A Moment in Time

In a recent post, we mentioned a Biblical skeptic we met at a poker night. He wants to see "tangible evidence" of God's existence. And he claimed people "existed" somehow before they were born.

Let's take the second statement first. If you believe in an "immortal soul," this man would be tough to answer. Some Christians tend to talk about a soul living forever into the future -- but what about the past?

Our search of the Bible has concluded both sides are wrong in their thinking, and we have NOT always "existed." Consider what happened at creation:

And The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life: and man became a living soul. -- Genesis 2:7 (KJV)

Note man became one. He wasn't always one. God may have a plan to create humans with souls in eternity past -- but there's no evidence from the Bible He actually had the souls. God must have created them.

Our skeptic said, "When you die, you won't know anything after that." In one sense, the Bible backs up that skeptic's claim....

For the living know that they shall die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten. -- Ecclesiastes 9:5

This statement is true because of sin. Souls that sin die (Ezekiel 18:4), and all of us have sinned (Romans 3:23).

Yet where did King Solomon (who wrote Ecclesiastes) get the idea of "no further reward?" Doesn't the Bible talk about a reward for believers when Jesus comes back? Yes -- in fact Jesus does:

"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done." -- Revelation 22:12

Some Bible commentaries explain Solomon's statement by saying the dead have no further reward in this human life. It actually comes later.

And that "later" brings us back to the skeptic's first comment. Many religious writers have offered various proofs of God's existence. The most compelling one to us involves radioactivity. If the Earth has decaying uranium that's billions of years old, how could life on Earth ever develop long ago?

But as we said to the man originally, matters involving God and eternal life ultimately are matters of faith. Some poker players have faith they'll hit a straight or flush draw after the flop -- except they're sometimes disappointed. Christians need faith in God's plan all the way to the river, because....

....Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he reward those who earnestly seek him. -- Hebrews 11:6

We've heard some ministers put it this way: if you believe in God and nothing happens after you die, there's no penalty. If you refuse to believe and something does happen after you die.... well, we shudder to think what you might face. Which one would you consider the safer bet?