Do atheists really disbelieve that there is an all-knowing God?

Q: Do atheists really disbelieve that there is an all-knowing God and that death is the end of ourselves, the end of life completely? – E.L.

A: On a visit to the Soviet Union’s famed “Academic City,” a distinguished scholar from one of the finest research centers in Siberia said that while he was an atheist, he agreed that belief in a divine power was universal.

Down inside, we all sense there is Someone greater than ourselves. We also sense that death must not be the end, but there must be something beyond the grave. The Bible says that God has set eternity in the hearts of people (see Ecclesiastes 3:11).

Some picture God as a kindly old grandfather with a long white beard and a vague smile. Others see Him as a stern policeman, always ready to punish us if we get out of line. Still others conclude that God must be like their own father might have been, indifferent or cold or never satisfied, because we always fall short of what He demands. And some believe God is only an impersonal force (somewhat like gravity or magnetism), or they conclude we can’t know anything for certain about Him. Your guess about God, they say, is just as good (or bad) as mine. And some people, of course, reject the whole idea of God.

Some say that it is just too narrow to believe in only one God and one way. Sadly, most speculations about God miss one very important truth. God wants us to know Him. We don’t have to guess about who He is because God has revealed Himself to us. His footprints are everywhere. His very image is in our DNA. The Bible tells us that God has not left Himself without testimony. “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen” (Romans 1:20). Trust in Him today.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

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