INTRODUCTION:  The Bible does not specifically argue for the existence of God.  Rather, it assumes it as the great beginning principle of life.  The Bible maintains that, without belief in the existence of God, life is meaningless.
 

Psalms 14:1 - "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good."

Hebrews 11:6 -  "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." 

However, this doesn't mean that God has left the universe without any witness to His existence.  Paul says, 

Romans 1:20  "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:"

Paul says that nature is a powerful witness to the existence of God. We can be certain that God existence, based upon the what we can glean from nature and life.  While we cannot know about the nature of God from these evidences we can know  that.

        1.      He exists.
        2.      He is eternal.
        3.      He is logical.
        4.      He is the most powerful being in the universe.

Arguments for the Existence of God

I.      Every Effect Has a Cause
        A.      Law of Causation - "Every effect must have an adequate cause."

1.      What about the houses we live in?  Did they come from something?

2.      What about a puddle of water in the kitchen?  Did it get there by chance?

1.      We are told that the universe is "winding down." Stars are cooling off, the earth is wearing out.  This is addressed by a well known law, "the Second Law of Thermodynamics." 

2.      If that is true, then we should trace the universe back to a starting point.  This is what most scientist have accepted when they embraced the Big Bang Theory.

3.      What about the origin of the universe?  Four possibilities. 

a.      It is an illusion and dues not really exist.  Those who believe this are few and far between.  The really belong with the "Heaven's Gate" crowd.

b.      It Spontaneously arose out of nothing. Again, it is a rule of science that no material thing can create itself.  It might be considered as a cause but certainly can be seen as not an adequate cause.

c.      It has always existed.  Again, almost all scientists have rejected this as being foolish.

d.      It was created.  Even if we grant, for the sake of argument, the Big Bang Theory, there is a problem for atheists.  Before the entire universe was the size of a pea, what began it?  And, what caused it to explode?

 "For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is
God." (Hebrews 3:4)

II.      Design Implies a Designer.
        A.      Look at design in our everyday lives.

1.      When you go home, do you believe that the design of your home demonstrates that it simply was a product of chance over a period of long evolution? 

2.      I remember a model of the Solar System in High School.  It was a model where all the planet revolved around a model of the sun at the same time by means of a crank.  It was a wonderfully designed object.  Intelligent, skilled men and women designed and built it.

3.      A camcorder records both video and audio.  It has a lens that automatically focuses at various distances.  It senses the amount of light it is receiving and adjusts its aperture to ensure that the picture is neither over nor under exposed.

a.      The camcorder converts the images it sees into patterns of electric current.  The current is converted into magnetic code that is recorded upon videotape.

b.      Does the design of the camcorder imply a designer?

1.      When we look at the design of the world, how it is in perfect balance, what does that say about a designer? 

a.      The air we breath is the exact mixture for life. 

b.      The earth is   water.  This is just right to maintain life on the earth.  It is essential for the continuation of plant and animal life.

c.      Could all this "just come together."  Why is it nonsense to argue that our homes that we live in just happened while believing it is logical for the entire earth, which is infinitely more complex, to just happen without a Creator.

2.      What about our Solar System?

a.      Our earth is 93,000,000 miles away from the sun.  It is just right to support life.  Mercury and Venus, which are closer, are much too hot.  Mars and the other planets are too far away and much too cold for human life. 

b.      All the planets rotate around the sun in perfect harmony. 

c.      The moon is in a perfect location rotating around the earth.  It governs the tides on the earth, once again just right. 

d.      The moon is the perfect size.  If it were bigger it would cause disastrous tidal waves.  If it were smaller, it would not have the pull on the oceans necessary for life. 

3.      Our body is a testament to a great designer.

a.      How did our reproductive system "evolve"? Look at the intricacies involved.

b.      The human eye does the same functions as the camcorder, did the eye happen by chance or was it developed by a designer, like the camcorder?

"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are
thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well" (Psalm 139:14).

"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his
handiwork.  Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth
knowledge."  (Psalm 19:1-2)

III.      Man's Intuitive Sense of Morality is a Witness of the Existence of God.

        A.      Every society that has ever existed has had a sense of morality.

1.      While the specific rules of morality have changed from society to society, every society has certain behavior that it consider moral and others which it considers immoral. 

2.      What makes murder wrong?  How about stealing? 

3.      All countries and societies have had sexual restrictions and rules against murder.

1.      The animals have no sense of morality.

a.      A lion will attack an antelope without any regard of morals and without a guilty conscience.  In face, it will have no conscience at all.

2.      None of the supposed "advanced" animals on the evolutionary scale share a sense of morality with man.  Why?

3.      How can moral man be the result of evolution from amoral animals.

4.      The existence of a moral nature in humans argues for a moral God Who placed it in them. 

Copyright 1999 by Grady Scott may be reproducted for non-commercial purposes at no cost to others.