Thursday, February 09, 2006

Can you prove that God exists?

Welcome to the GOSPEL Journey discussion. These posts are to help you engage with the central message of the Bible. This week, we will be dealing with the statement: God created us to be with Him. Comment. Question. Agree. Disagree. Either way, let us know what you think.

Can you prove that God exists?

A central pillar of any religion is faith. In fact, many today speak of religions and their structures as "faith systems." But did you realize that even the unreligious have to exercise faith? You place faith in all kinds of things during the course of your day. (faith that your seatbelt will hold you, faith that your teacher knows what they are talking about, faith that your food isn't poisoned...or in the case of cafeteria food, not poisoned too much).

Take a look at Hebrews 11:1-6 and then answer the following questions:

1. What is faith?
2. Does this passage say it takes faith to accept the creation story?
3. Read about Abel and Enoch. What about each of their stories requires faith to accept?
4. What is required for a person to please God?
5. To come to understand God, what two things must a person already accept?

If you are worried about proving the existence of God, relax. You can't. Now, if you've grown up in a church, your first reaction may to flip out about the idea that you can't prove God's existence. (Breath, then read on.) The issue is the difference between proof and evidence. There are all kinds of evidence that point to the existence of God, but what a person decides to do with that evidence is completely up to him/her. You can't prove a thing to anybody. Because if they want to be really stubborn about the evidence before them, they could even deny your existence.

If you're stuggling with the concept of God, we want to invite you to take a look at the evidence before you. The passage in Hebrews basically says that a person who comes to the table wanting to deny God's existence and that He is a good God, will ultimately refuse the credibility of the evidence. We simply ask that as you question and work through some of these issues, you try to keep an open and objective perspective. Do not require the demands for evidence to be so much greater than any other portion of your life.

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