, require our example and testimony.You are now a fellow-worker of God (1 Cor 3:9).Jesus emphasises the meaning of personal wit-nessing in Matthew 10:32-33: “Whoeveracknowledges me before men, I will also acknowl-edge him before my Father in heaven. But who-ever disowns me before men, I will disown himbefore my Father in heaven.” The Thessalonianbelievers set the correct example in this respect:“The Lord’s message rang out from you not onlyin Macedonia and Achaia – your faith in God hasbecome known everywhere” (1 Thess 1:8).

You should rejoice that you have deliberatelyturned to Jesus Christ and have been accepted byGod. The priorities in your life have now been

rearranged, with the interests of God’s kingdomplaying the central role. The believer hungersafter the words of God and he seeks fellowshipwith other Christians. He is led by the Holy Spirit(Rom 8:14), and the fruits of the new life willbecome obvious to everybody: “But the fruit ofthe Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,goodness, faithfulness” (Gal 5:22).

At conversion, the old life immediately ends andthe new one begins. The New Testament express-es it this way: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a newcreation” (2 Cor 5:17). Through conversion twothings are achieved: our present earthly lifeacquires a new, central meaning and purpose,and at the same time, we receive the gift ofbeing a child of God, entitling us to be His heirs,to inherit eternal life.

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The well-known verse John 3:16, was once calledthe pole star of the Bible by the evangelist C. H.Spurgeon. It affirms the love of God for all peo-ple: “For God so loved the world that he gave hisone and only Son, that whoever believes in Him,shall not perish but have eternal life.” We couldalso put it like this: Nobody lives his life on thisearth without being loved by God. God is kindtowards us, because He loves us. Through thisgoodness He calls us to believe: “do you showcontempt for the riches of his kindness, toleranceand patience, not realising that God’s kindnessleads you towards repentance?” (Rom 2:4; Greek:metanoia = conversion, about-face, changingone’s mind).

In his famous home-coming drama Draußen vorder Tür (“Outside the door”) the German poet,Wolfgang Borchert, (1921 – 1947) described theneediness and loneliness of the survivors of theSecond World War. One notable scene involves adialogue between God and Beckmann, a soldierreturning home from Russia, wearing gas maskgoggles.

God: People call me the loving God.

Beckmann: Funny, that. They must be verystrange people to call you that. They must be thecontented, the satisfied, the happy ones, andthose who are afraid of You. Those who walk insunlight, are in love, are sated or content ...

God: My child, my poor –

Beckmann: ... Where were You actually, dear lovingGod, when the bombs roared? Or were you lovingwhen eleven of my reconnaissance patrol wentmissing? Eleven men too few, dear God, and Youweren’t even there, dear God. These eleven menmust have cried aloud in the lonely forest, but Youwere simply not there, dear and loving God. WereYou loving in Stalingrad, dear God, were You lov-ing there? How were you loving there? Yes, how?When did You ever really love, God, when? Whendid You ever care about us, God?

God: Nobody believes in me any more. Not you,not anybody. I am the God in whom nobodybelieves any more. And nobody is concerned withme anymore. You don’t care about me, either.

Beckmann: ... Oh, but You’re old, God, You’re notmodern, not with it, You can’t really cope anymore with our fears or our long lists of casual-ties. We don’t really know You any more, You area fairy-tale God of love – today we need a newone. You know, one for our fears and needs. Acompletely new one. Yes, we have sought You allright, God, looked for You in every ruin, in everyshell-crater, in every night of darkness. We havecalled You. God!!! We have screamed out for You,wept, cursed! Where were You then, dear andloving God?

God: My children have turned away from me;I did not turn from them. You turned away fromme; you, from me. I am the God in whom nobodybelieves any more. All of you have turned away.

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Every believer:

Today many people also ask the question aboutGod, His love, and the suffering in this world.How do we answer? Isn’t it true that, long beforebad times befell us, all of us, time and again,knew God’s kindness? Did not the soldiers suffer-ing the horrors of Stalingrad previously enjoymany happy days? Were they led to repentanceduring those good days? How many of themwere converted before the horrors? How manypeople today repent during good times? Shouldnot those who are “contented, satisfied, andhappy” in Beckmann’s words, come to God intheir droves? God is calling all of us: “Save your-selves from this corrupt generation” (Acts 2:40).

Although the expression “dear God” is wide-spread (in German the expression “lieber Gott“,more in the sense of “dear loving God“, is actual-ly part of the common vernacular way of refer-ring to God), it actually leads to an impersonalidea of God. Referring to God in such nice, super-ficial terms is actually unbiblical, because it over-looks the heart and nature of God. God is com-monly thought of in this way, someone “outthere” just to help us. Borchert realisticallydescribed how people see God. If He does not dowhat we want Him to, in our childish image of an“old man in the sky”, then we just stop concern-ing ourselves about Him.

The Bible asserts that “God is love” (1 John 4:16),but also that “It is a dreadful thing to fall into thehands of the living God” (Hebr 10:31). If Goddoes not become our Father through the LordJesus, then He is our judge, and His wrathremains on us (John 3:36). Without Jesus nobodycan stand before His wrath. Our common view ofGod as a “dear loving God” misses this aspectcompletely, and actually gives rise to a generalbelief in a God who is powerless to change any-one or to save anybody.

