J. J. C. Smart, "my mind often seems to reel under the immense significance this question has for me. That anything exists at all does seem to me a matter for the deepest awe.”[i]
God, Elohim, the Creator who created out of nothing
William Lane Craig in his article makes philosophical and scientific reasons to answer why something exists rather than nothing. He reasons three alternatives to answer this question.
- The universe either had a beginning or had no beginning.
- If it had a beginning, this was either caused or uncaused.
- If caused, the cause was either personal or not personal.
And, he concludes, “If the universe had a beginning, it is inconceivable that it could have sprung uncaused out of absolute nothingness… the cause of the universe must be personal in order to have a temporal effect produced by external cause. This confirms the biblical doctrine of creatio ex nihilo (creation out of nothing).”[ii]
The Old Testament calls this “eternal, uncaused being for which no explanation is possible” who created out of nothing, God Elohim (<yhOa). The doctrine of creation out of nothing by God Elohim tells us that we owe our existence to him, that he has every right to account our lives as our Creator, that he deserves our worship, and that we cannot limit him nor tame him at our disposal.
- How do you try to put limits on Elohim and try to tame him at your disposal?
- How does knowing God as your Creator, Elohim affect your prayer life, your outlook and purpose in life, and your heart?
Pray
- Revelation 4:11 says, “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” Ask God Elohim, the Creator, to stretch your mind, emotion, thinking and action with the truth of who he is.
[i] J. J. C. Smart, "The Existence of God," Church Quarterly Review 156 (1955): 194.
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