Q. How doth it appear that there is a God?

A. The very light of nature in man, and the works of God, declare plainly that there is a God; but his word and Spirit only do sufficiently and effectually reveal him unto men for their salvation.

How do I know that God exists? That is an important question, and it is one that every Christian should be able to answer. Sadly, many are poorly equipped to give a good answer. That is a tragedy in the making. After all, if our highest purpose is to glorify and enjoy God forever, we had better know that God exists—we should know that the God of Christianity is not a fable and the pursuit of His glory and enjoyment is not wasted.

I recently listened to an interview with Alvin Plantinga. Maybe you’re unfamiliar with his name. Plantinga is one of the most influential thinkers of the 20th and early 21st Centuries. He was asked why he believed in God. His answer was that when you take the strongest arguments for God’s existence and bind them together you come as close to philosophic certainty as you can possibly get. This catechism question goes even further than Plantinga’s response by teaching us that we can know with absolute certainty that God exists. How? Through the light of nature, the works of God, and His Word and Spirit.

Let me pause, however, and clarify something. When the catechism asks, “How doth it appear that there is a God?” it is not asking in regard to any god that might exist. The catechism is only interested in the one, living, and true God, who is the triune God. This question is not intended to “prove” the possible existence of Allah or Zeus or any other god of man’s imagination. Rather, these three things put forth the proof of the existence of the Christian God.

First, we know that God exists because of the light of nature. John Calvin said, “There is within the human mind, and indeed by natural instinct, an awareness of divinity. This we take to be beyond controversy. To prevent anyone from taking refuge in the pretense of ignorance, God himself has implanted in all men a certain understanding of his divine majesty.” Of course, people go to great lengths to deny this and to try to ignore it. We should expect this. Paul said that fallen people are always trying to “suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:18). But it is to no avail! Man cannot eradicate the “sense of the divine” that he innately has. This is why the psalmist sings: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Ps. 14:1). This is not engaging in schoolground name-calling but pointing to the reality that the light of nature testifies to God’s existence so undeniably that you are a fool to say otherwise.

Second, we know that He exists because of the works of God. Since moving to Winchester, Kan., I have come to appreciate the paintings of John Steuart Curry. Like many artists, Curry had a distinct way of painting, and most of his artwork is easily distinguishable. If I were to put his work alongside a van Gogh or Picasso, it would not be difficult to say who painted which picture. The same can be said of God. Again, in Romans 1 Paul says that God’s power and divine nature are evident in the works of creation. That is pretty expansive! Blades of grass, taste buds, clouds, caterpillars, whales, galaxies, armadillos, tulips, molecules, thunder—even the pesky fly that keeps buzzing around my head as I write this—all of these things bear the fingerprint of God and plainly testify to His existence.

Finally, we know that God exists because of His “word and Spirit.” But there is an important distinction. The catechism says that the light of nature and works of God “declare plainly that there is a God.” However, that is as far as they go. It is enough, as Paul says, to leave every person without an excuse (Rom. 1:20). But, a saving knowledge of God—“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3)—is only given through the Holy Spirit speaking in the Word.

The point is simple. You can study the human eyeball with all of its intricacies and complexities and perceive in the artistry what inwardly you know: there is a God. But to have the knowledge that leads to glorifying and enjoying God forever requires something more. It requires the Spirit-breathed Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Only there is God revealed to us not only as Creator but also Redeemer.

These are the three ways we know God exists. However, do not be surprised or shaken when an unbeliever denies it. Recently a man told me: “If that is God’s best attempt at making Himself known, He’s done a bad job.” I immediately replied: “What more should He have done?” The unbeliever is without an excuse. He cannot see because he is blinded by sin. Sin, you might say, has a mechanism that causes us to deny the most obvious things. But these three—the light of nature, the works of God, and His Spirit and Word—harmoniously testify to the existence of God. And a cord of three strands is not easily broken (Eccl. 4:12).

Kyle Borg | pastor, Winchester, Kan., RPC