When we look at the idea of self-creation, it's manifestly absurd because for something to create itself,

to be an effect that is its own cause, to create itself itself it would have to exist before it existed.

Where do we come from? Where did the universe come from? I grew up believing in the Big Bang that one day nothing became something all by itself and as you just heard from

R.C. Sprawl believing in the self-creation of the universe is manifestly absurd.

But why and could you explain why to your unbelieving

neighbor? This is the Tuesday edition of renewing your mind. A daily outreach

of Ligonier Ministries, and I'm your host, Nathan W Bingham.

As Dr Sproll continues to help us this week become better apologists, those who can give a defense of the Christian faith.

He's talking through and responding to some of the ways philosophers and others have sought to

explain reality. And today's explanation,

which is still held by people,

is the idea of self-creation.

And it's much easier to refute than you might think.

Here's Dr Sprawl.

We're going to continue now with our study of defending the faith and we've been looking

at the possible alternatives to account for reality as we encounter it.

And you will recall, we listed the four principal arguments to account for the universe as we know it. The first

one being illusion. The second one being self-existence was self-existence, four was creation by something that is self-existent ultimately. So we noticed again that three. ultimate length.

So we notice again that three and four both have the idea of self-existent being in their premise, and we'll get to that later but the first two are two that we have to deal with before we come to three and four and we've already eliminated that one making use of course

of the Cartesian manner of reasoning to a knowledge of the self.

And now we come in our study to the second one,

which is not the only alternative

...