Why Intelligent Atheists Can’t Believe in God

Today I listened to a podcast from Mike Winger answering a listener question about whether or not Mike is intimidated by highly intelligent atheists. He had a good answer to the question but that’s not what I’m addressing directly here. If you would like to hear what Mike said you can find the particular podcast episode by clicking here. I mention it because the podcast episode got me thinking personally about the subject. I spent a lot of time with philosophy professors and fellow philosophy students during my undergraduate work. I often wondered why belief in God came so naturally for me whereas it was so difficult for many of them. Even for those who believed in God, there was often reluctance to believe the God of the Bible was that God in whom they believed.

I had several extremely intelligent profs who simply couldn’t believe in God no matter how compelling the arguments in favor of Him are. Am I better than them somehow because I can believe in Christ and they can’t? Of course not. My belief in Christ did not come through intelligence, self discovery, or some deep hidden knowledge. Rather, it came by God’s enabling grace. To that extent, even my own faith is not really my own. It is a miracle work of God.

Oftentimes we Christians have a big blind spot with regards to how we deal with the unbelieving world. We forget that it is because of internal light from the Holy Spirit that we believe in God as we do. Though humanity was made for God, and will be eternally restless unless we find rest in Him (paraphrased from Augustine), we are not naturally capable of recognizing Him any longer. Sin has so clouded our hearts and minds that we are essentially blocked from seeing God.

This is what the Apostle Paul referred to in the following passages.

“For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” -Romans 1:21 ESV

“For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” -Romans 8:7‭-‬8 ESV

“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” -1 Corinthians 2:14 ESV

The truth is that the natural person, without the inner light of Christ, is so enslaved to sin that said person is not capable of comprehending God, at least not fully. Some may believe in Him, or even know a lot about Him, but they cannot fully internalize the truth about Him.

This is why Apologetics alone cannot win over the unbeliever. Apologetics is a good thing, but we must understand the limitations of logic. Logic cannot overcome a broken and sinful heart, mind, and soul. Only the Holy Spirit can do that by granting a person the gift of faith by His grace. I would describe faith as the ability to see realities which the natural mind cannot see because it is clouded by sin.

Apologetics can strengthen the believer and it can help lead people to the Lord whom the Lord is already working on, but Apologetics cannot alone take an unbeliever and convince them to believe. We should simply not be shocked that many seemingly intelligent and even good people will die never believing the gospel message. Being intelligent or good do not make a person righteous before God. The taint of sin runs so very deep in us. Overcoming that requires that the blood of Jesus be applied to us.

So what can we do for our atheist friends? We can pray for them. After all, if the Holy Spirit can turn us from unbelieving rebels into believing children of God He can do it for anyone. I often think of Paul, who was one of the most unlikely converts to Christ in history and yet he became the most influential Christian in all of history. No heart is so dark that the light of the Spirit cannot overcome it. I believe that the prayers of the saints are powerful and if we pray for our friends who are in darkness, perhaps we will see the miracle of regeneration in them just as we have experienced it. The other thing we can do for our atheist friends is to not give up on them. As we pray, we must continue to show them love and share the hope of Christ with them. The moment the Spirit opens their hearts to see the light they can cross over into faith. For many, this is a process that takes years or even a lifetime but regardless of when the miracle of faith occurs, it is a miracle. We must not lose hope that Christ might still yet win the souls of our friends who are far from Him.

As for you Christian, be encouraged. If you have come to believe in Christ it is a miracle work of Christ in you. You have the inner light that many lack. Christ is a God who finishes what He starts and He isn’t done with you yet.

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. ” Philippians 1:6 ESV

“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ” Romans 8:9‭-‬10 ESV

“The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. ” -1 Corinthians 2:15‭-‬16 ESV

“But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.” -Hebrews 10:39 ESV