The Philosophical, Scientific, and Historical Evidence for God: An Apologetic to the Glory of God

By David Scott Nichols M.D.

The Evidence for God
For approximately one hundred years, most secular scientists and the majority of the intelligentsia in the world have “preached” that God does not exist. Darwin’s book, The Origin of the Species, published in 1859, was the primary impetus for this change in our world’s viewpoint away from God. Today, many leaders in academia look at Christians (and others who believe in God) as bereft of intelligence.
At the onset of the 20th century, there was very little scientific evidence to suggest that God was the Creator of the Universe. However, since 1917, amazing evidence has been discovered in the fields of cosmology and biology that a significant number of secular scientists admit points to an incredible Creative Force; most call this Force, God. The Philosophical, Scientific, and Historical Evidence for God presents this evidence in a detailed, yet understandable, manner.
This book, Dr. Nichols’ eleventh on theology, provides well-researched information showing the ever-increasing evidence for an omnipotent Creator. He considers it to be the magnum opus of his writing career. The significance of the Big Bang theory and the many weaknesses now recognized in the theory of evolution will be thoroughly reviewed. Philosophical and historical evidence for God will also be presented. Dr. Nichols is convinced that an open-minded reader will come away with the realization that God does, indeed, exist, and that He is the God of the Holy Bible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Dec 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664249639

David Scott Nichols M.D.

Dr. David Scott Nichols, M.D. received a Master’s Degree in Biomedical Engineering at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology at the age of twenty-one. Four years later, he graduated first in his class from the University of Miami School of Medicine. He spent the past forty years as an ophthalmic surgeon, including thirteen years as an officer in the USAF. He now brings this same dedicated scholarship and expertise to his comprehensive study, The Philosophical, Scientific, and Historical Evidence for God; An Apologetic to the Glory of God.

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WestBow Press rev. date: 12/21/2021

To God, for all of His blessings – past, present, and future

To my wonderful family

To open-minded searches for the Truth

CONTENTS

Acknowledgment

Preface

A brief presentation is made to encourage the reader to pursue the answer to the ultimate question, Does God exist? This book will present a vast amount of evidence in a variety of areas to show that our Universe and all that is in it is the result of God’s handiwork.

Introduction

A concise overview is presented of the subject matter in this book.

Section 1 - Philosophical Evidence For God…

Chapter 1: Let’s Just Think About It

• Ontological Proof – a classic, but very poor, proof for the existence of God

• Moral Proof – A well thought out logical argument to believe in God

• Teleological Proof – another excellent and logical reason to believe in God’s existence

• Cosmological Proof – a fool-proof argument for God’s existence

Endnotes (Philosophy)

Section 2 - Scientific Evidence For God…

Chapter 2: Science Versus Theology – An Unnecessary Conflict

An overview will be given to show how theologians and secular scientists have been engaged in a not very subtle warfare in recent history with possible explanations why this antipathy has continued to build. A review of the relationship between science and theology throughout history is useful here. Additional discussion will show how this problem has resulted in our schools delivering to students incorrect and very damaging information about their origins. It will be pointed out that the intellectual giants in the fields (e.g., Albert Einstein) of physics, cosmology and biology generally agree that current scientific knowledge points to a Creator. Unfortunately, this information is not allowed to filter down to our schools. Reasons for this will be proposed and discussed in this section and in a later section when the controversial topic of evolution will be reviewed in detail.

Much care will be used to present the following controversial subject matter: virtually all secular scientists believe our Universe is several billion years old - Christian cosmologists, on the other hand, disagree on this point, (sometimes, unfortunately, somewhat bitterly). This book will equip the reader with the information needed to demonstrate to the non-Christian individual who believes in the old earth view that, in fact, this view of cosmology proves that God must exist! Virtually by definition, anyone who believes in a young earth is probably a Christian - since that is not the current secular belief. That person, therefore, doesn’t need any convincing arguments. Be that as it may, the evidence for a young earth and that for an old earth will be thoroughly discussed later in the book.

Chapter 3: The Big Bang

An unfolding of the scientific discoveries of the past 100 years that have resulted in our current understanding of the Universe will be presented. Fascinating discoveries have been made that show how our Universe came into being at a particular point in time… just as the Bible says. This discovery changed the way cosmologists thought about our Universe; for hundreds of years, scientists had been under the impression that our Universe was eternal. Einstein, when he finally accepted the reality of the Big Bang, recognized clearly that this could only be true if a Creator existed… and he believed in a Creator from that point onward. These incredible discoveries, that point to an Intelligent Designer of our Universe, will be highlighted and explained with many illustrations. Several different methods for determining the age of our Universe will be reviewed. Many quotes of famous secular scientists who recognize just how amazing the creation of our Universe actually is will be presented.

Chapter 4: Fundamental Forces And Fine Tuning Of Nature

In this chapter, I will discuss the four fundamental forces of nature and how they are so incredibly fine-tuned to values that are absolutely necessary for the development of the Earth and life itself. Several pages are dedicated to an explanation of the expansion rate of our Universe and the likelihood of it remaining viable into the distant future.

Chapter 5: Wrinkles In Space And Solar System Creation

This chapter discusses the interesting manner by which our Universe developed our Solar System. Besides the fine-tuning of the four fundamental forces of nature, there were literally scores of other items in nature that were required to be at precisely the right values to allow for Earth to support life. Scientists say that there are literally more than one hundred of these fine-tuned items in nature that lead one to believe that Someone must have planned our world from the outset.

