Revelation of God in Nature

1. Revelation of God in Nature Romans 1:18-20; 2:14-15

2. Romans 1:18-20 • 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

3. Romans 2:14-15 • 14 For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, 15 in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness, and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them.

4. Two types of revelation • General Revelation: this touches two areas of knowledge, God’s existence and basic human morality • Special Revelation: refers to what God has further revealed about Himself (which cannot be known from nature) and what he expects from humanity

5. General Revelation • Fundamental knowledge about God (Romans 1:18-20) which is written in the created universe and read and appreciated by the incisive human mind • Fundamental knowledge about morality (Romans 2:14-15) which is written in the hearts of all human beings

6. Psalm 19 • Vv. 1-6 deal with general revelation found in nature • Vv. 7-11 deal with special revelation found in the law of God, the Bible • The first would be deficient without the second; would produce blind deism • These two forms of revelation fully complement one another; one tells of God’s power and divine nature; the other reveals what he expects from us

7. Psalm 19:1-4 • 1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. 3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

8. The glory of God is written upon the tablet of the heavens… • Psalm 8:1 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth, who has set thy glory upon the heavens. • The poet Emerson: “Nature is too thin a screen; the glory of the omnipresent God bursts through everywhere.” • Dr. E. A. Maness: “If the word ‘God’ were written upon every blowing leaf, embossed on every passing cloud, engraved on every granite rock, the inductive evidence of God in the world would be no stronger than it is.”

9. Only a fool would deny what is written there • Psalm 14:1 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God” (see 53:1). • Paul said, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools…” (Rom. 1:22) • Mankind’s almost universal longing after God is a powerful proof of God: Acts 17:24-28

10. Acts 17:24-28 • The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for "'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your own poets have said, "'For we are indeed his offspring.'

11. “Men of Science, Men of God” • This is the title of a book written by Henry Morris, 1982. • Many of the great scientists of the past were believers; many still are today, in spite of the claims of modern critics. • Johannes Kepler, pioneer astronomer, described his research as “thinking God’s thoughts after Him.”

12. “Men of Science, Men of God” • Dr. Arthur Compton, Professor of Physics at the University of Chicago and Nobel laureate, wrote: “It is not difficult for me to have this faith, for it is incontrovertible that where there is a plan there is intelligence – an orderly, unfolding universe testifies to the truth of the most majestic statement ever uttered – “In the beginning, God” (Chicago Daily News, April 12, 1936).

13. “Men of Science, Men of God” • Lord Kelvin (famed British scientist, specializing in thermodynamics): “I cannot admit that, with regard to the origin of life, science neither affirms nor denies Creative Power. Science positively affirms Creative Power. It is not in dead matter that we live and move and have our being, but in the creating and directing Power which science compels us to accept as an article of belief…If you think strongly enough you will be forced by science to the belief in God, which is the foundation of all religion. You will find science not antagonistic but helpful to religion” (June, 1903).

14. “Men of Science, Men of God” • Louis Agassiz, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Geology at Harvard and bitter opponent of Charles Darwin: “…I shall consider any manifestation of physical thought as an evidence of the existence of a thinking being as the author of such thought, and shall look upon intelligent and intelligible connection between the facts of nature as direct proof of a thinking God” (Boston, 1857).

15. Natural Revelation: The Universe • All scientific evidence leads to the conclusion that the universe had a definite beginning (Creation, Big Bang) • Cause always and inevitably precedes effect • The universe consists of space, time and matter • So, anything consisting of, or limited by, space, time and matter must itself be a component part of that universe.

