R.C. Sproul

The only other option I've ever heard is that the universe is an illusion, which throws us back to the first point.

But once a person grants that something exists in reality now,

Can we account for that existence any other way except by one of these three?

Now, let's look at these.

Now we've reduced it to three.

Is there any of these that we can eliminate right off the bat?

Self-created.

Why?

The notion of self-creation

is what we would call analytically invalid or formally absurd.

That is to say, it's a contradictory, absurd notion.

For something to create itself, it would have to exist before it existed.

To exist before it existed means that it would have to exist and not exist at the same time and in the same relation, which is an absolutely clear violation of the law of contradiction.

and it's an absurdity to say that something exists and doesn't exist at the same time in the same relationship.

It's like saying this crayon is not a crayon.

That's a nonsense statement.

It's gibberish.

Do you see that?

Could you repeat that?

Could you show that the notion of self-creation is logically absurd?