Believing in God

I read some amazing data from the PEW research center. According to this article, twenty-three percent of the United States population is described as “Religious Nones” …"Nones”, as in nothing. Three percent of American adults are atheists and four percent agnostic, while sixteen percent don’t associate with any religious group at all. This is unbelievable since God provides so much evidence for His existence! There is evidence of a great Creator through the world around us, and through His Word.

Notice first how God reveals himself through the world. David writes in Psalm Chapter 19 verses 1-6:

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

² Day to day pours out speech,

and night to night reveals knowledge.

³ There is no speech, nor are there words,

whose voice is not heard.

⁴ Their voice goes out through all the earth,

and their words to the end of the world.

In them he has set a tent for the sun,

⁵ which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,

and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.

⁶ Its rising is from the end of the heavens,

and its circuit to the end of them,

and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

David implies that we can just look around at creation and see evidence for God. This can be known as the teleological argument or argument for design. Every day and night God sends a message to us, showing us that He is there. Every morning God sends the sun like a bridegroom leaving his chamber. It runs its course twenty-four seven. The sun and earth would make no sense without a God. In Romans 1:19-20 Paul says how obvious God’s revelation is by looking at creation. This passage reads, “¹⁹ For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” Here in Romans, as well as Psalms, we see examples of the existence of God through natural revelation.

Science also confirms the natural revelation of God. God has placed everything where it is for very good reasons. For example, let us look at the planet Jupiter. This planet acts as a shield for earth. It protects earth from space debris. Without it, earth would be destroyed. We can also see evidence of a creator through the rotation of earth. If it took any longer to rotate than it does currently, the atmospheric temperatures would vary to greatly from day to day. If it were faster than it was currently, the atmosphere’s wind would be too fast. A third example of the perfect design of the universe would be gravity. If gravity’s force were changed, even by a little, the sun wouldn’t exist, and the moon would fly off into space or crash into earth. A further proof of design and perfection is seen in seismic activity. If seismic activity were any less, nutrients would not be moved around earth. If it were any greater, a whole lot of life would be lost. The thickness of the earth’s crust also matters. If it were any thicker than it was currently, too much oxygen would be pushed to the surface of earth to support life. If it were thinner, lava would cause cracks and spew through the thinner crust. Tectonic activity would be much greater. Oxygen makes up 21% of the atmosphere. If it were any less, life as we know it would cease to exist. If it were more, fires would break out in an uncontrolled fashion. Another reason for design would be the laws of physics. All the laws of physics rely on the speed of light. If light traveled faster or slower than it currently does, life on earth would stop existing. A final reason can be seen with the expansion of the universe. If it expanded any slower earth would heat up to a whopping 10,000 degrees Celsius.

Not only does God show his existence through science and in the world around us, but He also shows his existence through His Word. King David writes in Psalm 19 verses 7-11,

⁷ The law of the Lord is perfect,

reviving the soul;

the testimony of the Lord is sure,

making wise the simple;

⁸ the precepts of the Lord are right,

rejoicing the heart;

the commandment of the Lord is pure,

enlightening the eyes;

⁹ the fear of the Lord is clean,

enduring forever;

the rules of the Lord are true,

and righteous altogether.

¹⁰ More to be desired are they than gold,

even much fine gold;

sweeter also than honey

and drippings of the honeycomb.

¹¹ Moreover, by them is your servant warned;

in keeping them there is great reward.

God is perfect, and this perfect God has given us a perfect Word. It gives us everything we need to know to live a Godly life. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says “¹⁶ All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” God shows that he exists by giving us his flawless Word. The books of the Bible were written over a span of 1500 years by many authors, and it is still found without a single contradiction. The Bible also contains predictive prophecy. All throughout the Old Testament, statements are made that are fulfilled hundreds of years later. In Daniel chapter 2, Daniel interprets king Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. In the dream, there was a statue made of many layers of materials. Each layer represents a different kingdom that would conquer the one before it. Looking at history, we see this to have happened. Another example of prophesy being fulfilled is the Messianic prophesies. These are a collection of about 300 prophesies that foretold facts about Jesus’ life, including where he would be born, and how he would die. The Word that God has given us tells us everything we need to know to live God honoring lives.

God gives us a moral code to live by through His word. For moral laws to exist, a higher being would have to determine them. Since they do indeed exist, we can show that there is a great and mighty God. If moral values didn’t exist, we could do whatever we wanted to without consequence. Take Adolf Hitler for example. He realized this. He was a man with his moral values way out of place. He killed many people in concentration camps during the Holocaust in World War II because he believed they were inferior. He pointed to “Survival of the Fittest”. Most people would consider what he did to be genocide. Since most believe this, they must believe in moral values. If they believe in moral values, then would it make sense to be an atheist? No. One verse that explains that God has given us moral values is Romans 13:8-10. These verses state, “⁸ Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹ For the commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,’ and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ¹⁰ Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” Here, God gives commandments that we must follow. These commandments are the foundations for moral values.

Last let’s look at how we should respond when we realize that God reveals himself in the world and through his Word. Let’s continue to read what David has written. Psalm 19:12-14 reads:

¹² Who can discern his errors?

Declare me innocent from hidden faults.

¹³ Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;

let them not have dominion over me!

Then I shall be blameless,

and innocent of great transgression.

¹⁴ Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

be acceptable in your sight,

O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

When we realize there is a God, the appropriate response is to go to Him in a humble manner. To do this we must repent of our sins. Here David mentions three kinds of sin. First, he mentions hidden sin, or sin we don’t realize we did. This is found in verse 12. In verse 13, David mentions willful sins, or sins that are a direct violation of God’s law. Last, he mentions sins of word and thought in verse 14. You can see David’s response to this revelation. It was to humble himself and acknowledge God’s existence. In so doing, he would live his life in obedience to God and his Word. We need to face our sin and submit to God’s revelation as David did.

God’s world, the world we live in and are surrounded by, shows us how wonderful and majestic He is. Science confirms his greatness. Moral values, given to us through God’s Word, show how we must conduct ourselves. His Word reveals to us how we can be made right with Him through Christ, and be pure in his eyes. God’s word is perfect, without contradiction and full of fulfilled prophecy. Our response, the only response that makes sense, should be to seek Him and submit to Him. Let us make every effort to do so and to share with others the overwhelming evidence for God.

-Noah