Atheism And It's Problems
The following is based on Ray Comfort's book God Doesn't Believe in Atheists. This post is by no means exhaustive on the topic; my goal here is to provide the three main problems of atheism, as I see it.
Recently, I saw an atheist’s claim, “Atheists are Atheists because they are right; there is no god.” I promptly responded, “I assume you have proof for this claim; if I say, ‘Christians are Christians because they are right – there is a God,’ I need proof, and I have it. What proof do you have?” The trouble is that most atheists can’t tell you because they don’t have proof; their faith is based primarily on the assumption of “seeing is believing,” the “facts” of evolution, or the “blind faith” of atheism. Many atheists (some without realizing it) have fallen into a trap: it’s not that they can’t find God, it’s that they won’t, because they have hardened their hearts: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 14:1)
Ray Comfort was right when he stated, “The irony of the Christian faith is that it seems to be intellectual suicide, but proves to be the ultimate intellectual challenge.” Let’s examine a few of these “challenges” to the atheist view.
Many atheists will claim, “God doesn’t exist, because I’ve never seen Him.” In other words, “seeing is believing” for the atheist; he claims that seeing God would be all the proof he would need for His existence. However, he refuses to look at the created world around him; consequently, he fails to realize that God doesn’t need to be proved or disproved -- He is self-evident. If you see a painting, you know that there was a painter, even if you’ve never met him; this is self-evident. Likewise, the beautiful creation all around us demands a Creator, whether or not we can see Him. Just as a painting has a painter and a building needs a builder, so creation demands a Creator. We don’t have to see the person behind these things to know that they were made. If we don’t deny that the painting hanging on our wall has a painter, why should we look at creation and deny that the Creator exists? Or why should we demand to see Him in order to know that He exists when we have all of creation right in front of us? All we need are eyes that see and a brain that works to know that creation is evidence that there is a Creator. If the atheist would just look around him, he would “see” God in creation: “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen [by the eyes], being understood [by the brain] by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened…” (Romans 1:19-21)
Even though most atheists, if they are honest, will acknowledge that a painting has a painter, many still hold to their evolutionary beliefs in an effort to deny God’s existence. Once a Christian was asking how to answer some questions posed by his atheist friends. I responded that I thought evolution was the bigger picture here (one of his atheist friends had mentioned it in passing). I was treated like a naive fool, because the Christian failed to see the connection between atheism and evolution, and he didn’t think it was a big deal. However, atheism and evolution are both faiths. Where atheism states that there is no God, evolution supports it by claiming that millions of years ago there was a Big Bang that came from nowhere out of nothing and slowly formed by random processes into what we have today, thus eliminating the need for a Creator. But it is impossible for something to come from nothing. If you place a scientist in a lab and tell him to create something out of nothing, he can’t do it; as humans, we can only re-create using what materials are already present (i.e. made). Still, evolutionists claim that man and all of life evolved slowly over time from inanimate objects (originating from the “nothingness” of the Big Bang) into what we see today. Sir Fred Hoyle stated, “The likelihood of the formation of life from inanimate matter is one out of 10 to the 40,000th power.” Anything under 1 in 10 to the 50th power is considered to be impossible! The Bible states that God created everything and that things reproduce according to their kind, but evolution teaches that a fish can become a land-walking animal and an ape can become a man, if given enough time! This is absurd! Even a quick glance at any living, breathing thing (whether animal or human) reveals that nothing can survive without every organ, function, or part present. Granted, we do see variations within a species (microevolution); but macroevolution has never been observed, not even over millions of years – it must be taken on faith alone. Evolution is a religion; everywhere you look, you see “scientists” saying, “We believe, surmise, perhaps, possibly, etc.” It is based entirely on a fairytale; there is no evidence for it! If you think otherwise, hear what Darwin had to say about his own theory of evolution: “I was a young man with unformed ideas. I threw out queries, suggestions, wondering all the time over everything; and to my astonishment the ideas took like wildfire. People made a religion out of them!” Evolution leaves no room for a Creator, God; you can’t serve God and the idol of evolution. This is why Romans 1 goes on to state, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” (Romans 1:22-25) Therefore atheists cling to their evolution as an excuse to not believe in God.
