When the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Rome in 57 AD, he penned the most articulate and comprehensive treatise on Christian belief to be found in any single document. If I could choose only one book from the Bible to bemysource,and only one book, I would choose the Book of Romans. Its formal and systematic approach toChristiantheologybeginswithan argument for the existence of God, then expounds on the significance of the Messiah’s coming and the salvation He bought, culminating in the Christian anticipation of the glorious eschaton. No doubt, Romans is second to none among the New Testament writings.
Nevertheless, it is Paul’s argument in the first chapter for the existence of God that rings a note of crystal clarity for all mankind in answer to the question of God’s existence. Directly and powerfully, Paul argues that the evidence provided by nature speaks so clearly to the existence of God that anyone who denies His existence is foolish and without excuse (cf Rom 1:19-20). Paul is so certain of this fact that he goes on to say His existence is, in fact, so obvious that everyone, deep in their soul, knows that it is true, and the denial thereof requires nothing less than their active and wilful suppression of the truth (cf Rom 1:21).
Paul, however, was by no means the first to make the argument for God’s existence based upon “things clearly seen” in the natural world. Five hundred years earlier, the Greek philosopher Anaxagoras (500-428 BC) became the first to formally reason that a cosmic “Mind” was responsible for the ordering of the cosmos, reasoning that the movement of the planets and stars required an Intelligent Agent. Four hundred years before Paul declared that the cosmos bespeaks a Creator, Aristotle (384-322 BC), who by no means was a theist, reasoned that based on the cosmos, there must exist a necessary, eternal, and changeless entity that causes the orderly motion of planets and stars in the cosmos. This entity Aristotle called the “Unmoved Mover.” Plotinus (204-270 BC) followed with his concept of “The One” as the source from which all things come. Although these men did not believe in Yawha, they all saw evidence of a Divine force being the cause of all that can be clearly seen.
Some years later, the Dominican philosopherThomasAquinas(12251274 AD) developed Aristotle’s concept of the Unmoved Mover into a compelling argument for the existence of God, grounded in reason and observation. His formulation expanded upon Aristotle’s previous workwhileatthesametimeechoing the assertion of Paul in his letter to theRomansthatwhatcanbeknown aboutGodhasbeenmadeknownby God “in the things that have been made” (Rom 1:20). The result was the “Argument from Motion” and it became the first in a series of five arguments for the existence of God formulated by Aquinas.
As the name implies, the Argument from Motion begins with a simple observation: that things in the world move about and change. Aquinas says this includes not only the physical movement of objects, such as the planets in the cosmos, but also any movement, including changes in temperature and changes in our bodies throughout life, death, etc. These are all movements occurring at all times and are movements caused by a preceding “mover.” For example, the billiard ball is moved by the cue ball, which is moved by the cue stick, which is moved by the arms, which are movedbymuscles,whicharemoved by stimulation of nerves, which is moved by the brain, and so on. In these chains, always, the mover of the object is itself moved. However, this chain of movements cannot regress indefinitely; there must be a first “Unmoved Mover.” This first Mover, Aquinas argued, “we know of as God.”
Critics object, saying the Unmoved Mover need not be the God of monotheism. Aquinas considered this possibility and said that the Unmoved Mover must be pure actuality. In other words, He must be a Being who is absolutely complete with no potential to change in any way. Hence, He alone is fully actualized and “unmoved.” That means the Unmoved Mover must be a necessary Being who is immaterial, unchanging, and eternal, which are the attributes commonly attributed to God. Finally, Aquinas was aware thathisArgumentfromMotiondoes not alone prove everything about God but serves as a starting point for a cumulative case argument.
Accordingly, from Aquinas’ “Argument from Motion,” Paul was no doubt right; God has clearly shown Himself to mankind in the things that have been made (and in how they are moved). Those who deny this truth, Paul says, are “without excuse” (cf Rom 1:19-20). Join us next time as we continue to look at Thomas Aquinas’ “Five Ways” to the existence of God. Until then, consider the one question that sits at the heart of it all: Is God dead?
Gloria in excelsis Deo! Ty B. Kerley, DMin., is an ordained minister who teaches Christian apologetics, and relief preaches in Southern Oklahoma. Dr. Kerley and his wife Vicki are members of the Waurika church of Christ, and live in Ardmore. You can contact him at: dr.kerley@isGoddead.com.