What Would You Say to an Atheist?

Pastor J.D. shares four questions that are helpful to start a conversation with our atheist friends, neighbors, and coworkers.

A glimpse inside this episode:

Atheists have many questions for Christians. But they have to answer a lot of questions, too. For instance:

Blow the roof off approach (Francis Schaeffer)

What about origins?

• Dawkins says, “Darwin’s theory works for biology, but not for cosmology (or, ultimate origins).”
• In God Delusion, Dawkins admits this is a problem.  He says, “Cosmology is waiting on its Darwin.”
  • In other words, he thinks that while they have explained how life took shape on the earth, he admits they still have no idea where life itself, or the materials that produced life, came from.
  • We need a theory, he says, as to why anything exists.
  • Because it is self-evident that nothing times nobody can’t equal everything.
• Then he says, but don’t worry. We’ll figure it out eventually. That’s what we call a blind faith leap!

What about design?

• Goldilocks principle (Our world is ideally designed to sustain life, “not too hot, not too cold, just right”.)
• CO2
• Tilt of the earth
• Water molecule

What about evil?

• If we are only biology and chemistry, there’s no such thing as true justice, only useful strategies for preserving our kind.
• For atheists, a statement like, “You really ought to” or “ought not to” doesn’t really have any meaning.
  • (This doesn’t mean they can’t be moral, just that their morality lacks a consistent intellectual foundation.)
  • The only way we can say that something is unjust is if we appeal to a higher vision of how it ought to be.
• Big deal when it comes to justice?

What about personhood and personality?

• Christopher Hitchens example
• Steve Jobs example

What about Jesus?

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