by Tim Hall

We are becoming a nation of forensic experts. A large genre of television programs is based on criminal investigation. Three different versions of "Law and Order" and "CSI" lead the pack, a group which also includes "Crossing Jordan," "Monk," and others. Americans are fascinated with modern methods of tracking down and prosecuting the guilty.

One of the cornerstones of modern sleuths is DNA evidence. Investigators rejoice when they discover blood, body fluids, or hair at the scene of the crime. The cells that make up such human tissue contain DNA, an intricate "fingerprint" that can help convince a jury of a person's guilt. When your DNA has been matched to that found at the crime scene, there apparently is no point in arguing your innocence. The evidence is there and it's in the realm of undeniable.

Wouldn't it be great if we could find God's DNA? Maybe people would no longer deny his existence.

The fact that living things possess DNA is evidence that points to God. Walter L. Bradley, scientist and author of "The Mystery Of Life's Origin" (1984), summed up the amazing nature of this evidence: "In living systems, the guidance that's needed to assemble everything comes from DNA. Every cell of every plant and animal has to have a DNA molecule. Think of it as a little microprocessor that regulates everything .... Frankly, the origin of such a sophisticated system that is both rich in information and capable of reproducing itself has absolutely stymied origin-of-life scientists. As the Nobel Prize-winner Sir Francis Crick said, 'The origin of life appears to be almost a miracle, so many are the conditions which would have had to be satisfied to get it going'" ("The Case For Faith", Lee Strobel, Zondervan Publishers, 2000, pp. 99,100).

God's DNA has been found. The fact that every living organism possesses it points to an intelligent Creator. Unfortunately the evidence, though strong, is not undeniable. There are still many who deny that life's complex structure proves God's existence.

That's the way it has always been. In the days of Jesus, a marvelous miracle took place when Jesus opened the eyes of a man who had been blind from birth. Some Jewish leaders, however, had already made up their minds that Jesus was an impostor. They declared to the healed man, "We do not know where he is from" (John 9:29, NKJV). The formerly blind man couldn't believe what they were saying: "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where he is from, and yet he has opened my eyes!" (John 9:30). The evidence before them was compelling, but they refused to see. Through their bias they had become incurably blind.

The presence of a cornfield with evenly spaced rows convinces us that a farmer planted this field a few months earlier. We know there is an assembly plant somewhere staffed with skilled workers because of the impressive automobile in the showroom. But as some consider DNA -- vastly more complex than cornfields or automobiles -- they scratch their heads and wonder, "Why do those religious fanatics believe in God?"

"The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Psalm 14:1).