Celebration Church International — Endless Life with Emmanuel Iren

Episode: The Question of God

Date: March 4, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Pastor Emmanuel Iren launches a new teaching series intertwining Christian character (“integrity as salt”) and apologetics (“defending the faith”), centering on what it means to truly stand out as a believer in contemporary society and how to respond to challenges about God's existence. The teaching systematically addresses intellectual arguments against the faith, discusses causes of doubt, and emphasizes practical evangelism – all while maintaining an encouraging, bold tone urging believers to both know and articulate the reasons for their hope.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Season Theme: Salt — Standing Out and Reaching Out

• Sundays: Focus on Christian integrity: “Standing Out” as salt, shaping society by living out Christian convictions.
• Midweek: Focus on apologetics: “Reaching Out,” equipping believers to answer questions about faith and engage cultural and intellectual challenges.
• Acronym for the month: SORO (Standing Out and Reaching Out).
  • “You must not be neutral. Any salt that is so neutral, that does not challenge any taste bud has lost its saltiness.” (06:53)

The Call to Bold Conviction

• Referencing 1 Peter 3:15 — “Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts... always be ready to give a defense... with meekness and fear.”
  • “Don't treat God like common. Don't treat his knowledge like it’s common... The way I treat God is not the way I treat the president... or my parents. He has his space. He’s enthroned in my heart. I don't joke with his knowledge.” (07:40)
  • “In your demeanor, in the way you act during worship, during prayer, everything must reflect this — it must show honor.” (09:12)
• The command to “give a defense” (apologetics) places Christians at odds with modern “don’t engage, just blend in” culture.
  • “Not many Christians have been deliberately taught doctrine. Not many have been encouraged to engage culture.” (14:02)
• Pastors and believers must courageously address contentious cultural issues (e.g., sex, gender roles) — even at the risk of criticism.

Challenging the Intellectual Double Standard

• Story of John Lennox at Cambridge:
  • Faced pressure from Nobel laureate scientists to renounce his faith as a prerequisite for career advancement; responded by asking, “If I was to entertain this idea, what option do you have? What alternative worldview are you proposing?” (20:11)
  • “There are many alternatives. Is it like Evolution by Henry Begginsen?” (21:10)
  • “He said, I will stick with what I have, thank you very much, and walked out.” (21:36)
• The episode critiques the tendency for critics to demand unequivocal proof from Christians but not apply the same standards to their own beliefs.
  • “Don’t let anyone lie to you, we all live for something... there’s a reason you have a moral frame of mind.” (24:57)
  • Everyday decisions are based on some faith — trust in the unseen (e.g., eating at a restaurant, trusting traffic lights, flying in airplanes; 28:50).
  • Notable moment: “You walk by faith every day!” (29:34)

Reliability of the Bible and Historical Claims

• Historicity of Jesus:
  • “No proper historian asks, ‘How do you know Jesus ever existed?’ Jesus is, by a mile, the most documented person in history. Both friends and enemies wrote about him!” (32:45)
• Manuscript evidence:
  • References Dead Sea Scrolls discovery — their remarkable agreement with modern biblical texts refutes claims of “corruption.” (36:44)
  • “Find one evidence of a Bible that is not corrupted.” (35:11)
• Critique of latecomer religions (e.g., Islam) revising foundational Christian texts centuries after the fact.

Why Some Struggle with Belief in God

1. Wrong Approach to God’s Nature

• “If God created time and space, he will exist out of it. You are trying to look for the creator of the computer in the computer... what you will find is the evidence of his work, not he himself.” (41:14)
• Intelligent Design argument: The existence of design in Nature logically points to a Designer.

2. Pain and Emotional Objections

• “Sometimes you are trying to prove God’s existence to people who are angry at God... The real issue is pain, not facts.” (49:30)
• Example: A critic on social media receives unexpected kindness and help from Pastor Iren, revealing the true root of his hostility was a history of being overlooked.
  • “Let me tell you something, when you understand things from this standpoint, sometimes you just have more grace.” (56:16)

3. Bad Examples and Hypocrisy

• “Some reject God because of bad examples... it’s a hard reality — even men of God are still men.” (01:01:05)
• But broader data shows religion isn’t the primary historical cause of war (citing Encyclopedia of Wars by Charles Phillips — of 1,763 wars, only 123 were religious; for Christianity, it drops to 3%). (01:04:30)
• Atrocities under atheistic regimes (e.g., Mao’s China, Nazi Germany) are highlighted as counterpoints to “religion-causes-violence” arguments.