But if we have wholeheartedly turned to God,then His declarations of love never end. We readin Jeremiah 31:3: “I have loved you with an ever-

lasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kind-ness.” How is love proved most clearly? Throughacts of love. God does not want the only creaturewho was made in His image to be lost. The valueof anything in our eyes depends on what we areprepared to pay for it. It is the same with God:The value of man in God’s eyes can be measuredin terms of the price He has paid for us. He hassacrificed His Son for us, or, in other words: Jesusperformed the greatest deed – He died for us. Hecould therefore say: “Greater love has no onethan this, that he lay down his life for his friends”(John 15:13). Paul calls us “God’s chosen people,holy and dearly loved” (Col 3:12). And Johnaffirms that we are God’s children: “How great isthe love the Father has lavished on us, that weshould be called children of God! And that iswhat we are!” (1 John 3:1).

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Beloved of God

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A student approached me after a presentation inthe city of Mainz, Germany. I noticed her deter-mination to get an answer as she said, “You’vejust been talking about time and life after death.But what is eternity exactly?” I was surprised tobe asked this question by such an attractiveyoung woman. She was so full of life, why didn’tshe just postpone the question as many otherpeople do? I said to her, “I’m interested to knowwhy this question is so important to you.” Shereplied, “I was recently diagnosed as having ahereditary heart condition. As it stands, the doc-tors have given me just a few more years to live.So you see, I have to know what eternity is.”

I immediately realized that this was neither atheoretical, nor a quibbling theological question,but a very existential one. I was moved by theclarity and decisiveness with which this youngwoman was looking for an answer to this funda-mental question. Before I could answer her shemade it clear what she didn’t want to hear.

She said, “I can imagine what hell is like. I haveread Sartre, and he described it in one piece quiteevocatively: people are locked in a room and can-not understand each other. They can never leavethe room. Never. That is hell. I can imagine that. Butwhat is heaven like? That is what I would like toknow.” She continued, “And please don’t tell me it ’llbe singing Hallelujah or praising God unendingly. Ican’t imagine having to sing forever. Nor do I desireto praise God continually for the rest of eternity.But I know eternity is our goal in life. It has to besomething I can look forward to.”

I tried, in my answer, to describe heaven as aplace full of joy and love. She interrupted me

right away, “That is not precise enough for me.How could I rejoice in a place where there isnothing but joy? One can only feel joy as suchwhen one has experienced its opposite, sadnessor anger.”

The young woman challenged me to examine thequestion more intensively and to answer exactly,according to the Bible. I will never forget thatconversation, as it led me to shift the focus ofmy presentations to the theme of heaven. Whata blessing it would be if more people asked suchspecific questions about life after death!

At the end of our conversation, she said, “Why isso little preached or written about eternity? Whydo most sermons only deal with this life? Peopleare being denied something crucial.” She wasright, and because of that encounter in Mainz,I have included a chapter in this book which dealswith the question of life after death in detail.

The young woman spoke of both heaven and hell.We, too, will deal with both places, as Jesus preachedvigorously and repeatedly on both subjects.

What about hell?

During the Vietnam war, a minister went to com-fort a dying soldier. The soldier knew he had onlyminutes left to live, only minutes before hewould be faced with eternity. There was only onequestion burning in his soul: “Minister, is there ahell?” The minister’s answer was a clear, “No.” Thesoldier’s reply was equally clear: “If there is nohell, then we don’t need you here at all. Youshould just go home! But, if there really is a hell,

Man in heaven:sharing the gloryof Jesus

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then you’ve misled everyone you have spoken to.You’re just lying to us here.”

Jesus clearly speaks of hell as a place that exists.His intention is never to scare us, but to warn usand to invite us into the other, equally real place -heaven.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns us: “Ifyour right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out andthrow it away. It is better for you to lose one partof your body than for your whole body to bethrown into hell. And if your right hand causesyou to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is bet-ter for you to lose one part of your body than foryour whole body to go into hell” (Matt 5,29-30).

Let us take yet another passage from the Gospelof Matthew: “Do not be afraid of those who killthe body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, beafraid of the one who can destroy both soul andbody in hell” (Matt 10:28). Who sends people tohell? It is certainly not the devil, although thatmight seem likely at first. The devil himself iscondemned and will be judged (Rev 12:10; Rev20:10). The Judge will make the Last Judgment,and God has set the Lord Jesus to be that Judge.As we read in Matthew 25:41: “Then he [= Jesus]will say to those on his left, ’Depart from me, youwho are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared forthe devil and his angels’.”

Towards whom are the warnings about hell direct-ed? Who is being addressed? I always thoughtthat they were directed at the faithless, the out-siders, the thieves and criminals. However, inalmost all cases Jesus directs his warnings abouthell towards the faithful. He only addresses thePharisees on occasion, but when he does, Jesus isespecially strict with them because of their self-righteousness. They do not receive a warning,because hell is a certain end for them: “Woe toyou, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypo-crites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’sfaces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you letthose enter who are trying to (Matt 23:13).”

