Pastor Smith: Do you see God?

“The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaim his handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1).

Recently, images from the James Webb telescope have been retrieved, which are extraordinary. Pictures of magnificent star clusters, brilliant spiral galaxies, and scenes from the outer reaches of known space are so surreal that they make us all pause and wonder about the cosmos above us.

When I saw the images, I couldn’t help but think that it must be hard to be an Atheist. With all of creation testifying about the existence of God, and now, with pictures from the James Webb telescope, to desperately cling to Atheism seems to be an incredible leap of faith beyond reason. As C.H. Spurgeon once said, “Atheism is a strange thing. Even the devils never fell into that vice, for the devils believe and tremble.”

Yet, Atheism claims to be backed by science. There is not enough evidence to prove that God exists. The Atheist asserts that the Bible, ancient and full of miraculous stories, is a book written by people who didn’t have Darwin to explain the theory of evolution, nor did they have the modern discoveries of microbiology. Therefore, the Bible cannot be trusted, and Christians who hold to a biblical view of Creationism reject the scientific evidence before them. However, it is the exact opposite. The Atheist is a rejector of proof, not the Christian. If we were to read further in Psalm 19, we would read this, “Day after day they [the heavens and sky] pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” (Psalm 19:2). Here, creation is thundering about reality all around and there, the Atheist has their fingers in their eyes and their eyes closed, saying over and over, “I am not listening!”

The lack of evidence is not the Atheist’s problem. The problem is the will. The Atheist will not acknowledge the evidence and submit to it as fact. Why would a belief system that prides itself on its pursuit of knowledge and evidence reject the copious amount of it in front of them? The answer is they are in love with their sin. Romans 1:18-19 says, “…by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown them.”

In the verse quoted above, this concept of suppression is active, volitional, and requires an incredible amount of effort. Think of a beach ball floating in a pool. To keep that inflated ball underwater, you must hold it down. The deeper it goes into the water, the more exertion you need to keep it submerged. Furthermore, the ball is constantly moving, attempting to surface, so you must be actively pressing against it at all times. The knowledge of God is the same way, it is popping up everywhere, and because people are in their sin, they intentionally suppress that knowledge lest they have to deal with the reality. However, the more they suppress, the more the knowledge of God surfaces and the more frustrated they become. This may be anecdotal, but I have never met an Atheist full of joy or peace; instead, they are full of cynicism and have a caustic personality.

For an Atheist to acknowledge God’s existence, they have to recognize everything that comes with it. With God comes the knowledge of man, sin, and redemption. Moreover, to acknowledge God is also to recognize that there is an authority over us and that all of us will be held accountable. Since God exists and He is the Creator, all of us will have to answer to Him regardless of whether we believe in Him or not.

The images from the James Webb telescope are but another example of the reality of God. Only God can paint such vivid displays of colors, lights, nebulas, and swirling galaxies. Only God could reveal Himself in such a powerful way to the naked eye.

God is real, and all one needs to do is to open their eyes and see Him.