Many atheists claim, “Because I don’t believe in God, He doesn’t exist.” Recently, an atheist used the parentheses to support his view that God does not exist. He said, “( ) ß See? Nothing, just like God.” I replied, “You use the parentheses to say that there is no God, but you CHOSE not to include Him.” This atheist had apparently staked his faith on his belief that there is no God. This reasoning is illogical; a blind man can believe that color doesn’t exist all he wants, but that doesn’t make it so. His belief doesn’t change the truth of reality. Likewise, just because someone doesn’t believe in God, that doesn’t mean He does not exist. People can believe whatever they want, but that doesn’t make them right. Many times, when an atheist perceives that there is an unanswered prayer, he uses this as an excuse to justify his claim that God does not exist; “If God existed, He would have intervened on that family’s behalf,” they say. Of course, if God did intervene, the atheist would not view it as a miracle, either; no, it can be explained some other way, because he doesn’t believe in God. However, God’s existence doesn’t depend on whether or not we have experienced Him – or whether or not we believe in Him. We may see the sun’s light and feel its warmth, but that is not why the sun exists; it does not exist because we experience its presence. It exists independently of human testimony. In fact, just because it gets cloudy or becomes night, this does not mean that the sun no longer exists. A blind man may say that the sun does not exist because he can’t see it, but this does not make it so. Likewise, God’s existence is independent of human testimony; He exists regardless of our feelings or beliefs. God exists independent of the Bible’s authenticity, the prophets, Creation, etc. These things can provide ample evidence for God’s existence, but His existence does not depend on them; God existed before the prophets, before the Bible was penned, and even before Creation – this is why He says, “I AM.” For the atheist to claim that God does not exist is to claim that he himself is all-knowing and ever-present. A man would have to travel to every nook and cranny of the universe to say that he is absolutely sure that God doesn’t exist, or he would have to be everywhere at once; both options are impossible for a finite human to accomplish. If I say, “There is no gold in China,” I have to know that there isn’t even a speck of gold on a tooth filling; so it is for the atheist in the case of God’s existence. He must admit that there are some things that he doesn’t know; he accuses Christians of following “blind faith,” yet he bases his whole life on his own set of blind beliefs – things he doesn’t know for sure, namely that God does not exist. This is intellectual suicide! Instead, he should become an agnostic! Now, he cannot bellow out the absolute statement, “God does not exist”; instead, he must say, “Because my knowledge is limited, I believe that God does not exist.”
The atheist has many reasons for rejecting God. However, we have covered three of the underlying reasons for his worldview. For one, he is so sure that “seeing is believing” that he doesn’t even give it a second thought; he has never seen God, so He must not exist, right? Yet, we see the outcome of God’s creative hand in Creation; if something is made, there must be a maker. To get rid of this self-evident truth, the atheist clings to his “theory” of evolution where there is no Creator. However, we have seen that there is plenty of proof for Creation, but not a stitch of evidence to support the fairytale of evolution. Just as evolution is a religion based on nothing but “theories,” so atheism is a religion which stakes its faith on shaky beliefs. Still, the atheist clings to this “blind faith,” because he is convinced that his belief is right that there is no God. However, a blind man can believe that something does not exist, and that does not make it so. Many atheists claim sincerity in their search for God, but when the evidence is staring them in the face, they reject it! The Bible predicted this long ago: “Their foolish heart was darkened,” Paul wrote; likewise David penned, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” As Ray Comfort said, “‘The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.’ (Psalm 10:4) It’s not that a person can’t find God, but that he won’t. It has been rightly said that the ‘atheist’ can’t find God for the same reason that a thief can’t find a policeman. He knows that if he admits there is a God, he is admitting that he is ultimately responsible to Him. This is not a pleasant thought for some.” Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8) If the atheist really appreciated the evidence that was being presented to him in favor of God’s existence, he would act upon it and believe in God, the Creator of the World – and of his very soul. The writer of Hebrews put it best: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
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Recently, I saw an atheist’s claim, “Atheists are Atheists because they are right; there is no god.” I promptly responded, “I assume you have proof for this claim; if I say, ‘Christians are Christians because they are right – there is a God,’ I need proof, and I have it. What proof do you have?” The trouble is that most atheists can’t tell you because they don’t have proof; their faith is based primarily on the assumption of “seeing is believing,” the “facts” of evolution, or the “blind faith” of atheism. Many atheists (some without realizing it) have fallen into a trap: it’s not that they can’t find God, it’s that they won’t, because they have hardened their hearts: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 14:1)
Ray Comfort was right when he stated, “The irony of the Christian faith is that it seems to be intellectual suicide, but proves to be the ultimate intellectual challenge.” Let’s examine a few of these “challenges” to the atheist view.
