We can know that God exists.
Quick review of the words hermeneutics, exegesis, and eisegesis.
We briefly touched on the ideas of Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, Madalyn Murray O'Hair, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens.
Scriptures used -
Genesis 1:1-2
Exodus 3:13-15
John 18:1-6
Romans 1:18-23
Moses starts the book of Genesis by saying that before time, God was. God exists outside of time. Genesis 1:1 is the beginning of time. God created time. Nowhere in the rest of Scripture does God feel the need to argue or explain His existence.
Genesis 1:1 contains a figure of speech called a merism. Just as we might use the phrase from "head to toe" to describe a whole person, Moses uses the phrase "heavens and the earth" to mean all of the created universe. God created the universe in its entirety.
We can choose to believe or deny these facts.
In Exodus chapter 3, God gives us His name, I AM. I AM has been His name forever and will continue to be so. He is the uncreated Creator and Eternal God.
In John 18, Jesus uses the name I AM of Himself. English translations add the word he, "I am he" but Jesus calls Himself I AM in the Greek language. Jesus is claiming to be God. Jesus knew what was going to happen and why they were there (omniscient, and attribute of God). When Jesus identified himself and His power, they fell to the ground, just as Moses did in last week's lesson in Exodus 34:8.
So, between Genesis 1:1-2, and John 18:1-6 we have our first encounter with the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
If God did not exist outside of time, He could not be the Creator. If God did not exist, we could not exist since there would be no cause for all things. God is the I AM- the one who causes all things to exist and without whom we would not be here talking about Him.
In the Romans chapter 1, God shows how He deals with unrighteous people. He reveals His wrath. Why? Because God's existence is evident in His creation, but they choose to suppress that truth. Still, God has made His existence plain to all. Therefore, all men are without excuse for denying His existence. People who deny God do not honor Him and they worship created things, rather than the Creator. They think they are smart, but they are fools.
We didn't get to Psalm 19:1-4, but I'll leave it here for your thought and consideration.
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world. God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.
Psalm 19:1-4 NLT
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