When I first watched this conversation between a student and Cliffe Knechtle, it struck me on a very personal level. The student challenged Christianity by asking for proof of God’s existence, while Cliffe responded with a distinction many of us rarely think about: the difference between proof and evidence.
That moment opened my eyes. Proof, in its strictest sense, means something cannot be any other way. But life is not built on proof. Instead, we navigate life through evidence—through clues, patterns, and reliability.
Think about it:
- Can you prove you’re not dreaming right now? You could be. But the evidence suggests you’re awake, reading this blog.
- Can you prove you’ll be alive tomorrow? No. But the evidence of your health, age, and habits give you reasonable confidence to plan ahead.
We live our lives not by airtight proofs, but by trustworthy evidence.
Cliffe’s Four Evidences of God
Cliffe outlines four lines of evidence pointing to God’s existence. Let’s unpack them with real-world comparisons:
- The Design of the Cosmos
The universe is orderly, mathematical, and precise. Gravity doesn’t switch off randomly. Stars form patterns. DNA operates like code.- Example: If you walk into a room and see a detailed painting, you don’t assume it appeared by accident. You assume a painter exists. The cosmos, in its complexity, is that painting.
- Moral Absolutes
Across cultures and ages, humans share a sense of right and wrong. Lying, stealing, and murder are condemned almost everywhere.- Example: Even children, before being taught, cry “That’s not fair!” Morality hints at a Lawgiver beyond shifting human opinion.
- Life Comes from Life
We’ve never observed life spontaneously arising from non-life. Biology shows us that living things always come from prior life.- Example: You don’t plant a stone and expect it to sprout into a tree. Life has continuity, and its origin points to a source beyond mere chemistry.
- Free Will
If humans are only chemical reactions, then our choices are predetermined. Yet we all know the experience of judging ourselves, correcting ourselves, and deciding differently tomorrow.- Example: After losing your temper, you may resolve: Next time, I’ll handle it better. That sense of inner accountability and freedom points to something beyond mere biochemistry—a soul.
Taken together, these evidences suggest that God is not a myth, but a reality.
Why Jesus?
Cliffe doesn’t stop with God’s existence. He explains why Jesus is uniquely credible: His life, teachings, sacrificial death, and resurrection.
Here’s the striking point: if someone today lived like Jesus, taught with His wisdom, forgave enemies while dying, and rose from the dead three days later, wouldn’t you take their words seriously? The evidence of Jesus’ historical life sets Him apart.
Full Transcription (Unedited)
Below is the exact transcription of the exchange, untouched and unpolished. I’ve left it intact so you can hear or read the raw conversation for yourself:
Student:
Religion it’s all myth
you can’t prove religion
you can’t prove it
prove it to me that Jesus existed
Cliffe knechtle:
sure no problem
I’ll prove to you Jesus if you first of all prove to me Napoleon
I’ll prove to you Jesus if you prove to me George Washington
Student:
No, don’t prove the person’s existence
I’m saying prove the ideas that the person talks about
Prove to me what there’s a heaven
that it’s up there
prove to me that this true that your God truly exists
prove to me that these precepts of the Bible truly what true revelation
prove to me that these things are actually there
I’m a pyrrhicist
prove to me that they’re there
Cliffe knechtle:
Alright, I’ll do that if first of all you prove to me that your taste buds are telling you the truth when they tell you you’re drinking sour milk
Student:
secondary vasocon some things you can’t prove
so then you fall back on
you fall upon some things you can’t prove sir
Cliffe knechtle:
I’m sorry I haven’t communicated clearly
sir, you can’t prove a thing
to prove means to show it cannot be another way
you cannot prove a thing in life
When you
As a thinking human being dont base your life on proof
you base your life on evidence
what does the evidence point to
and you follow the evidence
to prove means to show it cnanot be another way
what can you prove in life?
prove to me we’re having this conversation right now, you can’t prove it,
we might be dreaming
Someone might dropped some drugs in our tea
but the evidence is we’re having this conversation that’s why I’m hanging here with you, that’s why you’re hanging in there with me
Evidence, okay, so the evidence is God exists
The evidence is the order in the design of the cosmos point to an intelligent mind
moral absolutes point to some moral giver, lawgiver
life comes from life, never once have i ever seen life come from non life
An atheiest is someone who says, oh yeah, at some point, somewhere, at one time, in lala land…life came from non life
And I’m saying uh uh, all of my experience shows me, life comes from life…
never once have I seen life come from non life
fourth piece of evidence
free wil, if there is no God you’re just a hunk of biochemical reactions, that’s all I am, you’re not free, you’re determined by your biochemical reactions, so am I
I’m sorry, I judge myself at night, I say you know cliffe when you spoke to that student, that was pretty rude, when you spoke to that student, boy you displayed a lot of patience man, tomorrow do that again and don’t do that…I judge myself I critique myself…I’m free, I don’t have to do what I do…well if I am free it means there’s more to me than just my biochemical makeup, there’s a soul, a personality, an eye that goes beyond the biochemical…I have a free will..well the free will can only exist if there’s some type of God who creates me biochemically but also gives me a will that’s not totally dependent upon my biochemical reactions that’s why I believe God exists…now why do I believe Jesus is reliable? Because the historical evidence of the way He lived, what He taught, how He died, how He rose from the dead points to His credibility.
If you lived like Jesus lived, if you teach what He taught, if you died the way He died, forgiving your enemies, and if three days later you rise from the dead..sir I will listen very closely to everything you have to say, because the evidence is you’re trustworthy, so that;s why I believe in Jesus
Does that make any sense?