Why it is Not Up to Believers to Prove the Existence of God

Just as atheists cannot prove that God doesn't exist, neither can Christians prove that He does.  However, many atheists are under the mistaken impression that it is the 'job' of Christians to prove God's existence (even though they make no attempt to prove their opposing stance!)

No, is not up to believers to prove the existence of God, and this is why.  Jesus and God want us to come to believe in them of our own free will, and to come to them via faith (as opposed to deductive reasoning).  If there was absolute, total proof of God's existence, there would be no reason to have faith.  It would then be a no-brainer that God exists, and we would have come to him via a mere act of observation instead of by faith.   Why is faith important? Because it triggers our spiritual development. The spirit is not something which is wishy-washy - it is there, but hard to detect.

Make no mistake: whether someone is Christian or atheist, either way it is a leap of faith.  Whether you believe there is a God, or no God, you are guessing.  None of us can know everything there is about everything in the Universe. 

Furthermore, why do some atheists refuse to believe in God without proof, yet are quite happy to believe in other things without proof?  For example, there are many abstract and subjective theories which exist in fields such as literature, music and art to which people subscribe.  Yet, none of these can be definitively proven.  In these types of situations there are often two opposing schools of thought, neither of which can be proven, yet there are atheists who will happily believe in one or the other in the absence of proof.

Science is another area which takes the unproven seriously.  Consider this scenario: the existence of something was postulated; indeed predicted by other works yet was not physically detected after a lot of searching.  If atheists behaved toward science as they do toward religion, then at any point prior to 2012 they would not have believed in the possibility of the Higg's Boson actually existing outside of theory.  More to the point, many would have refused to even countenance the search for the Higg's Boson.  Others would have even tried their utmost to prevent others from searching for, and even talking about the Higg's Boson.  This is a surprisingly blinding attitude from those who would like to be known for their freedom of thought.

There is an alternative to either a) blindly believing the unproven without putting any consideration behind it or b) blindly running from the unproven merely because it is unproven.  This alternative would be to investigate it oneself.  Of course, it is important to use the correct tools.  Just as you would not expect to find the Higg's Boson by using the Bible, neither will you find God by using the Large Hadron Collider!  You can, however, try to find God by talking to Him and listening to Him through prayer, and through reading the Bible.  Rest assured: this need not involve other people if you prefer not; nor does it require you to set foot in a church if you prefer not. If you are genuinely seeking Him, he will not withhold himself from you:

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Matthew 7: 6 - 8

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