Is anyone out there?

As I turned the last page of chapter 8, I saw that we are now starting on the doctrine of God and felt a pulse of excitement. Though I have enjoyed getting a clearer idea of what the Bible is, I would say amen to the quote (I can’t remember whose so am paraphrasing): “I love the Bible in the same way I love my eyes, not because they are beautiful but because they allow me to see that which is beautiful”. I’m looking forward to finding out more of what God says about himself, to stir up my affections to adore him more. Since the first chapter (on the Existence of God) is very short I thought I’d do it straight away so I can get closer to the meaty chapters.

It’s so sad to see in Romans 1 that all people “suppress the truth” and have “exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man…” (who, as a sidetrack, were made in the image of God – so it’s exchanging God for an image of an image of God!) but I’ve seen it happen. Pete Woodcock was telling us that in atheist communist countries the schools had to teach children not to believe in God because it’s innate in us, yet when Dr Bill Craig presented five strong arguments for the existence of God the response of Dr Lewis Wolpert (his debating opponent) was “it’s all bunkum, every bit of it!” Our collective suppressing of the truth works, until people can “deny that they have an inner sense of God” (p141, footnote).

Incidentally, the arguments that Dr Craig used were number 1, 2 and 4 from p143 (which is possibly why I don’t understand argument 3 on that page!) and the argument from the miracles and resurrection of Jesus and the argument from personal experience of God. He used a slightly tighter version of the cosmological argument, which I found useful. He said that everything which begins must have a cause so there must be something which is eternal. Cosmology tells us that the universe had a start, so there must be something outside the universe – and therefore non-material and non-temporal (God) – which is eternal. John Humphrys (who was chairing the debate) gave his opinions on it in the Telegraph, here.

For Christians, since God is invisible and we are running on a promise until Jesus returns, the question of 'is this really true' still crops up from time to time. That is why I was encouraged by the strength of feeling that a sentence on page 142 produced:

“The intensity of this awareness [of our relationship with God] for a Christian is such that though we have not seen our Lord Jesus Christ, we indeed love him (1 Peter 1:8).”

Amen, I do love him, and long for the day when my awareness of him will be by my physical eyes.

Yet though the existence of God is not seriously in doubt for Christians, we can often act as atheists. I was challenged by the statement on page 142 that everything created continuously cries “God made me!” and question 1 which asked whether we see the whole earth as full of God’s glory (Isaiah 6:3) and if not, why not? Very often when I see aspects of creation I don’t turn that into praise of God – or even recognition of him. O, for a heart that recognises the Creator’s touch in everything and thanks him for it!