It is the most important question ever asked:
Does God exist?
And, if there is a God, what does that mean for me?
If a person is willing to consider the possibility that there may be a God… a supreme and all-powerful being… there are 7 things that it is possible to know about this Deity without ever opening a Bible. Just thinking about the world and what we know of the universe (how things and creatures are made and how they function) can reveal these observations of fact to anyone who is open-minded enough to consider them.
First, if there is an all-powerful God, He is good.
This is a relatively easy truth to discern. An all-powerful God could do whatever He wished to do. Therefore, if God were evil, He would delight in torturing His creation. This torture would go far beyond the sorrows caused by the most common and tragic (man-made) circumstances we currently experience, such as:
* man’s inhumanity to man, including any kind of abuse
* crimes we commit against each other,
* emotional hurts that we inflict upon one another,
* substances that we create and then abuse,
* wars and conflict
* greed and injustice
* accidents
An evil and all-powerful God would delight in our suffering. He would never want us to enjoy anything. “Natural” disasters would become every day occurrences. There would be no such thing as a “100 year flood” (a flood so significant that its like occurs only about once every 100 years). The destruction would be almost constant from every type of calamity. Floods, earthquakes, and huge storms would batter all of humanity. There would be no such thing as a wood frame house that had stood in the same spot for decades. We would be shelter-less, tortured, and helpless. The beauty that we know would be non-existent. An evil God would not want us to enjoy beauty… or peace… or life… or love. An evil God would delight in constant world-wide plague and famine. All safety, order, and predictability would be gone from what we call “nature” and from our lives if God were evil.
Secondly, if there is an all-powerful God, He is infinitely creative.
Anyone who has the curiosity and opportunity to really observe and study (even informally) the hugely varied species and forms of living creatures and of plant life can find endless fascination learning about life on Earth.
Each creature’s anatomy, habitat, instincts, and life patterns can become a field of study in itself.
Every form of plant life, from cactus to kelp to trees and shrubs, to flowers, and even plants that we consider to be weeds… each variety of plant life has its own beauty and its own story of survival.
From the vastness of space to the intricacies of the smallest creature and the interwoven functions of each ecosystem, the way that everything works together to sustain life is amazingly complex and creative.
Considering mankind, everything from the tiny lines on the skin of our fingertips to the unique characteristics of our eyes, facial structure, and voice are being used for indentification purposes because we are all unique, one of a kind individuals… down to the DNA in each of our body’s cells. If we are each created rather than just accidentally formed as part of the “circle of life”, then Someone is involved in every minute and miniscule detail, even in the infinitely small, beyond microscopic level.
Thirdly, if there is an all-powerful God, He is patient far beyond human understanding.
Wow. People do a lot of messing up. All of us do. Even those who are really trying not to mess up… still mess up. If God is all powerful, He could choose to zap us when we hurt someone else or hurt ourselves or hurt His heart. He could choose to enforce His will in whatever way He wished. If He is being patient with us and choosing to let us live our lives as we wish, we often don’t appreciate that patience because of the consequences of our own mess-ups and those of other people.
We want Him to zap them and be patient with us.
We want to do our own thing, but we want the consequences of our actions to magically disappear.
It doesn’t seem to work that way, though. If there is a God, it seems that all of us have likely tried His patience and broken His laws (perhaps, even his heart) and violated His will. If it wouldn’t be right for Him to treat one person’s mess-ups differently than another person’s, that must mean that He is motivated to behave differently that we do. Sometimes we excuse one person and are hard on someone else. We don’t have the same standards for everyone, even though we’d like to think of ourselves as fair and patient. If there is a God who is all powerful, He is so patient that He must know something we don’t know. He’s not a random “zapper”, so He must be just. If He is just, then He must have an eventual plan for justice; but we aren’t experiencing His enforcement of justice right now. Instead, patience reigns, along with all of the chaos, pain, and havoc we create. There must be a reason and a plan if there is an all-powerful God… a plan that allows Him to wait patiently for now.
Fourthly, if there is an all-powerful God, He is a God of order.
Seeds grow according to their kind of plant. Animals reproduce according to their species. Nature has a balance.
Seasons come and go. The world keeps spinning. There are life cycles, days, moon phases, months, years, orbits, gestational periods, instincts, migrations, hibernation, and the pull of gravity. There is cell structure, healing, birth, life, growth, aging, and death. There are elements, compounds, and chemicals which somehow have all been formed to make what we know as air, water, and land… a habitable environment. To believe that all of the order found in our world and all of observable space is accidental order, one must have tremendous faith in nothingness… or begin to wonder ???
Fifthly, if there is an all-powerful God, He wants us to know Him.
