Why do we exist

1
(No Transcript)
2
Why do we exist?
Did we just happen, or did we come to exist
by design?
3
Just wait--Ill prove where we came from . . .
even if I have to guess a little!
The question Where did we come from is not a
scientific question. Science deals with things
are both observable and repeatable. It takes
data found already in existence, tries to
understand how that data functions, and then
makes predictions as to what might be expected to
occur from further use(s) of that data. Science
studies the operation or function of observable
dataof processes that can be repeated or
reproduced.
Science answers how a thing works, not why.
For example, science can explain how it rains
but not why it rains. Since the origin of the
rain cycle is not observablethat is, how all the
components came into existence and then came
together to form the system that produces the
cycleit is not a proper subject for the
scientist.
The question of how everything began is
philosophical, not scientific. Depending on
which philosophy one accepts regarding origins,
he will interpret his data accordingly. This is
why we find equally reputable scientists on both
sides of the question of how the universe and man
began.
Really, then, we are asking which philosophy is
the most reasonable did it all originate from
matter itself or from a Designer?
4
Looking at Our World The level of design in
nature implies that there must be a Creator. We
must explain how the complex world in which we
live came into being. Naturalists (atheists, or
materialists) argue that since energy is able to
enter our world, and since the building blocks of
life were already present, it is possible for
chance collisions of molecules to produce life.
But this explanation has many problems. For
instance, although energy is free to enter the
system of our world, what mechanism connects that
energy to the work of ordering chaotic molecules
into the precise, complex order needed for life?
Theists argue that such complexity could arise
only as the direct result of intervention by an
intelligence with a purpose and with the power to
make it happen.
5
What is our Purpose in this Class? IT IS NOT to
show specific hands-on, hard evidence of God.
There is no picture of Him, nor can we touch Him
or show Him to anyone. If we had such specific
evidence, it would remove any need for faith.
It is faithfirm conviction about the reality of
what we cannot physically detect through our
senseson which we rest our belief in God, our
belief in His Word, and our obligation to submit
our lives and hopes to One we cannot see, taste,
smell, feel, or hear.
IT IS to see many pieces of evidence that show us
it is far more reasonable to believe that a
Divine Designer Creator is the cause of all
that exists.
6
Gen 11-3 - In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth. Now the earth was
formless and empty, darkness was over the
surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God
was hovering over the waters. And God
said, "Let there be . . . .
Heb 111-3 - Now faith is being sure of what we
hope for and certain of what we do not see.
This is what the ancients were commended
for. By faith we understand that the
universe was formed at God's command, so
that what is seen was not made out of what
was visible.
2 Cor 57 - We live by faith, not by sight.
7
John 11-5 - In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning. Through
him all things were made without him
nothing was made that has been made. In
him was life, and that life was the light of
men. The light shines in the darkness, but
the darkness has not understood it. Heb 12 -
in these last days he has spoken to us by
his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things,
and through whom he made the universe.
2 Cor 57 - We live by faith, not by sight.
8
Ps 191-4 The heavens declare the glory of
God the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech night
after night they display knowledge. There is no
speech or language where their voice is not
heard. Their voice goes out into all the
earth, their words to the ends of the world.
9
Ps 13913-16 For you created my inmost being you
knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise
you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made
your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made
in the secret place. When I was woven together
in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my
unformed body. All the days ordained for me were
written in your book before one of them came to
be.
10
Rom 120-21 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 . . . They
exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and
worshiped and served created things rather than
the Creator-who is forever praised.
11
Suppose we put dyna-
mite under a pile of
stones and blow it up. The
system contains sufficient energy and
the correct building blocks to
build the Taj- Mahal. But is it
really likely that blowing up the
stones would have this result? Even if we
repeated the experiment millions of times, it
seems completely unlikely that it ever would
result in the Taj-Mahal or any other kind of
building. Even though the building materials and
the energy are there, more is needed. The energy
has to be channeled in a very precise way in
order to produce a very complex design.
12
Of course the more complex the design, the more
difficult it is to believe that it ever could be
put together in this way by chance or accident.
More importantly, living organisms are much more
complex than the Taj-Mahal.
It is easier and more logical to believe that an
intelligent personality acted with a purpose and
with the power needed to design and create what
exists.
13
The Hummingbird
Leaf-cutting Ants
14
The Giraffe's Special Circulatory System
Camels
15
Lobsters eyes
Earthworms
16
And More!
Termites
Woodpeckers
Honey bees
17
Why do we exist?
Did we just happen, or did we come to exist
by design?
18
(No Transcript)