Is there a God? Is there proof that God is real and that He is alive? This article from Our Daily Bread presents careful reasoning to verify not only the reality of God’s existence, but the legitimacy of trusting Him.
- THE INEVITABILITY OF FAITH.
Faith is unavoidable, even if we choose to believe only in ourselves. What is to be decided is what evidence we think is pertinent, how we are going to interpret that evidence, and who or what we are willing to believe in (Luke 16:16). Everyone believes in something. No one can endure the stress and cares of life without faith in something that cannot ultimately be proven.
- THE LIMITATIONS OF SCIENCE.
Science by itself offers no moral guidance or values to govern our lives. All science can do is show us how natural law works, while telling us nothing about its origins. Scientific method is limited to a process defined by that which is measurable and repeatable. By definition, it cannot speak to issues of ultimate origin, meaning, or morality. For such answers, science is dependent on the
values and personal beliefs of those who use it.
- THE PROBLEMS OF EVOLUTION.
Some have assumed that an evolutionary explanation of life would make God unnecessary. This overlooks some problems. Even if we assume that scientists will someday find enough “missing links” to confirm that life appeared and developed gradually over great periods of time, laws of probability would still show the need for a Creator.
- THE HABITS OF THE HEART.
There is something about truth, beauty, and love that makes our hearts ache. Even in our anger with a God who would permit injustice and pain, we draw upon a moral conscience to argue that life is not as it ought to be (Romans 2:14-15). Even unwillingly, we are drawn to something that is more rather than less than ourselves. Denying the existence of God does not dispel the mysteries of life.
- THE BACKGROUND OF GENESIS.
On first reading, the opening words of the Bible seem to assume the existence of God. Genesis, however, was written at a point of time in history. Moses wrote, “In the beginning God” after Israel’s exodus from Egypt. He wrote after miraculous events that were said to have been witnessed by millions of Jews and Egyptians. From the Exodus to the coming of Messiah, the God of the Bible rests His case on events witnessed in real time and locations. Anyone who doubted the claims could visit real places and people to check out the evidence for themselves.
- THE NATION OF ISRAEL.
Israel is often used as an argument against God but Israel is the vortex of the world. Yet from the beginning of Old Testament history, Israel’s future was prewritten. Together with other prophets, Moses predicted not only Israel’s possession of the land but also her unparalleled suffering and dispersion throughout the whole earth, her eventual repentance, and then finally her last-days restoration (Deuteronomy 28–34; Isaiah 2:1-5; Ezekiel 37–38).
- THE CLAIMS OF CHRIST.
Many say, “If God wanted us to believe in Him, He would appear to us.” According to the Bible, that is what God has done. Writing in the 7th century BC, the prophet Isaiah said that God would give His people a sign. A virgin would bear a son who would be called “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23). Isaiah said this Son would be called, “Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). The prophet also said that this child would die for His people’s sins before seeing His life prolonged and honored by God (Isaiah 53). According to the New Testament, Jesus claimed to be that Messiah. And was crucified on charges that He claimed to be the king of Israel and that He had represented Himself as being equal with God (John 5:18).
- THE EVIDENCE OF MIRACLES.
The followers of Jesus agree that were witnesses of HIS miracles; healing paralytics, walking on water, and then voluntarily dying a painful, undeserved death before rising from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:1-8). Most compelling was their claim that many witnesses had seen and talked to Christ after finding His tomb empty and before watching Him ascend visibly into the clouds. These witnesses didn’t have anything on earth to gain by their claims. They had no hopes of material wealth or power. Many became martyrs, claiming to the end that the long-awaited Messiah of Israel had lived among them.
- THE DETAILS OF NATURE.
Jesus showed that God is great enough to care about the smallest details of our lives. He spoke of one who not only knows every move we make but also the motives and thoughts of our heart. Jesus taught that God knows the number of hairs on our head, the concerns of our heart, and even the condition of a fallen sparrow (Psalm 139; Matthew 6).
- THE VOICE OF EXPERIENCE.
There will be a time in Life where you will reach out to God. It won’t necessarily be on your terms but on HIS. He promises to be found, not by just anyone but by those who admit their own need and are willing to trust Him rather than themselves. The Bible says that God designs the circumstances of our lives in a way that will prompt us to look for Him (Acts 17:26). For those who do reach out for Him, the Scriptures also say that He is close enough to be found (v.27).