The British author David Pawson once compiled alist of those deeds which, according to the Bible,

lead to hell. This list contains 120 points andnames, among others, the following groups ofpeople:

– the adulterers– the homosexuals– the debauched– the liars– the miserly– the proud– those who follow astrology– the cowardly– the slothful– …

In the Parable of the Talents, the man whoreceives one talent says: “Master, ... I knew thatyou are a hard man, harvesting where you havenot sown and gathering where you have notscattered seed. So I was afraid and went out andhid your talent in the ground. See, here is whatbelongs to you” (Matt 25:24-25). His Lordanswers him, “You wicked, lazy servant! So youknew that I harvest where I have not sown andgather where I have not scattered seed?” (Matt25:26). The text ends with the punishment ofrejection: “And throw that worthless servant out-side, into the darkness, where there will be weep-ing and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 25:30). TheBible defines this place of darkness as hell. Thisservant is neither an atheist, nor a bad person inthe usual sense. He is one who knows Jesus. Thatis why he addresses Jesus as “Master.” Despitethis, he is lost. And why? Because he is lazy!

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives a seriouswarning to those who habitually have his nameon their lips, but will never see the glory of God:“Not everyone who says to me ’Lord, Lord’ willenter the kingdom of heaven, but only he whodoes the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matt7:21). The Parable of the Ten Virgins is also aboutthe faithful. But five of them were to find that“the door was shut” (Matt 25:10). Why? Their wayof life reflected more the customs of the timethan the Commandments of God, and Jesus Christwas no longer the centre of their lives. That is whythey hear the unexpected words of Jesus: “I tellyou the truth, I don´t know you” (Matt 25:12).

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On the third of June 1998, possibly the mosttragic railway accident in the history of Germanyoccurred when a broken wheel caused a high-speed train ICE to derail and slam into a concretebridge in the small town of Eschede near Han-nover. One hundred people died in that accident.On the twenty-first of June, a funeral service forthe victims was held in Celle, with the Presidentand the Chancellor of Germany both in attend-ance, as well as the friends and families of thevictims. Of course, in a situation like this, a sermonshould offer comfort and support to the rela-tives. However, the sermon should still be truth-ful. Both Catholic and Protestant clergy preachedthat the victims of the accident would all go toheaven. That is not right. We do not know howmany of the deceased really knew the Lord Jesus.It would surely be a percentage similar to thatamong people in our neighbourhood and at ourplace of work. Unfortunately, there are only fewwho have truly taken the Lord Jesus into theirlives. According to the Bible, only they will bereceived into heaven (John 3:3).

In a similar situation involving an accident at thetime of Jesus, he comments on those on whomthe tower of Siloam fell (Luke 13:4). Jesus’ answeris worth noting: “But unless you repent, you toowill all perish” (Luke 13:5). He uses the event notto bless the dead, but to preach to the living.

One preacher writes: “People used to be afraid ofhell. Today, they are afraid of talking about it.”One can only speak of being saved where there isdanger to be saved from. Because there is a hell,we need a saviour. This saviour is the Lord Jesus:“For God did not send his son into the world tocondemn the world, but to save the worldthrough him [= Jesus]” (John 3:17). Jesus Him-self is the gate to heaven: “I am the gate; who-ever enters through me will be saved” (John 10:9).

What do we know about heaven?

The following quip about heaven is from the Ger-man poet Heinrich Heine (1797 – 1856): “Weshall let the angels and sparrows have heaven”(from Wintermärchen). Hopefully, he changed his

mind after he had written that line, or he isregretting his eternal isolation in the place ofdarkness.

Heaven as a concept is used in many sayings andforms of speech to describe various aspects oflife. When one is happy, one is “in seventh heav-en.” Something that is very good is “heavenly.”There is even a delicious flavour of ice creamcalled “Heavenly Hash.” For most people the onlyknowledge they have about heaven is what theyhear in everyday expressions like that. Is that allthat there is to say about heaven?

So what do we know about heaven?

On closer examination it becomes clear that theidioms fall far short of a satisfactory descriptionof heaven. God has revealed a number of specificdetails about heaven to us. The Bible is the onlyauthoritative source of information – anythingelse is pure speculation and the product ofhuman imagination. The Bible often addressesthis topic which is the greatest goal given tomankind. Numerous aspects of heaven becomeclear when we read the Word of God and applyreason to the understanding of it. In our studywe will occasionally refer to relevant aspects ofour life here on earth for comparison.

While we can test whether the Bible is rightabout earthly things, we have to accept what itsays about heaven in faith. That is why Jesussaid, “I have spoken to you of earthly things andyou do not believe; how then will you believe ifI speak of heavenly things?” (John 3:12).

It is impossible to grasp that this eternal andalmighty God would like to share our company inheaven. He sends His servants to invite all peo-ples and nations until all are in attendance: “Thenthe master told his servant, ’Go out to the roadsand country lanes and make them come in, sothat my house will be full’ ” (Luke 14:23).

We have been given an unmistakable descriptionof the way to heaven so that we don’t miss thisgreatest of opportunities. Jesus states in John14:6: “No one comes to the Father except

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through me”. This word is fulfilled in heaven. Onlythose people who have been saved by the LordJesus will reach heaven (John 3:36; 1 John 5:13).

In the ten points which follow we will look at thenature of heaven in more detail.

1 Heaven is the place where we will beperfectly happy

The French philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau(1712 – 1778) does not get at the heart of themeaning of happiness when he remarks that“happiness is having a healthy bank account,a good cook and excellent digestion.” Voltaire(1694 – 1778) states that “total happiness cannotbe known, it is not created for man.” Thisphilosopher is also wrong. Jesus can make usreally happy. When Jesus talks about beinghappy, or blessed, it means much more thanwhat we understand by the word ’happy’ today.The eternal component is important. Jesus sawhis main task as saving humans (Matt 18:11).Those who are saved are happy because they aregiven the glory of heaven. This supreme happi-ness begins here on earth and will be perfectedin heaven: “Therefore he is able to save com-pletely those who come to God through him”(Hebr 7:25). Only those who are saved know realjoy and happiness.

