The biblical account of creation raises questions regarding the vastness of the universe. On the one hand, one might wonder why God would create such an immense number of stars and galaxies if, from a biblical standpoint, His focus appears to be solely on Earth. On the other hand, evolutionists highlight various concerns, with one of the most significant being the insufficient speed of light.1 Thus, it seems that the vastness of the universe casts doubt on the need for an infinite God. But is this doubt justified?
In ancient times, people believed the Earth to be flat, with the heavens—alongside the Sun, Moon, and stars—revolving above it. This limited ‘universe’ was thought to be governed by gods, or, in the case of the Hebrews, by the one God, Yahweh. Over time, however, humanity’s understanding expanded, and it became clear that the universe was not confined to Earth and the space surrounding it. From the geocentric model, through the heliocentric and galactocentric theories—where the Milky Way was believed to be the entire universe—our perception of the cosmos has gradually grown to encompass its vastness as we understand it today.2
According to current calculations, the visible universe, referring to the portion we can observe from Earth, both with the naked eye and through the most advanced astronomical instruments, has a radius of approximately 46 billion light-years. This corresponds to a diameter of around 92-93 billion light-years. Within this vast expanse of four-dimensional spacetime, there exist more than 2 billion galaxies, including large spiral galaxies (such as our Milky Way) as well as smaller elliptical and irregular galaxies.3 Each contains millions or billions of stars, many of which have planets. There is no doubt that these celestial bodies exist. They exist in the same way as the Sun and Earth, and they follow the same physical laws.
Atheist scientists argue that these facts, along with the absence of direct observation of God through a telescope—unlike the planets—serve as evidence for God’s non-existence. They view God as a creation of primitive, superstitious humans, who seek meaning in a universe that is cold, soulless, and indifferent to human fate. While it is true that the universe itself does not feel or care, can the same be said of God?
Let us begin by emphasizing a crucial point: the immense size of the universe does not, by logical necessity, preclude the existence of God. Unbelievers often rely on a logical fallacy known as a false dichotomy, presenting only two alternatives: either God or the universe. However, they overlook a third possibility: both God and the universe. The vastness of an indifferent universe does not rule out the existence of a non-indifferent, loving God. No known scientific principle or law of logic prevents the existence of a being such as God.
Having established that the vastness of the universe does not rule out the existence of God, we must now consider another question: could the universe have created God, or could God have created the universe? Paradoxically, atheists are correct in claiming that they do not observe any God within the universe. However, they make a crucial mistake: they are searching in the wrong place. Atheists often expect to find an intelligent, personal entity within the universe, as part of it. Such a being might be termed a ‘god,’ and atheists are justified in saying they see no such entity in the cosmos. Yet, in doing so, they fail to consider the possibility of a perfect, infinite, and transcendent God who exists outside the universe and could have created it.4
Thus, we observe that the universe could not have created any god. But could God have created the universe and the laws that govern it? Or, to phrase it differently, did He in fact create it? Current scientific consensus holds that the universe originated 13.8 billion years ago with the Big Bang, implying that it had a beginning. And if it had a beginning, there must have been a cause behind its creation. Today, cosmologists search for this primal cause through various theories, such as the multiverse theory. However, the challenge is that to uncover the primal cause of all existence, scientists must identify something that is truly eternal.5 Since the universe is not eternal, one might ask whether the multiverse (if it exists) could be eternal. And what if the multiverse itself is not eternal, but also had a beginning, and therefore requires a cause? We could then be confronted with the idea of the infinite emergence of successive physical, impersonal entities. Ultimately, one may ask: ‘When did it all begin?’.6
The existence of our universe, with its beginning (and potentially other entities of a similar scale), is entirely dependent on the existence of a being that is wholly eternal, without any beginning. Christians identify this being as God. God is the one who created everything we observe – and no matter how vast it may be, this does not diminish His role. Furthermore, the enormity of the universe is one of the aspects that brings glory and praise to God, as Scripture states, ‘The heavens declare the glory of God’ (Psalm 19:1).
By the way, we recommend reading the articles:
- King Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream: How History Validates the Bible
- Is the Biblical Age of the Universe Plausible?
- Axis of Evil – Could It Overturn the Big Bang Theory?
- Self-Transcendence – The Forgotten Human Need
- What is the Higgs Boson?
Footnotes
- The speed of light in a vacuum is almost 300,000 km/s and light travels almost 9.5 trillion km in a year. Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the Sun, is located at a distance of 4.24 light years from the Sun. Evolutionists claim that the universe cannot be 6,000 years old, because we see stars and galaxies millions and billions of light years away from us, so they conclude that it must have taken billions of years to reach us (which, however, is not necessarily true). Hoskin, M. (2007) Historia astronomii. Warszawa: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego; see also Bersanelli, M. (2020) Wielki spektakl na niebie. Osiem wizji wszechświata od starożytności do naszych czasów. Kraków: Copernicus Center Press.
- Hoskin, M. (2007) Historia astronomii. Warszawa: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego; see also Bersanelli, M. (2020) Wielki spektakl na niebie. Osiem wizji wszechświata od starożytności do naszych czasów. Kraków: Copernicus Center Press.
- Siegel, E. (2019) ‘This Is Why We Will Never Know Everything About Our Universe’. Forbes, 21 May. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2019/05/21/this-is-why-we-will-never-know-everything-about-our-universe/?sh=63ff565b6296.
- Hart, D.B. (2013) The Experience of God: Being, Consciousness, Bliss. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 32.
- Sarfati, J. (1998) ‘If God created the universe, then who created God?’ Journal of Creation, 12(1), pp. 20–22. Available at: https://creation.com/if-god-created-the-universe-then-who-created-god.
- Ibid., pp. 95-99.
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