In the creation / evolution controversy, it is often the case that non-believers consider creationists to be superstitious fools who cling to a mythical God. But when the facts are brought to light, it is actually those who do not believe in God who’s faith is ill-placed. The basis for the Christian faith is far more than just a whim or gut feeling. Our faith is backed up with reasonable scientific evidence which makes it the more logical choice than the faith of the unbelievers.
It’s sometimes difficult when we look at the naturalistic world we live in and come to the conclusion that there must be something out there that is supernatural. We don’t see supernatural things going on around us. Everything we see working in nature today has a natural explanation for how it functions so it is difficult to grasp something supernatural because we never get to see it in action. What nature cannot explain is how the universe and everything in it came to exist.
All matter in the universe has specific behaviors with no known exceptions. These behaviors have been identified and have been given descriptions which we call the laws of nature. The law of Gravity is one of them. These behaviors of matter are what gives us the order and functionality we have in nature today. If it were not for the law of gravity, life could not exist. And so it is for the other laws of nature as well.
Something has been in existence forever. We know this to be true because if ever there were a time in our history when nothing existed, then nothing would now exist. The law of Cause and effect states that for every material cause there must be an adequate prior cause. There are no known exceptions to this law. Something is out there that has to have existed forever. Something exists now, therefore something has to have existed forever. What is it?
There are only 3 possible answers to explain our origins. Either the universe has always existed, or the universe created itself out of nothing, or the universe was created. We have already eliminated the second option so that leaves only 2.
Has the universe always existed? The law of Conservation of Energy and Matter states that matter and energy cannot be created in nature. Matter and energy can be changed back and forth from one form to the other but it cannot be created or destroyed. Simply stated, what we have in existence today is all we have ever had and all that we will ever have. The law of increased entropy states that usable energy is becoming less and less available. The hydrogen which fuels our sun and the stars is being consumed and not being replenished. The fossil fuels we use here on earth are being consumed and are not being replenished. Eventually, all of this usable energy is going to run out. The stars will die, the sun will go out and our universe will become a dark, dead, lifeless place. These two laws of nature tell us that what we have now is what we have always had and that it is slowly running down. Has the universe always existed? No it has not. Not in this form anyway. Something, or someone, had to get it here, wind it up and jump start it. Something adequate to the task had to cause it to exist.
Option #1 has been eliminated. That leaves only one option left to explain our origins. The universe was created.
When all of this is considered together, it is evident that the existence of our universe is not possible under the laws of nature which govern the behavior of all matter. The creationists have faith in an intelligent all knowing all powerful supernatural creator. The atheistic naturalists have faith in a naturally occurring supernatural event. Neither of these have ever been observed therefore both require e a degree of faith.
When I look around at nature with its order, beauty, complexity and symmetry, I do not see a natural occurring supernatural event which caused the existence of our universe. Rather, I see the handiwork of an intelligent all knowing all powerful supernatural creator.
I’m basing my faith on the more probable and intelligent choice.
Psalms 14:1
The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.
Written by David Hersey