In heaven, the place without sin, happiness willbe perfect and everlasting, for none of the nega-tive aspects of this world will tarnish life there.

Many people must bear unspeakable suffering onthis earth. The bookshelves of the world are fullof accounts of suffering and innumerable ques-tions as to why an almighty and loving God canallow them to happen.

Ever since the Flood, humanity has not remainedimmune to catastrophes, large and small. On thefirst of November 1755, an earthquake in Portu-gal turned Lisbon into a pile of rubble. Sixtythousand people died. This event did not fit intothe view of the world held by most people at thetime. Greatly moved and critical, the Germanauthor Goethe wrote, “God the Creator and

Keeper of Heaven and Earth did not show himselfto be fatherly in his punishment of both therighteous and unrighteous.”

There is no shortage of accounts of terrible suf-fering. The high number of victims does not mat-ter, whether six million or sixty thousand. Thedeath of even one person is enough for us to ask:“How could God allow this to happen?” In the lifeafter death, all traces of suffering will be erased.There, nothing will remind us of pain, war, hateor death. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes.There will be no more death or mourning or cry-ing or pain, for the old order of things has passedaway” (Rev 21:4).

Our body will then be freed from all disease andfrailty. It will never have to fight with germs,viruses, infections, diseases of the heart or lungs.There will be no such things as hospitals or pris-ons. There will be no more need for doctors,nurses, police officers, prison wardens orgravediggers.

Once we are in heaven, nobody will want toreturn to earth. The time of burdens and worrieswill be over forever.

The Prussian king Frederick the Great (1712 – 1786)named his castle in the city of Potsdam near BerlinSanssoussi (without worries) but led a life full ofworries. Sanssoussi would only be a correctdescription of heaven. Heaven is the only placewhere there is no fighting, no war, no hate, nounfaithfulness, no worries and no broken hearts.

2 Heaven is a place of pleasure for the senses

We humans pay a lot of money just to be able tosee or hear something special.

– Outrageous prices are paid to be at the openingceremonies of the Olympics, for example. Atthe 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta, ticketscost over one thousand dollars each, not tomention the even more inflated prices of theticket scalpers.

– The concerts of famous conductors are popularamong those who wish to treat their ears to

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something special. The first night perform-ances of plays are just as sought-after.

– For tennis or football fans, the finals in Wimble-don or the Superbowl game are a special treat.

All that we now consider attractive, beautiful tolook at or a pleasure to hear pales in comparisonto heaven. The Bible describes both the wisdomof God as well as heaven fittingly when it says:“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind hasconceived what God has prepared for those wholove him” (1 Cor 2:9).

Not just our eyes and ears but all our senses willbe satisfied in heaven. That includes for example,our tastebuds but also much, much more –everything that makes us feel good will be avail-able in heaven: love, peace, joy, friendliness,goodness.

3 Heaven is the place of everlastingcelebration

How do we prepare for a celebration? The yearlypresentation of Oscars took place in Los Angeleson March 23 1998. It was a gala party of film, towhich previous Oscar-winners, sponsors andmany actors were invited. One magazinedescribed the Oscar time-stress as follows:

“Pre-Oscar:three months to go: book appointment withhairdresserone month to go: visit spa10 days to go: get hair cut3 days to go: visit tanning salon

On Oscar Day:morning: work out, shower, wash hair, eat lightmeallunch: wait for hair stylistafternoon: wait for make-up artist4pm exactly: guests must be in auditorium

Then the doors close. The dice have been cast.’And the Oscar goes to…’ ”

As this example shows, the preparation for a cele-bration which only lasts a few hours can take

tremendous effort. Most of the effort is spent onbeauty. In this world, everything deteriorates, andbeauty fades. The effort to compensate with arti-ficial means increases with age. None of this willbe necessary in heaven. There we will all be beau-tiful. More precisely: we will all be glorious, andglorious is the superlative of beautiful.

Jesus is described even in the Old Testamentwhen we read, “The Lord reigns, he is robed inmajesty” (Ps 93:1). He is the “glorious Lord Jesus”(James 2:1). On his return, He will come in all Hispower and glory (Matt 24:30). In John 17:22, Heprays to His Father: “I have given them the glorythat you gave me.”

God has a problem: How can He make ushumans understand the glory and festivity ofheaven? Jesus explains in a parable: “The king-dom of heaven is like a king who prepared awedding banquet for his son” (Matt 22:2). Awedding is the most beautiful celebration onearth. Everything is prepared, down to the lastdetail:

– beloved guests are invited– the best food and finest drink will be served– no problems will be discussed on the

special day– the bride will look more beautiful than ever

before, and will wear the most beautiful andmost precious dress of her life

– everyone will have a good time

In using this well-known picture, Jesus tries todescribe heaven to us as an unusually beautifulcelebration. At the Last Supper, He says to Hisdisciples: “I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit ofthe vine from now on until that day when I drinkit anew with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matt26:29). That wine will be like nothing we haveever tasted here on earth. I also believe we willeat in heaven. How else are we to interpret Luke12:37: “He [= Jesus] will dress himself to serve,will have them recline at the table and will comeand wait on them.”