If there really is a God, the incredible profusion of variety in life forms and in objects within the universe must reveal some things about their maker, just as a painting reveals something about the artist or a song reveals something about the composer. The colors, shapes, function, and beauty around us must reveal something as well. If there is a God who really sent His Son, He must want us to know Him through personal relationship. If the Bible is truly His word, He must want us to know even more through revealing Himself in an autobiography. If He has placed within us a conscience that reveals what is right and good, He must want us to know both His nature and His desire for how we might best live. And, if it is true that He actually lives within those who accept Him as Lord and Savior and sends His Holy Spirit to them, His desire for us to know Him must be so fervent that He is willing to completely give Himself to us.
Sixth, if there is an all-powerful God, He must know everything about us.
It just makes sense to me that an all-powerful God must also be all-knowing. As we’ve seen in our world, the use of power without wisdom is a dangerous thing. Since we’ve already thought through the fact that God must be good if He exists at all, He must have the wisdom that enables Him to be good in ways that relate to us, His creation. There must be a plan in His mind and even some sort of intervention in our world and in our lives, of which we are apparently unaware. In order to know what we need and what will be right for the future of mankind, He would have to know our hopes, our fears, our sorrows, our pain, our failures, and what will ultimately bring us joy. We all have a desire for a happy ending, but our lives often do not follow the pattern we had hoped they would. Sometimes, we see that previous disappointments wound up being good for us in some way. Maybe, if there is an all-powerful, all-knowing God, everything is connected to His good plan for us in ways that we can’t see right now. It would take an unfathomable amount of wisdom and knowledge to balance the needs of every single person and to work in their lives in unseen ways. As a parent, I find this difficult to do with our six sons and one daughter. I can’t imagine the power and knowledge it would take to try to bless and reach out to all of mankind. And yet, if there is a God who is all-powerful and good, He must know us in order to do this, just as I must know my loved ones in order to relate to them in ways that matter.
Finally, if there is an all-powerful God, He is a God of love.
All of us are constructed with such a hunger for love, the capacity to love, and the deep, inner knowledge that somewhere there must be a more pure and perfect love. We value love more highly than anything else in life; and yet, we do not always treat those we love as we should. Our priorities do not always reflect the importance of loving and giving. We want that kind of love, and yet we find ourselves incapable of giving it as perfectly as we wish it to be given to us. If there is a capacity for both giving and receiving love, together with a hunger for pure love beyond what we know, these desires and capabilities must have an origin. It makes sense that if there is an all-powerful God who is also Creator and also a good God, then He would be the origin of everything good and of the best as well. Love is the best.
In conclusion, I have to say that these are my thoughts, based upon what I have seen, felt, experienced, read, and learned. These statements seem sensible to me. If I were still looking for answers to the question of whether God exists, I think these observations would make me want to keep looking, with a hope that I might find that something (Someone) is there.
~ Cynthia A. Boyd
What do you think?
If there is truly a God, an all-powerful Supreme Being, what does everything you’ve observed and learned and experienced tell you about who He is? What do you believe? Are we a cosmic accident, on our own in the universe? Or, is there a Creator who is powerful enough to form all that exists, for whatever purpose He desires.
Do your beliefs help you answer these three crucial questions?
1. Who am I? (Beyond defining yourself by relationships, abilities and traits, or by what you do)
2. How did I get here? (What chain of events resulted in my existence?)
3. What is my purpose? (Are you just here to live, work, play, relate, suffer, grow old, and die?)
We would love to hear from you and will publish any respectfully written comment that represents a point of view, even from those who have concluded that there is no God.
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Are you curious?
Would you like to know
what the Bible does say
about each of the 7 observations cited above?
* Observation #1: If there is an all-powerful God, then He is good.
What the Bible says about God’s goodness:
Nahum 1:7 ~ The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows them that trust in Him.
Psalms 145:9 ~ The LORD is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.
Psalm 100:5 ~ For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalms 107:8 ~ Oh that men would praise the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
Psalms 86:5 ~ For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon You.
Psalms 34:8 ~ O, taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusts in Him.
Psalms 136:1 ~ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
* Observation #2: If there is an all-powerful God, then He is infinitely creative.
What the Bible says about the creation / creativity of God:
Isaiah 40:28 ~ Have you not known? Have you not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not faint or become tired and weary? His understanding is unsearchable.
Psalms 19:1 ~ The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.
Psalms 104:24 ~ O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom, You have made them all: the earth is full of Your riches.
Psalms 8:3 – 4 ~ When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; 4 What is man, that You art mindful of him? And the son of man, that You abide with him?
Psalms 139:13-16 ~ For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth.
