Hebrews 11:6 · NKJV
Why Doesn't God Just Show Himself?
0:56 Short
What does Hebrews 11:6 say?
Straight answer first: no, we don't think there's a knockdown reply to this one. What follows is why we still believe, and why the argument deserves better than a slogan.
If God wants to be known, why isn't He obvious? That's not a cheap shot. The philosopher J. L. Schellenberg put it carefully in Divine Hiddenness and Human Reason (Cornell University Press, 1993). His claim is not that atheists have never heard the arguments. It's about non-resistant nonbelief — people who are open, who would believe if they had reason to, and who still don't. If a perfectly loving God is always open to a relationship, Schellenberg argues, those people shouldn't exist. But they do.
Notice what the argument concedes and what it doesn't. It isn't an argument that the universe is godless. It's an argument that this particular God — always open, perfectly loving — doesn't fit the evidence of who actually believes. Any answer worth giving has to meet it on that ground, not somewhere easier.
Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV): "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." A God who rewards seeking is not the same as a God who is absent. But if you're seeking and not finding, we're not going to pretend that's nothing.
Full episode: https://youtu.be/BAa1tVmLk7Q
Bible references
Scripture in this video is quoted from the NKJV.
Transcript (show)
Now, let me answer the strongest objection I did not answer. If God is real, why does he hide? That question deserves respect. Shelonburgg's argument is one of the most serious in modern philosophy. And the Christian answer is not, "He isn't hiding.
You're not looking hard enough." The Christian answer starts with Romans 1. God has already revealed himself in what he has made. He is not silent. The heavens are speaking. What we call God's hiddenness is often our suppression of what we already know.
But scripture also concedes that the seeking is real work. Hebrews 11:6, "Without faith, it is impossible to please him. For he who comes to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him." Faith is not belief without evidence. Faith is trust that seeks.
Transcript from the video's captions on YouTube.
