Rediscovering The Truth About Creation

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In considering the merits of this particular proof, one must readily confess that the truth of Criterion One is obvious. All should easily accept that criterion because God's things have survived. In addition, though, many of us have also observed the mysterious transformation which takes place in a person's heart when that individual has a personal encounter with God. This transformation is the actual movement in the person's life from Criterion Two to Criterion Three. It is evidenced by the believer who has, at some time, experienced an internal void or the feeling that something was missing from his or her life and then experienced the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the wonderful feeling of that void being filled. From there, Criterion Four, the new life, has also fallen into place for all Christians and is easily observable because God does change and make better. In that regard, the Bible says:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come. All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ [1].

It is a true statement to say that all believers, those who have come to the Lord by faith, have experienced these four criteria. It is not true to merely think or say that such people have simply turned over a new leaf or chosen to become "religious." When a person meets God, he or she is changed forever. Not only that, but God reveals Himself to them in a way that they can know that He is real, many times before they can even understand what has happened.

Consider once again those martyrs who were previously mentioned! These were not super people or giant Christians. They did not possess a greater quantity of the Holy Spirit than other Christians. They were just simple followers of Christ trying to live their life for their Lord. Therefore, the lesson of their lives should be clear to us! To all His people, the Lord has given the same Spirit, and to all, He has provided a capacity to serve.

One would not perhaps consider martyrdom as an ideal form of service. Yet, such thinking is not spiritually correct! The best service, even when coming down to the end of one's life, is to be faithful to the Lord and to do whatever He wishes. Those who were persecuted for their faith have, by their actions, shown the rest of the world that God is real and that He can carry His people through any ordeal, even persecution and death.

Can present-day Christians face a similar challenge and find victory? That, too, is a difficult question to answer, but I am persuaded that the Lord will provide sufficient Grace for any occasion, whether it be in life or in death, even if that occasion turns out to be a form of Twentieth or Twenty-First Century martyrdom!

Now, consider the "before" proof! This proof, of course, applies to all of those who have not received the Lord through faith. These people, too, have their proof because He has given them the evidence of the first two conditions.

First, the Lord has given them Criterion One to show that His things have survived through the Ages. To someone who does not know Him personally, this knowledge is important because it shows that God is not just a here-today, gone-tomorrow fluke. Recall the earlier discussion which referred to this characteristic as the Gamaliel factor! Secondly, He has also given them Criterion Two by putting that feeling within that tells the unbeliever that something is missing. When a person has pursued a particular lifestyle, but somewhere along life's way begins to feel an inner void, then that feeling of emptiness has come from God. He does not speak to us audibly. That has already been pointed out several times. But He does speak to our heart, and through those subtle, silent messages, He does tell us that He is real and that we need Him! I know and understand these sensations well, as do all who have actually called upon Him.

Unfortunately, people many times hear the message but then try to soothe that longing by other means. Trying to be a good person is one way. Trying to make a lot of money or gain power are others. But these types of efforts do not work! Many have traveled life's highway and acquired great earthly treasures, only later to learn that these things do not really satisfy the emptiness. Only one method is foolproof, and that is by coming to the Lord. When He fills that inner emptiness, the job is complete, and the individual who experiences such a filling will know that something wonderful has happened. Incidentally, at that precise moment, the "before" proof in such a person's life will be immediately replaced by the "after" proof.

As can be seen, God does have a clear plan for all individuals, and His is a plan which works! To the believer, He gives Criteria One through Four. To the unbeliever, He gives the first two, but also, He gives the unbeliever an additional evidence which has not yet been mentioned.

These people, as long as they remain unbelievers, cannot experience Criteria Three and Four, at least not until they transition over and become believers. Therefore, the Lord has placed in their presence multitudes of believers who have already taken that step and experienced all four. In God's plan, those who have come to know Him are tasked to bring to Him those who have not. Consequently, while unbelievers cannot experience these last two criteria until they have crossed over and become believers, they can at least view others who have already made that choice and make the Lord's witnessing program complete. See Table 8 for a list of the "before" proof's three points.

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Table 8. The Three Points of the "BEFORE" Proof.

