THINK ABOUT THIS: How Could God Create Something Out of Nothing?
Philosopher Kenneth Samples of Reasons To Believe shares an interesting social media exchange he recently had with a correspondent who insisted that God had to create the universe out of something and since He was the only something around, He must have done it out of Himself.
Screenshot from “Reflections” by Kenneth Sample.
Here’s how Samples’ correspondent put the issue to him:
“Correspondent: God most certainly didn’t create ‘out of’ or ‘from’ nothing. Not even the all-powerful Lord could perform such an act. God merely brought that which didn’t previously exist into existence. What he created ‘from’ was himself (who and what he is), not from nothing.”
And here’s a sample of how Samples responded:
“God, through his incalculable wisdom and power alone, created that which previously didn’t exist. Instead of using preexistent matter or some other substance, God brought all things into existence from nonexistence.
“I think your misunderstanding is in thinking that nonexistence is a substance. It’s not. It is literally no thing. ‘Out of’ or ‘from nothing’ is not a magical substance. It just means God alone called all things into existence that previously didn’t exist.”
If you’ve ever wondered about the issue of creation ex nihilo, this exchange is a great place to start in understanding its full implications. Go here for the balance of Samples’ response.