Hover over Romans 1:20-22 for proof of God's existence, and over Matthew 5:27-28 for Judgment Day’s perfect standard. Then hover over John 3:16-18 for what God did, and over Acts 17:30-31 for what to do.

Monday, March 14, 2011

The Atheist’s Explanation for Killer Quakes

An atheist can't blame God for the earthquake that recently took so many lives in Japan. As much as he would like to, he can't say "God-did-it!" because he thinks there's no evidence for God. Blaming Him for it would make as much sense as his blaming Snow White for a snow storm.

But atheism says that there is a good reason for the 8.9 killer quake and the horrific Tsunami that followed. It is nature making improvements. Everything is getting better. People being crushed to death or drowned in a Tsunami is just part of the work of nature.

Also, cancer, suffering, pain and death are nature improving things through evolutionary change. It was evolution that improved nature when it gave the leap to the frog and the bark to the dog. It gave oxygen enriched air to the lungs, the wings to the bird, and brains to the nerd. It also gifted us with the four seasons, myriads of colorful flowers, the snow-caped mountains, the cool running streams, music, love and laughter. It all started with nothing, and over millions of years, here we are in this wonder called "life." That’s evolution for you...making things better.

So if you have tragically lost loved ones through cancer, atheism says that you will just have to deal with it because it's all working for the good of...well...nature. It's like a beehive, or communism. If you have to be stung to death for the good of the hive, or shot to death for the good of the State, it doesn't really matter because you are nothing more than a very small cog in a big wheel. You are part of a species that will fail to survive. Richard Dawkins was right when he said "Blindness to suffering is an inherent consequence of natural selection. Nature is neither kind nor cruel but indifferent."

If it sounds hopeless and depressing, it is. Evolution has left you as nobody among billions, on a dot of a planet among trillions, waiting around for the pains of life and ultimately death. You don't know where you came from, you don't know what you are doing here, and you don't know what happens after death. But that doesn't matter to an atheist. All that really matters is that you are free to enjoy yourself here and now by throwing yourself into fornication, adultery, pornography or homosexuality. Anything goes, because there is no God and no Hell. Probably.

The Christian world-view is a little different. It says that when there are killer earthquakes, or tornados, or hurricanes that ravage humanity, it's a confirmation that we live in a "fallen" creation (see Genesis 1-3). When cancer kills hundreds of thousands each year, or when a loved one dies, it just confirms the truth that we live in a fallen creation.

It also confirms that God is not the smiling divine butler He's made out to be. He is angry at humanity for all its evil. Disease, pain, suffering and death endorse the biblical account of both man's sin and God's holiness.

Despite our sinful rebellion, God is rich in mercy and will grant everlasting life to all who will repent and trust in the Savior. The cross of Jesus Christ is proof that the most vile of us has great worth in the sight of Almighty God. Jesus took punishment for our sins, and rose from death to save us from Hell. He paid the fine so that we could leave the courtroom; such is the love of God.

So there you have it. You can choose to believe that nothing created everything, that you are no body waiting to die, and enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season and end up in Hell. Or you can obey the gospel and get right with God, find everlasting life, have a reason for life, and then enjoy "pleasure forevermore."

NOTE: Edits were made after the publication of this post, removing the word "evolution" and "evolving," in reference to earthquakes.