Difference between revisions of "Ultimate Questions""

Is Anyone There?

This is the fundamental question. If God does not exist, searching for him is pointless. Anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists. (Hebrews 11:6) While it is impossible to ‘prove’ God in a mathematical sense, the evidence is very convincing. Take the existence of the universe. To call it the result of an ‘accident’ raises many questions — and answers none. The same is true of the ‘Big Bang’ theory. Where, for instance, did the raw materials come from? Not even a ‘big bang’ can make something out of nothing! The evolutionary idea is widespread but just as weak; how can ‘nothing’ evolve into ‘something’, let alone earth’s amazingly complex life forms?

All other theories are equally fragile. The only satisfactory explanation is this: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis1:1) Our world is not the random result of a gigantic fluke involving ingredients that were ‘always there’. Instead, the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. (Hebrews 11:3) Creation had a beginning, and it was God who brought it into being. He spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. (Psalm 33:9)
This is reinforced by the amazing order and design seen everywhere and by the universal laws which hold everything together, from the vastness of outer space to microscopic organisms. But design demands a designer and laws a lawgiver — and God is both! The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth. (Acts 17:24)

But the strongest ‘creation evidence’ is man himself. Unlike other animals, man has something we call ‘personality’; he makes intelligent choices, has a conscience and can distinguish between right and wrong. He is capable of love and compassion. Above all, he has an instinct to worship. Where did he get these qualities? Neither evolution nor an avalanche of accidents could have produced them. The clearest answer is this: The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7) Man is not an accident; he is fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14) by the Creator of the universe.

The question is vital. Left to ourselves we are totally ignorant of God. Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? (Job 11:7) God is beyond our understanding and we need him to reveal himself to us. Creation is one of the main ways in which he does so. The heavens declare the glory of God . the skies proclaim the work of his hands. (Psalm 19:1) The sheer size of the universe and its amazing balance, variety and beauty reveal a great deal about the God who made it. In creation God shows his stupendous power, awesome intelligence and brilliant imagination. Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. (Romans 1:20)

When we communicate with one another we rely heavily on words. God also speaks to men through words — the words of the Bible. Nearly 4000 times in the Old Testament alone (500 times in the first five books) you will find phrases like ‘the Lord spoke’, ‘the Lord commanded’ and ‘the Lord said’. This is why it is claimed that Scripture never had its origin in the word of man but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2Peter 1:21)

In no other literature can we find scores of clear and detailed prophecies made by men claiming to speak from God, and later fulfilled to the letter. The odds against this happening by chance are too vast to be taken seriously.

Then there is the Bible’s impact on people’s lives. No other book has had such a life changing power. Millions of people, over thousands of years, have proved by personal experience that the law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. (Psalm 19:7-8)

After 2,000 years no expert in any field has ever disproved a single statement in the Bible. The reason is this: All Scripture is God breathed. (2 Timothy 3:16) We should therefore accept it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God. (1 Thessalonians 2:13)