We can safely assume that it will be a richly settable. The earthly concepts of “costly” and “pre-

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cious” are too weak to describe what we will findin heaven. But it is clear that heaven is festive.

Now comes the surprise: Heaven is not just com-parable to a wedding, but is the place where areal wedding occurs. In Revelation 19:7 we read,“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and hisbride has made herself ready.” Jesus Himself isthe groom, and all who have been saved throughHim are the bride.

Those who are invited can consider themselveshappy. In the Parable of the Lost Son, we readthat “they began to celebrate” (Luke 15:24). Joy iseverlasting in heaven; we cannot estimate thedegree of this happiness.

4 Heaven is a beautiful place

Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, concern-ing this Creation, “See how the lilies of the fieldgrow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you thatnot even Solomon in all his splendor was dressedlike one of these” (Matt 6:28-29). The creationdisplays the Creator’s love of beauty whichmankind cannot imitate. God is the originator ofall that is beautiful.

After much suffering, God blessed Job: “And healso had seven sons and three daughters. Thefirst daughter he named Jemimah [= little dove],the second Keziah [= cinnamon blossom] andthe third Keren-Happuch [= precious vessel]”(Job 42:13-15). The beauty of Job’s daughters isespecially emphasized. They would have won anyMiss World Competition.

Of Jesus Himself, the Creator in person, it is saidin Psalm 45:2: “You are the most excellent ofmen and your lips have been anointed with grace,since God has blessed you for ever.” When He issacrificed on the cross for the sin of humanity,however, He gives up His beauty, as we can readin Isaiah 53:2, “He had no beauty or majesty toattract us to him, nothing in his appearance thatwe should desire him”.

Jesus has always been described as beautiful and

perfect. In Isaiah 33:17 it is written: “Your eyeswill see the king in his beauty.” The well-knownGerman song Fairest Lord Jesus expresses thisaspect especially well:

Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all natureO Thou of God and man the SonThee will I cherishThee will I honourThou my soul’s glory, joy and crown.

Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlandsRobed in the blooming garb of springJesus is fairerJesus is purerWho makes the troubled heart to sing.

Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlightAnd fair the twinkling, starry hostJesus shines brighterJesus shines purerThan all the angels Heav’n can boast.

…

Beautiful Saviour! Lord of the nations!Son of God and son of man!Glory and honour, Praise, adorationNow and forevermore be thine.

(From the German “Schönster Herr Jesus”, 1677)

If God’s love for beauty is evident even in thisCreation, in the form of every snowflake, eachlily, orchid and the countless blooms of otherflowers or the luxurious plumage of some birds,how much more fitting it is to have beauty asone of the most important attributes of heaven!

Many people seek beauty on this earth. Surgeonswho perform facelifts are in great demand. Anentire industry specializing in the making andselling of beauty-enhancing or beauty-preservingproducts is assured of thriving business. Yet, eventhe most renowned of this world’s BeautyQueens will see their beauty fade. Everything onearth is perishable (Rom 8:20).

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The Empress Elisabeth of Austria, better known byher nickname Sissi (1837 – 1898) was known inthe 19th century as the most beautiful woman inEurope. She was so vain that she would not haveher portrait painted after her thirtieth birthday,let alone have photographs taken of her. TheGerman author Annelie Fried writes, “Femaletelevision hosts reach their date of expiry at theage of forty. After that, the nation watching fromtheir living rooms counts the wrinkles.”

Heaven, in contrast, is a place of everlastingbeauty. All who have gone there will stay beauti-ful forever. When we become like Jesus (1 John3:2), we will also receive His beauty. The earthlyvalue of looking “forever young” is not nearlyadequate to describe the heavenly ideal.

5 Heaven is where our lives will be fulfilled

Most of mankind live below the poverty line.Forty thousand children die daily because they donot have enough to eat. Others are rich; they canafford whatever worldly goods their heart desiresand yet are unhappy. Many suffer from depres-sion and worries, or are simply bored.

Jesus is aware of both emotional and physicalhuman needs. “When he saw the crowds, he hadcompassion on them, because they wereharassed and helpless, like sheep without a shep-herd” (Matt 9:36). He wants to help especiallyhere; that is why in John 10:10 He gives as themain reason of His Coming: “I have come thatthey may have life, and have it to the full.”

Converting to Jesus changes our lives so funda-mentally here on earth that we can clearly seethe difference between the old and the new life(Rom 6:4; Col 2:6; 1 Pet 4:3). However, it is oncewe are in heaven, that our lives become com-pletely fulfilled. There, we will know for the firsttime, what true quality of life means.

A critic once said that he would never feel likesitting on a cloud and playing a harp for tenthousand years. That is a fabricated picture oflife after death, one which we do not find inthe Bible.

Heaven is life in abundance. The concept ofscarcity is not known in heaven. There is nothingthere in need of improvement. Boredom is alsounknown, for heaven is complete and offers a lifeof fulfillment.

While hell can be described as a place of lastingunfulfilled desires, there will be no more yearningin heaven. This does not necessarily mean that allour earthly desires will find their fulfillment inheaven, but that the richness of heaven will beshared with us – a richness which we cannoteven imagine – a richness which will make earth-ly desires superfluous.

