The origin of the Universe

If you came into my garden and saw a rabbit hutch, you might say, “Did you make it?”  Now supposing I replied, “No one made it, it just happened”, you would wonder whatever I was talking about.  I am quite sure that none of you would believe me because things do not make themselves.  So another reason why we believe in God is that the Universe could not create itself.  You’ve probably heard of the Big Bang theory – for many years it has seemed to be the most likely theory of the origin of the Universe.  According to this theory, the Universe began as a ball of light 13.7 billion years ago.  From this high energy light, all the matter in the Universe was created.  So everything in the Universe, including the stars and the Earth and human beings, evolved from light. (1)  The Big Bang was the point when space began to expand. (2)  Christians believe that God created the initial ball of light and started the process of evolution that led to the formation of the Universe.

The likelihood that this all happened by chance is incredibly difficult to believe.  Much more believable is the idea that there is an intelligence that brings about the exact conditions needed for the Universe to form and to provide the conditions needed for life.  Christians believe the intelligence is God.

Recently it has been suggested that the laws of physics, such as the law of gravity, mean that the universe can create itself from nothing. (3)  However, this theory, even if ever proved to be true, does not disprove that God created and sustains the universe.  The theory does not explain where the laws of physics come from.  Christians believe that God is the origin of these laws.

More recently many scientists have started questioning the idea that there was nothing before the Big Bang and they suggest that the Big Bang was not the beginning of the Universe – there was something in existence before it. (4)

All these scientific theories are exciting for us as Christians because they give us new insights into the infinite wonder of the Universe and how it may have come into being and they remind us of the greatness of God who created the Universe and sustains it.

Existence of life on Earth

For life to evolve and be maintained the conditions must be right.  For example, if there were less than 12% of oxygen in the atmosphere, no fires could be lit.  But if there were more than 25% of oxygen, fires would never go out and so once a fire had started the whole planet would burn.  As you probably know, the level of oxygen in our atmosphere is 21%.

Some scientists think that there are mechanisms which work to maintain the conditions necessary to foster life.  Religious believers will see God as the origin of these mechanisms.  For people who don’t believe in God it is much more difficult because there is no obvious reason why these mechanisms should exist. (5)