I will present a description of infinity, a pair of dichotomies (either something is or isn't) to show that the universe has a beginning, clear up some counterarguments, and then observe that God follows his own rules in this way (probably).
1) Infinity: Infinity is not a real number in mathematics. It's why we created limits to deal with it. ∞ + ∞ = ∞ but take ∞ from both sides and ∞ = 0 which is false. Infinity does not obey normal mathematical laws. If you started from zero and began counting up in integers 1, 2, 3... and so on you would never reach infinity. If you counted for an infinitely long period of time you would, but you can't count for that long. Infinitely far into the future will never get here.
I realized just before writing this post that the confusion surrounding infinity in this topic is somewhat of a testimony to it's nature - it doesn't obey natural laws so it's hard to grasp.
2) The universe either had a beginning or it didn't. There is no escape from this question, no other options. We either affirm or deny a statement, an existence.
If the universe had a beginning, we must ask how it began. That I will leave for another time - but I claim a beginning of the universe begs a Beginner. If it does not have a beginning, then I must ask: have events happened an infinite amount of time in the past? I think a beginningless universe forces events of this nature. Moreland asks us to imagine falling in a bottomless pit - literally a pit without a bottom. As you go down, you go into the past. I should imagine this could be called infinite - you'll get sucked down faster and faster for all eternity and never get infinitely down. Yet somehow there's still deeper parts of the hole. Leastways there must be deeper events that have happened before all real numbers, because for any huge negative time number x, we still have not reached the beginning of time (because it doesn't exist) and so events have happened in time prior to x. Essentially, we can't get far enough away - there's always stuff farther - yet somehow that stuff still exists. If we travel backward into infinity, we will never get there. And if we can't get there from here, the universe could never have reached here from there. If we count backwards from now to negative infinity, we'll never get there. We can't. So you can't count forward from negative infinity to now. The fact that we exist now gives evidence that the universe began at some point.
a) Some may say "but back then the universe existed, and the same logic would be false". But what do you mean "back then"? When the universe began? It never began. You can't get somewhere that doesn't exist. As I said, screwy things happen when you deal with infinity because it does not follow natural mathematical laws.
b) Confusion and arguments may arise from trying to distinguish between number types. I will define several types that may or may not be different from each other: arbitrarily large negative numbers, numbers that are defined as more negative than any other, numbers or a quantity that is defined as without limit, infinity itself, and anything you may consider larger than infinity by trying to apply mathematical laws to it.
i) Arbitrarily large negative numbers can be represented by x. These occur in mathematical proofs and we are familiar with them. They also follow mathematical laws. The limit of x as x approaches infinity is infinity. If we choose to use x, it direct us towards using infinity.
ii) A number that is more negative than all other numbers is self-contradictory and cannot exist because it cannot be more negative than itself - a number. This is either infinity, which is not a real number, or a false construct and nonentity.
iii) A number or quantity without limit is hard to define - by definition because it has no limit. Conceptions of this number may fluctuate between that seen in ii) as a number that no matter how far you go is always more negative, and infinity itself. It could also take on a more emotional/loose definition as a sufficient quantity - not in the sense that it is sufficient for any given condition - that is more like ii) - but sufficient in a human, moral, yearning sense. It is sufficient to satisfy our curiosity, doubts, cynicism, expectations, etc. This then may be the positive aspect of infinity - that God is sufficient to meet all your needs and can never be exhausted.
iv) An infinitely negative number (or positive) is not a real number (p.s. I am using 'real' in the mathematical sense as containing all integers, rational and irrational numbers, excluding imaginary numbers which are useful false constructs to deal with higher dimensions). It does not follow common mathematical laws.
c) From these definitions we can see that the end result is still infinity, however funky of terminology we use to describe it. And again, infinity is not a real number, and time infinitely far away cannot exist.
3) In my presentations of TSM before, I have looked at two options - that the world is finite in time length or infinite - leaving the option for either open, though either demands a God. (Finite means a beginning and someone who is outside of time to begin it. Infinite breaks mathematical laws and needs something infinite to sustain it.) However, I think I rescind the reasonable possibility of an infinite universe. I don't claim to know anything for absolute certain, God could sustain an infinite universe, but I don't think he would for one reason. He created the world with order, with wisdom he laid the foundations of the earth (Prov 3:19). I don't think he would break a mathematical rule for a sustained period. A quote from the Chronicles of Narnia: The Dawn Treader comes to mind. In a scene with many useful insights, Lucy is reading from the magicians book on the island of Coriakin and the monopds. When she reads a spell to make things visible, Aslan the lion (represents Jesus) appears behind her. She is surprised that he obeyed the spell and became visible. Aslan responds by saying "Don'y you think I would follow my own rules?" This makes sense to me. If God made the universe in such a way that infinity was illogical, he wouldn't make an infinite universe.
a) God still does miracles, violating natural law (possibly). This is to show that he is not constrained by his own rules (if in fact we say he made a rule that he must follow natural law).
b) Maybe infinity is real and exists in the universe, and it exists as another testament to Gods nature. Sometime we may discover more about infinity (or maybe not because it's so infinite) and in the process we will learn more about him.
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