Does God Exist?

(Part Two)

Introduction.  This morning we began our consideration of (what is unquestionably) the most important question each of us must ever consider—Does God exist? This morning we looked at four arguments: The Ontological Argument (the argument that the concept of God is an evidence of God’s existence); The Cosmological Argument (the argument that God is the first cause of all causes); The Argument from Natural Law (the argument that laws of nature attest to a lawgiver) and finally The Argument from Morality (the argument that man’s moral nature, demands a moral source).  Tonight we end our study by considering four final arguments for the existence of God.

V. Argument from Reason.  This argument contends that reason, by its very nature is immaterial, and could not result from a mere material, naturalistic cause.

A.     The essence of the argument.

1.       If I held up a handful of dirt, would any of us imagine that matter thinks and reasons?  Could it ponder the meaning of its own existence?

2.      If there is no God, all that we are is simply the culmination of countless processes of natural changes, and development (as the theory of evolution claims).  Essentially we are just “stuff” and nothing more than stuff.

3.      Yet, we can reason.  Why?  There must be a source of reason.

B.     Advocate of this position. 

1.      C.S. Lewis. “One absolutely central inconsistency ruins [the popular  scientific philosophy]. The whole picture professes to depend on inferences from observed facts.  Unless inference is valid, the whole picture disappears... unless Reason is an absolute, all is in ruins. Yet those who ask me to believe this world picture also ask me to believe that Reason is simply the unforeseen and unintended by-product of mindless matter at one stage of its endless and aimless becoming. Here is flat contradiction. They ask me at the same moment to accept a conclusion and to discredit the  only testimony on which that conclusion can be based.”

2.      If we are nothing more that matter, how can we even ask the question “Does God Exist”?

C.     Some argue that reason is just a product of a multiplication of enough information.  We often here that there can be “Artificial Intelligence.”

1.      This makes good science fiction stories, but it is fantasy, not reality.  It boils down to this question…

2.      Will my computer one day start to reason? If I give it enough time, will it think?  [Note: That is the essence of a materialistic view of life—we are just matter that began one day to think!]  What is the answer?  No.  Because it is the product of intelligence.  Just as we are the product of intelligence.

3.      Why are we capable of reason?

D.    The Biblical Answer.

1.      “There is a spirit in man and the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding” (Job 32:8).  Reason is immaterial in nature.  We have an inner man that is more than just synapses and stored data.

2.      We are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27-28).

3.      “He fashions their hearts” (Psalm 33:13-15).  That is why God can say…

4.      “‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ Says the LORD” (Isaiah 1:18).  Our  very minds attest to the existence of God!

VI. Teleological Argument.  The argument is that everything which shows evidence of design attests to a designer.

A.     Advocates of this position.

1.      Cicero.  “When you see a sundial or a water-clock, you see that it tells the time by design and not by chance. How then can you imagine that the universe as a whole is devoid of purpose and intelligence, when it embraces everything, including these artifacts themselves and their artificers?”

2.      William Paley.  “In crossing a heath, suppose I pitched my foot against a stone, and were asked how the stone came to be there; I might possibly answer, that, for anything I knew to the contrary, it had lain there forever: nor would it perhaps be very easy to show the absurdity of this answer. But suppose I had found a watch upon the ground, and it should be inquired how the watch happened to be in that place; I should hardly think of the answer I had before given, that for anything I knew, the watch might have always been there….There must have existed, at some time, and at some place or other, an artificer or artificers who formed [the watch] for the purpose which we find it actually to answer; who comprehended its construction, and designed its use.  Every indication of contrivance, every manifestation of design which existed in the watch, exists in the works of nature; with the difference, on the side of nature, of being greater or more, and that in a degree which exceeds all computation.”

3.      Is there a Divine “watchmaker”?

B.     Evidence of design.

1.      The Bacterial Flagellum.  I want introduce you to one of the most fascinating mechanism in the entire universe.  My daughter had to take a microbiology class and she wasn’t too excited when I told her we were going to talk about this little creature.  But, I want to assure you that if you have never before heard of the little mechanism called the “bacterial flagellum” you will leave here glad that you did!

a.       The bacterial flagellum is a little tail device on microscopic bacteria that facilitate their motion in water.

b.      This is a highly complex little mechanism that functions exactly like an outboard motor.  When magnified 50,000 times with an electron micrograph we find that it has all of the features of a motor.

c.       It runs at 100,000 rpm per second, yet it can reverse itself with only one quarter turn.  How was this nano-machine formed? We may not be able to prove who formed this but we can answer how  it is formed—like all cellular mechanisms…

2.      DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). DNA contains four nucleotides which act as characters in a programming language.  Much like a computer language, DNA in humans composes the 3 billion character code which forms an individual person.

a.       DNA sends instructions which form complex proteins that comprise various structures within a cell.

b.      These protein structures form individual parts of cells. These are highly complex structures which follow the programming of DNA.

c.       Such as the “hook” of the bacterial flagellum.  This is a precisely designed mechanism, for this complex nano-machine. 

d.      Is this just a fluke—Is this the only highly specialized design in cells?

3.      The cell.

a.       Even the most simple cell is a miniature “factory” which carries out manufacture, reproduction, energy production, repair and security.

b.      Human life begins from two cells which blend ½ the DNA from the mother and father into one cell.

c.       Within the nucleus of every cell in higher life forms is 1 gigabyte of coded information.

d.      The human body is made up of 75 trillion cells (75,000,000,000,000).

e.       Every three seconds 50,000 cells in our bodies die and are replaced by 50,000 more cells.

f.       All of this happens in accordance with the programmed instructions of the DNA code.  This leads to one of the most important questions of life…

4.      Who wrote the program? Dr. Stephen Meyer. “Based on our uniform and repeated experience, which is the basis of all scientific reasoning about  the past, there is only one known cause for the origin of information, and  that cause is intelligence” (Stephen Meyer).

