Faith versus atheism is more than a difference in personal choices. It is a contest of light and darkness, truth and lies, and life and death. Atheism is darkness is many ways. It fails to answer the fundamental, existential questions that burn in all of us. Where do we come from? Who are we? Why are we here? Where are we going? It has no logic of its own and has to borrow from the principles of logic that are based in the Bible. Atheism and evolution are twins. Many people that were once believers became atheists because of evolution. Joseph Stalin was one such man. Evolution says everything came from nothing totally randomly with no guidance whatsoever from any source. It offers no basis for logic, reason, or the existence of any kind of laws – laws of morality, logic, nature, biogenesis, information, physics (the first and second laws of thermodynamics particularly), genetics, probability, order, or irreducible complexity. It offers no explanation for the origin of life, matter, energy, or information. Although the idea of the survival of the fittest is actually the opposite of evolution, the atheist’s view of this teaching shows the utter depravity of their worldview and undermines their attempt to use utilitarianism as a defense of why there are rules of right and wrong.
Atheism is darkness because it attempts to assert a negative. Atheists like to attack faith in God by saying the existence of God cannot be “proven”, even though there is abundant evidence of the existence of the Creator through His own creation, and through many ways we can show the validity of the Bible. However, anyone who has ever taken a debate class knows you cannot assert a negative. You can only assert a positive. Christians assert the existence of the God of the Bible. Atheists can do nothing but deny Him, and that is the true nature of atheism – denial. According to Romans chapters 1-2, everyone has an innate knowledge of God and their conscience confirms this as well as a basic awareness of right and wrong. All the atheist can do is suppress this knowledge in unrighteousness.
Atheism is darkness because it only offers a hopeless, purposeless, nihilistic view of life and the world. Nihilism is defined as “the rejection of all religious and moral principles, in the belief that life is meaningless”. That is why it can lead to suicide.
Atheism is darkness because it attempts to excuse man from accountability to his Creator and Lord. It would be great if man held to the moral principles of the Bible out of faith just because it is the best course. However, we sometimes need additional motivation – the fear of God and His judgment of sin. Sometimes people do the right thing because they fear the consequences of doing otherwise. This is not evil. It is healthy (Prov 1:7, Mt 10:28). It is healthy to avoid walking in the middle of the freeway because we are concerned about getting hit by a truck going 60 miles an hour. If it were true there is no Creator and Lord, then we can just make up our own rules or not have any rules at all. What chaos and evil would result if that was the case! This was the serpent’s proposal to Eve in the garden (Gen 3:1-7).
The God of the Bible has the answers to all of this darkness. The Bible explains where we came from (Gen 1-2), who we are (1Jn 3-4), why we are here (Rev 4:11), and where we are going (Jn 5:24-29, Rev 20-22). The Bible gives us the basis for all rules and laws, and no other belief system does. The Bible gives us hope for this life, and for the next (1Tim 4:8). The Bible gives us accountability to God in this life and the next (Acts 17:23-31), but it also offers us hope for forgiveness and restoration when we sin (Acts 2:38). No other book does this. The word of God is only light (Ps 119:130, Jn 1:1-18). In God is no darkness at all (1Jn 1:1-5). Faith trumps unbelief every time in every way.