Download Lesson 4 Is There A God File

Welcome to
APOLOGETICS
(THE3013)
Lesson Four
“Is There A God?”
Dr. Arnold Lastinger, Instructor
Question: Does God exist?
Two Types of Pointers to the
Existence of God…
a
priori: (think “prior”)
Deductive assumptions
Derived by reasoning without facts
Formed or conceived beforehand
a
posteriori: (think “post=after”)
Inductive
Reasoning from observed facts
A Posteriori Pointers…
 Thomas
Aquinas’ (1225-74)
Italian philosopher-theologian
 He posited 5 proofs of the
existence of God
 All depended on his
observance of the facts known
to him
Argument from Motion
 “It
is certain, and evident to our
senses, that in the world some
things are in motion. Now
whatever is in motion is put in
motion by another…therefore it is
necessary to arrive at a first
mover…” (Thomas Aquinas)
 The existence of motion requires
a Prime Mover.
Cosmological argument

“There is no case
known in which a thing
is found to be the
efficient cause of
itself…” (Aquinas)
This argument is concerned with
the origins of the universe.
 The “first cause” of the universe is
assumed to be God.

Possibility and Necessity
Contingency argument
 “If
at one time nothing was in
existence, it would have been
impossible for anything to have
begun to exist…even now nothing
would be in existence—which is
absurd.” (Thomas Aquinas)
 Sometimes
called the “argument
of contingency”
Gradation of Being argument

“The fourth way is taken from the
gradation to be found in things…there
must also be something which is to all
beings the cause of their being…”
(Aquinas)

“The universe is a pyramid of beings at
different levels of perfection…there
must be the final Being…God” (Ramm)

WEAKNESS: It assumes that there
must be a continuum of being.
Governance of the World
Teleological/Design argument

“…some intelligent Being
(must) exist by whom all
natural things are
directed to their end…”
i.e.: The observable order
and purpose in the
universe indicates
intelligent design.
 Links to Physics’ Second Law of
Thermodynamics (Any system left to
itself, tends to entropy and decay.)

Occam’s Razor

“Does pushing back the cause-effect
sequence to a Prime Mover really
prove the existence of an Ultimate
Being, namely the God of the Bible, or
merely an adequate cause which
might be a limited power or being but
less than God Himself? (William of
Occam—1285-1349)

Occam’s Razor “cuts away” complex
explanations; i.e. the simplest
explanation is the best explanation.
Summary of the
A Posteriori Pointers to God
Motion
Contingency
Gradation
GOD
Teleology
Cosmology
Conclusions…

We can never PROVE the existence of
God!

To do so would remove the requirement
of FAITH, without which no man can
please God.

All of the evidence pointing toward the
existence of God is circumstantial, but…

The weight of that evidence is so
overwhelming as to make it preposterous
to assume anything else.
A Priori Pointers…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Man’s innate idea of God
The existence of truth
The ontological argument
Man’s finitude
The idea of blessedness
Man’s ability to perceive
Mysticism
The existentialist argument
The axiological arguments
A Priori Pointers
1. Man’s Innate Idea of God


Every person is born with the
idea of God implanted in his or
her mind.
QUESTION: Is man born with a
“tabula rasa” (blank slate) or
does he come into this world with
innate ideas of value?
A Priori Pointers
2. Existence of Truth



“The existence of truth implies
the existence of Truth, which in
turn implies the existence of
God” (Ramm)
Do skeptics and agnostics
believe some things to be true?
How does this weaken their
position?
A Priori Pointers
3. Ontological Argument





Can we know?
If no, then nothing really matters
If yes, then you imply that you
exist and are capable of knowing
If you exist, it implies that
Someone created you
ERGO: God is!
A Priori Pointers
4. Man’s Finitude




Is man finite (does he have
limitations?)
If he is finite, is he not dependant
upon something or someone?
Does this not suggest Someone
who is Infinite?
ERGO: God is!
A Priori Pointers
5. The Idea of Blessedness



Man has a hunger for something
that will satisfy his longings.
In order for that hunger to be
satisfied, there must capable of
satisfying that need.
ERGO: God is!
A Priori Pointers
6. Man’s Ability to Perceive


Since people appear to perceive
phenomena in a fairly regular
fashion, is this not a pointer to
One who has arranged not only
an orderly universe, but the very
mental process by which man
can recognize that order.
ERGO: God is!
A Priori Pointers
7. Mysticism



Many religions of the world have the
notion that man, somehow, can enter
into a union with God.
This notion validates the idea of
God, even if it cannot be clearly
articulated.
NOTE: Paul testified to a genuine
encounter with God that could be
described as mystical (2 Cor. 12:1-4)
A Priori Pointers
8. The Existential Argument



Whether or not Jesus was God is
irrelevant; what counts is what we
believe!
The biblical account “is not in essence an
objective account of factual occurrences.
Instead, it conveys to us the impact
which various occurrences had upon the
disciples. Its aim is not to inform us, but
to transform us.” (Erickson, 1985)
God is…because I say He is!
A Priori Pointers
9. The Axiological Arguments




Axiology deals with man’s sense of
values; moral and aesthetic
Since every culture has moral
distinctions, does this not point to
the existence of a Lawgiver?
Since there appears to be a
universal sense of beauty, does this
not point to One who is the giver of
beauty?
ERGO: God is!
Importance of
Christian Revelation




Very little of what God is like can
be known from natural
revelation.
Yet, it is the very nature of God
to make Himself known.
He reveals Himself to us in His
Word.
He reveals Himself to us through
changed lives.