If God exists, why isn't His existence more obvious? Why are God's reality and goodness hidden from not only the careless but from so many sincere and honest inquirers? In an important recent book, John Schellenberg contends that in the absence of satisfactory answers to these questions, we must conclude that God doesn't exist. His argument is this:

1. “A perfectly loving God would desire a reciprocal personal relationship to obtain between himself and every being capable of it.”

2. “A logically necessary condition of such a divine-human reciprocity is human belief in divine existence.” Therefore,

3. If a perfectly loving God existed, He would “ensure that everyone capable of such belief (or at any rate, everyone capable who was not disposed to resist it) was in possession of sufficient evidence to bring it about that such belief was formed.”

4. “But the evidence actually available is not of this sort.” Hence,

5. A perfectly loving God doesn't exist.

In what follows we shall see how one Christian philosopher would respond to Schellenberg's argument. Sections I–V examine Jonathan Edwards' views of revelation and human noetic failure. As we shall see, Edwards accepts Schellenberg's first two premises, but denies the third. Evidence sufficient to bring about a belief in God's existence and goodness in everyone capable of such belief and not disposed to resist it is available. It is also intrinsically clear and compelling although sin has blinded us so that we fail to appreciate its force. While these claims are not novel, Edwards' treatment of them is interesting and illuminating. Sections VI and VII will argue that, with some modifications, it is also defensible.