Much of this does not address your initial question Quest for Knowledge. Current theory for the development of biological theory can be approached from several fronts as you have seen in the previous posts. I submit a different type of theory that deals with biological systems simply as complex systems, similar to a hurricane or the intergalactic interactions.
The definition for a complex system is simply a grouping of heterogeneous components that work together to exhibit one or more specific characteristics. Life may not be magical in this context, but it is logically consistent to define it as such.
I digress for that moment because the important characteristic of complex systems is a more efficient use of and larger intake of energy than non-complex systems. This means that energy entering the Earth is consumed faster and more efficiently if there is life and other complex systems on it than not.
This is important because several conclusions are possible from this perspective on life, more evidence is needed to fully support these ideas but they are exciting and explain a great deal. The main conclusion concerning your question is that the universe as we know it came to being when matter spontaneously exploded from vacuum energy (a phenomena observed in quantum scales today but this theory still requires more development) and ever since then the universe has been dissipating this energy release from the big bang by organizing into more and more complex systems which use up the extant energy faster than if the universe were to remain in a chaotic state.
Life is a result of the right conditions arising in a solar system that the complex system can develop to such a scale that intelligence and cognition develop, the more intelligent a being, the more energy they require (this does not presume all species would develop sentience, evolutionary laws of natural selection still apply and many other factors can be ascribed to the wide diversity of life we see and other species may be more or less efficient than us). Planets and stars contain impossibly complex interactions within them, and it could very well be the direction of the universe's development is along an energy gradient that optimizes the laws of thermodynamics.
Again, this is another suggestion for why biological systems arise, to utilize energy of the universe better in the right conditions. This is by no means a proven theory and the evidence needed to substantially support it is still monumental, but it is an intriguing way to look at the universe and it makes a kind of elegant sense.
The definition for a complex system is simply a grouping of heterogeneous components that work together to exhibit one or more specific characteristics. Life may not be magical in this context, but it is logically consistent to define it as such.
I digress for that moment because the important characteristic of complex systems is a more efficient use of and larger intake of energy than non-complex systems. This means that energy entering the Earth is consumed faster and more efficiently if there is life and other complex systems on it than not.
This is important because several conclusions are possible from this perspective on life, more evidence is needed to fully support these ideas but they are exciting and explain a great deal. The main conclusion concerning your question is that the universe as we know it came to being when matter spontaneously exploded from vacuum energy (a phenomena observed in quantum scales today but this theory still requires more development) and ever since then the universe has been dissipating this energy release from the big bang by organizing into more and more complex systems which use up the extant energy faster than if the universe were to remain in a chaotic state.
Life is a result of the right conditions arising in a solar system that the complex system can develop to such a scale that intelligence and cognition develop, the more intelligent a being, the more energy they require (this does not presume all species would develop sentience, evolutionary laws of natural selection still apply and many other factors can be ascribed to the wide diversity of life we see and other species may be more or less efficient than us). Planets and stars contain impossibly complex interactions within them, and it could very well be the direction of the universe's development is along an energy gradient that optimizes the laws of thermodynamics.
Again, this is another suggestion for why biological systems arise, to utilize energy of the universe better in the right conditions. This is by no means a proven theory and the evidence needed to substantially support it is still monumental, but it is an intriguing way to look at the universe and it makes a kind of elegant sense.
My religion is the understanding of my world. My god is the energy that underlies it all. My worship is my constant endeavor to unravel the mysteries of my religion. 
