There is much evidence from both the Bible and from science that demonstrates God must exist and operate in dimensions of space and time other than those to which we are confined. God could not have created the universe if He were only a part of it. The Bible says the universe cannot contain Him (1).
According to particle physics and relativity, at least ten dimensions of space existed at the creation of the universe (2). Three of these dimensions (plus time) formed the space-time manifold that we can directly observe. The other six of these dimensions exist within the universe as incredibly compact dimensions of space. God must be able to operate in all of those ten dimensions plus more in order to have created the universe. A verse from the book of Hebrews suggests God created the universe out of some of the dimensions of space and time which are not visible to us (3).
The God of the Bible is invisible and cannot be seen except if He reveals Himself to us in a three-dimensional form that we can see. A being which exists in dimensions beyond our three spatial dimensions would be invisible to creatures (us) which can only exist in the confines of our universe (4).
The God of the Bible is described as omnipotent. If God were confined to three dimensions of space and one dimension of time, then He could be in only one place at one time. The God of the Bible is described as knowing all that we do (5). We can hide nothing from God. A three-dimensional God would not have the ability to see through walls (Can you?) and could not know what happens outside of his sight.
Stephen Hawking, George Ellis, and Roger Penrose extended the equations for general relativity to include space and time (6). Not only space, but also time has a beginning - at the moment of creation. Studies in particle physics have shown that our dimension of time is really only half a dimension, since time can only move forward (7) (forget the time travel movies - this is scientifically impossible). If God existed in only one dimension of time, then He would have had to have been created at one point. The Bible says God was not created, but has existed from eternity past to eternity future. The Bible also suggests God created time and was acting before time began (8), confirming that God exists in at least two dimensions of time. In addition, the Bible states God can compress or expand our time line (9), based upon what He wants to do. For God to turn a day into 1000 years and 1000 years into a day requires that He exist in at least two dimensions of time.
A three dimensional God would be unable to hear all of our prayers, since He could not be everywhere at once (10). In addition, a three dimensional God could not perform any of the signs and miracles of the Bible, since He would be confined to the laws of physics of our three-dimensional universe, which make no allowance for miracles.
We cannot visualize a God who exists in dimensions beyond our own, but we can look at a model of a universe in which there are fewer dimensions than ours and extrapolate to that of an extradimensional God.
Imagine we are the observers of a universe which contains only two dimensions of space and one dimension of time. All things in this universe exist in a single plane (i.e., everything is flat). We observe this two dimensional universe from a three dimensional universe, and therefore, have one dimension more than the creatures which live in this two dimensional universe.
| We become acquainted with Mr. and Mrs. Flat: |  |
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| Mrs. Flat | Mr. Flat |
For this demonstration, we are pretending this page is part of the universe of Mr. and Mrs. Flat. The Flat family are confined to the plane of this page and can only move within this plane. They can neither see nor interact with any part of the third dimension of a three-dimensional world.
Whenever Mr. Flat looks at Mrs. Flat, he sees only one side of her at a time. In this two-dimensional universe, she appears to him as a line segment. In order to see all of Mrs. Flat, Mr. Flat must walk all the way around his wife. From each angle, Mr. Flat will see only one or two line segments of differing lengths which compose Mrs. Flat. A complete picture of Mrs. Flat can only be formed in the mind of Mr. Flat. However, we, as observers from a three-dimensional universe can see the entirety of Mrs. Flat at one time. Not only can we see all of Mrs. Flat, but all of Mr. Flat at one instant in time. We can even see inside Mrs. Flat, something that Mr. Flat could never see, unless he were to cut her open. Likewise, God, with only one extra dimension, can simultaneously see all sides and the insides of each one of us.
 |
Mrs. Flat wants to have a moment to herself, so
she goes into a room and locks the door. Mr. Flat cannot see her, because
she is surrounded by four walls. However, we are able to see her, because
her walls do not extend into the third dimension of our universe.
Likewise, an extradimensional God can see us at all times, even if we try
to hide behind our three dimensional walls. |
A god who is not extradimensional would not be able to observe us at all times, as stated in the Bible.
I would like to extend this model to describe a three-dimensional god in this two-dimensional universe. For simplicity, we will describe this god as a cube. This god, being three-dimensional, can choose to interact with the two-dimensional universe or not. This cube god decides to reveal himself to Mr. and Mrs. Flat, as well as their friend, Mr. Level in this two-dimensional universe. The cube god places himself above the plane of the two-dimensional universe directly in front of Mrs. Flat and extends a corner of his cube into the plane of the two-dimensional universe. Mrs. Flat sees this revelation of her god as a point. Next, the cube god places himself above the plane of the two dimensional universe directly in front of Mr. Flat and extends the intersection of two sides of his cube into the plane of the two dimensional universe. Mr. Flat sees this revelation of his god as a line segment. Then, the cube god places himself above the plane of the two dimensional universe directly in front of Mr. Level and extends an entire side into the plane of the two dimensional universe. Mr. Level sees this revelation of his god as a square.
| Three views of cube god: | Mrs. Flat | Mr. Flat | Mr. Level |
All three get together and talk about their experiences with their god. Mrs. Flat insists her god is a point. Mr. Flat says his god is a line, and Mr. Level states his god is a square. Even though there is only one cube god, they come to the conclusion that there are three gods, because the god each saw appeared differently to each person in their two-dimensional world. Therefore a god that exhibits extra dimensions, when described in a lesser dimensional universe would seem to represent more than one entity. Likewise, our God, who must exist and operate in dimensions beyond our understanding, exists as a Trinity (God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit), although He is one God.
What is the purpose of life? What is our responsibility in this purpose? The first commandment given by God is:
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (Deuteronomy 6:5)
Contrary to what most people think, God does not want us to be religious. Jesus did not come to establish a religion. Indeed, He abhorred the religion of His day, which had been corrupted by the rules of men. God wants us to love Him. He has given us free will so that we can love. Love is always a choice. If we were all made the same, like robots, we could do all the works God required. However, we could never love Him. My computer does exactly what I tell it to do, but it does not love me or satisfy my need for love. Our responsibility in life is to choose whether or not we wish to love God. He has promised if we love Him, he will give us a place to live with Him through all eternity (heaven). If we choose not to love God, we will spend eternity separated from God, in eternal punishment.
How do we love God? We cannot love anyone until we know them. The Bible is the word of God, which describes God and His love for us. God sent Jesus, His son, to show us God firsthand in the form of a man, so that we could experience the love of God directly (11). We love God by accepting His son as our Savior and submitting to His will in our life. If we choose to submit to the will of Jesus Christ, He will transform us into perfect beings to live eternally with Him and each other.
Last updated 04/11/01