Atheism

“I don’t believe that God is knowable.”

Amazingly, it is human nature to assume that our believing or not believing something makes it true. Some people may not believe in the law of gravity, and may feel they have “evidence” to back up their belief. However, gravity exists whether they believe in it or not. The truth is, God is knowable. Jesus testified, “And this is life eternal, that they might know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). We not only have the testimony of Scripture to tell us this, but we have the testimony of multitudes of Christians who know the Lord personally. It is more truthful to say, “I don’t want to know God.” Sinful man runs from Him as did Adam in the Garden of Eden.

I don’t believe in atheists. This isn’t because I haven’t met anyone who claimed the title, but because such a person cannot exist. If you encounter someone who claims to be an atheist, ask him these two questions: First, “Do you know the combined weight of all the sand on all the beaches of Hawaii?” We can safely assume that he doesn’t. This brings us to the second question: “Do you know how many hairs are on the back of a full-grown male Tibetan yak?” Probably not. Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that there are some things he doesn’t know. It is important to ask these questions because some people think they know everything.

Let’s say that the professing atheist knows an incredible 1 percent of all the knowledge in the universe. To know 100 percent, he would have to know absolutely everything. There wouldn’t be a rock in the universe that he would not be intimately familiar with, or a grain of sand that he would not be aware of. He would know everything that has happened in history, from that which is common knowledge to the minor details of the secret love life of Napoleon’s great-grandmother’s black cat’s fleas. He would know every hair of every head, and every thought of every heart. All history would be laid out before him, because he would be omniscient (all-knowing).

Bear in mind that one of the greatest scientists who ever lived, Thomas Edison, said, “We do not know a millionth of one percent about anything.” Again, let’s say that the atheist has an incredible 1 percent of all the knowledge in the universe. Would it be possible, in the 99 percent of the knowledge that he hasn’t yet come across, that there might be ample evidence to prove the existence of God? One who is reasonable will be forced to admit that it is possible. Somewhere, in the vast knowledge that he hasn’t yet discovered, there could be enough proof that God does exist.

Let’s look at the same thought from another angle. If I were to make an absolute statement such as, “There is no gold in China,” what is necessary for that statement to be proved true? I would need absolute or total knowledge. I must know that there is no gold in any rock, in any river, in the ground, in any store, in any ring, or in any filling in any mouth in China. If there is one speck of gold in China, then my statement is false and I have no basis for it. I need absolute knowledge before I can make an absolute statement. Conversely, for me to say, “There is gold in China,” I don’t need to have all knowledge. If there is even one speck of gold in the country, the statement is then true.

To say categorically, “There is no God,” is to make an absolute statement. For the statement to be true, a person must know for certain that there is no God in the entire universe. No human being has all knowledge. Therefore, none of us is able to truthfully make this assertion.

One who insists upon disbelief in God must say, “Having the limited knowledge that I have at present, I believe that there is no God.” Owing to a lack of knowledge on his part, he doesn’t know if God exists. So, in the strict sense of the word, one cannot be an atheist. The only true qualifier for the title is the One who has absolute knowledge, and why on earth would God want to deny His own existence?

The professing atheist is actually what is commonly known as an “agnostic”—one who claims he “doesn’t know” if God exists, or “one who professes ignorance.” The Bible tells us that this ignorance is willful: “The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts” (Psalm 10:4). It’s not that a person can’t find God, but that he won’t. It has been rightly said that the “atheist” can’t find God for the same reason a thief can’t find a policeman. He knows that if he acknowledges there is a God, he is admitting that he is ultimately accountable to Him. This is not a pleasant thought for some.

It is said that the Italian dictator Mussolini once stood on a pinnacle and cried, “God, if You are there, strike me dead!” When God didn’t immediately bow to his dictates, Mussolini concluded that there was no God. However, his prayer was answered sometime later.