Why Some Do Not Believe

Ironically, some people have stopped believing in God because of what they were taught in church.  This was true of a Norwegian man who was told that  God burns the wicked in a fiery hell.  The man just could not understand what kind of God would torment people in that way, so he became an atheist.   Later, however, the man agreed to investigate the Bible, assisted by one of Jehovah's Witnesses.  He was amazed to learn that the Bible likens death to sleep.  In the grave, we feel no pain; we are conscious of nothing at all.  (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10)  The man also learned that  those humans whom God judges to be incorrigibly wicked will remain in the grave forever.  (Matthew 12:31, 32)  The rest of the dead will be resurrected in God's due time, with the prospect of obtaining everlasting life under Paradise conditions.  (John 5:28, 29; 17:3)  This explanation made sense.  It harmonized with the Bible's statement that "God is love."   (1 John 4:8)  This sincere man continued his study of God's Word and, in time, came to love the God of the Bible.

Others reject the existence of a loving Creator because of the prevalence of distress and injustice.  They agree with a Swedish man who once pointed to the heavens and asked:  "How could there be an almighty, all-bountiful God up there when we have so much corruption and wickedness down here?"   Because no one could answer his question, he too became an atheist.  Later he began to study the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses.  He learned that God's Word provides a satisfying answers to the  age-old question, Why does God permit wickedness?

This sincere man learned that the existence of wickedness does not in  itself prove that God does not exist.  To illustrate:  A man may design a knife to be used to carve meat.  A customer may purchase  the knife to use it, not to carve mean, but to commit murder.  The fact that the  knife was misused in no way disproves the existence of its maker.  Similarly, the fact that the  earth has not been used in harmony with its intended purpose does not mean that it did not have a Creator.

 The Bible teaches that God's work is perfect.  With him "there is no injustice, righteous and upright is he."  (Deuteronomy 32:4)  God gives good gifts to man, but some of the gifts have been misused, causing untold suffering  (James 1:17)  God will bring an end to suffering, however.  Thereafter, "the meed ones themselves will possess the earth, . . . and they will reside forever upon it." -Psalm 37:11, 29.

The Swedish man mentioned earlier was moved when he saw the suffering of fellow humans.  Really, his tender concern for others confirms the existence of God.  How so?

For most people, the only alternative to belief in God is belief in evolution.  Evolutionists teach  "survival of the fittest"-that humans and animals compete within their kinds for survival.  The fittest live; the weakest die.  That is the natural order of things, they say.  But if it is "natural" for the weak to die in order to make room for the strong, how can we explain the fact that, like Swedish man, some strong humans are moved at the sight of the suffering of their fellowman? 

Next time: Getting to Know God

The Watchtower, 2000