Handbook of Christian Apologetics by Peter Kreeft and Ronald Tacelli is a good basic Christian apologetics book. It provides twenty arguments for the existence of God, and as their subtitle says hundreds of answers to crucial questions. They have a footnote in the book on the importance of belief in creation.* What difference does it make to us if we believe in creation or not?
It makes a difference in our concept of God. If God is the creator of the universe, then certain things must follow. God is omnipotent, that is, he is all powerful or infinitely powerful. That last statement — infinitely powerful — needs to sink into modern minds. He must also be omniscient and infinitely wise. To create the universe includes its design, laws, and structures. Scientists are beginning to realize how many parameters must be just so for life to exist. God is also a great artist. We see tremendous beauty in the world around us. God must also be generous. God is all-sufficient. He had no necessity to create. Creation is a gift.
It makes a difference in our view of nature. Science grew up in the theistic West, not the pantheistic East. The reasons are simple. The Judeo-Christian view of God means that the universe is intelligible and orderly. We can observe, experiment, and understand. This view of creation also means that the universe is real. You may be taking that for granted, but Hinduism teaches that the world around us is an illusion perceived by an unenlightened consciousness. The Bible’s view of creation also means that the material world is good. Yes, there is moral evil in it, but the material world is to be enjoyed with thanksgiving being the creation of a good God.
It makes a difference in our concept of what it means to be human. If we are God’s creation, we owe our existence to him. We have no rights over against God; God has rights over us. That’s a humbling position, which is why human beings sometimes resist it. But this view of ourselves also means that our lives have meaning and purpose. If everything has evolved by blind chance, then there is no absolute meaning. Further, if God is our creator, then we owe God everything. Nothing is our own. We are obligated to use everything that we have in a way that will glorify him.
As Kreeft and Tacelli write, “No idea in the history of human thought has ever made more difference than the idea of Creation.”*
*Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, Handbook of Christian Apologetics: Hundreds of Answers to Crucial Questions (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994), 105–106.
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