David spoke clearly regarding the evidence for the existence of God revealed through creation:

The language of creation shouts boldly to all that there is a God and he has made all things. It troubles us, then, to realize that many don’t seem to hear the message creation speaks.

Here are four primary reasons people can’t hear the message God has revealed through creation and several suggestions for sharing the truth with them.

Likely the smallest percentage of atheists (and perhaps the easiest to effectively communicate with) are the people who have wandered into the belief that there is no God. Some of these individuals have heard the notion that there is no God and unwittingly accepted it. They may have been confused about whether or not God exists and haven’t heard credible explanations. If they have believed the negative media portrayal of the church and Christians, they’re unlikely to approach either for clarification on the subject.

Such people may identify themselves as atheists but might be more inclined to describe themselves as agnostics or questioners. When we meet “soft” atheists like this, it’s best to share some of the information that shows the world’s existence cannot be explained by chance and that there must be a creator. A gift of Can Man Live Without God? (Thomas Nelson, 2004), by Ravi Zacharias might also be beneficial.

It has been said, “There is none so blind as he who will not see.” Many people have a personal stake in perpetuating the concept of evolution. For some, their employment or position within an organization is contingent on supporting an evolutionary view of the universe. Evolution and atheism go hand in hand; it is impossible to reconcile a belief in evolution with a literal interpretation of Scripture. Thus, if evolution must be accepted, supported, and even taught in order to keep one’s position, title, or employment, some will choose to do so even when their minds tell them the notion of evolution is false.

This idea may seem strange to us, but we trick our brains into shutting out information all the time. People who live along railway routes eventually condition their brains to sleep through the noisy passing of trains in the middle of the night. People who live near airports do the same. The problem isn’t that their ears have stopped working and no longer hear the sound; they’ve simply trained their brains not to respond when the noise occurs.

People in this condition are harder to reach. They have both a personal stake and a modified thought pattern to combat. They may also be of above average intelligence, which complicates the situation because they have understood much of what they accept in life. This makes them think that in order to accept anything as fact, they must have a complete understanding of it. The Bible makes it clear that God’s ways are infinitely above ours and we cannot fully understand him (1 Corinthians 2:16).

Again, the presentation of well researched and documented information on the subject of creation can be an effective tool in swaying these individuals toward theism. Today there is an abundance of media supporting a biblical world view. Direct these people toward Christian Web sites that deal with the subject (answersingenesis.org; creation.com; drdino.com). Better yet, find out the specific subjects that cause the atheist you know to deny God’s existence and research them yourself. Then present the person with papers and videos on the subject.

For many atheists, the question comes down to who Jesus is. The apostle Peter gave the best answer to this question in Matthew 16:16: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” That was the right answer, but Jesus’ follow-up to this declaration is very interesting. “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven” (Matthew 16:17).

We might read this passage and think God simply chose to reveal this to Peter and Peter had no personal choice in whether or not to accept it. To the contrary, the Bible clearly teaches that God reveals himself to all who are open to his existence and who seek him. Hebrews 11:6 says that God “rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Peter was such an earnest seeker that he had abandoned his livelihood in order to follow Jesus. Because of his true desire to follow Jesus, God rewarded him with this clear understanding of who Jesus is.

Unfortunately, this same principle works against those who are denying God’s existence because they rely on their own wisdom and understanding to explain all things. “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate” (1 Corinthians 1:19). Unlike Peter, who abandoned his livelihood to follow Jesus, many today abandon Jesus to pursue their livelihood.

In cases similar to this one it is often wise to share the truth of creation but to put a special emphasis on praying regularly and fervently for God to reveal himself to them. Our prayers are powerful and effective, and sometimes they are much more capable of overcoming such problems than discussion and debate.

Some people reject the existence of God because of unrepentant personal sin. This is the saddest case and perhaps the hardest to combat.

Sometimes people want to knowingly live in a sinful lifestyle that grieves their conscience. They know about sin and the trouble it causes, but they are so attracted to the sinful behavior they persist in it. While participating in the sin it can be convenient to deny God’s existence. If God doesn’t exist, they reason, there is no right and wrong—no sinful behavior. They reject God’s existence so they can persist in their sin without (or at least with less) guilt.

The greatest danger in this type of situation is that God only lets us persist in such actions for a period of time. Speaking of those who know better but choose to continue in sinful behavior, Romans 1:28 says, “since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.” Just as God reveals himself in greater measure to those who seek him, he also conceals himself from those who knowingly choose to run from him.

When God begins to shut down a person’s capability to recognize him and perceive his existence, the danger is great. This is why the book of Hebrews gives such strong warnings against persisting in sin: “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God” (Hebrews 10:26, 27).

Again, the fervent prayer of faithful believers is most likely the best means by which people in this situation can be brought back to God. Many a child who has grown up to wallow in the filth of sin has been brought back to the Lord not by nagging or argument, but by the constant and consistent heartfelt prayers of parents who brought their child to God’s attention every day.

While it is true that “the fool says in his heart ‘there is no God,’” the Bible gives us many examples of people who thought and acted foolishly but who turned back to the Lord (Lot, Jonah, and David to name a few). If you know people who are denying God’s existence, speak out in love to them. Don’t expect an easy or quick resolution. Standing against God is a difficult position to take, one that won’t be dismounted effortlessly. Pray that God will give you the ability to “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:5). |L