Is There a Creator God?

Case for a Creator

“Anything that has a start, has a starter”

“So long as the universe had a beginning, we could suppose it had a creator. But if the universe is really completely self-contained, having no boundary or edge, it would have neither beginning nor end: it would simply be. What place, then, for a creator?” Stephen Hawking (non-Christian) - “A Brief History of Time” p. 140

Big Bang: “Anything that has a start, has a starter” 1.Expansion of the universe 2.Cosmic microwave background 3.Relative abundances of hydrogen, helium, deuterium, and lithium 4.… Edwin P. Hubble ( ) was trained as a lawyer, before boredom made him turn to astronomy.

Big Bang: “Anything that has a start, has a starter”

“Anything that has a design, has a designer”

William Paley (b.1802) made the Divine watchmaker argument: "Natural Theology“, 1835

“Anything that has a design, has a designer”

“[DNA] have shown, by the almost unbelievable complexity of the arrangements which are needed to produce life, that intelligence must have been involved.” Dr. Anthony Flew – 2005 (Former Atheist, turned Deist but non-Christian still)

More “proofs” Cosmological argument (causation) Teleological argument (design) Ontological argument Moral argument Historical argument Practical argument

Is There a Creator God? Faith and Science

Discover Reveal “The finite mind cannot comprehend infinity”

Limitation of Science “The finite mind cannot comprehend infinity”

Limitation of Science “The subject we are studying will determine the method of how we will know it!”

Had evolution already disprove God? “Why then is not every geological formation and every stratum full of such intermediate links (between species)? Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely graduated organic chain, and this, perhaps, is the most obvious and gravest objection which can be urged against my theory” Darwin, “On the origin of species”, p.280

How Why

“In the beginning God created heavens and earth…”

The main point: WHO? (not How?)

Similar “Who?” Different Views of the “How?”

Genesis 1:1-5 A beginning when God created The earth initially formless & empty; solar system formed from amorphous gas cloud. Darkness; as the cloud collapses, it becomes denser, darker. Cloud begins to glow as it ionizes. Equatorial band pushed outside glow. Rotating planets have day/night sequence.

Genesis 1:6-8 And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning – a second day.

Genesis 1:6-8 An expanse is formed to separate the waters — the atmosphere. This expanse forms our blue sky; The order fits the scientific view re/ outgassing.

Genesis 1:9-10 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land” and the gathered water “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:9-10 We now know that earth’s surface is great, thin plates of crust, moving slowly on the mantle beneath. There are two types of crust: Light, thick continent Heavy, thin ocean basin It looks like the oceans drained off into the basins when the crust split into two kinds.

Genesis 1:11-13 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation… And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning – a third day.

Genesis 1:11-13 Naturally, there is no land vegetation without land to have it on. The order is interesting here: Plants are narrated before animals, which depend on them. Plants are narrated before sun, moon & stars, seen as contradicting science. But something more subtle is going on here.

Genesis 1:14-19 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years. And let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights – the greater light to dominate the day and the lesser light to dominate the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to dominate the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning – a fourth day.

Genesis 1:14-19 Though often overlooked, this fits science very well. Viewed from earth, this describes the clearing of the atmosphere so that sun, moon & stars become visible. This clearing is the direct result of vegetation, which removes carbon dioxide and replaces it with oxygen.

Genesis 1:20-27

Main Implications: 1.What do we know about God? “In the beginning God created heavens and earth” 2.What do we know about ourselves? “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

Is There a Creator God? Why Don’t People Believe?

What sorts of evidence prompt Christians to believe in God? The size, majesty, intricacy of the world. Historical / natural evidence. Narrative / philosophical coherence and credibility. The experience and testimony of fellow believers --- especially family and friends. Personal experience of a Personal God, encountered through prayer, worship, scripture, and living a life of faith.

3.Why Don’t People Believe? “But is the Creator personable?” “If God exist, then ____?” “It’s not really that important” “I don’t want to give up control!”

What will Help People Believe? “You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” 2 Cor.3:3 Relationships Beliefs Values Behaviors