When we experience beautiful moments here onearth, we want to hold on to them. That is whatGoethe describes when he writes, “Stay but, thouart so fair!” Cameras and videos capture the past;they do not represent life. Heaven, on the otherhand, could be described as everlasting simulta-neousness. Nothing is constrained by mortality.Everything is permanent.

Here on earth, we can only be in one place at onetime. Each move brings separation from peoplewe love. Saying “good-bye” is often painful. Inheaven, we will never have to say “good-bye.”

6 Heaven is a home for us

The architects of this world continually inventnew types of buildings. Jörn Utzon, the architectof the Opera House in Sydney, Australia, used apeeled orange as his inspiration. We admire pow-erful palaces of glass and high-reaching towersof concrete. An architect once wrote that “archi-tecture unites the demands of art with technicalperfection. Architecture has been the expressionof humanity’s yearning for the eternal. Besidesarchitectural works of genius, monuments suchas the Great Wall of China and the Pyramids ofGizeh count as some of the longest-lasting worksof human hands.”

In a nineteenth-century spa resort on the NorthSea island of Juist, a special building wasreopened in 1998 after massive reconstruction.The White Castle by the Sea, as it is called, located

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on a high dune, is the first sight on approachingthe island by water. Besides the five-star hotelcomplete with ballroom, restaurant, children’splay area and exclusive bar, private apartmentsare also available in the hotel at the astronomicalprice of approximately $US 850,000 for 80 m2

(= 264 square feet). However, even the most lux-urious apartments cannot offer both a sea viewand bright sunlight. The apartments facing northhave the sea view, but have no direct sunlight.If you want a sunny apartment you have to dowithout the sea view. Even in this amazinglybeautiful, and expensive place you can’t haveeverything.

After we die we will live in a home that wasdesigned by Jesus. What the Creator of the worldcan build is something that no earthly architectcould even dream of. Jesus says, in John 14:2-3,“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it werenot so, I would have told you. And if I go and pre-pare a place for you, I will come back and take youto be with me that you also may be where I am.”

Jesus has been building our home for over twothousand years. How beautiful it must be! Anyearthly comforts provided in the spa resort ofJuist will be superseded by our home in heaven.If, in this Creation, even every snowflake andeach acorn leaf is unique, then how much morewill this be true of homes built by Jesus! There isno repetition; everything is especially tailored forthe person who will reside there. We have a placein heaven for ever, under a sun that never sets.

7 Heaven is a place where we shall reign

Heaven will be a place of singing and rejoicingfor us, but we will also have duties: “And theywill reign for ever and ever” (Rev 22:5).

In the Parable of the Ten Minas, described in Luke19:11-27, each servant receives ten minas and istold to put this money to work. One servantincreases the amount by ten, another by five.When Jesus judges, the first servant is told, “Welldone, my good servant! ... Because you have beentrustworthy in a very small matter, take charge often cities” (Luke 19:17). The second servant

receives, in turn, what he deserves, “You takecharge of five cities” (Luke 19:19).

We may conclude that, after we die, the respon-sibility of reigning will be handed over to us. Theassigned areas will not be equal in size, but willdepend on how hard we have worked for God’sKingdom here on earth. In heaven, we will reigntogether with Jesus. We have a part in the rulingin eternity.

Here, politicians do everything and anything to getelected. The position of governing will be handedto us in heaven. This task will involve many cre-ative and changing duties. Completing our dutieswill be easy, for there will be no job stress, no lad-der to climb, and no politics in heaven.

8 Heaven is the place where Jesus is

Sometimes, historical meetings have wide-reach-ing consequences. For example, we owe theknowledge of how to make porcelain to themeeting of the physicist Tschirnhaus and thealchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger. Even today,something special can grow out of a surprisemeeting, especially if God’s hand is behind it. Twopeople who have never before met are broughttogether. They develop a common understandingabout something and act accordingly, with sig-nificant consequences.

The one single meeting that has the most signifi-cant and wide-reaching consequences is whena person meets with God. That person then findseverlasting life in Jesus. The Bible mentions manysuch meetings. Zacchaeus, the corrupt chief taxcollector of Jericho, changed his way of life andbecame a believer (Luke 19:1-10). The finance of-ficer of Ethiopia was looking for God in Jerusalemand found Him in the desert. Only after becomingsecure in the knowledge of his salvation, does hego on his way, rejoicing (Acts 8:26-39). Saulbecame Paul through Jesus. Once a persecutor ofChristians, Paul became the most important mis-sionary of all time (Acts 26:12-18). In the sameway, everyone can meet Jesus uniquely, if weapproach Him with openness. Those who dare tomeet Him are rewarded with entry into heaven.

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Jesus prays to His Father in John 17:24, “Father,I want those you have given me to be with mewhere I am.” This prayer is fulfilled in heaven. Wewill be with Him for all eternity. When faith isfully revealed it will be replaced by wonder. Whenthe queen of Sheba arrived at the court ofSolomon she cried in surprise, “Indeed, not evenhalf… was told me” (2 Chron 9:6). This expressionof surprise will be even more fitting when wearrive in God’s kingdom. Here, on earth, there arestill many pressing questions, to which we seekanswers. There, with Jesus, everything will beexplained: “In that day you will no longer ask meanything” (John 16:23).