Chapter 6: A Word About Entropy

The Second Law of Thermodynamics concerns the concept of entropy. This Law will be explained and it will be shown how this leads to the conclusion that our Universe had a beginning at a specific point in time sometime in the distant past.

Chapter 7: The Anthropic Principle

The definition of the Anthropic Principle is given and the various types of it are briefly reviewed. Probably more importantly, the more common usage of this term is explained and many quotes of famous cosmologists are noted to show how they believe that our Universe certainly appears to have been incredibly fine-tuned to support human life.

Chapter 8: Alternative Views On The Creation Of Our Universe

As so many cosmologists are adamantly against facing the fact that God created the Universe, other ideas have continued to be put forth over the decades. Two of the more significant concepts are the:

• Steady State Universe – This would result in a Universe that could always have existed. Hence, if the steady-state conception of the Universe is correct, a Creator may not have been required for its existence.

• Oscillating Universe – This theory has its origin in Hindu and Buddhist theology. The people who suggested this idea in the 20th century, believed that our Universe continually expanded, then contracted in an infinity of Big Bang explosions. There are many problems with this idea… these problems will be discussed.

Chapter 9: The Multiverse

Quantum Mechanics - This is a very strange field of physics, difficult to understand and even difficult to accept some of its conclusions. Yet, it is an important way of looking at the Universe as it leads into the various explanations of the Multiverse. So, we shall review some of the basics of this field of physics – a completely new way of looking at the world.

The Multiverse Explanation – the last gasp effort that some scientists have resorted to in an effort to stave off the only realistic answer for the origin of our Universe… i.e., God created it. Quantum Mechanics comes into play in this discussion. Please do keep in mind the amount of evidence that exists for the multiverse model… i.e., literally, ZERO! However, the topic will be reviewed and several popular conceptions will be presented.

Endnotes (Cosmology)

Section 3 - Evolution – What Is The Evidence?

Chapter 10: Origin Of Life

A detailed explanation of the seventy-year search for a non-supernatural explanation for the onset of living things on the earth. So far, this quest has produced zero results.

Chapter 11: Evolution - Introduction

A brief history of Darwin’s early years

Chapter 12: Darwin’s Theory Of Evolution - Overview

In this portion of the book, I will explain what is meant by the term evolution and define a multitude of terms that one should understand when learning about this topic. The critical difference between microevolution and macroevolution will be clearly explained (as one does occur, the other does not). Importantly, I will also give several quotes of just what evolutionists actually believe about the likelihood of Darwin’s theory… now referred to as neo-Darwinism, being true. What does the fossil record show? Is the tree of life as Darwin expected it to be? What have been the cultural effects of this theory? Is it really now considered a fact instead of a theory? I will discuss the current status of the theory of evolution in the last few pages of this chapter and the effort made by Stephen Gould and Niles Eldridge to save this crumbling theory with their introduction of a new conception of evolution that is referred to as punctuated equilibrium.

Microevolution – the kind of evolution that has taken place since life first appeared in our world.

The Lie of Macro-Evolution – there have been fabulous discoveries made over the last sixty years, most at the cellular level (but, not all) that have eliminated the possibility of macro-evolution from being a viable explanation for the existence and variety of the living organisms seen in the world today. Many of these newly discovered concepts will be covered in detail in the next several chapters. The fact is that these new discoveries point to a Creator as the designer of the Universe, including all life within.

Chapter 13: The Cambrian Explosion

The next chapter begins the series of chapters that will demonstrate the many significant problems with neo-Darwinism. There is nowhere near the number of transitional fossils that were expected to be found… if any at all. Also, the epoch of time known as the Cambrian epoch produced massive fossil evidence of an explosion of many new life forms in a really short period of time. The fact that so many different animal fossils were formed within a very short period of time, deals a significant blow to those who believe that macroevolution actually took place.

Chapter 14: Taxonomy, Homology, Analogy

The failure of homology and the sequencing of various families of homologous proteins (comparative biochemistry) is reviewed. The differences and similarities of proteins in various species is studied to see if there is evidence of evolutionary descent from one to another.

Chapter 15: Irreducibly Complex (IC) Systems

This chapter will explain these interesting types of systems and how they point to a Creator instead of macroevolution as the source for the many different species in Nature.

Chapter 16: The Mathematical Limitations Of Darwinian Evolution

A statistical analysis of what mutations can and cannot accomplish with respect to evolution is undertaken. Certain valuable microevolutionary mutations are discussed. Also, further statistical analysis of the likelihood of macroevolution having occurred in nature is evaluated.

Chapter 17: Can Macroevolution Lead To New Body Forms?

Although microevolution is possible and there is evidence that it has occurred, there is no evidence at all that macroevolution can take place. This chapter discusses the limitations of evolution and shows why it cannot lead to any new body forms.

Chapter 18: Missing Links And Icons Of Evolution:

Several classic evolutionary icons are discussed and the fallacies in each are revealed. Also, the well-known missing links are evaluated for what they actually are… none are actually examples of macroevolution.

Chapter 19: Genesis Creation Account

The three main interpretations of Genesis 1&2 are given. These are the Day Age, the Gap Theory, and the 24hour/7day week interpretations. Plusses and minuses are briefly discussed.

Chapter 20: The Age Of The Earth: Is It Young Or Old?

Due to the fact that there are millions of sincere Christians that believe the Earth is only 10,000 to 100,000 years old, the evidence that these young-earth scientists reference in defending their position is evaluated.