Many atheists will claim, “God doesn’t exist, because I’ve never seen Him.” In other words, “seeing is believing” for the atheist; he claims that seeing God would be all the proof he would need for His existence. However, he refuses to look at the created world around him; consequently, he fails to realize that God doesn’t need to be proved or disproved -- He is self-evident. If you see a painting, you know that there was a painter, even if you’ve never met him; this is self-evident. Likewise, the beautiful creation all around us demands a Creator, whether or not we can see Him. Just as a painting has a painter and a building needs a builder, so creation demands a Creator. We don’t have to see the person behind these things to know that they were made. If we don’t deny that the painting hanging on our wall has a painter, why should we look at creation and deny that the Creator exists? Or why should we demand to see Him in order to know that He exists when we have all of creation right in front of us? All we need are eyes that see and a brain that works to know that creation is evidence that there is a Creator. If the atheist would just look around him, he would “see” God in creation: “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen [by the eyes], being understood [by the brain] by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened…” (Romans 1:19-21)
Even though most atheists, if they are honest, will acknowledge that a painting has a painter, many still hold to their evolutionary beliefs in an effort to deny God’s existence. Once a Christian was asking how to answer some questions posed by his atheist friends. I responded that I thought evolution was the bigger picture here (one of his atheist friends had mentioned it in passing). I was treated like a naive fool, because the Christian failed to see the connection between atheism and evolution, and he didn’t think it was a big deal. However, atheism and evolution are both faiths. Where atheism states that there is no God, evolution supports it by claiming that millions of years ago there was a Big Bang that came from nowhere out of nothing and slowly formed by random processes into what we have today, thus eliminating the need for a Creator. But it is impossible for something to come from nothing. If you place a scientist in a lab and tell him to create something out of nothing, he can’t do it; as humans, we can only re-create using what materials are already present (i.e. made). Still, evolutionists claim that man and all of life evolved slowly over time from inanimate objects (originating from the “nothingness” of the Big Bang) into what we see today. Sir Fred Hoyle stated, “The likelihood of the formation of life from inanimate matter is one out of 10 to the 40,000th power.” Anything under 1 in 10 to the 50th power is considered to be impossible! The Bible states that God created everything and that things reproduce according to their kind, but evolution teaches that a fish can become a land-walking animal and an ape can become a man, if given enough time! This is absurd! Even a quick glance at any living, breathing thing (whether animal or human) reveals that nothing can survive without every organ, function, or part present. Granted, we do see variations within a species (microevolution); but macroevolution has never been observed, not even over millions of years – it must be taken on faith alone. Evolution is a religion; everywhere you look, you see “scientists” saying, “We believe, surmise, perhaps, possibly, etc.” It is based entirely on a fairytale; there is no evidence for it! If you think otherwise, hear what Darwin had to say about his own theory of evolution: “I was a young man with unformed ideas. I threw out queries, suggestions, wondering all the time over everything; and to my astonishment the ideas took like wildfire. People made a religion out of them!” Evolution leaves no room for a Creator, God; you can’t serve God and the idol of evolution. This is why Romans 1 goes on to state, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” (Romans 1:22-25) Therefore atheists cling to their evolution as an excuse to not believe in God.
