The Heavens Declare
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For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.—Romans 1:201
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Many years ago Sir Isaac Newton had an exact replica of our solar system made in miniature. At its center was a large golden ball representing the sun, and revolving around it were smaller spheres attached at the ends of rods of varying lengths. They represented Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars and the other planets. These were all geared together by cogs and belts to make them move around the “sun” in perfect harmony. One day as Newton was studying the model, a friend who did not believe in the biblical account of creation stopped by for a visit.
Marveling at the device and watching as the scientist made the heavenly bodies move in their orbits, the man exclaimed, “My, Newton, what an exquisite thing! Who made it for you?” Without looking up, Sir Isaac replied, “Nobody.” “Nobody?” his friend asked. “That’s right! I said nobody! All of these cogs and belts and gears just happened to come together, and wonder of wonders, by chance they began revolving in their set orbits and with perfect timing.”
The unbeliever got the message! It was foolish to suppose that the model merely happened. But it was even more senseless to accept the theory that the Earth and the vast Universe came into being by chance.—Richard W. de Haan
Evidential faith
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.—Job 38:42
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There are evidences that establish the reasonableness of faith in God and His existence; yet His existence cannot be established by scientific demonstration. The Bible teaches that people must believe that God is.3 Belief in the existence of God is not based on faith mixed with emotion. People can know that God exists. This knowledge is based on clear and sure revelation. On the other hand, belief in the existence of God is much more reasonable than a denial of God. Atheists claim to be scientific and rational in their denial of God. It can be seen, however, that they are neither scientific nor rational. Atheists have not proved mathematically, or by any scientific experiment, that God does not exist. The very fact that God is a Spirit4 makes this line of approach impossible in the first place.
Not being able to prove or disprove the existence of God by scientific experiment can only be an argument against God’s materiality, not against His existence. There is nothing in the physical world that can disprove the existence of a spiritual being. To be able to disprove the existence of God, people would have to be present everywhere and know all things. If people could possess such powers, they would but demonstrate that they are God, for the possession of such powers is an attribute of Deity.
Faith is based on evidence. People can know that God exists, for the evidence indicates His existence.—W. D. Jeffcoat
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The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.—Psalm 19:1–55
His declaration
When Psalm 19:1 tells us that “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork,” what are the heavens it is referring to? It is talking about not just the atmospheric heavens but the sun, the moon, the stars and constellations. These all declare the glory of God; they glorify the Lord, and show how great and wonderful God is! To declare is to make a statement—the heavens make a statement! In other words, the heavens are showing the glory of God; they’re faithful witnesses to the glory of God.
The Psalm goes on to say, “Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.” The heavens declare God’s glory, so they glorify Him, because they’re His creation and they show how He made them. They also show His knowledge, the way He organized everything with such intricacy.
In Romans 1, the apostle Paul says that God’s handiwork, His creation, makes a statement: “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world”—the invisible things of God, in other words, that there is a God, the fact of His existence even though we can’t see Him—“the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen.”
In other words, by the creation of the world, by looking at the physical creation, it is evident that there must be a Creator. “From the creation of the world these things are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.”6
So if people keep an open mind and are willing to receive it, God’s entire creation is speaking and telling us that there is a God. When you look out at the beautiful creation all around us, you know there’s a God. It’s the greatest proof of His existence.
His whole creation is talking. The whole planet is practically yelling, “There’s a loving God who loves you and who created you and created all the world for you to enjoy, and He wants you to love Him!” So “there is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.”7
Wherever there is speech and language, wherever there are people, they should be able to hear the speech and the language of God’s creation, to tell them that there is a God who loves them.—David Brandt Berg
Why is there something rather than nothing?
“The first question which should rightly be asked,” wrote G. W. F. Leibniz, is “Why is there something rather than nothing?” This question does seem to possess a profound existential force, which has been felt by some of mankind’s greatest thinkers. According to Aristotle, philosophy begins with a sense of wonder about the world, and the most profound question a man can ask concerns the origin of the universe. In his biography of Ludwig Wittgenstein, Norman Malcolm reports that Wittgenstein said that he sometimes had a certain experience which could best be described by saying that “when I have it, I wonder at the existence of the world. I am then inclined to use such phrases as ‘How extraordinary that anything should exist!’” Similarly, one contemporary philosopher remarks, “My mind often seems to reel under the immense significance this question has for me. That anything exists at all does seem to me a matter for the deepest awe.”—William Lane Craig
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Science supports the notion that the universe had a beginning and that something independent of the universe brought it into being. The well-accepted scientific belief in the universe’s origination and expansion and the second law of thermodynamics (energy tends to spread out) support the universe’s absolute beginning from nothing. This sounds remarkably like Genesis 1:1! The chances of a thing’s popping into being from literally nothing are exactly zero. Being cannot come from non-being; there’s no potential for this. Even skeptic David Hume called this “absurd”—a metaphysical impossibility.—Paul Copan
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Lord Kelvin (1824–1907), British inventor after whom the absolute scale of temperature is named, is known for his work on the first transatlantic telegraph cable and for formulating the Second Law of Thermodynamics. He said: “The commencement of life upon Earth certainly did not take place by any action of chemistry or electricity or crystalline grouping of molecules. We must pause, face to face with the mystery and miracle of the creation of living creatures.”
For myself, faith begins with a realization that a Supreme Intelligence brought the universe into being and created man. It is not difficult for me to have this faith, for it is incontrovertible that where there is a plan, there is intelligence. An orderly unfolding universe testifies of the truth of the most majestic statement ever uttered: “In the beginning God...”—Dr. Arthur Compton (1892–1962, Nobel Prize winner in physics)
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The most astounding thing God has ever done to show His existence to us is when He passed through the veil between heaven and earth and came to live among us as a man.—Sue Bohlin
Published on Anchor May 2016. Read by Jerry Paladino.
Music by John Listen.
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