16. Natural Revelation: The Universe • Therefore, the pre-existent cause of the universe could not have consisted of those characteristics which it subsequently produced. • The causal force or agent must be: 1) independent of space; 2) independent of time; 3) independent of matter

17. Natural Revelation: The Universe • If the Cause is limitless, in some sense it must exist everywhere • If the Cause is eternal then it never began to exist, can never cease to exist, and is itself uncaused and self-existent • If the Cause is immaterial, then it is not natural (hence, super-natural), and not constrained by any law or property of the universe which it brought into existence

18. Natural Revelation: The Universe • These are the qualities of God: limitless, eternal, and immaterial • These are in fact his “invisible attributes” depicted in the Bible (Rom. 1:20)

19. Cause and Effect • Four possible solutions to the origin of the universe: • 1) It is an illusion • 2) It spontaneously arose out of nothing • 3) It has existed eternally; no origin • 4) It was created by God

20. Cause and Effect • Albert Einstein spoke of: “the illimitable superior reasoning power which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe.” • Every effect has some cause; the universe is the effect; who or what is the cause? • The material universe had a beginning; no possibility of infinite regress. • There is no such thing as perpetual motion; hence, an “unmoved mover” existed at some point in the ancient past.

21. Cause and Effect • The laws of thermodynamics (heat) indicate the universe is running down. • There is a continuous flow of energy from warmer to colder bodies (stars). • In infinite time the state of entropy would already have occurred. • Yet the stars are still shining.

22. Cause and Effect • Uranium 238 (most common in nature, over 99%) exists in the universe for a definite period of time; very predictable. • Has a “half-life” of 4.468 billion years • So, if the universe was over 10 billion years old there would be no U238, only lead-206. • Other isotopes of Uranium are just as predictable. • Therefore, the universe had a beginning, hence also a Cause.

23. Cause and Effect • “Chemistry discloses that matter is ceasing to exist, some varieties exceedingly slowly, others swiftly. Therefore, the existence of matter is not eternal…Thus, at some definite time the material realm was created and ever since has been obeying law, not the dictates of chance…Hence, our logical and inescapable conclusion is not only that creation occurred but that it was brought about according to the plan and will of a Person endowed with supreme intelligence and knowledge (omniscience), and the power to bring it about and keep it running according to plan (omnipotence, omnipresence)” (J. C. Cothran, Ph. D., mathematician and chemist).

24. Intelligent Design • In 1996, Michael Behe published Darwin’s Black Box, introducing the concept of “irreducible complexity.” • It was understood formerly that living structures are amazingly complex, even at the single cellular level. • Modern science has given us a much better understanding of the biochemistry of life, and how extraordinarily complex it is.

25. Intelligent Design • Gradualism is necessary to Darwinism: “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down.” • In fact, many recent biochemical discoveries have, of themselves, demonstrated that they could not have developed by means of a series of slight modifications. They are “all or none” in nature.

26. Intelligent Design • DNA and the Genome • The human brain • The anatomy and biochemistry of the eye. • The blood clotting cascade. • The endocrine system.

27. Natural Revelation: Morality • Immanuel Kant: “Two things fill me with wonder and awe: the starry heaven above and the moral law within” (Critique of Practical Reason) • Human beings universally try to convince themselves that their actions are right and justifiable. • They desire the approval of their consciences, as well as of their fellow men. • No other creature has this moral sense.

28. Natural Revelation: Morality • Men make their appeals to one another for what is just and fair. • This appeal is to some standard of behavior that he expects the other to know about, understand, and accept. • These standards are universal, and accepted by everyone in every time – even though at times we attempt to justify bad behavior by twists of logic and fallacy.

29. Natural Revelation: Morality • Thus, two things are always true: • 1) Human beings all over the world entertain this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way. • 2) They understand that they do not always behave as they ought. • Where does this “sense of ought” come from? • Not from organic matter or its “evolution”!

30. Natural Revelation: Morality • Thoughtless evolution cannot create thought; amoral matter cannot produce a moral being • But, a thoughtful, moral Being with limitless power most assuredly could create a thoughtful, moral being after the likeness of Himself • And that is precisely what the Bible says that He did: Genesis 1:27

31. Moral Responsibility Equates to Accountability • Logically the case could be made for moral accountability where a moral nature exists. • And just such a nature exists in man. • So, God’s special revelation in Holy Scripture declares a day of reckoning or accounting is ahead. • “(God) has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he has appointed…” (Acts 17:31)