Is There Enough Evidence to Believe?

Is There Enough Evidence to Believe? To Believe or Not to Believe, That is the Question?

Dennis Edwards

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), the 17^th century French Mathematician and Philosopher, wrote in his book Pensées: "Willing to appear openly to those who seek Him with all their heart, and to be hidden from those who flee from Him with all their heart, God so regulates the knowledge of Himself that He has given indications of Himself, which are visible to those who seek Him and not to those who do not seek Him. There is enough light for those to see who only desire to see, and enough obscurity for those who have a contrary disposition.” 

Apostle Paul of Tarsus (5AD-65AD) said it a bit differently from Pascal. He said: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”  Romans 1:18-20.

 

Apostle Paul clarifies to us that the evidences for God are “clearly seen” so that all men are “without excuse.” He says unbelievers are “suppressing the truth,” or “holding back the truth in unrighteousness.” 

Dr. Greg Bahnsen (1948-1995) tells us: “The tasks of apologetics is to strip the unbeliever of his mask, to show him that he has really known God all along, but has suppressed the truth in unrighteousness, and that knowledge would be impossible without God. Apologetics in this way goes to the heart of the matter.”

 

In another discourse in Athens at the famous “Mars Hill,” or the Areopagus, Apostle Paul argued in the following manner: “I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So, you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.” Acts 17:23. Paul continues.

 

“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ Acts 17:24-28

 

“Therefore, since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17: 29-31

 

We see that Apostle Paul is making a reasonable defence for the belief in the Almighty God and uses the “fact” or evidence of the resurrection as its “proof.” 

Swiss Theologian Karl Barth (1886-1986) wrote: “Man can certainly flee from God, .... but he cannot escape Him. He can certainly hate God and be hateful to God, but he cannot change into its opposite, the eternal love of God that triumphs even his hate.”

 

But like Pascal notes, some men “flee from God with all their hearts.” In other words, they willing do not want to believe in Him. Something has happened in their lives that they reject the existence of God. For me, as a young adult, it was the fact that my girlfriend left me for someone else. As a result, I rejected my childhood faith and God with it. At the same time, I was in university. One course after another was attacking the principles of my Christian belief system and feeding me naturalism and atheism.

In Geology, I was learning evolution and millions of years of earth time. I accepted them readily and came to the conclusion that, if evolution was true, then I need not believe in God. My new “Creation Myth,” dressed in scientific clothing, was intellectually rewarding and freed me from the moral code I had adhered to throughout my childhood. I was free. God was dead, and so, I could do what I wanted to, and that extended to how I interacted with the opposite sex.

What did my new found freedom and belief system result in? It resulted in a sexual behaviour best described in today’s terms as attempted “date rape.” Afterwards, I was discussed with myself for acting like an animal, though, if we come from monkeys, and there is no God, why should we be surprised when we actually act like monkeys?

Dostoevsky (1821-1881), the Russian writer, wrote, “If there is no God, then everything is my will and I must express my will.” [1] Or as it is often stated today, “If there is no God, then everything is permissible.”  The occultist and Satanist Alexis Crowley (1875-1947) said something similar; “Do what you will, make it, (doing what you will), the whole of your law.”

Nike’s “do it” or "just do it," catch phrase may be implanting the same idea into our minds. Just do whatever you want to, and forget there is a God. We are being taught to “just do it.” But then, we are upset that some people are following that thought process to an extreme, even to the point of killing others to fulfil “their will” and express there “divinity,” and to "just do it."

The Apostle Peter (1BC-64AD), about two thousand years ago, predicted that in the last days men would be “willingly ignorant,” or “ignorant on purpose.” When we fall into unbelief, we don’t want to see the evidences for God. We don’t want God in our lives. We willingly reject Him. “Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires, (or “lusts,” as in the King James Version of 1611, or “doing what they will” as Alexis Crowley professed), and they will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation. But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water.” 2 Peter 3:3-6.