Psalm 104:10-14 ~ He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains. They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. He waters the mountains from His upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of His work. He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate, bringing forth food from the earth. (NIV)
Psalm 104: 24-25 ~ How many are your works, O Lord! In wisdom You made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number, living things both large and small. (NIV)
Job 12:7-10 ~ Ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.” (NIV)
Revelation 4:11 ~ You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for You have created all things, and for Your pleasure they are and were created.” (KJV)
* Observation #3: If there is an all powerful God, He is patient far beyond our understanding.
What the Bible says about God’s patience (sometimes translated as “long-suffering”):
Psalm 86:15 ~ But you, Lord, are a compassionate God, merciful and patient, with unending gracious love and faithfulness.
Romans 15:5 ~ Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another, according to Christ Jesus:
2nd Peter 3:15 ~ And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him–
2nd Peter 3:9 ~ The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some people understand slowness, but He is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to repent.
Romans 2:3 – 4 ~ Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself— that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?
* Observation #4: If there is an all-powerful God, He is a God of order.
What the Bible says about the Divine nature of God and His attribute of desiring and creating order and orderliness:
1st Corinthians 14:33 ~ For God is not a God of disorder but of peace – as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.
Colossians 1:16 – 17 ~ 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Romans 1:20 ~ For His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse.
From Genesis, Chapter 1:
11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.
20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
Psalm 147:4 – 5 ~ He determines the number of the stars; He gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; His understanding is beyond measure.
* Observation #5: If there is an all-powerful God, He wants us to know Him.
What the Bible says about God’s desire for us to know Him and seek Him:
John 17:3 ~ And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
Jeremiah 9:23-24 ~ Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; {24} But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the LORD.
Acts 17:27 ~ 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.
Psalm 46:10 ~ Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth!”
Jeremiah 29:11 – 13 ~ For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you. You will seek Me and find Me, when you seek Me with all your heart.
Hebrews 11:6 ~ But without faith it is impossible to please God: for he that comes to God must believe that He is (exists), and that He rewards those that diligently seek Him.
Psalms 70:4 ~ Let all those that seek You rejoice and be glad in You: and let those who love Your salvation say continually, “Let God be magnified.”
Verses about the how God has revealed Himself to mankind (and why):
Note: In addition to the revelation of who God is found in Creation, God has used the means found in the three scripture passages below to reveal Himself to mankind because of His desire for us to know Him. (He’s also used many other forms of direct revelation such as a burning bush, literal handwriting on the wall, and messages from angels.)
Verse dealing specifically with conscience and God’s law as a means used by God to reveal Himself and His truth to men:
From Romans, Chapter 2 ~
* Notes in parentheses and underlined have been added by the author of this post to explain the meaning of this scripture passage.
14 Indeed, when some people, who do not have the law (do not have Biblical law given by God as a part of their accepted beliefs), do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law (They demonstrate their acceptance of God’s laws as being “what is right”, even without necessarily having specific knowledge that these laws came from God.). 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)
Verse dealing specifically with the prophets and Jesus Christ as another means God used to reveal who He is to mankind:
Hebrews 1:1 – 2 ~ In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe (Hebrews 1:1,2).
Verse dealing with the reason God has revealed Himself and His truth in the Bible:
Romans 15:4 ~ For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide, we might have hope.
* Observation #6: If there is an all-powerful God, He must know everything about us.
What the Bible says about God’s knowledge concerning mankind and each individual:
Matthew 10:29 – 31 (Jesus speaking) ~ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. (without His knowledge) But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Isaiah 44:24 ~ Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: “I am the Lord, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself,
Isaiah 49:15-16 (God speaking) ~ “Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for a child she has borne? Even if that were possible, I would never forget you! See, I have engraved your name on the palms of my hands.”
Psalm 139:1 – 3 ~ O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; You are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue You know it completely, O Lord.
Job 34:21 ~ For His eyes are upon the ways of a man, And He sees all his steps.
Psalms 33:13-15 ~ The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men; From His dwelling place He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth; He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works.
Jeremiah 16:17 ~ For My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity concealed from My eyes.
2 Kings 19:27 ~ But I know your sitting down, and your going out and your coming in, and your raging against Me.
1 Corinthians 4:5 ~ Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.
* Observation #7: If there is an all-powerful God, He is a God of love.
What the Bible says about God’s love (and about love as an attribute of who God is):
Psalm 89:1 – 2 ~ I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make Your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that Your love stands firm forever, that You have established Your faithfulness in heaven itself.
Zephaniah 3:17 ~ The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you with His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.
1 John 4:7-8 ~ Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
1 Peter 5:6-7 ~ 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. 7 Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.
Jeremiah 31:3 ~ The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”
John 3:16 – 17 ~ For God so loved the world, that He gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.
Romans 5:8 ~ But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Galatians 2:20 ~ I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God. who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Ephesians 2:4-5 ~ But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses (sins), made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved.
1 John 4:9-11 ~ In this the love of God was made manifest (clearly shown) among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. This is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation (atoning sacrifice) for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
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