Does God exist? Is there proof or evidence of God?

[Les Brewer]

I'm sure Gator will have many subjects to cover here in the youth section. Whiles we wait for for people to join in this part of the forum, have a think about this question "Does God exist? Is there proof or evidence of God?"

In other words, if you were approached by a non christian in school or where-ever, or even by a family member and questions God's existence - What sort of answer would you give?

Even if you are from STUMBLE UPON, Twitter or even our FACEBOOK group then join in!

[gator]

Excellent question Les. This has been debated for as long as there has been human history recorded. I usually like to answer it by looking at the alternative. So let's start there.

If God did NOT exist, is it possible for all of the universe to have been created by the so-called Big Bang? Even this question has lots of possible answers. There are those who will believe in the Big Bang in spite of very thin evidence for its existence. At one point in time - around 1910 AD, it was discovered that there was a red shift in some of the stars in the distant universe. A shift to longer wavelengths meant that they were moving away from us. If they are moving away, that means that in the distant past, they must have been closer. At this time, they believed that the universe was originally about one light year in diameter. A light year is the distance that light, traveling at 186,000 miles per second will travel in one year. As time went on, the astronomers and other scientists managed to shrink that number down so much that by 1995 or so, they believed that the entire universe was contained within the volume of ONE ELECTRON before the Big Bang. Material was packed in there so tight, that it would have been considered as the biggest black hole of all time. As we know, nothing can escape from a black hole, not even light. So how did all of this stuff explode and escape from a black hole? Well, they haven't managed to explain that part very well. And even the Big Bang theory itself had some serious problems that they couldn't explain so they came up with something called a Quantum Singularity. Those are two big words that basically means it happened once and will never happen again.

Well, that is a good place to take a break. I will continue with the next chapter when I have some more free time.

Cheers

gator

[Les Brewer]

I think that is a fair place to start gator, looking at what if God did Not exist. As you rightly point out, there are lots of possible answers to alternative suggestions with no real way of proving one or the other for the alternative.
In-fact in my mind it would take more faith to use evolution as our answer rather than a Creator being our God! So giving this with a younger audience answer.

Evidence of God!

We have a ton of evidence that shows us God's existence all around us, though no one has definitively "proven" His existence—by human standards anyway. Just look at the sunset, the depth of the ocean, the leaves in the fall, bears who know just when to hibernate in the winter, the millions of atoms that make up our bodies, the tiny components inside each cell of every living thing, the complexity of human brain... There has to have been an ultimate Designer of those things, right? Those things don't happen by chance. And who else could it be but God?

Our world is huge and yet everything seems to have its place, and everything functions beautifully within it. That suggests there has to be a Master Creator who orchestrated the incredible symphony we live in (Psalm 19:1-4). Not everyone sees it that way though. Many people believe our world just "happened" and there was no Master Creator involved.

Romans 1:25 says, "They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen." Unfortunately, there will always be people who deny God's existence regardless of the evidence we have of Him and His love toward us. Sadly, those who ignore the evidence of God are missing out on the best relationship ever.

The Search for Hardcore Proof
A lot of science-minded folks think that if God were real, we could undoubtedly prove His existence with facts, studies, and maybe even pictures as hardcore proof. But that's not what God wants. He doesn't want a bunch of children that love and follow Him just because it's easy to see and hear and touch Him. He wants children who will love and follow Him because of deeper reasons than that.

Think about our parents or a beloved grandparent. Do or did we love them just because they're there? Because you have to? Because you "should"? Or do you love them for a reason that goes deeper than that? Because she sacrifices for you? Helps you? Talks to you? Takes care of you? Has loved you no matter what all your life? True love can't be "proven", it has to be experienced personally.

Taking the Harder Path
It is easy for non-Christians to argue against God's existence because that requires no faith. Plus, once a person admits that God does indeed exist, they have to admit His sovereignty and their need for Him. If there is no God, they do not have to play by His rules. But if there is a God, they have to make room for Him in their lives and submit to His will.

Have you ever noticed how much some atheists hate God? You've gotta ask then, "How can you have so much hate for something you don't think exists?" Maybe, just maybe, somewhere deep down, they know the truth, but they're angry because they don't want to be wrong. Psalm 14:1 says, "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good."

So does God exist? Well, the Bible says "yes". As Christians, we know God exists because of our relationship with Him and what we have experienced personally. If we talk to Him on a regular basis, we will feel His presence and see Him working in our lives. It just requires faith as a first step!

Remember what Hebrews 11:6 says, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." than it would to believe in a creator.

[gator]

Excellent stuff Les. I particluarly like the "logic" that some of the atheists use that "there ain't no God but I hate Him anyway". I wonder if they have ever thought about how ridiculous that stance looks to the rest of us. Professor Richard Dawkins is a good example of that so-called logic because he has said so publicly in interviews and debates.

Personally, I think that science is a pretty poor substitute for faith. As a bit of a science geek myself [ power engineer ], I can read and understand some of what these folks are trying to say and I can occasionally debate with them as well on their own terms. Of course, no one wins a debate like that but, at least, both sides get to air their own points of view. One time, I had a guy tell me that he was a hard core atheist because he didn't believe in "talking snakes and other fairy tales". I mentioned to him that he did believe in fairy tales because there is no way that DNA can assemble itself. Nor can RNA assemble itself. They are both very complicated and, to some extent, rely on each other for their existance.

Nothing was said at the time but, he came back a few months later in another conversation with "As a confirmed agnostic....." Sometimes it takes a while.

Anyway, the day is getting to be somewhat busier than I had anticipated so I should go.

Cheers

gator