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Before you read: This article is part of a larger series that builds upon itself from the foundation up, with each study building on the last. If something in this article does not make sense to you or if you believe it to be incorrect, please ensure you have read the entire series before passing final judgment. Also, be sure to visit this page’s FAQ and Objections: Does God Exist.
Does God exist? That’s a question asked over and over. Yet, there are many people who deny the only logical answer. That answer is yes.
The term “Atheist” is supposed to mean someone that doesn’t believe in a God. But the difference between the Atheist and the Christian isn’t really about our belief in a God. The difference is in our understanding of the NATURE of God.
Let me explain that. Christians believe in a causeless cause (the eternal God who always was and always will be). The Atheist also believes in a causeless cause. They have no choice. Either the universe is self-existing, or the universe was created by something else that existed from eternity past. There is no logical third option.
So, when I say that we both believe in a causeless cause, I am saying we both believe in something eternal. But our understanding of this eternal thing is different from each other. Christians call it God. Atheists don’t know what it is or what to call it. The best thing they have is the word “singularity” to describe it.
Every time someone asks, “Does God exist?” the answer always comes down to one subject. What was in the beginning? It is the age-old question: “Why?”
Some question the existence of God from a moral point of view. But these arguments are the equivalent of saying that you don’t like something and therefore refuse to acknowledge it. Obviously, this is ridiculous. So, let’s focus on reality.
The fact that we exist along with the universe around us is not in question. In fact, if that is something you question, I recommend finding professional help. For the rest of us, it is an established fact that needs no further proof than the fact that we are here.
But why are we here? Why do we exist? Has the universe always existed? Does it have a beginning? These are the questions mankind has asked since, well… the beginning.
Since these questions were first asked, only two possible answers have ever been presented. Either the universe itself is eternal, or it has an eternal creator. These are our only options in a multiple-choice test.
Stephen Hawking became as well known as he is because of his 1966 PhD thesis titled *Properties of Expanding Universes*. In this thesis, he argued that the universe began as what we now call a singularity. In other words, he argued that the universe had a beginning that we know as the Big Bang.
But, while his theory has been a huge success and highly regarded, he wasn’t happy with it. In fact, he spent the rest of his life trying to disprove his own theory. Why would he do that? It’s because he knew if this were true, then there had to be a creator.
In his book *A Brief History of Time* (1988), he said, “So long as the universe had a beginning, we could suppose it had a creator.” He should have stopped there. But since his new goal was to disprove the need for a creator, he then said, “But if the universe is really completely self-contained, having no boundary or edge, it would have neither beginning nor end: it would simply be.” Take note that the reason he flipped his stance was specifically because he could not accept God. Sadly, he died having never been able to prove his first theory was wrong and never accepting the creator.
Instead, he tried to develop other theories specifically for the purpose of proving there was no need for a God. It wasn’t for truth and science.
So, one of the greatest minds of our time not only showed the universe had a beginning, but also knew that if there was a beginning, there would be a creator. Why, then, do Atheists often mock Christians for believing this? Yes, he tried to disprove it the rest of his life due to its implications. But he never could.
Hawking knew that the only way he could deny God was if the universe itself was self-contained, having no boundary or edge, and had no beginning. But how could he prove this was the nature of the universe?
He simply couldn’t. Everything we know about the universe points to a beginning, a boundary, an edge, and the lack of self-containment.
The universe is ruled by certain laws that make it impossible for it to exist on its own (self-contained). I will give some examples in a moment. But if it does have a beginning and is expanding, that means it also has a boundary, an edge. So it meets none of the criteria he was hoping for.
Here is a small sample of why the universe doesn’t meet what he had hoped for. Instead, his first theory was more solid.
Laws of Thermodynamics:
Without going into detail, these are laws the universe operates under. They are the laws that prevent perpetual motion machines and bring everything to an equilibrium. If the universe itself was eternal, these laws would cause it to be static (no movement).
Currently, it is known that the universe is winding down. If it were self-contained (eternal), it would have already done so by now. Which, by the way, was the opposing theory Hawking destroyed.