Chapter 21: Incredible Animal Instincts

There are scores of examples of amazing animal instincts that make it quite apparent God had to instill these capabilities within these animals… they are too detailed and complex for evolution to have produced. The penguin, certain birds, ants, bees, and certain fish (e.g., salmon) are great examples to evaluate. The idea that evolution could have led to many of these detailed instincts is much more difficult to believe and understand than to posit that God simply imbued these animals with them. The instinct argument for a Creator is basically a particular aspect of the irreducibly complex system argument. Many of these instincts that will be shown in this chapter are required for the animal’s survival (or at least for it to carry out its mission in life). The problem for the evolutionist is that these instincts (at least the ones I will describe here) are complex and would require multiple genetic mutations if one assumes that they came about via evolution. Yet, each aspect of these instincts is basically worthless without all the other aspects of these complex instincts… hence, their irreducible complexity.

Chapter 22: A Detailed Look At The Amazing Human Eye

An incredible example of an irreducibly complex system on a macroscopic level.

I will discuss thirty-six different irreducibly complex parts of the human ocular system. The human eye is a great example of this IC concept.

Endnotes (Evolution):

Section 4 - Historical Evidence For God…

Chapter 23: The Unique Christian God

This opening portion of the last section gives a fairly complete explanation of what it means to be a Christian. Since the Christian Bible includes the entire Jewish scriptures (i.e., the Old Testament) a brief discussion of some of the main parts of Judaism is included as well.

Chapter 24: Fulfilled Prophecies

This chapter begins the main portion of this section on showing the evidence for the veracity of the Christian message. After a brief introduction, I will begin with a discussion of many of the vast number of fulfilled prophecies concerning, primarily, the nation of Israel. Prophecies about other nations that had dealings with God’s chosen people (the Jews) will also be presented.

Chapter 25: Messianic Prophecies

Important prophecies of the coming of the Messiah (Jesus Christ) are featured in this chapter.

Chapter 26: Prophecies Made By The Lord, Jesus

Several prophecies made by Jesus are noted in this chapter. Also, an important messianic prophecy from the book of Daniel that prophesies when the Messiah will come to Earth is also presented in detail.

Chapter 27: Old Testament Types Of Jesus

The intriguing topic of Old Testament types is presented here. This chapter will present many of the more important types including: Jacob vs. Jesus, the Passover, Abraham and Isaac, Manna from heaven, the story of Jonah, the Mercy Seat, and the Brazen Serpent.

Chapter 28: The Resurrection – The Changed Lives Of The Apostles

With respect to presenting outstanding evidence for the resurrection of Jesus, this chapter is without peer. Certainly, one of the more significant reasons that I believe that Jesus is the Son of God, my Savior, is because of how incredibly much the Apostles changed after He was crucified. Their lives after the death of their friend Jesus only makes sense if they saw His risen body. Details on this topic will be given in this chapter.

Chapter 29: Liar, Lunatic Or God

C.S. Lewis had an excellent proof of Jesus’s resurrection that revolved around the only three possibilities relating to His character… He may have been a liar, or a lunatic. However, if He was neither of these two things, He had to be who He claimed to be… God the Son! This chapter explains the logic behind this argument.

Chapter 30: The Archeological And Historical Accuracy Of The Bible

The Christian biblical history, when checked against secular history, is perfectly accurate. There is outstanding archeological evidence for the veracity of the Christian scriptures as well. Many examples are given in this chapter. Also, comments by the early church leaders are given and are also confirmatory. The Bible has several important themes that are emphasized from Genesis to the Revelation of Jesus Christ. These themes are reviewed.

Chapter 31: Famous Christian Believers And Their Testimonies

Many people have the mistaken idea that Christians are a bunch of ignorant and dull-minded rubes. Many examples of fine, intelligent Christians are given along with some of their opinions of the Bible.

Chapter 32: Conclusion: Gospel Message

This concluding chapter is very, very important. Please take the time to read it so that you can understand what our wonderful God in Heaven wants for you. For those people who have been convinced that God exists and want to have an all-important relationship with the God of the Bible, this last chapter will explain how that relationship can begin.

Endnotes (Theology):

The Problem of Pain – Unfortunately, many people will come to an understanding of the logic in believing in a Creator… but will still resist. Why? Well, in the final analysis, the decision to accept Jesus is one of the heart. A step of faith is always going to be necessary… that is the way God wants it. The Bible says, without faith we cannot please God (Heb 11:6). Some people, like Albert Einstein accept the idea of a Creator, but cannot accept the concept of a personal loving God. Many times, the stumbling point relates to what C.S. Lewis refers to as The Problem of Pain… If God is so loving, why does God allow pain in His world? There is a good answer, of course. Several years ago, I wrote another book on exactly this topic. For the reader interested in the answer(s) to this question please visit my website, nicholsbiblestudies.com and either read while still online or download the entire book to your computer. You will notice that on page 4 of that website nine of my books are available for reading online and/or downloading. Page 3 has a brief description of each book.

Appendix I - Schrödinger’s Cat

Appendix II - Stephen Hawking’s Oscillating Universe

Appendix III - The Inflationary Universe (Monopoles,

Horizon, Flatness)

Endnotes (Appendices):

Bibliography

About The Author

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I WANT TO thank two very special people, my parents, Nelson and Dorothy Nichols, for raising me in a loving, Christian home. My mother made sure that I went to Sunday School every week, year after year. I learned so much about the Bible during those early years, accepting the Lord Jesus as my Lord and Savior at a very young age. Both my mother and father were excellent Christians and outstanding role models for their five children. They always demonstrated the true meaning of love, honor, and commitment. Although they went to be with Jesus when I was still very young, they had already instilled in me important biblical principles that have been invaluable throughout my lifetime. My mother was the epitome of selfless love. She was beautiful, inside and out, very kind, loving, and gentle. My father was a man of great courage and honor. Their love for me was always very apparent.