Using Logic and Evidence to Point to God

• Paul’s Example in Athens (Acts 17):
  • Paul uses local culture, poetry, and logic (not just Scripture) to point Greeks to God. “With logic, you can at least point people to the folly of their convictions.” (01:12:40)
  • “Help thinkers believe and help believers think. This was Paul’s method in Athens.” (01:13:52)
  • Not every “secular” song is evil; Christians should engage culture thoughtfully without compromising spiritual integrity. (01:18:23)
• Romans 1:20 — The Witness of Creation:
  • “His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made... so they are without excuse.” (01:21:46)
  • Nature’s complexity and order (human anatomy, bird behavior, the beauty of Mount Kilimanjaro) point irresistibly to a Designer.
    • “Nature abhors vacuum... so if you see patterns of order in creation, the brilliant conclusion is: behind every design is a designer.” (01:26:08)

The Argument from Desire

• Every innate desire has a real object:
  • “When you are hungry you want food, when tired you want sleep, when lonely you want company — so why is there in every civilization a craving for something (or Someone) divine?” (01:31:00)
  • Universal human longing for the transcendent is itself an argument for God’s existence, not against it.
• Reference to “he has planted eternity in their hearts.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
  • “If you see someone who comes to a point where they don’t believe in God, it’s either situation or they themselves aborted that seed of faith... in seeking wisdom, they've become fools. A fool says in his heart there's no God.” (01:36:30)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On bold conviction:
  • “You must not be neutral... Any salt that is so neutral, that does not challenge any taste bud has lost its saltiness.” (06:53)
• On intellectual honesty:
  • “If the very fabric of my worldview, what fuels my morality and every integrity that I have, you want to remove that from me — what’s your alternative?” (21:10)
• On evidence and faith:
  • “You walk by faith every day.” (29:34)
  • “When you go to a canteen, how do you know that food was not poisoned?... You make decisions on a daily basis based on faith.” (28:50)
• On Christianity’s intellectual credibility:
  • “No proper historian asks... ‘How do you know Jesus ever existed?’ Jesus is, by far, the most documented person in the history of humanity.” (32:45)
• On pain and apologetics:
  • “Sometimes people don’t need an argument — they just need a hug.” (50:35)
• On design and God:
  • “Behind every design is a designer. The existence of intelligent design is proof for an intelligent designer.” (01:26:08)
• On universal spiritual longing:
  • “Every natural or innate desire has a corresponding object... so why does every civilization yearn for something divine?” (01:31:00)
• On secular and sacred in culture:
  • “Not every song that has ‘Jesus’ is a gospel song... not every song that doesn't mention church is a bad song.” (01:18:23)
• On continuing the discussion:
  • “We’ll continue next time. Are you blessed?” (01:38:20)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 06:53 – The salt metaphor: Standing out, not being neutral.
• 07:40 – “Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts” and the call for honor in worship.
• 14:02 – On the lack of doctrinal teaching and training for cultural engagement.
• 20:11 – The John Lennox/Cambridge story (intellectual pressure to abandon faith).
• 24:57 – Challenging double standards in worldviews and faith.
• 28:50 – Everyday faith: Examples from eating, traffic lights, flying.
• 32:45 – On Jesus’ historicity and biblical manuscript reliability.
• 36:44 – Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
• 41:14 – Why it’s illogical to “find God in the creation” — Intelligent Design.
• 49:30 – The problem of pain as a barrier to faith.
• 56:16 – Pastoral story: Responding to an internet critic with compassion.
• 01:01:05 – On bad examples and hypocrisy in the church.
• 01:04:30 – Data: Religion and war; major atrocities and atheism.
• 01:12:40 – Paul’s approach in Athens — logic, not just Scripture, in apologetics.
• 01:18:23 – Engaging culture: Christian and secular music.
• 01:21:46 – Romans 1:20, the witness of creation.
• 01:26:08 – Nature and the argument for a designer.
• 01:31:00 – Argument from desire: Universal spiritual longing.
• 01:36:30 – Faith, hard hearts, and the “fool says in his heart, there is no God.”
• 01:38:20 – Closing remarks; “We’ll continue next time.”

Summary

This episode offers a robust, practical, and compassionate apologetic for faith in God—equipping believers to answer both intellectual and emotional objections. Through powerful metaphors, historical evidence, cultural analysis, and stories, Pastor Emmanuel Iren calls for Christians to stand out, engage culture, and understand both the logic and the longing pointing humanity to God. The teaching seamlessly weaves sound doctrine, apologetics, and pastoral insight, reinforcing that the search for God is not merely an intellectual journey but one that engages the whole person.