“There will be no more night” in the presence ofGod and Jesus (Rev 22:5). We will no longer needsleep, therefore we will not need beds in heaven.The sun will shine forever. Yet it is not a celestialbody which will provide the light. No created sunwill shine for eternity, but “the glory of God givesit light, and the Lamb is its lamp [= Jesus]” (Rev21:23). Isaiah saw the everlasting sun propheti-cally in God’s kingdom: “The sun will no more beyour light by day, nor will the brightness of themoon shine on you, for the LORD will be youreverlasting light, and your God will be your glory.Your sun will never set again” (Is 60:19-20).

Thousands of people flock to overflowing beach-es in their holidays to soak in the glowing sunmost of them get nothing more than sunburnand have to live with the danger of skin cancer,worrying whether or not the SPF of their sun-block lotions is high enough to screen out harm-ful rays. However the everlasting sun of heavenwill be good for us and will never burn. It will notbe the scorching sun we know in the deserts ofthis earth (Rev 7:16).

9 Heaven is where we become like Jesus

I hardly dare to say it, but it is written in 1 John3:2: “Dear friends, now we are children of God,and what we will be has not yet been madeknown. But we know that when he appears, weshall be like him.”

What does that mean? Man was created in the

image of God, but this identity was lost in theFall. The Bible is referring to Jesus when it saysthat, “the Son is the radiance of God’s glory andthe exact representation of his being” (Hebr 1:3).If in heaven we become like Jesus, then we toowill be the radiance of God’s glory and the exactrepresentation of His being.

Individually, we will have our unique personali-ties, but our qualitative physical traits (beauty,glory, figure, physical perfection) will be that ofJesus (Phil 3:21). That body will not be restrictedby time or space (John 20:19).

Here on earth, it is very rare that we meet some-one who shares our thoughts and beliefs. Butwhen this does happen, we cherish these conver-sations and time seems to fly. That which is saidis stimulating and enriching, usually leading usto new discoveries which we would not havemade but for the other person’s input.

In heaven, we will become one in thought withJesus. Communication with Him will be an inte-gral creative element. Even after all of our earthlyquestions have been answered, there will still benew and boundless things to contemplate. Justlike the way that those dear to us want to get toknow us as well as possible, we will want to getto know the inexhaustible kingdom of God (Is40:28) and Jesus (Col 2:3). Right after the crea-tion of man, God gave him the creative task ofnaming the animals (Gen 2:19-20). Does it notfollow that the Lord in heaven will continue thiscreative conversation? Communication in heavenis not an exchange of knowledge with which wecould fill an encyclopedia, but a continuallyenriching dialogue.

10 Heaven is something special to lookforward to

In looking at the content of Jesus’ words, oneaspect is impossible to ignore. He continuallyinvited us to heaven. He began his preaching withthe words, “the time has come. The kingdom ofGod is near. Repent and believe the good news”(Mark 1:15). Jesus tried to describe heaven to usin many parables. “The kingdom of heaven is like

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– a man who sowed good seed in his field”(Matt 13:24).

– a mustard seed“ (Matt 13:31).– yeast“ (Matt 13:33).– treasure hidden in a field“ (Matt 13:44).– a merchant looking for fine pearls“ (Matt 13:45).– a net“ (Matt 13:47).– a king who prepared a wedding banquet for

his son“ (Matt 22:2).

The soul-searching conversation with Zacchaeusends with a reference to eternal salvation: “Todaysalvation has come to this house. ... For the Sonof Man came to seek and to save what is lost”(Luke 19:9-10).

Jesus does not promise children an easy life onthis earth, but he promises them heaven: “Letthe little children come to me, and do not hinderthem, for the kingdom of God belongs to suchas these” (Luke 18:16).

When Jesus sees the paralytic he does not tellhim first “Get up and walk!”, but “Your sins areforgiven” (Matt 9:2). It is once again clear thata decisive freedom from sin is a prerequisite forheaven and is of the utmost importance to Jesus.

The Sermon on the Mount is so often misquotedtoday, but heaven is its main subject:

– “Blessed are those who are persecuted becauseof righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom ofheaven” (Matt 5:10).

– “But seek first his kingdom and his righteous-ness and all these things will be given to youas well” (Matt 6:33).

– “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide isthe gate and broad is the road that leads todestruction, and many enter through it. Butsmall is the gate and narrow the road thatleads to life, and only a few find it” (Matt7:13-14).

As the disciples returned from a missionary jour-ney, they rejoiced to know that even the demonssubmitted to them. Jesus reminded them thatthey had a much greater reason to rejoice, “Donot rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but

rejoice that your names are written in heaven”(Luke 10:20). Jesus gives absolute priority to thisparticular reason for joy. 1 Peter 1:8 refers to this,saying: Rejoice “with an inexpressible and glori-ous joy.”

If we show the way to glory to just one otherperson, it will result in insurmountable joy inheaven: “In the same way, I tell you, there isrejoicing in the presence of the angels of Godover one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10).

This means:

– The most important task God’s children have isto spread the word that will lead people toheaven. This heavenly assignment still hasutmost priority.

– Until the return of Jesus, the eternal goal mustremain the main topic of biblical preachingand pastoral care.

– Knowing that we have a home in heaven(Phil 3:20) should form the substance of ourlives and infect others with our joy.