I am very grateful to my wife, Sandra, and my brother-in-law, Daniel Van Duyne for their excellent help in editing this very long, and at times, somewhat complex book. They both were willing to put forth the significant time and effort required in order to make the final product as ‘clean’ as possible.

I also want to acknowledge the many fine Christian scientists that I reference throughout this book. They were indeed brave enough to put their academic careers in significant jeopardy as they wrote the truth concerning the many amazing scientific discoveries that have been made over the past 100 years. As the reader will soon see, these discoveries have made it blatantly obvious that our Universe required a wonderful, omniscient, and omnipotent, Creative Force… i.e., the God of the Holy Bible.

PREFACE

E VER SINCE I was a teenager, I have been very interested in studying anything related to apologetics (defined in Webster’s Dictionary as defending by argument, especially the Christian faith). I have been a Christian since I was a small boy, but when I began to be introduced to topics such as evolution in school, I felt compelled to delve into the study of philosophy, science and history as a means of strengthening my faith. I recognized that the possibility existed that this pursuit might, indeed, have the opposite effect. However, if the Creator in whose hands I rested my eternal destiny was truly non-existent, I wanted to know. Over the years I have, fortunately, been able to satisfy myself on the veracity of my beliefs. I do recognize, however, that for those people who rely solely on what they learn in school and hear in casual conversation, it would be very easy to come to the opposite conclusion, tragically... that God does not exist and that people have no more purpose in this world than petunias.

What actually amazes me is how this does not seem to bother a lot of people. It sure would trouble me. I cannot understand how so many of my acquaintances and some family members, will admit to the possibility that God actually might exist, but then spend little time, if any, in finding out whether He does. And my, the stakes are so high! If we do have a Creator, and He is the one described in the Bible, our belief in Him will reap us tremendous dividends, both now and for eternity. On the other side of the coin, our lack of belief will have very undesirable consequences.

Frankly, over the years, I have asked many an agnostic person (and a few atheists) if they thought there was at least one chance in a hundred that my belief in God just might be correct. Most, if not all, have said yes to that question. I then ask them if they truly had one chance in a hundred (the same chance that they give to the existence of God) of winning one billion dollars, would they be willing to drive to New York (a 20-hour drive)? Naturally, as you might expect, almost all quickly said yes to that question as well. Next, my question to them was, How is it that you would be willing to spend that much time and effort in pursuing money (admittedly a bundle of it) but not a similar amount of time and effort pursuing something infinitely more valuable (a meaningful life on Earth with the promise of a perfectly glorious eternal life in Heaven to come), and by your own admission just as likely? Typically, they tended to ignore that question, and we drifted onto another subject.

I chose the 20-hour trip in my example above as I believe that if a person, with an open mind and prayerful attitude, were to spend a similar amount of time reading and studying the Bible and possibly a few other related books, that God would reveal His truth to them. In fact, God tells us that he will reveal Himself to us if we only look for Him (... he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him… Hebrews 11:6) (...seek and ye shall find... Luke 11:9). The problem comes with that incredible attitude that the time required is not worth it... what am I missing here? The question of where and how a person will spend an eternity is not worth pursuing?

If you are an agnostic (or an atheist), I am hopeful that the fact that you are reading these words puts you in another category than those I alluded to above. I ask that you read this book with an open mind. I also recognize that there may be many Christians reading this book who, like me, want to strengthen their faith and gain another tool for use in witnessing to others. Hopefully, this book will bring the reader closer to his/her omnipotent Creator.

I began to write a book on the subject of apologetics in the fall of 1997. I spent portions of 2-3 years on this project before suspending it around the turn of the century. Prior to that time, I read over fifty books and/or articles on the topic of cosmology… almost all of them were written by secular scientists. I also read a significant number of books on the topic of evolution – these included books by those individuals who believed that evolution was actually the method by which nature has given the world all forms of life… and books by other scientists who believe that discoveries made over the last fifty years or so have shown that classic neo-Darwinian evolution is not the mechanism that has led to the existence of all living things. After becoming involved in a variety of other writing and teaching projects in subsequent years, I recently returned to my treatise on apologetics. I finally stopped procrastinating, and I completed this book.

My plan is to show that a significant number of secular scientists have recently come to the unsettling conclusion (to them) that there is, indeed, a God of this Universe. As you will see, I have included many quotes in the chapters that follow from these cosmologists and evolutionists that demonstrate this point.

This book is a comprehensive book on the scientific and philosophical proofs of God. In this book, I will present the main areas of evidence to convince, hopefully and prayerfully, the majority of open-minded individuals that God does exist and He is, indeed, the God of Christianity. He loves them and wants them to turn to Him in faith. As will become obvious, a person does not need to abandon their intellect to come to faith in the God of the Universe. The key is to keep an open mind while reading and studying the pages that follow. This book will present evidence in a significant number of different areas to show why it makes perfectly good sense to believe in God, specifically, the God presented in the Holy Bible. However, even given the massive amount of evidence presented in the pages that follow, a final step of faith will always be required.

