Is God Real?

No Scientific Tests for God

There is no scientific test that you can use to prove God exists or doesn't exist, which is unfortunate.

If God doesn't exist, then it seems unlikely we will ever be called to account for the way we have lived our lives here on earth – assuming, that is, we keep more or less on the right side of the law.

But suppose God does exist. Suppose for a moment there is an almighty being, a creator who is perfect in every way and who expects his creation to be perfect. If that is the case, then most of us might feel uneasy about what happens when we depart this life.

No one can prove by scientific experiment if God exists or doesn't exist. After all we are material creatures living in a material universe, whereas if God exists, it is said he is spirit and we don't have any instruments that can detect spirit, let alone examine its nature.

The Bible Tells Us All About God

The bible says that we should believe in God because the evidence is all around us:

"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." (Romans 1:18-23)

In today's sophisticated western world we don't tend to substitute images that look like men, birds, animals or reptiles for God. Instead we substitute esoteric theories to explain how everything came into being from nothing and without reason.

The bible calls that kind of thinking 'foolishness':

"The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God." (Psalm 14:1-2)

That leaves us with a bit of a dilemma. Do we put our hope and trust in the ever changing theories of scientists and philosophers or do we take the warnings of the bible seriously.

The Dilemma of Believing or Not Believing

For anyone who firmly believes they have never done anything wrong and their life is beyond reproach, then perhaps the whole question of whether or not God exists is only of academic interest. For the rest of us, however, whose lives are less than exemplary, this is probably the most serious issue we will ever need to grapple with.

When your body is buried or burned, is that the end – extinction, or does the real you live on in some different form?

What are we to make of all the people who have had near-death experiences but have survived to relate what it was like? It's intriguing how similar and consistent their reports are?

The bible tells us about God. In fact it claims to have been directly inspired by God to give us some insight into what life is really all about. What the bible has to say is also remarkably consistent, particularly in view of it being written down over thousands of years by dozens of authors, and it makes a lot of sense. After all, surely our sense of natural justice tells us that sooner or later there has to be a final reckoning in front of the ultimate judge.

Ignoring the Issue is a Bad Choice

Perhaps you have chosen to avoid these ideas. Perhaps you are young and healthy so that death seems a long way off. Or, perhaps you find that thinking along these lines is simply too uncomfortable. Whatever the reason, ignoring the issue of God's existence and the profound implications if he does or doesn't is not a wise thing to do.

Maybe it's time you did a bit of investigation. The bible is the ultimate source of information but there are also many other books available in your local library or bookshop that will help you to better understand the arguments in favour of God's existence.

If you want to talk these matters over with someone, then drop into your local church and ask to speak to whoever is in charge. It doesn't matter what kind of church it is, but if you don't get satisfactory answers in the first church you visit, then try the next one down the street.

These issues are important – in fact they are of eternal importance and therefore you need to sort then out for yourself sooner rather than later, because if you don't it may be too late,