The Universe is Expanding:
In order for something to expand, it must have a center point from which it began to expand. This means it has a beginning and an edge.
There is Still Heat:
As already mentioned, one law the universe operates under is that everything reaches an equilibrium (a point of balance). If the universe were eternal, we would not see the imbalances of temperature anywhere. It would be the same temperature all over the universe. But there is still heat that hasn’t cooled. Again, this indicates a self-contained universe is impossible.
All of this leads to only one scientific conclusion. The universe itself cannot be eternal or self-existing. This means it must have an outside force which created it. This is what Hawking knew. This is why he tried to find another explanation.
So, if the universe had a beginning, what was it that began the universe?
Obviously, if I said it was God, the first question is where did God come from?
This is the entire point that people miss. There must at some point be a causeless cause. We know the universe had a beginning. Since it is ruled by the laws of nature, it could not be its own cause.
Anything ruled by the laws of nature cannot be self-existing. Even quantum mechanics operates under its own set of laws. So, the only way a creator can exist is if that creator is above the laws of nature.
That brings us to the probability of the existence of a God. Something that is eternal and self-existing, not ruled or bound by the laws of nature.
The Bible says, “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” In this simple statement, it declares that the heaven and the earth had a beginning, but God does not. He is the only thing that the Bible says was not created.
Let’s look at the attributes of God which make it possible for Him to create the universe.
Eternal
1 Timothy 1:17
17 Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
As we have already determined, whatever created the universe must be eternal. It cannot have a beginning. However, and eternal God needs no beginning. So let’s start there.
Spiritual
John 4:24
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Genesis 2:7
7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
A spirit is what we would call the spark of life. It is consciousness. It is aware.
The definition of energy is the ability to do work. It takes many forms. Many have said a spirit is energy. They are correct because a spirit is not made of matter. It does still have the ability to do work, though. The spirit is what animates us. So if you want to think of God as a form of energy, you wouldn’t be far off base.
Intelligent
We all know that an object in motion will stay in motion and an object at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by another force.
So, how does the outside force (God) set the universe in motion? With nothing there to force Him to do anything, how would anything actually happen? Simply put, an eternal rock is still just a rock with no ability.
Thankfully, God created us in His image according to the Bible. So we can look at ourselves to see some of the attributes of God. One attribute is that we don’t need an outside force to set us in motion.
Why did your body get out of bed this morning? You made a choice to move. You thought about it and made it happen. Your body was stationary until you used your intelligence to cause it to move.
If we are intelligent and have our own desires, it shouldn’t be a huge leap to believe God does as well. Intelligence and free will are needed to set yourself in motion. Whatever created the universe must have these. Otherwise, nothing would be created.
Ownership
If you create something, it belongs to you. It is up to you as far as what you want to do with it. If this eternal intelligence has created the universe, then it is His to do with what He will. That includes you and I.
So He determines the rules. He makes the laws. He chooses what is and is not good. In short, He is in charge. There is no one else with the authority or power to judge or command Him.
Let’s turn our attention to the Big Bang theory. I believe it is the closest science has come to the truth. When you compare it with what is said in the Bible, you should be able to see how similar it is.
I want you to know that the theory of evolution is not the same as the theory of the Big Bang. This is why I will stop before talking about the creation of life. It’s an entirely different subject. I am in no way promoting evolution, nor am I proposing billions of years for these things to happen. Please see the answering skeptics portion of this site for information on that.
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Isaiah 42:5
5 Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:
According to the Big Bang theory, the universe began from a single point of dense energy. Remember, the Bible calls God a spirit, which would indicate He is a form of energy. The Bible and science agree. Christians call it God. Atheists call it a singularity. But no matter what you call it, both agree that it is a single form of energy.
According to the theory, this point of energy expanded almost like a massive explosion. During this expansion, the known universe was created. The Bible also tells us the heavens expanded. Once again, they agree.
Genesis 1:2
2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
According to the Big Bang theory, matter now existed. All of the elements needed to form a planet were there. But there were not immediately planets or stars. This also agrees with the Bible.