INTRODUCTION

I FOUND IT difficult to understand, when I was a lot younger, how a person could not believe in a Creator. But actually, given the world in which we now live, it really makes perfectly good sense. We grow up in a school system where even the mere mention of God is essentially prohibited in the classroom. The idea of actually presenting facts concerning the wide variety of evidence for creation and against evolution is out of the question. Teachers do not want to get into any trouble by not abiding by the current day edicts of our public-school systems. The ability to mention God as a possible source of the Universe or life was outlawed in 1962 by the Supreme Court. Several legal cases over the past 35 years have resulted in the ruling that teaching the evidence for supernatural input in creation and life is to be banished from the classroom. Not only that, but the theory (and I use this term loosely) of evolution is drummed into the heads of virtually all teachers; most of them do not know about all of the excellent evidence against macroevolution that I will be presenting in the chapters that follow. Sadly, I believe that a significant majority of high school and college science teachers have been hoodwinked into believing the lie of evolution. The brainwashing of our students has been going on for several generations. They are literally not allowed to be exposed to the evidence against evolution.

Our whole society doesn’t seem to have any time to contemplate matters of eternal importance... not if we are to make as much money as possible in the shortest amount of time. Most people seem to let the experts think for them... it is very easy to do this...but what if those so-called experts are wrong? It is my contention that they are, indeed, tragically wrong... and that is why I am writing this book... to show the many reasons we can and should believe that we all have a Creator and, not only that, but a Creator who loves each and every one of us.

It has always bothered me that so many people are so willing to accept what they are taught in school as gospel, and they literally never question whether those teachings are true. Just think about it... it is so very obvious that scientists are constantly coming up with incorrect truths. Is our world flat? Does the sun rotate around the earth? That is what the great minds of just a few hundred years ago believed as certainty; well, they were surely wrong! And so many of our ideas accepted as fact today are wrong as well. This is true in all fields of science. I see it myself in medicine, my profession - many things we believed to be true decades ago simply are not. Interestingly, more than one of my medical school professors used to tell us as we prepared for an exam week, The questions on the test will be the same as always… only the answers change from year to year. They were only half kidding as answers regarding the best treatments for various diseases do change frequently in the field of medicine. Evolutionists are in a mad scramble to patch up their quickly crumbling theory that has started to unravel significantly even among its staunchest supporters (I’ll delve into this later in much more detail). The big bang theory has led some of our most prominent modern-day secular scientists to acknowledge the absolute requirement of a Creator. Sadly, some of these new developments do not filter down to our classrooms where students are still being taught science" as it was accepted 40-50 years ago. I do not know all of the reasons for this delay, but it is extremely unfortunate.

There already are books on the library bookshelves and in the bookstores that accomplish many of the purposes that I have in mind for this book. In fact, there are many outstanding books that have been written in the last 15-25 years in the various fields of apologetics. And there are many great classics in this area, as well. I have read most of them. However, there seems to be one type of book that is missing.

Although very many good books have been written in the field of apologetics, virtually all of them are at least somewhat difficult to understand. Apologetics is not a topic that lends itself to simplicity. In fact, it is almost a contradiction in terms to talk about an easy-to-understand book on apologetics. For that reason, I believe, many people never even attempt to read any books in this field. Of course, there are many individuals who do have questions of eternal significance and, who do want answers. But it can be difficult to find a book that will cover these topics that is not written for the philosopher, scientist or historian. I have tried to write this book in such a way that the majority of readers will be able to understand the important points without too much difficulty. For example, I have added a couple of appendices to explain difficult topics… for those who want to understand more in certain areas. Others can simply skip that section without missing any important points. I also hope that this book will at times be entertaining (it is far too easy for these subjects to become laborious).

This book covers what I perceive as the three main areas of apologetics… philosophy, science and history. Each of these fields gives a unique look at the reasons we should believe in the existence of a Creator - and definite clues as to what that Creator is like.... indeed, even who He is! I want to give the reader a full appreciation of the entire field of study ... although not in so much detail as to drown him in complexity. Through the use of footnotes and references, any given topic of discussion can be pursued more deeply as the reader desires.

The first portion of the book will review the way philosophers down through the ages have sought to prove that God existed. There are several proofs that will be discussed... one with obvious holes in it... others that are quite convincing... and, I believe one that is really excellent! Of course, there are many people who have doubts about every philosophical proof ever proposed, but that does not necessarily mean that these proofs are all in error. We’ll take a look at them and point out their plusses and minuses.

After this philosophical discussion, I will turn my attention to science. I will discuss the current theories on the origin of our Universe. There have been many scientific discoveries in the past few decades that are very exciting to apologists. In fact, if these scientific discoveries are to be believed, it virtually demands that there be a Creator! We will see how these discoveries point to a self-existent, omnipotent God. The so-called theory of evolution is coming under attack like never before. Over the last 25-35 years, more and more scientists are wavering greatly on this neo-Darwinian concept. This topic also will be covered in detail as we conclude the study of the scientific proofs for God’s existence. I will admit that there will be a couple of portions in this scientific section that will be somewhat complex. However, if need be, these areas can be skipped over without sacrificing the important concepts.

Hopefully, I will have convinced many of you that there are indeed very solid reasons to believe in an omnipotent Creator as you approach the last section of the book. If there is a Creator, then it is certainly appropriate to ask, What is the nature of this... God? Can we know something of what He is like? Is there any particular religion that best describes the God that we would expect from what we know of His nature from our studies of philosophy and science? If so, what is that religion? What other historical proofs can we find that will lend credence to the veracity of this religion?

If we then find and believe in the God of our Universe, has He left us any messages that we should know about? If so, what?

