How to Logically Prove the Existence of God
“I don’t need your dusty old Bible or your concept of God to control my life!” The remark was something of a surprise to the ears of the man at the Christian book table. The student who uttered those words was a physics student named Jamie who usually seemed open to spiritual matters.
The man at the book table, named Larry, was taken aback but recovered and said “Jamie, it’s nice to see you and congrats on your outstanding work in physics. I understand you’ll be graduating Magna Cum Laude. You’re a rational and logical person. Let me give you a clear illustration that proves the logical necessity of an intelligent being as the creator of the universe.
Jamie huffed and said: “You’re gonna try to convince me that God exists by giving me some kind of simple illustration? Are you nuts? This should be a flat joke. Go ahead and give it a try.”
Larry held up a small stone and said: “Do you see this rock? I’m gonna use this rock to prove to you that there has to be a Creator God!”
Larry continued: “There are only four possible ways to account for the existence of this rock:
1) The rock always existed.
2) The rock is an illusion and doesn’t really exist.
3) The rock created itself out of nothing or
4) The rock was created by an intelligent divine being who always existed.
“Let’s take these one at a time:
“The first claim is that the rock always existed. No self respecting scientist would stand up and say this rock always existed. Such a claim violates the second law of thermodynamics. Einstein and all scientists have affirmed the fundamental authority of the laws of thermodynamics. The second law of thermodynamics, the law of entropy, is a basic law of physics that proves that the universe is running down towards heat death. If this rock always existed from all eternity, it and the whole universe would have been at extreme entropy and heat death long ago.
“The second claim is the claim that the rock doesn’t really exist but is an illusion. No scientist takes this claim seriously. Even philosophers reject this claim because of the work of Rene Descartes, founder of modern rationalism, who wrote, ‘I think, therefore, I am.’
“The third claim is that the rock created itself out of nothing. Some people promote the scientifically unfounded notion that physical matter and the energy contained in matter could create itself from nothing. This flies in the face of the first law of thermodynamics, the law of conservation of energy. If you abandon the laws of thermodynamics, you have abandoned science itself. You have become a speculative philosopher engaged in the art of storytelling even if you use scientific jargon to make your point.
“The claim that matter could create itself from nothing is called “spontaneous generation.” It not only violates the first law of thermodynamics but also violates the laws of logic because for something to create anything, it first has to exist. If we go back to a time when matter did not exist, matter could not create matter. Matter would have to exist and not exist at the same time, if it were to spontaneously generate itself. That would be a contradiction. That’s illogical in the extreme!
“Prominent theologian R.C. Sproul has said that ‘according to the laws of logic, if anything exists now, something must have always existed’ That something which always existed could not be matter or energy because of the first and second laws of thermodynamics. There is no physical explanation for the origin of matter, so there must be a nonphysical explanation for the origin of matter.
“The One who resides outside the realm of physics is God. God resides in the realm of spirit. The scientific evidence that points to the fact that the universe had a beginning is evidence that cries out for a creator who is outside the physical universe, in a different dimension, the realm of spirit.
“This brings us to the fourth claim which is the claim that an intelligent being has always existed. He has no beginning. He brought all things into being by creating them. It takes great intelligence to design and build the universe. Imagine the intelligence needed to create the marvelous complexity of living things. It’s not as though an intelligent God might exist. God must exist or science, philosophy and all matter and energy have no logical starting point!”
Jamie replied: “I agree that there had to be some kind of Intelligent Designer or Supreme Being or cosmic force to bring planet earth and life into being but why would you think that it must be the Christian God? Why not the gods of other faiths or even a non-sentient being like the Star Wars ‘force’?”
Larry replied: “I’d like to show you that once a person makes the leap from atheist to believer, he begins to slide down a slippery slope toward belief in the God of the Bible. When an atheist examines the evidence all around him in nature that points to the logical necessity of a creator, he says ‘OK, you got me! There has to be some kind of intelligent designer of life or, if you insist, I guess I should say the designer is God.’ Such a person might be a reluctant believer. Such a newly minted believer might, at first, reject belief in the biblical God.
“However, once he concedes that there is a God, he would logically have to admit that God must have certain attributes if He created the extreme complexity of the world in which we live. One attribute would be intelligence. God would have to be intelligent in order to design and build the galaxies, the sun, earth, moon, and living things, including the smallest of cells. That’s a no brainer.
“Our new believer would also have to concede that if God is intelligent, He must be a person. Where there is intelligence there must be personality. Intelligence is the very basis of personality. God is an intelligent person. To be logical, we must admit that we have a personal God as Creator. No Star Wars “force” will make the grade!
“Our new believing friend would also have to admit that if God created the universe He must have all knowledge about the universe. Aside from the intelligence needed to create the universe, God would also have all information about the universe. God knows the past and future of the universe because He set it in motion. God designed and built the human mind and will. God knows what human beings will do. God has all knowledge. God is omniscient. This is starting to sound a bit like the Christian God. Let’s continue.