C.     The Biblical Answer.

1.      “I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:13-16).

2.      “The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground” (Genesis 2:7).

3.      “The hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matthew 10:29-31).

4.      Every cell of our bodies is a testament to the existence, and mind of God!

VII. Anthropic Argument.  Before the time of Copernicus, man misunderstood his place in the universe.  He imagined that earth was the center of the universe.  Copernicus allowed us to see that we are a part of the whole.  However, the anthropic argument considers the numerous unique features which demonstrate that the universe as a whole, appears to be “fine-tuned” for life.  Someone carried out this tuning!

A.     The essence of the argument.

1.      Natural Laws required for a universe: Gravity for stars, galaxies, & habitable planets. Strong nuclear force for chemistry. If it were reduced only slightly the only element left in the universe would be hydrogen. Electromagnetic force for chemical bonding. In addition to these there is something called the cosmological constant (the speed at which the universe is expanding) if this was any faster objects could not form.

a.       If any of these forces were even slightly weaker or stronger the universe (and especially life) could not exist. If gravity was slightly stronger all life (except bacteria would be crushed).

B.     Factors necessary for complex life.

1.      Magnetic fields (caused by liquid iron in core) to protect against solar wind.

2.      Nitrogen/Oxygen atmosphere (for water & life).

3.      Large moon (to stabilize rotation to provide stable seasons and moderate climate).

4.      Dwarf star (too small, smaller habitable zone, closer, no rotation).

5.      Right location in galaxy (the galactic habitable zone: too close to center, super novas, black holes—too far not enough heavy elements for allow for complex life; not too close to a spiral arm to avoid super novas).

6.      System with larger planets to shield other planets from impact objects.

C.     Importance of Earth’s Location.

1.      5% closer to sun would create a runaway “green house” effect such as we see on Venus and all liquid water would evaporate.

2.      20% farther away and all water would freeze as we see on Mars.

3.      Probability of all factors necessary for life 1/1¹⁵ (1/1,000,000,000,000,000). Is that special?  You better believe it!  This improbability is so remote that the chances of  it happening by accident are essentially impossible!  This is not only true on a large scale but let’s consider something much closer to our individual lives…

4.      The Wonder of the Development of the Eye.  When you and I were developing in the womb, 1,000,000 nerve endings left our brain, looking for 1,000,000 optic nerve in the developing eye!

5.      God has been fine-tuning your life from the moment of your conception!

D.     The Biblical Revelation.

1.      “Tell me if you know all this” (Job 38:16-38). 

2.      This entire universe is specially designed to allow and preserve life.  The earth is uniquely positioned to allow and preserve life. Even the process of human development is a wondrous evidence of God’s existence!

VIII. Argument from Revelation.  We have seen a number of arguments for the existence of God.  We end by considering an argument that we have actually been asserting throughout our entine study—the contention that we can accept the existence of God because of evidence that He has revealed Himself.  This is true in at least three ways…

A.     He has revealed Himself through His creation (Rom. 1:18-20; Psalm 19:1-6).

1.      Example: Canis Majoris is currently the largest star that has ever been discovered at 1.7 billion miles across.  When compared to the size of our own sun it is just a speck!  Canis Majoris could hold 7 quadrillion (7,000,000,000,000,000) earths inside it. 

a.       If the earth was a golf ball you could fill the entire state of Texas with golf balls 22 inches deep!

2.       “By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth” (Psalm 33:6).  We serve a God who is a “star breather!”  A “star-breather” who programmed every DNA code in every cell in your body! 

a.       What should our reaction be to such a being? We have a tendency to try and negotiate with God.  We say to Him, if you’ll do these things in my life—if you create situations that please me, I will serve you.

b.      Before a God who can breath out STARS we should fall on our faces and summon the power to utter humbly, “Yes Sir!  What ever you say!”

3.      “Sin has a way of shrinking God down in our minds, and puffing us up in our own estimation. But just a glance into the universe that God has made resizes everything in a heartbeat” (Louie Giglio).

B.     He has revealed Himself through His word (Psalms 19:7-8; Deuteronomy 29:29).

1.      The Bible was written by about 40 hands, from different backgrounds and levels of education. Over a span of some 1500 years. Yet, it contains a unity of purpose and message unequalled in any human literature.

C.     He has revealed Himself through His Son (Hebrews 1:1-4; 2 Timothy 1:8-10).

1.      Jesus Fulfilled over 300 OT prophesies  about his birth, life, death, and teaching. His life is attested by religious and secular historical writers.His life has changed, laws, cultures, and individual lives more than anyone who has ever lived!

Conclusion.  We ended our lesson this morning by considering a statement Paul made to philosophers in ancient Athens.  I would like for us to end our study with this text again, but look a little further at his words:

 “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.  For in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.' Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising.  Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:24-31).

We have seen in our study, what Paul declares here, that God made us, and everything in this universe.  We noted this morning that He made us so that we would seek Him. But we must also note one final thing.  We can reject faith in God (in spite of all the reasons we have to believe).  But, whether we do or not, one thing is sure—God will judge us through Jesus Christ, His Son.

Kyle Pope 2010