I Believe in God, but not in the Bible
“Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.” (Acts 13:40-41)
You do not need a Bible to know there is a God. The sky speaks of His glory: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1) You will not know everything about God from looking at the sky, but you will see that He, like His creation, is majestic and glorious.
Creation also testifies to God’s power. Romans 1:20 says, “For the invisible things of him (God) from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead;” If we divide this verse up into parts, we get a clearer understanding of what it says:
“For the invisible things of him (God’s qualities we cannot see) from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made (things God created help us understand what He is like), even his eternal power and Godhead (God’s creation shows His power and sovereignty.);”
Yet some flatly deny God’s hand or even His existence. Richard Lewontin, a biologist and evolutionist, said, “…we are forced by our a priori adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of investigation and set of concepts that produce material explanations, no matter how counterintuitive, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated. Moreover, that materialism is absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door.” (“Billions and Billions of Demons” in the NY Review of Books, 1/7/1997)
In other words, any scientific investigation must purposely leave God out. It must result in a material, Godless explanation for any phenomenon, even if the explanation makes no sense. Based on Lewontin’s words, then, evolution is a religion. Its closed-minded doctrine does not even allow for the possibility that God exists. Psalm 14:1 says this of its adherents:“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.”
People also may believe there is a God but dismiss the Bible as not being His word. They may want God to prove Himself on their terms. In a sense, the serpent used that logic on Eve in the Garden of Eden. He didn’t deny God existed, but he got her to doubt God’s word: “Yea, hath God said,…?” (Genesis 3:1)
Many events in Scripture were one-time, not to be repeated: creation, the flood, Israel’s liberation from Egypt. The most important was Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. “But this man [Jesus], after he had offered ONE sacrifice for sins FOR EVER, sat down on the right hand of God;” (Hebrews 10:12, capitals added) God inspired certain people to write things that would be preserved in Scripture, “…a more sure word of prophecy;” (2 Peter 1:19) so people in later generations would know they had happened.
Some scribes and Pharisees told Jesus, “Master, we would see a sign from thee.” (Matthew 12:38) They obviously wanted Jesus to prove Himself on their terms. He didn’t. He replied, “…there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:39) The story of Jonah had happened long before, so what He did was to point them right back to Scripture.
God deals with us according to His word, the Bible. “Thou hast dealt well with thy servant, O LORD, according unto thy word.” (Psalm 119:65) God uses it to instill faith: “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17) The Bible also tells how to have eternal life. To learn more, please go to www.clevelandbaptist.org, click “Helpful Links,” then “How Do I Go to Heaven?”
Brian Miller 6/11/2026