Section 1

PHILOSOPHICAL EVIDENCE FOR GOD…

T HIS BOOK WILL be divided into four sections. Each will feature a different topical argument showing that God does exist and is intimately involved in the running of our Universe and everything within it. As will be shown, He created it, He set the laws of nature in such a precise way that life would be possible, He then created all life on the Earth, and He is ever-present and omnipotent to help us live our lives to their fullest potential.

In this first section, I will present several philosophical proofs, or better stated, evidences for the existence of God. All throughout history, there have been philosophers who have made a variety of philosophical arguments in their quest to prove to the world that there was a God behind all creation. Some of these arguments are pretty weak, some are very good, and one or two are outstanding. I will review the main points of four or five of the more well-known of these arguments.

The key point to understand when looking at this philosophical evidence is that it is all based on logic. In order to have a good and reasonable proof of anything, including the existence of God, the argument being used must be completely logical. It is really quite depressing when I see so many people in our world who believe certain things without any logical reason for their belief. Often, it is simply because they heard some teacher say it was so, or their parents believed a certain thing concerning a religion or God. Admittedly it is important to consider strongly the teaching of one’s parents, but even they can be wrong. I know of many wonderful instances where a child (typically one that is at least a teenager in age) has led his/her parents into a loving, saving relationship with the God of the Holy Bible.

Although as will be shown, there are philosophical proofs that should lead a thoughtful person to believe in God, typically more is required to lead a person to the knowledge of just who that God is… i.e., the God of the Bible. The information required to make an informed decision on that issue is surely available and will come in a later section of this book. So, now let us get started…

Chapter 1

LET’S JUST THINK ABOUT IT

O N THE FIRST day of class, the professor looked out over the classroom as he deliberately held up over his head what appeared to be a brand-new yellow pencil. Then, after instructing his students to spend a few moments studying the object, he proceeded to hand it to the student closest to him. After approximately five minutes, the pencil had been viewed at close range by all, and it was once again in the hands of the bearded professor. Now, with all eyes affixed and ears once again attuned to the erudite looking teacher, he proceeded to ask the question that would keep his students occupied for hours. Tell me why what you have just seen is NOT a pencil. Thus began my daughter’s first year’s honor’s philosophy course.

This true anecdote demonstrates a couple of important points that I would like to mention about the study of philosophy. First of all, most of those who engage in this field of study which is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as a critical study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence and the grounds for them possess the admirable trait of an inquisitive mind. They also are engaged in the pursuit of the truth. To the philosopher, just because something has always been accepted as truth, does not necessarily mean that it is true. Everything is open to question, analysis and debate. Generally speaking, this is all very good. However, sometimes students of philosophy can get so involved with esoteric (indeed, sometimes inane) arguments that they miss out on obvious truths (e.g., when a pencil is a pencil). Unfortunately, I believe that it may be this tendency that has relegated the study of philosophy to relatively few people as most others feel that it has nothing of any real merit to offer. This, I believe, is not the case. In fact, I hope to show in the next several pages that we have much to gain by asking and then attempting to answer a question of eternal significance. The study of philosophy should not be limited to just those behind ivy-covered walls.

So, then what will be our question? How about a real dandy. Is there a God? You may say as many have before... There is no sense in pursuing the answer to that question... no one can prove that God exists. Well, who says so? Surely God doesn’t? Anyone who believes that the existence of God cannot be proven using logical arguments would do well to remember the point of my daughter’s professor... don’t just blithely accept what you have been told by others... especially true when dealing with such an important a question... but instead, look into the subject matter yourself. Some may already be blessed with a very comforting belief in God already. They may wonder why they should attempt to understand these arguments for God’s existence. For one thing, it is always encouraging to see further evidence for what one believes to be true. And, keep in mind that there are many people in the world today that are not so fortunate to believe... they are searching for the answers to life’s eternal questions ... foremost of which include the reasons for their own existence and their eternal destiny... both of these questions point to the basic question... Is there a God? In other words, with a basic understanding of the philosophical proofs pointing to the existence of a Creator, some readers may for the first time see the possibility of a purpose in their lives and then take the next step towards finding out more about this God. For those already comfortable in their belief, these arguments may someday be shared with another who is still looking for reasons to believe. So, let’s take a look together.

Over the course of everyone’s lifetime, one cannot help but ponder certain aspects of our world and even life itself. For one thing, it would be very difficult to believe that a reasonably intelligent person could make it through a lifetime without questioning where our Universe came from? Even more certain to be asked would be the question of where did I come from? Well, these questions have been asked down through the ages... and attempted to be answered. Of course, there have been the religious answers which we shall review to some degree later in this book. These would include the world’s major religions (such as Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, etc.) and a variety of mythological answers to these perplexing questions. It has only been in relatively recent times that science has had a lot to say about the origins of man and his world. Admittedly, as we will see in the next section, science has had a lot to say lately. However, in this chapter, I would like to review what the world’s greatest thinkers (i.e., philosophers) have had to say on the subject.

