“A God who let us prove his existence would be an idol”

Dietrich Bonheoffer

DOES GOD EXIST?

by Mark Karapetyan

If you think that I am going to throw some numbers around on a piece of paper and present to you a mathematical equation to prove that God exists, you will be disappointed. If you assume that I am going to prove God’s existence by doing some chemical experiments in a lab, you will also be very disappointed. Similarly, if you presume that I know how to prove there is a God, you are greatly mistaken. Do you know why? Because a first cause that created ‘everything’, a being that transcends space, time, and matter, can not be proven by methods within space, time, and matter.  The modus to prove the existence of such a supernatural being must come from outside of this universe.  In other words, humans using science or any other methods cannot prove or disprove God; it is impossible.  However, what I can do is provide you with evidence that point to a creator who brought the entire known universe into existence.  This creator, I believe, is the God of the Bible.

Believers, keep on reading.  Atheists and skeptics, please stop shaking your heads for I am not done yet.

How Did the Universe Come To Be?

This is the greatest mystery and the root of all other questions, such as: Where did life begin? Why are we here?  [1] Why does something exist rather than nothing?  I believe the answers to these questions will ultimately point us to God, the creator of everything.  But first, allow me to ask you a question.  Have you ever wondered why physical objects around us exist?  Why are there planets, humans, animals, insects, birds, fruits, and oceans?  Where did they come from and for what reason?  If every effect results from a cause (an undeniable fact), then what caused the universe?

In reality, we can logically assume that there are only four possible explanations as to why the universe exists:

1.  The universe doesn’t exist; it’s actually an illusion.

2.  The universe created itself out of nothing.

3.  The universe has always been here. (Eternal)

4.  Someone or something created the universe from nothing.  (Creation)

Is the Entire Universe An Illusion?

The French philosopher Rene` Descartes, once famously said, “I think, therefore I am”.   In other words, because I am able to think I know I exist.  There are some that claim everything is an illusion, that nothing is real.

I am actually chuckling as I’m writing this because I just remembered a time when during one of my lectures, a Hindu gentleman interrupted me and objected. “Everything in this universe is an illusion, nothing is real.”    To which I replied, “everything?”  “YES SIR” he answered, with confidence. With a smile on my face I countered: “well what you just said is something, and if everything is an illusion and nothing is real, then why is your statement real and not illusory?  Does your statement have a meaning, or is it also an illusion, since it’s part of everything?”

The man looked around, gasped, sat down, and said absolutely nothing!  That’s because it is ludicrous to assume that everything is illusory, but not the statement itself, and he knew it.  Moreover, if the universe doesn’t exist and it’s nothing but an illusion, is that a real illusion or an illusory illusion?  Dr. Peter Kreeft states: “if it is an illusion then who created the illusion and why?  And is the creator of the illusion real or also illusory?”   

It is obvious to all of us (I hope) that there is a reality to our lives and to the world around us that is not an illusion.  Therefore, we can reasonably dismiss the first possibility.

 

Did the Universe Create Itself?

Stephen Hawking in his book ‘The Grand Design” on page 180 says, “Because there is a law like gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing.”

It seems to me that Mr. Hawking is only making an assumption with no proof what so ever for his silly claim.  ‘A law like gravity’ is not ‘nothing’.  Gravity is something. My question to him is “why does a force like gravity exist and where did it originate?

Dr. John Lennox explains,”Laws themselves do not create anything; they are merely a description of what happens under certain conditions.”  This is accurate because all scientific laws do not and cannot create.  All they do is describe what happens.  Nothing cannot create something, it’s impossible.  If I give you nothing, you have nothing.  To assume that you have something is foolish.  An empty box will not create itself or what’s in it; someone must make it and fill it with stuff.  What makes the universe any different?

How absurd is it to presume that nothing one day decided to create something, and that something happened to be the universe?  (I have an idea, when I go home tonight I am going to ask ‘nothing’ to make me a steak dinner since I will be too tired to cook.  If you are reading this I think you should try it for yourself and report back to me).  If nothing can create something, why don’t we observe this every day?  Why don’t we see things pop in and out of existence regularly? Why don’t tires, tents, stars and chairs just come into existence without a cause? When was the last time you were sitting in your living room, and suddenly, out of nothing or nowhere a giraffe appeared and sat down on your expensive Persian rug?

Anything that can create itself and bring itself into existence out of nothing must already exist before it can create itself.  In other words, If I were to create myself out of nothing, “myself” must be in existence prior to me creating myself…think about it.

One more thing before I end this.  If something can be created from nothing like atheists claim,  why can’t God also create from nothing? At least God is something !

Those who believe that no God or  cause is needed to explain the origin of the universe are intellectually lazy and dishonest.  They well know  that their claim is not based on concrete reality, yet they insist on making such atrocious claims just to avoid God as being the first cause.

We can logically assume again that the second possibility for the origin of the universe is also out.

 

Is the Universe Eternal?

Up until the 1920’s, Albert Einstein and some other scientists believed that the universe was eternal, in a steady state with no beginning.  It wasn’t until 1927  when a Belgian scientist by the name of Georges Lemaitre presented Einstein with a mathematical model that described an ‘expanding universe’ and not a static one.  Although Einstein agreed that the math in Lemaitre’s model was accurate, he disagreed with the conclusion that the universe was expanding because it challenged all his beliefs about an eternal universe.  An expanding universe meant that the expansion started or began from nothing, an idea Einstein wasn’t comfortable with.  In 1929, the American astronomer Edwin Hubble, using the Hubble Telescope discovered that the universe was expanding at alarming rates. A year later, Einstein eventually agreed with Hubble and many other scientists that the universe had a beginning.  If the universe is expanding, that means it started to expand from a point of nothing; it had a metaphysical beginning.  Try to visualize yourself rewinding a movie you are watching. Eventually, you are going to come to a point where it is “the beginning” of the movie.

