Ashraf Schneider – Making Sense of God – Part 2-1

			these blessings and mercy be upon your warm. Welcome back to my page. In this latest series of
videos, we're working towards piecing together an understanding of God, whose glory and majesty
actually exceed human understanding. Thankfully, God has given us both intuitive and highly academic
rational proofs for his existence within his creations, from the universe itself to the souls that
make up each and every living creature. Today, we're going to be focusing specifically on the
creation of the universe, and the empirical proofs God provides for us within His Word of his own
existence and his creation of our entire known universe. If you haven't already checked out part one
		

			of this video series and want to know a little bit more about the intuitive aspects of understanding
and making sense of God, you can click on the link in the description below. But for now, let's
satisfy our inner science nerds and look for cold, hard facts. Nobody knows us better than our
Creator. And so God knows that we will all at some points in our lives face crisis of faith, which
is why he addresses us directly in the Quran, posing as a series of questions which appeal to
rational thought, answering these questions logically, rationally serves directly to prove the
existence of God. And in this specific case, his creation of the universe. The questions God poses
		

			are designed to allow us to ponder the origins of our existence, not as philosophers but as cynics,
appealing directly to the kind of critical clinical reasoning that denies of faith are likely to
employ in attempting to discredit the existence of God. God, in his infinite wisdom, provides us
with the exact tools we need to prove his existence not only to those who have already discovered
his majesty, intuitively, but even to those who require so called empirical evidence to justify
faith when it comes to his creation of the universe. God engages us intellectually by presenting a
number of superficial reasonable explanations for how the universe came to be. He preempts the
		

			arguments of the centers and undermines them in one fell swoop, before presenting what we must
conclude to be the only possible rational answer. In the Koran in chapter 52, verses 35 to 36. God
asks man how he believes the universe came to be, he asks, Were they created by nothing? Or are they
their own creators? Or did they create the heavens and the earth, in fact, they have no firm belief
in God in the universe, God is then essentially presenting us with four possible explanations for
the creation and existence of both the universe and ourselves. Option one, we were created by
nothing at all, and the universe was created by nothing. Option two, we created ourselves and the
		

			universe created itself. Option three, we were created by something that created itself, and our
universe was created by another created thing. option four, we and our universe were created by
something greater than we are capable of comprehending something absolute and eternal, which was not
in itself created by anything or anyone else. When you think about it, the creation of the universe
and the creation of man are similar on a cosmic scale. We both had a beginning. And we will both
have an end. Philosophers, mathematicians, scientists, they all agree that the universe had a
beginning before which it did not exist. So let's focus on this example of the creation of the
		

			universe without which we would have no planet to call home anyway, since the universe had a
beginning. The possible explanations for its creation, like ours are, that the universe was created
by nothing, that the universe was self created, that the universe was created by something created,
and that the universe was created by something and created. Let's explore option one, that the
universe was created by the absence of all things, including matter, energy material, or non
material objects, and any and all causal chains, to look at the universe and ourselves as something
that came to be from no potential, no matter nothing at all, is quite a tricky idea to wrap our
		

			heads around. basic logic would dictate that from nothing comes nothing. From something comes
something with nothing to start a causal chain, ie with no action, there can be no reaction, we
always assume a causal chain, and the absence of one would leave us scratching our heads. If, for
example, a herd of cows showed up in your apartment in a blink of an AI, you'd have several
questions right? You wouldn't be able to explain how they got there, and they presence would be
completely illogical. So the idea that nothing created the universe and created us is equally
illogical. In option two, it is proposed that the universe and mankind are self created. But this is
		

			a logical fallacy in and of itself. Because we know that the universe did not always exist. It had a
beginning. How could the universe have created itself if it did?
		

			did not exist before it's Think about it this way, how could I create myself if I hadn't even been
born yet? Could a woman give birth to his soul? It seems ridiculous when we think about it that way,
right? Similarly, option three leads us down a rabbit hole. Because if the universe was created by
something else that was created, which was created by something else that was created, which was
created by something else that was created, where does it all end, it would be turtles all the way
down, not making sense. Try thinking about it this way. Imagine you have to walk into an office
building, that is your only goal. But the security guard says you can't come in without the
		

			permission of his manager. And his manager says that you can't come in without the permission of the
building owner. And the building owner says that you can't come in without the permission of the
current tenant. And the current tenant says that you can't come in without the permission of his
supervisor. And his supervisor says that you can't come in without the permission of his manager.
And his manager says that you can't come in without the permission of his CEO, and on and on and on.
How can you ever actually enter the building without the existence of one person who has the
authority and power to grant you access without first deferring to someone else's authority. In that
		

			same way, for the universe to have been created, there must have been a creator who did not first
have to be created, or defer to someone or something else. by process of elimination, then we're
left with option four, that the universe was created by something that was not in and of itself
created, over reliant on anything else for its creation, that leaves us with God as the Creator of
ourselves and the universe being the only viable rational option. The Universe had to be created by
something, it couldn't have created itself. And it couldn't have been created by another creative
thing, ad infinitum. Or it would have no beginning which we know it does. So that leaves us with the
		

			only logical conclusion being that the universe was created by something independent, and uncreated.
And Who could that be, but God, one of God's defining characteristics is that he is absolute and
eternal, he was not created, He is the first with no beginning and the last without any, he may have
created the world from nothing, or from the immaterial, but it is his will and power, then that
started the causal chain which brought the universe and us into existence. He is the first and last,
the Most High and most near end, he has perfect knowledge of all things. God then provides us ample
highly academic resources by way of which we can rationalize our faith based on empirical evidence,
		

			the proof he provides us of his own existence is irrefutable. In part three of this video series,
we'll be further exploring the scientific proofs, God offers up for his own existence. And
hopefully, you'll be able to see just how much of a divine miracle it truly is that our universe
exists and is capable of sustaining our lives. From the water cycle to the tides. Everything on
Earth has been perfectly orchestrated by God to allow us to thrive on this planet. And, as you may
have already come to realize that couldn't have happened by accident. If you have any questions
about any of the content I've shared with you today, I look forward to connecting with you in the
		

			comment sections. Alternatively, you're always welcome to send me a DM via my page. If you want to
ensure you don't miss out on the launch of part three of this video series. Do be sure to subscribe
to my YouTube channel. Until next time, this is Zach Aloka