When I was in college, I took a college course in philosophy... like daughter, like father. It was very interesting and enjoyable since I have always liked a good discussion. We spent almost the entire semester discussing the proofs for the existence of God. The professor was a real fan of Rene Descartes and was convinced that his proofs for God’s existence were foolproof. I took exception to this and we entertained (or bored) the class for a couple of weeks arguing back and forth on this issue. Eventually we moved on to another topic, but I decided to do my term paper on the fallacies in Descartes’s logic in his proofs for God’s existence. I was convinced at that time that no one could show in any logical way that the Universe had a creator... that God existed. I remember the final paragraph in my paper stated that although I did indeed believe in God, I felt that the only way we could ever believe in God was through faith and not through any philosophical proofs. I felt that people were barking up the wrong tree to look for logical reasons to believe in God. Well now, years later, I would like to say that I was wrong - I now do indeed believe that we can come to an understanding of the necessity of the existence of God and some knowledge of His nature through the use of our brains (one of his many gifts to us) and the study of his handiwork... the Universe! The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands (Psalms 19:1). For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse (Romans 1:20). He alone stretches out the heavens, and treads on the waves of the sea. He is the Maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south. He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted (Job 9:8-10). As one can see, the Bible states that evidence for God and his great power can and should be found in nature… particularly the study of the heavens (i.e., space). Scientists have found excellent evidence for the existence of God and his handiwork over the course of the last century by the detailed study of the Universe. I will hasten to add, however, that the final step in our acceptance of the God of the Bible will involve faith ... the point is, however, that it does not have to be a leap… just a very reasonably small, yet critically important and wonderful, step.

In my study of apologetics, I have been struck by the strange arguments some philosophers have given to dismiss some of the philosophical arguments for God’s existence (by the way, this is also true of scientists, possibly to an even greater degree as they dismiss substantial scientific evidence for God’s existence). I will be reviewing several of the most well-known philosophical proofs for God’s existence in the pages that follow. Most of these arguments fall short in the minds of many of proving with absolute certainty that the Universe required a creator. On the other hand, I do currently believe that there is one logical/philosophical argument that does give incontrovertible evidence of God’s existence… contrary, of course, to what I thought was the case in my college years. Even with the philosophical arguments that may be less than perfect proofs, it is my contention that it is absurd to dismiss those arguments as having no value (which is commonly done) just because they may fall short of 100% certainty. Rarely do we do this anywhere else in life. If I were to tell you that the world as we know it will still be here tomorrow, you would probably believe me. However, I cannot prove this to you. No one can. Therefore, according to the logic of some vehement detractors of the following proofs of God’s existence, you shouldn’t accept that the world will still exist tomorrow. But I believe you could bet your life on it. More importantly, I think you would believe it absurd to bet your life that it wouldn’t be here... in essence, that is what some atheistic philosophers are asking people to do... bet their eternity on the fact that in their mind there is no absolute certain proof of God’s existence. So, they say a person should not believe in God. Yet, it does not follow that if something is not 100% proven to be true that it is false. Obviously, let’s use a little common sense here... if something is well over 99.999% a certainty, then it is very reasonable to believe it to be true. The final step will be a step of faith, admittedly, as mentioned earlier... but that is OK. It is a reasonable step, a very reasonable step. And if the Bible is true, it is a step God planned for us to take as He has told us that "… without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him (Heb 11:6). For it is by grace ye are saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God…" (Eph 2:8).

Before moving on to a few of the more prominent philosophical proofs for God’s existence, I should point out some basic ground rules used in all of these proofs. First of all, the rules of logic apply. In other words, logical arguments are made in an attempt to ascertain the truth. So, what is truth? The truth is defined here as that which corresponds to reality - this is called the correspondence theory of truth. Truth cannot be contradictory. Simply put, if something is true, its contradiction cannot also be true. Some may wonder why I am taking the time to define what to most people is so obvious. Good question. However, if you will stop to think for a minute of the world we live in today, it is a topic that does need some clarification. Consider how often people in our society seem to believe that contradictory views on certain moral issues can both be right. To many in our post-modern world, everything is relative... everything. But if everything is relative, it makes the attempt at proving God’s existence fruitless. Even after a perfectly flawless logical proof of the necessity of His being, the person who engages in relativism could simply say, So what! I still don’t believe it since the contradictory belief may also be true."

But is this a tenable position? Is it really possible that in the real world two contradictory statements can be true? For example, if someone is told that their car has no gas in it, do they really believe that they can drive home in it? If someone is told that it is not a good idea to jump out of an airplane (without a parachute) at 40,000 feet, do they really believe that it would also be perfectly safe to do so? Let’s not kid ourselves here. Only when it suits their needs do people really ever invoke the relativistic or skeptical (nothing can ever be known to be true) point of view. And when does that tend to be? Usually when the conversation turns to morals or God. But during their everyday life, these same people do not live their so-called beliefs. They, in fact, live by the rules of logic.

Well, I believe that the vast majority of those reading this book do recognize that there are certain things that are true. Armed with the proper amount of knowledge (defined as a justified belief) and using logical arguments, it is indeed possible to ascertain the truth about many things. The purpose of this book is to see if we can find out the truth about the Creator - if indeed there is one. This shall be done through our use of various philosophical arguments, study of the scientific literature on this topic, and the evaluation of historical evidence.

All of the arguments that will be discussed in the paragraphs that follow, will be pursued in a rational and logical manner. All right, now let’s take a look at some of the philosophical arguments for the existence of a Creator. Over the centuries, several proofs have been most prominent among those advanced by philosophers in their attempts to show the necessity of a Creator. These include the Ontological, Moral, Teleologic, and Cosmologic arguments for the existence of God.

It is my contention that the Ontological proof is fallacious in its construction. I include it because it is one of the more famous classical proofs and also to point out the importance of step-by-step logical thinking when trying to prove anything using logical arguments. This proof, as we shall see, has a fatal flaw in logic.

