1. Design - Any complex mechanism created for a purpose
1.1. Evidence of design
1.1.1. Laws of science
1.1.2. DNA
1.1.3. Evolution
1.1.4. Laws of physics eg. Gravity
1.1.5. Fossils
1.1.6. Nature in general - plants and animals
1.2. How does evidence of design support belief in God
1.2.1. Anything that has been designed needs a designer eg. a Car
1.2.2. There is lots of evidence that the world and universe has been designed
1.2.3. If it has been designed it needs a designer
1.2.4. That designer must be God, because of the beauty and complexity of the world
1.3. How 'evidence' of design does not support belief in God
1.3.1. Creation is cruel - animals kill others for food, volcanos, earthquakes etc.
1.3.2. Science has answered many of the questions about how we got here eg. Evolution
1.3.3. Dinosaurs are not mentioned in the Bible, yet we know they existed and formed part of the evolutionary process
1.3.4. Even if you accept that the universe has a designer why does it have to be a good God? It could have been more than one god, or an evil god, or an apprentice god etc.
1.3.5. Ultimately the world IS NOT perfect, it is flawed.
2. Cause - The process whereby one thing causes another
2.1. Evidence for causation in the world
2.1.1. YOU - you were caused by your parents
2.1.2. Everthything we do causes an effect, eg writing, you cause your pen to deposit ink on paper
2.2. The argument for God from causation
2.2.1. When looking at the world we see that everything has a cause and effect
2.2.2. Anything caused to exist, such as yourself, must have been caused by something else (eg your grandparents causing your parents and so on.......)
2.2.3. You can't go back infinately through a chain of cause and effect - there has to be a First Cause (what else could have caused the Universe?)
2.2.4. The First Cause is God (who is uncaused himself)
2.3. Why do some disagree with this?
2.3.1. If there is a First Cause, why does it have to be God (eg. science suggests the Universe started through the Big Bang)
2.3.2. Why could the chain of cause and effect not go back infinately? Why does it have to stop?
2.3.3. Look up at the night sky - you will literally see creation in action - a process which is ongoing and does not involve God