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As we complete this chapter, a final thought about proving God's existence is worth noting. The Lord is all-powerful. Even though He does not speak audibly, He can if He wants. Even though He does not visibly reveal Himself, He can do that, too, if He chooses. But instead of doing either, He simply remains silent and invisible. Why?

I will try to answer this final question with my own theory about this phenomenon. A few years ago, I learned an important and fascinating spiritual principle, one which many do not clearly understand. It is that if you have the heart to believe a lie, then God will let you do so. To many, these words may sound almost blasphemous, but of this principle I am absolutely sure!

Consider all the efforts by others to prove God's existence. Probably among those who do not believe in Him, all of the arguments have tended to go in one direction. Among all those who do believe in Him, the same is probably true, only the arguments have gone in the opposite direction. But in general, even though the debate has raged for centuries, there is still not much new under the sun!

My approach to understanding and identifying God has been to define four criteria, which as a born again Christian I know to be true. Furthermore, these criteria show God in a relevant setting. However, as a mathematician, I am not sure that I can claim this proof to be truly valid, at least not in a mathematical sense. My proof for God, like all other proofs, can only go so far before one can logically go no further. As I have already stated, I know full well how hard it is to truly "prove" my final three criteria. They involve trying to explain the human psyche in very general terms, and no one can really do that with much success!

Do these remarks mean that God does not exist? No! Do they mean that He cannot be proven? Not exactly! What one must understand is that God proves Himself. We do not prove Him. He proves Himself by showing that His things can survive. He proves Himself by placing in the heart of the unbeliever the unsettling feeling of something missing. He proves Himself to the believer by filling that internal void and by giving those who come to Him a new life. BUT He does not prove Himself to anyone by modern man's logic.

If He wanted to, He could sweep across the sky and show Himself to all, or He could speak a million words for all to hear. These actions would certainly settle the issue, but He does not do either of them! What is the truth? The truth is that He does exist. Many, many Christians would attest to the criteria which I have identified. But the other side of this truth is that He does not reveal Himself through slide rules and calculators. All those who know Him personally have had to come to Him on His terms, not theirs, and this will never change! Thus, the statement just made is still true. If a person wants to believe the lie, which in this case is that God does not exist, then the Lord really will let him or her do so.

I can go back to Mr. Weinberg's statement about finding God in the final laws of nature and confirm what he already suspects. He will not find God in those laws, but only because God does not choose to reveal Himself there and also because Mr. Weinberg is apparently content just to have the final laws of nature. How does the Lord operate? This is pretty simple! He reveals Himself in a person's heart, not in their intellect. He reveals Himself to individuals, not to the masses. The intellectuals write off Christianity as emotions and a simplistic Faith. Neither are completely true! The would-be believer takes that first step to the Lord by faith, but after that, faith is quickly supplemented by results.

Result one is the filling of that inner void by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God, which is Criterion Three. Result two is a new life in Christ, which is Criterion Four. This latter result, by giving the unbeliever a way out of his current condition, also confirms the flip side of the above statement about believing a lie. If one has the heart to seek and know the truth, then God will show the truth to that one. The cry of every Christian to an unbelieving world should be on the same order as for that young blind man whom Jesus healed. When confronted by the Pharisees, those who sought to show Jesus a sinner and to discredit what He had done, this young man simply said:

"Whether Jesus is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see [2]!"

As with this blind man who was healed of his infirmity, so it is for all Christians. Faith is quickly supplemented by results. Many believe that Christianity is mostly about emotions. However, it is not about feelings and emotions nearly so much as it is about the possession of the Holy Spirit of God. These things are real, but God is very careful about how He reveals Himself!

The conclusion cannot be denied. God is real! He is the Creator! Christians have made these claims for centuries, simply because they have experienced firsthand the four criteria which make up the aforementioned "after" proof. To go along with this positive information, science has no valid, truly scientific challenge to counter these criteria. The truth, therefore, is equally clear. All who seek the Lord find Him if they do so on His terms. When scientists, educators, and other intellectuals put down their intellectual facade, lay aside their polished educations, and come to Him on His terms, then they, too, will find Him and become one more of the many who really know Him. Then, they too can puzzle over how to prove the existence of One Who chooses to remain invisible and silent!