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Abbreviations used for the books of the Bible

Books of the Old Testament (OT)

Gen Genesis Eccl EcclesiastesEx Exodus Song Song of SolomonLev Leviticus Is IsaiahNum Numbers Jer JeremiahDeut Deuteronomy Lam LamentationsJos Joshua Ez EzekielJudg Judges Dan DanielRuth Ruth Hos Hosea1 Sam 1 Samuel Joel Joel2 Sam 2 Samuel Amos Amos1 Kings 1 Kings Ob Obadiah2 Kings 2 Kings Jonah Jonah1 Chr 1 Chronicles Mic Micah2 Chr 2 Chronicles Nah NahumEzra Ezra Hab HabakkukNeh Nehemiah Zeph ZephaniahEsth Esther Hag HaggaiJob Job Zech ZechariahPs Psalms Mal MalachiProv Proverbs

Books of the New Testament (NT)

Matt Matthew 1 Tim 1 TimothyMark Mark 2 Tim 2 TimothyLuke Luke Tit TitusJohn John Phlm PhilemonActs Acts Hebr HebrewsRom Romans Jam James1 Cor 1 Corinthians 1 Peter 1 Peter2 Cor 2 Corinthians 2 Peter 2 PeterGal Galatians 1 John 1 JohnEph Ephesians 2 John 2 JohnPhil Philippians 3 John 3 JohnCol Colossians Jude Jude1 Thes 1 Thessalonians Rev Revelation2 Thes 2 Thessalonians

Technical bibliography

Ulrich Drews:Taschenatlas der EmbryologieGeorg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart, New York1st Edition 1993, 386 p.

Adolf Faller, Michael Schünke:Der Körper des MenschenGeorg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart 8th Auflage 1978, 452 p.

Heinz Feneis: Anatomisches BildwörterbuchGeorg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart, New York 5th Edition 1982, 451 p.

Rainer Flindt:Biologie in ZahlenGustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart, New York2nd Edition 1986, 280 p.

Rainer Klinke, Stefan Silbernagel:Lehrbuch der PhysiologieGeorg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart, New York1st Edition 1994, 808 p.

Alfred Moelicke (Ed.):Vom Reiz der SinneVCH Verlagsges. mbH, Weinheim1st Edition 1990, 217 p.

Mörike, Betz, Mergenthaler:Biologie des MenschenQuelle & Meyer Verlag, Heidelberg, Wiesbaden13th Edition, 817 p.

Robert F. Schmidt (Ed.):Grundriß der SinnesphysiologieSpringer Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York4th Edition 1980, 336 p.

Stefan Silbernagl, Agamemnon Despopoulos:Taschenatlas der PhysiologieGeorg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart, New York4th Edition 1991, 371 p.

Also various journal articles.

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© Copyrights and acknowledgements:

Medical illustrations:Raimar Glatz, Bergneustadt

Cartoon illustrations:Carsten Gitt, Braunschweig

Microphotograph (page 56):Manfred P Kage / Bildagentur Okapia, Frankfurt

Photographs and compositions:Dieter Otten, Gummersbach

About the author:Prof Dr Werner Gitt was born in Raineck, EastPrussia (Germany), on the 22nd of February1937. He studied at the Technical University inHannover from 1963 to 1968 and obtained adegree in engineering. From 1968 to 1971 he wasan assistant at the Institute for Control Technol-ogy of the Technical University, Aachen. Heobtained his doctorate after two years’ research.From 1971 to 2002 he was the head of the Infor-mation Technology Division of the Federal Insti-tute for Physics and Technology (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, PTB) in Braunschweig(Brunswick). In 1978 he was promoted to Direc-tor and Professor at the PTB. His research con-cerns have involved information science, mathe-matics, and systems control technology. Hismany original research findings have been pub-lished in scientific journals or have been the sub-ject of papers presented at scientific conferencesand at universities at home and abroad. In addi-tion to his professional activities, he is muchengaged with the Bible and related topics. He haswritten numerous publications on Bible-and-sci-ence matters, on which he has also given manylectures, both in Germany and abroad(e. g. Australia, Austria, Belgium, Czeck, France,Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kirgizskaya, Lithuania,Namibia, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Poland,Portugal, Roumania, Russia, South Africa, Swe-den, Switzerland, and the USA). Most of thesetalks were strongly evangelistic. He married hiswife Marion in 1966; Carsten was born in Sep-tember 1967, and Rona in April 1969.

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Other books by the author (and available inEnglish):

In the Beginning was InformationCLV Bielefeld, 1st English edition 1997, 256 p.(2nd German edition 1994, 288 p.)

Did God Use Evolution?CLV Bielefeld, 1st English edition 1993, 152 p.(4th German edition 1994, 159 p.)

Stars and their Purpose: Signposts in SpaceCLV Bielefeld, 1st English edition 1996, 217 p.(2nd German edition 1995, 222 p.)

If Animals Could TalkCLV Bielefeld, 1st English edition 1994, 127 p.(11th German edition 1999, 122 p.)

What About the Other Religions?CLV Bielefeld, 1st English edition 1995, 159 p.(6th German edition 1997, 160 p.)

Questions I Have Always Wanted to AskCLV Bielefeld, 2nd English edition 1998, 192 p.(15th German edition 1998, 192 p.)

Addresses for ordering these books:

Worldwide: CLV Bielefeld,PO Box 110135,D-33661 Bielefeld, Germany

Australia: Answers in Genesis,PO Box 6302, Acacia Ridge DC, Qld 4110

USA: Answers in Genesis, PO Box 6330, Florence,Kentucky 41022

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