“By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed (at the time of the Genesis Flood). By the same word (of God) the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” 2 Peter 3:7.

As Dr. Greg Bahnsen said, and we read earlier, a good apologist will show the atheist the futility of his own reasoning. C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) made the same argument: “Supposing there was no intelligence behind the universe, no creative mind. In that case, nobody designed my brain for the purpose of thinking. It is merely that when atoms inside my skull happen, for physical or chemical reasons, to arrange themselves in a certain way, this gives me, as a by-product, the sensation I call thought. But, if so, how can I trust my own thinking to be true?

" But if I can’t trust my own thinking, of course I can’t trust the arguments leading to Atheism, and therefore have no reason to be an Atheist, or anything else. Unless I believe in God, I cannot believe in thought: so, I can never use thought to disbelieve in God.” [2]

When we reject God in our knowledge, we end up rejecting the creation story, the flood record, and the belief in a final judgment. We change our initial Theistic belief system into a naturalistic or atheistic one and exclude the supernatural from our way of thinking. Therefore, we look at only natural or “scientific” explanations for events that take place in the present or took place in the past. The supernatural is no longer in our thinking. Even if evidence seems to point in the direction of the supernatural, we ignore it. We cling to our naturalistic thinking even though we do not have a very convincing argument or explanation for the evidence at hand. We say, “Well, we don’t understand it now, but in time science will figure it out.” 

Richard Dawkins (1941-present), one of today’s most outspoken atheists has said, “The question of whether there exists a supernatural creator, a God, is one of the most important we have to answer. I think that it is a scientific question. My answer is - No.” 

When he was pushed to answer the question: What evidence would convince him that God exists? He responded, “Well, I used to say it would be very simple. It would be the second coming of Jesus or a great, big, deep, booming, bass Paul Robeson (1898-1976) voice saying, 'I am God, and I created.'

"But then I was persuaded … that even if there was this booming voice coming in the clouds of glory, the more probable explanation is that it’s a hallucination, or a conjuring trick by David Copperfield (1956-present), or something….A supernatural explanation for anything is incoherent. It doesn’t add up to an explanation for anything.” 

Dawkins was then further questioned what evidence, if any, would cause him to change his mind? He answered, “Well, I’m starting to think NOTHING would, which, in a way, goes against the grain, because I’ve always paid lip service to the view that a scientist should change his mind when evidence is forthcoming.” [3]

In other words, Dawkins is confessing that nothing would persuade him to change his mind. Even if Jesus appeared in the clouds with the holy angels, Dawkins would consider that he was delusional and needed psychiatric help. 

Apostle Paul of Tarsus, however, has explained what has happened to people like Dawkins. He wrote the following: "The god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not; lest the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine unto them.” 2 Corinthians 4:4

The mind of the unbeliever has been blinded by Satan. The Apostle Paul then gave the believers a strong warning. "I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve through his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ." 2 Corinthians 11:3.

Pascal states there is enough obscurity for those who have a contrary or disbelieving disposition to not believe. But Apostle Paul tells us that, actually, if we reject God, Satan is allowed to blind our understanding. A blinded understanding cannot see God or truth. Paul even goes as far to say that God allows the unbeliever to believe a lie. If the unbeliever wants to believe a lie over the truth, God lets him.

“And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12.

In the writings of Job, the oldest book in the Bible, written around 2,000 BC, we find Job saying: “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all 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." Job 12:7-10.

The famous German American rocket scientist Wernher von Braun (1912-1977) said, "My experiences with science led me to God. They challenge science to prove the existence of God. But must we really light a candle to see the sun?" [4]

George Washington Carver (1864-1943), one of the first famous Black American scientist, said that Nature was God’s 24-hour broadcasting station. He said, “I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.”

An honest scientist will go where the evidence leads him. But the trouble is there are very few “honest” scientists. Most are confined within their philosophical belief system and will not accept evidence that is contrary to what they believe. They will always interpret the evidence in accordance to their belief system, even if they don’t realize they are doing so. They can’t see the evidence any other way. 