NASA has said: “The free electrons would have caused light (photons) to scatter the way sunlight scatters from the water droplets in clouds,” so there would be no visible light. As the Bible also says, darkness was upon the face of the deep.
Genesis 1:3-5
3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
According to the Big Bang theory, free electrons joined with nuclei and created neutral atoms at this point. This allowed for light. This light is also known as the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Take note that the Bible also tells us light was formed at this point in the creation process. Again, they agree.
It’s also important for me to point out that there were no stars producing light at this point in the Big Bang theory either. Some people like to say the Bible is wrong because He made light before the sun. But so does science.
Even if that were not the case, though, it still wouldn’t make the Bible wrong. The scriptures say God is light. Therefore, even with no other source of light, He would be its source.
Genesis 1:6-8
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
According to the Big Bang theory, gravity began to pull things together. This divided the elements, leaving empty space between them. Hydrogen and oxygen (H2O…water) were being gathered together in different places. Note that the sea has not been made yet. This is just the elements of water being divided by gravity. So the waters above were divided from those below. Science and the Bible agree again.
Genesis 1:9-10
9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
In the Big Bang theory, gravity pulled everything together, forming the planets. Again, the Bible doesn’t disagree. God does use the natural laws in the universe to accomplish things. The Bible says it was by His WISDOM that He created everything.
There is only one important difference between the Big Bang theory and the Bible’s account. The Big Bang theory requires time and chance, but the Bible doesn’t.
If there were no intelligent force able to make things move along quickly, it would certainly take billions of years. That’s assuming any of this was possible in the first place without an intelligent force, which we have already shown to be untrue.
But if you consider the active involvement of this intelligent energy that produced the entire universe in the first place, you should be able to see how it could be done much quicker. In other words, there is no need to wait for the moon to fall into orbit by chance when you can push it. It doesn’t take billions of years for gravity to form a planet when you have an intelligence controlling it.
All of this gives us the information we need to prove that there is a God. In fact, there is no other possible answer we could come to. It also gives us a good foundation to discover who this God is.
All of this is proof in itself that God exists. But some will still say there is no proof. So in the next unit, we will address the continual request for proof of God’s existence.
Continue To Unit 1:1a – Proof of Gods Existence OR
Return To Christianity 101 Unit 1 – The Bible and Faith in God
July 11, 2015 at 11:41 pm | | 9 comments
Thank you!
I have been searching and searching for an understanding of what happened when I was just 7 years old. I accepted Christ and was baptized in my Grandma’s church. My mother took me away after that and had no Bible around the house at all. My only example was my Grandma. I am now 57 to be 58. Today I found this site and will be doing all the studies to learn how to live as a Christian and Believe in the God who made me.
I found comfort in knowing that “Havinf the answers is not how God wants us to know the Truth that God is there.” What peace that brings. “Trust and Obey, there is no other way.”
thanks to God for directing me to this site,i’m really learning a lot
I want to learn Bible school online free from you that l can fulfill God’s missions according to Matthew 28:19-20 in this earth.
My question have here did you give someone certificate who complete courses?
I’m glad you want to learn what’s in the Bible Elijah. Sadly men often want to see some kind of “credentials” before they can accept someone as sent from God to speak His word into their life. While I have been ordained I still believe one should never need a certificate to share God’s word. So at this time no certificate is offered. If you feel having such a thing will help your ministry (as it can help open some doors) I suggest you speak with your local church leaders.
I love this study it is different but to the core. I feel it takes you places supernaturally where your mind is more stimulated than the average message. You can grow better looking deeper into the unknown. i look forward to moving on in this journey
Thank you for this study, I have been thinking for a long time that I had lost my faith, but now I know (Praise God) that I do still have my faith. I still have my Lord and savior Jesus Christ, He has been here all along, I had just pushed him aside. Thank you
It is great isn’t it to know that your o.k. It is amazing how some words put right can change the way you see things. I think this site can change a lot of peoples struggles and doubts. They are working for God.