Ken Ham, Answers in Genesis CEO and President of the Creation Museum, has encouraged Christians to remember that even the strongest of atheists can turn from their ways and be saved despite their hatred of Jesus Christ and His followers.
In a lengthy post shared on his Answers in Genesis blog, Ham wrote, "When I read some of the atheist blogs, Facebook posts, and news articles that display a sheer hatred against Christians (really, it's a hatred against God), it can seem, humanly speaking, hopeless to try to reach these secularists with the truth of God's Word and the salvation message it presents."
He continued: "And yet, we can be encouraged to read of the incredible conversion of Saul (who severely persecuted Christians) in Acts 9 and realize that God's Word can penetrate even the most hardened heart," he added.
The Creationist contended that many atheists haven't heard a "clear, logical defense of the Christian faith" that would answer their questions. In an effort to counter this problem, Answers in Genesis regularly holds conferences and other outreach events around the world.
Ham went on to share the story of one of their new volunteers, Dona, who was a former atheist who became a Christian in 1993 after she attended one of AiG's seminars.
"I attended a Creation Seminar at Cedarville College [now Cedarville University], sat in rapt attention as Ken Ham told me 'the rest of the story,' and I realized that all of the fossil finds I believed supported evolution were, in all cases, misinterpreted. I was blown away," the woman wrote in her testimony.
"So, learning the truth about evolution preceded my realizing that God was real (after all!) and that the Bible was His Word. I became a creationist before I became a believer in Christ," she added.
Such stories are a "great thrill" in Ham's ministry, he said, and prove that God can reach "even the most hardened heart."
"There is hope for every atheist, for the Lord 'is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance' (2 Peter 3:9). And 'blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3)," he added.
In the past, Ham has argued that because God has placed the knowledge of God within each person, there cannot be any true atheists. In an earlier AiG blog post, he took aim at prominent atheist Richard Dawkins, who, when asked what happens to individuals following death, stated, "I don't know what happens to us, but I know that our consciousness is wrapped up in our brains. I know that our brains rot."
Atheism, Ham wrote, is arguing is that "life is totally the result of natural processes. When you die, you cease to exist - or as Dawkins puts it, your brain will rot. Thus, when your life is over on this Earth, you will never know you even had such a life. Eventually, everyone will die - the whole universe will die a heat death - and so ultimately no one will even know anything existed!"
He continued: "So, from the perspective of a self-described atheist, why does it ultimately matter what anyone believes about anything? We can make whatever 'purpose' and 'meaning' for life that we want to during our brief existence - but in an ultimate sense, life is totally meaningless, hopeless, and purposeless."
He noted that people who claim to be atheists are "so aggressive" is because they know the truth, but do not admit it.
"They know God exists - the evidence is within them and all around them. But because of their sin nature, they don't want God. They are at war with God," he continued.
"Because the evidence within man and all around us in the creation is so strong, these atheists actively and aggressively attack Christianity and promote their atheism in order to 'suppress the truth in unrighteousness.'"