C.S. Lewis was one of those rare atheists who followed the evidence of Christianity and came to belief in God even though it was contrary to his initial belief system. He later wrote about his new Christian world view in his essay “Is Theology Poetry?” and said, “I believe in Christianity as I believe the sun has risen, not because I see it, but because by it, I see everything else.”

C.S. Lewis also noted that: "A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you." His new found Christian worldview gave him an understanding that he hadn’t had before. He saw things differently than he had previously. 

A very similar experience had happened with Saint Augustine (354AD-430AD) who had been a libertine until the time of his finding God. Augustine said, "Seek not to understand that you may believe; but believe that you may understand."

Augustine is telling us that belief in God helps us to have a better understanding of the world around us. The Proverbs of Solomon (1001BC-931BC) agree and tell us, ""Wisdom is the principal thing, and with all your getting get understanding." Proverbs 4:7.

Another proverb goes on to say that if we seek for wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, as one that seeks for a hidden treasure, then we "shall understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God," Proverbs 2:1-5. It is “the fear of the Lord, (which) is the beginning of knowledge,” says Proverbs 1:7.

The proverbs are telling us that belief in God is the starting place for a correct understanding of the world around us. Therefore, we should seek to believe. We should investigate to find the truth. Finding truth will lead us to finding faith. Like God has said, if we would seek Him, we would find Him, if we would search for Him with all our hearts. Jeremiah 29:13. (Jeremiah 650BC-570BC)

Simon Greenleaf (1783-1853), the founding father of Harvard’s Law School, said the following after his careful investigation into the evidences for Christianity: "A person who rejects Christ may choose to say, that I do not accept it. He may not choose to say there is not enough evidence."

He also said that we should follow the science.

"There should be a readiness on our part to investigate with candour to follow the truth wherever it may lead us, and to submit without reserve or objection, to all the teachings of this religion, if it be found to be of Divine origins." He wrote, “Of the Divine character of the Bible, I think, no man who deals honestly with his own mind and heart can entertain a reasonable doubt. For myself, I must say, that having for many years made the evidences of Christianity the subject of close study, the result has been a firm and increasing conviction of the authenticity and plenary inspiration of the Bible. It is indeed the Word of God.” [5]

British scholar and the Director and Principal Librarian of the British Museum (1909-1931) Sir Frederick Kenyon (1863-1952), after twenty-five years of intense study of the ancient texts available from the Holy Land, including the Dead Sea Scrolls, said, “The Christian can take the whole Bible in his hand and say without fear or hesitation that he holds in it the true Word of God, handed down without essential loss from generation to generation throughout the centuries.”

In answer to the question of whether we can trust the Bible, he said the following: "It is reassuring at the end to find that the general result of all these discoveries and all this study is to strengthen the proof of the authenticity of the Scriptures, and our conviction that we have in our hands, in substantial integrity, the veritable Word of God." [6]

In Psalm 19:1-3, King David (1040BC-970BC) wrote some 1,000 years before Christ: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech; they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." Psalm 19:1-4a.

Is there really no evidence for God? The evidence is there for those who seek for it with an open and honest heart. We just have to look for it and listen.

Notes:

[1] https://www.the-philosophy.com/god-exist-permitted-Dostoevsky

[2] C.S. Lewis, The Case for Christianity, page 32

[3] https://www.str.org/node/43422?fbclid=IwAR0hWByx0qDLui4t0V3affkNDgoSJ-tHTlddW2SWeB8EGS9APR49LvfxdRk#disqus_thread

[4] https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Wernher_von_Braun

[5] https://www.thepoachedegg.net/2015/09/simon-greenleaf-the-divine-character-of-the-bible.html

[6] Kenyon, Sir. Frederick, “Our Bible and the Ancient Manuscripts” found in Gowens, Michael, L., “Be Ready to Answer,” p.36