It is impossible to keep rewinding to an infinite past.

The Infinite Regress Concept.  A philosophical concept that shows the universe had a beginning.

Suppose you are running a marathon and you finally arrive at the finish line.  The fact that you have arrived at the finish line means that you started or began running from some time ago in the past (from a starting point).  If you have been running through the infinite past, the finish line would have never arrived.  Similarly, if the universe were eternal, from an infinite past, Edwin Hubble couldn’t have discovered the expansion moment.  Because expansion was observed, however, that means the universe began expanding from a starting or a ‘beginning’ point.  I know this is a little hard to grasp, but try to read it again slowly and eventually it will make so much sense I promise.

The Second Law of Thermodynamics : is another valuable piece of evidence that proves the universe is not eternal.   (For more, check the Cosmological Argument).

Suppose that one day I drive to your house to pick you up in my yellow Lamborghini (now that’s an illusion) and tell you that I’m a little tired because I have been driving from eternal past.  Would you believe me?  Of course not. Why? Because if that were true, my car with a limited amount of gas in the tank, would have run out of fuel a long time ago. The reason I’m still driving it now is that I only started or began driving some time ago.  In the same way, the universe would have run out of energy a long time ago if it were eternal, because the total energy of the universe is constant according to the first law of thermodynamics.

There are other scientific pieces of evidence that prove the universe had a beginning, like the Great Galaxy Seeds and the Radiation Afterglow. For now, I think it is reasonable to conclude that the first three possibilities we have discussed are deader than a door knob.

Think about it. If the universe is real and not an illusion, and it can’t create itself out of nothing, plus we can scientifically  establish that the universe had a beginning and is not eternal, then what’s the only logical remaining possibility?  The only reasonable conclusion is to posit a ‘CAUSE’ for the universe.  I’m sorry if you don’t like this conclusion but logic demands it, and how dare you offend logic?                                                (Watch out for the P.C. police).

The crux of the matter is this, if the universe is caused, then the cause must be outside of the created universe,  meaning that the cause must be transcendent to space, time, and matter.  Logically, there are only two qualifying possibilities that can be transcendent to these dimensions.

1.  Abstract Objects  such as numbers; 2.  Personal agents.

Although it is true that numbers are transcendent, they cannot think, decide, and create. The number 11, for instance, is a metaphysical concept that will never think, feel, or decide.  A mind is actually necessary to recognize and even analyze numbers; without a mind, numbers are useless.

The only remaining logical possibility  that qualifies as a plausible cause for the universe is a personal agent with a mind.  Why do I say personal? Only personal agents decide to create. Although animals make decisions, they can’t decide to create out of nothing. There was a metaphysical time when the first cause willingly decided to create a complex universe. Only personal agents with minds decide to create. That’s why the first cause/creator must be a transcendent, personal, very powerful, and intelligent creator.  This is exactly what we mean by God, and only the God  of the Bible  possesses the attributes of this first cause we have been discussing.

The need for a cause to explain the origin of the universe is unavoidable; the only reasonable cause is God. Billions of people around the world choose to deny God not because it’s evidence they lack, but because they desire to live life selfishly without accountability to a ‘Higher Power’.  It is fascinating to me that atheists  deny the existence of God ferociously. Why do they attack something that doesn’t exist?  Who goes around attacking a negative?  If there is no God, who are they denying?  Isn’t it comical that when tragedy strikes, atheists quickly blame the same God that they deny?  Why don’t atheists make the same effort to attack, deny, and hate the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny or Santa Clause?  Aren’t these characters also fictional?

They choose to bash and deny God only, because deep down inside their hearts, they somehow know that God exists; it inflames them and raises their blood pressure to the moon. Therefore, they hate Him.  As if God is their enemy or something.  Incredibly sad!

“The wicked because of his pride will not seek after God.  God is not in his thoughts” 

Psalm 10:4        

 

If there were a creator that created the entire universe out of nothing, a creator that’s so loving and merciful, full of beauty, power and glory, don’t you want to know Him?  Don’t you want to know why He created you?     I know I do.

If you are on the fence or don’t believe in God, I can show you one easy assured way to know Him.  Put your pride aside and simply ask him to show Himself to you.  Eventually, you will be writing articles defending Him…

 

If God Created Everything Then Who Created God?

NO ONE !!!

God, by definition, is the uncreated creator of the universe, so the question of who created God is illogical, just like the question of to whom the bachelor is married. We have discussed earlier that the universe (space, time, and matter) had a beginning, which means whoever created time must be timeless.  If someone is timeless, that being has no beginning and no end because he is outside of time, and is eternal, just like God.  From the law of causality we know that only things with a beginning have a cause.  God didn’t have a beginning, He has no cause.  God is the uncaused cause, or as Aristotle put it, “the unmoved mover.”

The majority of Christians, pastors included struggle tremendously with this question. If you know the answer to this question and understand it well, please share it with everyone.

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                                          “The worst moment for the atheist is when he is really thankful, and has nobody to thank”
                                                                                                               

                                                                                                                          Dante Rosetti

 

 

 

 

[1] The Principles of Nature and of Grace.  G.W. Leibniz