“If God has the ability to create the universe, He must have an immense amount of power. It’s fair to say that God would have all power over His universe. If God has the power to create it, He has power to destroy it or change it or expand it or shrink it or do whatever He wants to do with His universe. God has all power. God is omnipotent. This is what the Bible teaches us about God.
“It’s also fair and rational to say that if God created the universe, He owns the universe. The universe is God’s personal property. Everything, from the coins in our pockets to the most distant star system, ultimately belongs to God. If God owns the universe, it means He can do whatever He wants with the universe. Therefore God is sovereign over the universe and has all authority over the universe. Therefore God is the ultimate determiner of right and wrong in the universe. God gives the moral absolutes. God is the ultimate lawgiver. God’s moral laws apply to all people at all times and in all cultures. God is King of kings because He owns the universe. This too, is what the Bible teaches about God.”
Larry continued: “Here’s where it gets a little subjective. It’s also reasonable to expect that God, as moral lawgiver, would desire to speak to His people and tell them what He wants them to do or not do. This is the principle of divine revelation. If God speaks to people, it’s reasonable to expect that His words would be written down in a book. It’s also reasonable to expect that an all-knowing and all-powerful God would confirm His written revelation with predictive prophecies that come to pass in human history. God would also confirm His words by the working of miracles. This is exactly what we see in the Bible.
“It’s fair to say that God as lawgiver would also be the divine law enforcer. God judges those who break His laws and hurt other people. We are thankful that God is not only a law enforcer but God has also provided for forgiveness of those who break His laws but afterwards repent of their folly. God is the redeemer.
“To recap: God is the creator, He is intelligent; He is a person, He is all-knowing; He is all-powerful; He is owner of all things, He has final say on right and wrong, God reveals His will and He has provided for forgiveness for those who violate His will.”
Jamie spoke up and said: “Larry, that’s a pretty impressive daisy chain of logical statements about God but what further proof do you have to show that God has to be the Judeo-Christian God?”
Larry countered: “The proof is prophecies and miracles. Islam, Hinduism and the gods of the cults aren’t backed by prophecies and fulfillments of prophecies like we find in the Bible. No holy book of any other faith, including the Quran and the Hindu Vedas, has anything to compare to the many hundreds of prophecies written in the pages of the Bible. The prophecies in the Bible and their fulfillments in human history are like God’s signature on His holy book. Then there’s the miracles of healing. Jesus worked miracles in front of eyewitnesses. Miracles of healing and answers to prayer still occur today among Christians. The Quran doesn’t even claim that Mohammed worked miracles. The religion with the best miracles wins. Christianity is the faith that is backed by the best prophecies and the best miracles. Jamie, how about you turn to God right now, in repentance, and ask Jesus to come into your heart!”
Larry then led Jamie in prayer to receive Christ as Savior to have his sins forgiven.
“Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).
How about you? God provided for forgiveness of sins by sending Jesus Christ who came in fulfillment of over 300 Old Testament prophecies. The biblical prophets foretold that Christ would suffer and die, taking upon Himself the penalty we deserved for our sins. This is called substitutionary atonement. One Old Testament prophet wrote about Christ, centuries before Christ’s birth: “He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5 NASB). Once He paid the penalty for our sins, Christ was raised from the dead to offer forgiveness of sins to all who call upon Him. I invite you to turn to Christ today to receive forgiveness of sins!
Steps to salvation:
Jesus said “Ye must be born again” (John 3:7).
1) Believe that God created you and loves you and sent the Messiah (Messiah is Hebrew for Christ) to redeem you.
2) Believe that Jesus Christ came to die for you, to take upon Himself the penalty of your sins (Isaiah 53:5–6, John 6:29, Romans 4:5, First Peter 3:18).
3) Repent of your sins and call on the name of Jesus to receive forgiveness of sins (Romans 10:13).
4) Receive Jesus as Savior and experience the new birth (John 1:12, Acts 2:38).
5) Follow Jesus Christ as Lord and be baptized (John 14:15, Acts 2:38).
Prayer to receive salvation:
To receive the salvation which Jesus purchased for us at the terrible cost of His suffering and death on our behalf I invite you to pray this simple prayer:
“Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for sending Jesus, the promised Messiah, to die for my sins. I admit that I am a sinner. I repent of my sins and I ask you to forgive me on the basis of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit to empower me to serve you under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, Amen.”
If you prayed this prayer in the humble sincerity of your heart, then you have received everlasting life, which includes power to live right in this life and entrance into heaven in the afterlife!
Bill Nugent, Overcomer Ministries of Fort Mill, South Carolina, USA
Christian book, Lawful or Legalistic by Bill Nugent available in paperback!
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