EVIDENCE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD

PSALM 19:1-4

During World War II, a proverb developed among military men – “There are no atheists in foxholes.” The meaning, of course, is that in times of crisis, every human being seeks a Higher Power, even those who strenuously object to the existence of God during times of peace. The Bible supports this idea that every person inherently understands that there is a God. It also adds that humanity has a sinful, constitutional aversion to acknowledging such proof (Rom. 1:18-32).

What is the evidence for the existence of God-evidence that is available to every human being? As the words of Psalm 19:1-4 attest: 1. The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handwork. 2. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. 3. There is no speech, nor are there words whose voice is not heard. 4. Their voices go out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.

By day the heavenly expanse “pours out speech” and by night it “reveals knowledge.” In their own way, the elements of creation declare God’s glory in such a way that humans are without excuse. According to Paul 1:19, 20, the reason no one can be excused for denying the existence of God is because we are surrounded by it: “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes…have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuses."

If His existence is so apparent, why do so many still refuse to acknowledge that there is a living God, and that He is active today? “By their unrighteousness,” humans “suppress the truth”; they foolishly claim, “to be wise”; “they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator”; they did not see fit to acknowledge God” (Rom. 1:18, 22, 25, 28). These are all things people do of their own choosing and for which they will be held accountable. God does not conceal Himself, even from the unrighteous.

Paul says that people become “fools” when they deny God’s existence (Rom. 1:22), possibly paraphrasing the words of Psalms 14:1 and 53:1: “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ But King Solomon said something different about the heart of man; “(God) has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end” (Eccl. 3:11).

Solomons’ point is that this world cannot satisfy the human heart. Humanity was created for eternity, which leads to a longing for something beyond this world. This longing for “eternity” is a eternity because they do not bear God’s image. But humankind contemplates eternity and the need for Something bigger because of a longing to reconnect with the God of all creation.

The Bible verifies that the understanding of God based on creation alone is not adequate for a saving knowledge of God. A person’s sinful nature must be quickened by the Spirit of God to cause him or her to embrace the specific truth about salvation by faith through Christ. But there is sufficient evidence, even to sinners who have never heard the gospel, that God does indeed exist (2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:8,9).

Pastor David Jerimiah