Is there a God?

I talked to some friends recently about the question of God and His existence. I told them that I could show an atheist that the statement, "There is no God," is impossible to prove. Here is how.

Draw a large circle on a blank paper. "This is the totality of all knowledge in the universe." Then hand them the pen and ask them to draw a circle that includes all of the total knowledge that they know. You learn a lot about their perspective here.

Then ask this question. "You say that there is no God. And, we can assume that this circle," indicating the one that they drew, "is the totality of knowledge that is available to you. So the rest of the big circle is all of the rest of the knowledge that you do not know. Is it possible that the knowledge of God is in the big circle, but you do not know it? It isn’t in your circle."

Here you find out if they are intellectually honest or just want to argue. "Since you admit that you do not know everything, then is it possible that the existence of God is not in your understanding, but can be 'out there’ somewhere?'"

"So you have to admit that you are not a true atheist, but an agnostic. You don't know that God exists, but you cannot prove it either way." This is a big step in the direction of the truth. 

If they respond that they just know that there is no God, respond, "So, you are claiming to know everything, to be omniscient. That is a characteristic of God. If you know everything, then you are God. And obviously, that rules out the option of 'atheist.'"

This will not lead a person to confess Christ at this point, but you will have moved them a ways down the path to Truth. If this is a really hard case, a bit of candor might either break the ice or drive them off. "So if you recognize and admit that there is a body of knowledge that you do not know, yet you continue to refuse to admit that there could be a God in that body of unknown knowledge, you are demonstrating that you are both ignorant and dishonest. Ignorant, in that you do not know something, and by refusing to admit that you do not know, you are intellectually dishonest." (You can use "stupid" for dishonest if you really want to shake up the box.)

Again, our job is not to convince, convict, or convert the people we meet. We are to give them the Truth, the Gospel. Sometimes hard cases refuse to respond, but that is not my purview. I can expose them to the Message and they must decide what to do with it. 

In Ezekiel 33, the watchman is not responsible for saving the hearers, but only warning them of the coming peril. And we have the advantage of knowing more of what is in the big circle, and God is there.

The last approach is clearly not kind or compelling. But it does drive the conversation to a conclusion. It does not have to end the dialogue, but we should always drive towards moving everyone we meet closer to the Lord. Regardless of whether they believe or not, everyone we meet can move closer to the Savior. Amen.

Follow Up to the Circle Discussion

Using the same set of circles, take the pad and put a dot one the circumference of his circle. “Here is my circle of knowledge–enlarged to show detail.” (A little humor never hurts.)

Continuing, “Would you agree that you know some things that I do not?” They always answer in the affirmative. “Would you also agree that my circle of knowledge includes some things that yours does not?” Again, the answer is affirmative, most of the time.

“The circle of my knowledge includes the fact that there is a God. And, here is some good news. This bit of knowledge is very close to the boundary of what you know. If you want to, it is possible for you to expand that area and know God. Incidentally, many famous atheist/agnostics have made that expansion. But that is a discussion for another day.

“And when you come to the knowledge that there is a God, you will also find some better news. That God already knows about you. The big circle, all knowledge, is what He has. God knows everything. It is called ‘omniscience.’ And that knowledge includes all about you.

“Here is even better news. The God Who knows everything wants you to know Him. Not just that He exists, that He created the whole universe, but to know Him personally. Imagine that. The perfect God wants to have a personal relationship with you and me. Only, I am not perfect. How can a perfect God allow an imperfect being, like me, into relationship with Him?

“That brings us to the best news of all. This perfect God sent His perfect Son to die for the sins, shortcomings, that mar me. I have missed the mark of living up to His perfection, and the consequence for that is death. Imagine a rocket being shot at Mars. (This really happened.) The scientists who programmed the rocket mixed up miles and meters. So when the landing craft descended into the atmosphere of Mars it shut down its motors at the proper METER distance from the surface, it ‘thought,’ but it was actually miles away. It crashed on the surface, much to the chagrin of its controllers. It was a mistake, although a costly one.

“We are in the same deadly descent. Our perfection, or holiness, if you please, will run out long before we reach the landing point. We will crash and burn, literally. But the perfect God sent a rescue mechanism, His Son, to ‘crash for us,’ and cushion our landing–in heaven. But we can know Him now, in the present.

“And this knowledge is just outside your circumscribed body of knowledge. All you have to do is to reach out, and take it. It is a matter of the mind, and the will. I have done it. This transaction, trading my fatal descent for a gentle landing, is available to anyone who will accept it.”

Here is where we let them respond. What ever choice they make is theirs. You can ask what it is or let them tell you. I always like to ask for a decision. Regardless of the answer, do not argue. Just accept it. If they say, “Yes, I want to believe,” rejoice with them. That is great. Let’s pray.

If they say, “No,” just accept it. Keep the door open. You can offer to pray for them, but always leave on a pleasant standing.

The Holy Spirit does His best work in the dark, at night. Your job is done, except to pray and love your friend. God set up the moment, a God-moment, and He will orchestrate the finale. All we can say is, “Amen. Glory hallelujah!”