Many atheists claim, “Because I don’t believe in God, He doesn’t exist.” Recently, an atheist used the parentheses to support his view that God does not exist. He said, “( ) ß See? Nothing, just like God.” I replied, “You use the parentheses to say that there is no God, but you CHOSE not to include Him.” This atheist had apparently staked his faith on his belief that there is no God. This reasoning is illogical; a blind man can believe that color doesn’t exist all he wants, but that doesn’t make it so. His belief doesn’t change the truth of reality. Likewise, just because someone doesn’t believe in God, that doesn’t mean He does not exist. People can believe whatever they want, but that doesn’t make them right. Many times, when an atheist perceives that there is an unanswered prayer, he uses this as an excuse to justify his claim that God does not exist; “If God existed, He would have intervened on that family’s behalf,” they say. Of course, if God did intervene, the atheist would not view it as a miracle, either; no, it can be explained some other way, because he doesn’t believe in God. However, God’s existence doesn’t depend on whether or not we have experienced Him – or whether or not we believe in Him. We may see the sun’s light and feel its warmth, but that is not why the sun exists; it does not exist because we experience its presence. It exists independently of human testimony. In fact, just because it gets cloudy or becomes night, this does not mean that the sun no longer exists. A blind man may say that the sun does not exist because he can’t see it, but this does not make it so. Likewise, God’s existence is independent of human testimony; He exists regardless of our feelings or beliefs. God exists independent of the Bible’s authenticity, the prophets, Creation, etc. These things can provide ample evidence for God’s existence, but His existence does not depend on them; God existed before the prophets, before the Bible was penned, and even before Creation – this is why He says, “I AM.” For the atheist to claim that God does not exist is to claim that he himself is all-knowing and ever-present. A man would have to travel to every nook and cranny of the universe to say that he is absolutely sure that God doesn’t exist, or he would have to be everywhere at once; both options are impossible for a finite human to accomplish. If I say, “There is no gold in China,” I have to know that there isn’t even a speck of gold on a tooth filling; so it is for the atheist in the case of God’s existence. He must admit that there are some things that he doesn’t know; he accuses Christians of following “blind faith,” yet he bases his whole life on his own set of blind beliefs – things he doesn’t know for sure, namely that God does not exist. This is intellectual suicide! Instead, he should become an agnostic! Now, he cannot bellow out the absolute statement, “God does not exist”; instead, he must say, “Because my knowledge is limited, I believe that God does not exist.”
The atheist has many reasons for rejecting God. However, we have covered three of the underlying reasons for his worldview. For one, he is so sure that “seeing is believing” that he doesn’t even give it a second thought; he has never seen God, so He must not exist, right? Yet, we see the outcome of God’s creative hand in Creation; if something is made, there must be a maker. To get rid of this self-evident truth, the atheist clings to his “theory” of evolution where there is no Creator. However, we have seen that there is plenty of proof for Creation, but not a stitch of evidence to support the fairytale of evolution. Just as evolution is a religion based on nothing but “theories,” so atheism is a religion which stakes its faith on shaky beliefs. Still, the atheist clings to this “blind faith,” because he is convinced that his belief is right that there is no God. However, a blind man can believe that something does not exist, and that does not make it so. Many atheists claim sincerity in their search for God, but when the evidence is staring them in the face, they reject it! The Bible predicted this long ago: “Their foolish heart was darkened,” Paul wrote; likewise David penned, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” As Ray Comfort said, “‘The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.’ (Psalm 10:4) It’s not that a person can’t find God, but that he won’t. It has been rightly said that the ‘atheist’ can’t find God for the same reason that a thief can’t find a policeman. He knows that if he admits there is a God, he is admitting that he is ultimately responsible to Him. This is not a pleasant thought for some.” Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8) If the atheist really appreciated the evidence that was being presented to him in favor of God’s existence, he would act upon it and believe in God, the Creator of the World – and of his very soul. The writer of Hebrews put it best: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
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