How do we know there is a God?

It is said that on one occasion when the Green Bay Packers had played well beneath their capabilities, that then coach, Vince Lombardi came into the locker room and said (displaying a football in his hand) “Gentlemen, this is a football.” He meant that they needed to go back to basics and learn again the first principles of the game. We, too, I am afraid, need to go back to the basics of the Bible and learn all over again.

There is a God, just One, but there is a God who created this universe with all of its complexities and wonder. It did not just happen, it was created by an intelligent being, called God.

I look at a watch or an automobile, and I have no trouble believing that behind this thing there must be a person or person’s who designed and manufactured the item. There is the design, the functionality of the item, and a purpose for it. We would not assume that the watch or car resulted from an explosion in a junkyard. It was designed and made by a person, a thinking person. In like manner, the earth and man were designed and created by a person – God!

The Diest believe in a god who designed and created the world and mankind, then walked off into space and left man to figure out how to live and how to worship this unknown god.

The god of the Unitarian is not a person having life, but an invisible, intangible but very real something we call life. It is the total of all that we call good. Since our definition of “good” changes often, this would be a changing god.

The god of the Cults is created with the attributes that suit the teaching of each cult and will always resemble the personality of the cult leader. In the beginning, God created man, and the cults keep trying to return that favor by creating a god of their own.

The God of the Bible is a triune God, one God in three persons. We call this the Trinity. Each Person in the Godhead has a specific office. God the Father superintends the universe. God the Son is the Savior, and God the Holy Spirit is the in-dweller. All three were involved in the creation of the world and man. In Gen.1:1, the Hebrew word for God is ‘elohiym, which is a plural noun. It suggests a plurality in the Godhead. This is confirmed by the statement in Genesis 1:26 where God says, “Let us make man in our image.” Note the use of the plural pronoun but singular “image”.

Matthew Henry said this about man’s creation by God. “That man’s creation was a more signal and immediate act of divine wisdom and power than that of the other creatures. The narrative of it is introduced with something of solemnity, and a manifest distinction from the rest. Hitherto, it had been said, “Let there be light,” and “Let there be a firmament,” and “Let the earth, or waters, bring forth” such a thing; but now the word of command is turned into a word of consultation, “Let us make man, for whose sake the rest of the creatures were made: this is a work we must take into our own hands.”

In the former he speaks as one having authority, in this as one having affection; for his delights were with the sons of men, Pro. 8:31. It should seem as if this were the work which he longed to be at; as if he had said, “Having at last settled the preliminaries, let us now apply ourselves to the business, Let us make man.”

Since man is created in God’s image, let’s look at man for some clues to what God is like. Man is a trinity – body, soul, and spirit. Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” If, then, man is created in God’s image, God is also a trinity. Since each person is a single unit, God is one God, but a Trinity. Each part of man serves a different function. The body is the presence or that which gives uniqueness to the individual. The soul is the mind and personality of the individual, and the spirit is that part of man that enables him to communicate with the eternal God.

In the Garden of Eden, Adam was told: Genesis 2:15 “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Now, on that day on which the forbidden fruit was eaten, Adam and Eve did not die physically, their soul did not die. But they died spiritually that day, and had a wall between God and themselves. They ran and hid, rather than seek fellowship with God. They became guilty and in need of a Savior. The Word of God can cut deep into a person, bringing life to that spirit that is dead and giving new life. A redeemed person is, once again, the trinity that God created in the first man on earth, reflecting the Triune God.

This God has certain characteristics that are unique to Him. He is Omniscient, which means that He knows all there is to know about anything or anyone. Often we forget that He knows our every thought and our desires. We hesitate to confess our sins to Him, and yet He knows them better than we do. When Job was questioning God about his circumstances, God asked him some very pointed questions that Job could not answer.

Job 38: 4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. 5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? 6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; 12 Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place;”

God is also Infinite and Eternal. When Moses was confronted by God at the burning bush, and asked God for a name to give to Pharaoh for the One who was sending him on his mission, God answered: Ex 3:14 “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” He is present at all times.

God is Omnipresent. The Psalmist put that this way in Psalm 139:7-10, “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.”

God is also Omnipotent, or all powerful. He said, “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?” Jeremiah 32:27. There is no one or nothing too hard for Him. My friend, your case is not too hard for Him.

God is also perfect Love. John 3:16 states His love most powerfully, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” God loves you, my friend, and He wants you to enjoy Him forever in His heaven. Right now, where you are, you can receive His Son, Jesus Christ, as your personal Savior and Lord. Pray this prayer in your heart now, “God, I know that I am a sinner and that I need a Savior. I ask you to forgive all my sins and give me the eternal life that you promised in John 3:16..I now receive Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord. Amen.” Now, if you prayed that prayer and mean it, contact us at www.bbnchat.org and tell us.

For more about this topic see: 080301 Biblical Doctrine of Creation
Or visit our BBN Bible Institute and register to study course # 50800 Understanding Creation