The moral and teleologic arguments point to the marked likelihood of a Creator... although they do not prove absolutely that one was required. Importantly, they do lend a great deal of evidence as to the likelihood that our Universe came into existence via a Creator... God. Not only that, but these arguments tend to tell us something about the character of this Creator. For this reason, they are very important to understand.

Lastly, as I will attempt to show, the cosmological argument when looked at carefully, does indeed guarantee that our world, and everything in it, had to be created by an outside, self-sufficient, omnipotent force... a Creator - God.

The four proofs that will be discussed are not an exhaustive list of the philosophical proofs for the existence of God. However, they do represent a combination of the most well-known and, more importantly, three of the better arguments. It is important to understand that all of these proofs (with the exception of the Ontological Proof) outlined in subsequent paragraphs should be taken together as providing a strong argument that our Universe required a Creator.

One classical argument for the existence of God is called the ontological argument. This was originally conceived by Anselm of Canterbury in the 11th century. Rene Descartes came forward with his modified version several centuries later. Over the centuries it has become a popular topic for discussion. Although it is a straightforward proof, it is far from simple. Here is Anselm’s Ontological Argument:

1. It is greater for a thing to exist in the mind and in reality than to exist in the mind alone.

2. God means that than which a greater cannot be thought.

3. Suppose that God exists in the mind but not reality.

4. Then a greater God could be thought of (a God that had real existence in addition to all of the attributes of our imaginary God)

5. But this is impossible, for God is that than which a greater cannot be thought.

6. Therefore God exists in the mind and in reality.

Think about that one for a while!

Although this proof has interested philosophy students for almost a millennium, I feel that Anselm and others who have used variations of this argument are using some very faulty logic as they try to show that God must exist. Of the three classic philosophical arguments for God’s existence this one has very little, if any, merit in my opinion. Let me dissect the steps of the proof and show where I feel that Anselm’s logic wanders off course:

1. It is greater for a thing to exist in the mind and in reality than to exist in the mind alone. (this is certainly a reasonable assertion, especially as he is about to apply it to the concept of the Creator of the Universe)

2. God means that than which a greater cannot be thought. (I can understand and accept Anselm’s definition of God in this second point of his argument. We must recognize that this God that we are now thinking of must be perfect, i.e., be omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, etc. .... AND most certainly, He must actually EXIST if a real entity - see point 1 above).

3. Suppose that God exists in the mind but not reality. (There is a serious problem here in that God cannot simply exist in a person’s mind – the concept of God can, but not God) So, this is where this proof fails; if God does not exist in reality, He cannot be anywhere, including in a person’s mind.

4. Then a greater God could be thought of (a God that had real existence in addition to all of the attributes of our imaginary God) ----- HOLD IT! (I have a problem with this assertion – our first thoughts of God included the fact that he existed). Just because we can imagine God’s existence does not insure his actual existence. Immanuel Kant pointed out that simply adding existence to the definition of a being, does not cause it to actually exist. I just watched a YouTube video where a young man pointed out that simply stating and defining that a realicorn (a unicorn that is real) actually must exist in the real world, does not guarantee that it does. Hence, simply stating that even though the concept of God must include his actual existence, this conception in our minds does nothing to actually bring about his existence in reality… no more than a realicorn is an actual real live unicorn simply because we define it that way.

So, points 5 and 6 in Anselm’s logical argument above becomes irrelevant as we were not able to think of a God greater than the one we originally imagined… and imagining this God does not bring him into existence. Hence, we did not prove anything at all except that all proofs are not equal - some are actually worthless (except for use as fodder for college philosophy classes).

One other method used to show the fallacy of this argument was first put forth by one of Anselm’s contemporaries. Gaunilo of Marmoutiers noted that this argument led to absurd conclusions if one used its logic to prove certain other points. For example, he suggested that one only need to replace the word God with greatest imaginable island or a perfectly irresistible force or a perfectly immovable object to demonstrate the absurdity of the argument. Following the same logical argument that was used for the existence of God, you would come up with the conclusion that this greatest imaginable island must exist. For the same reason, you would come up with both a perfectly irresistible force and a perfectly immovable object exist. Yet, both cannot exist in the same world. This is known as the reduction to the absurd argument. Interestingly, Anselm tried to counter this attack on his ontological argument by saying that God was different in quality than those other things in that God was a Necessary Being… a Being that must exist. In doing this, he was making a statement of fact that he did not actually defend. As it turns out, there is a very effective argument that will be discussed below that Anselm was attempting to use to bolster his weak ontological argument. Don’t be upset if you do not follow the above two objections to the ontological argument – it is confusing. More importantly, just recognize that this classic proof for God’s existence is considered very unsatisfactory by many, if not most philosophers.

Another interesting argument for the existence of a Creator involves the apparent conscience that humans appear to possess. Many noteworthy philosophers have argued that there is an inborn objective moral code that all people possess. It does not matter what culture they come from nor whether they believe in God - everyone, it is suggested, has this conscience.

Immanuel Kant wrote about the highest good (summum bonum). He postulated another truth the existence of God as necessarily belonging to the possibility of the highest good. Hastings Rashdall, at the turn of this century, carried the argument even further as he stated, "The proposition that some things are right, others wrong ... is an immediate datum or deliverance of consciousness. The truth is assented to, and acted upon, by men of all religions or no religions, by persons who hold most dissimilar views as to the ultimate nature of the Universe, and by men who profess to have no theory of the Universe at all."

Even more well-known is C. S Lewis, the English philosopher/theologian. Lewis had been a life-long atheist. Eventually, however, he came to a belief in God. In the paragraphs below, we will see