Upwards Church

We continue our new series, Explore God!  Each campus will explore the topic, “Does Life Have a Purpose?”  I hope you can join us!  Below is an article from www.ExploreGod.com to get us thinking on the topic.

The great Russian author Leo Tolstoy had it all: wealth, family, success, and fame. By almost anyone’s standards, Tolstoy should have also possessed a great sense of joy, accomplishment, and purpose. But he did not.

One thing haunted everything he did: death. “Is there any meaning in my life that the inevitable death awaiting me does not destroy?” he asked. Tolstoy could not shake the feeling that the finality of his inevitable death made everything in life meaningless.

Restless in the Middle of Prosperity

Tolstoy wasn’t—and still isn’t—alone in this sentiment. For example, the United States is currently perhaps the most advanced, affluent, and comfortable culture in all of human history, but at the same time it is arguably the most depressed, medicated, and directionless culture in all of human history.

One French author recognized this over a hundred years ago. Visiting America for the first time, Alexis de Tocqueville observed what is even more apparent today: “There is something surprising in this strange unrest of so many happy men, restless in the midst of abundance . . . Besides the good things that he possesses, he every instant fancies a thousand others that death will prevent him from trying if he does not try them soon. This thought fills him with anxiety, fear, and regret and keeps his mind in ceaseless trepidation.”²

Tolstoy, de Tocqueville, and millions of people today recognize the same agonizing question: Is there any meaning or purpose in life that death does not erase?

Meaningless . . .

Surprisingly, one of the most intriguing—and often overlooked—books of the Bible tackles this same inquiry. The book of Ecclesiastes answers the above question with a resounding no: “‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’”³

This isn’t something most people expect to find in the Bible, but there it is. The rest of the book continues to make the case that there is actually no meaning in “all the things that are done under the sun.”⁴ Wisdom and knowledge are meaningless, wealth is meaningless, pleasure is meaningless. Life is meaningless. “All of it is meaningless.”⁵

The Bible is on to something here. Imagine you were on death row and your execution was tomorrow. There is nothing you could do today that would change what is going to happen tomorrow. Thus, there is nothing you could do that will not be gone tomorrow. Death will end it all.

That is the Bible’s point. If this life is all that there is—if death is the end and there is nothing after—then there cannot be any real meaning or purpose in life. Death destroys it all. Life is lived in vain because nothing you can do will prevent death’s ultimate victory.

. . . Except

But Ecclesiastes doesn’t stop there. There is one small yet hugely significant detail that is vital to the statements made in Ecclesiastes: apart from God, life cannot have any purpose.

Let me explain a bit.

According to the scientific worldview today of some, you are just a chance composition of random atoms. You are an accidental result of a mindless, purposeless biological process.

However, the book of Ecclesiastes—and Christianity as a whole—offers a bilateral perspective: though life apart from God is utterly devoid of meaning, life with God is brimming over with purpose.

God created mankind, and he created us for a specific purpose. However, we rejected that purpose (remember the story of Adam and Eve?) and have since gone to great lengths to try to create our own purpose and meaning.⁶

Author C. S. Lewis put it this way:

All that we call human history—money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery—is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy. . . . The reason why it can never succeed is this. God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other.⁷

Your life can have great purpose. Your life can have eternal purpose.

As the creator of this life, God knows what is best for man. He knows the only thing that can give life true meaning is God himself. Christians believe that God, through Jesus Christ, offers us all eternal life—life beyond this world, where “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.”⁸

Look Around You

Just look around you. Look at Hollywood. The most beautiful, wealthy, and successful people in the world are so often plagued by depression, drug addiction, eating disorders, and countless other destructive problems.

History has proven over and over that money, sex, possessions, and fame simply don’t provide the fulfillment we desire. Time and time again people have learned that these things offer no real, lasting purpose.

In the Christian understanding, life can have great purpose, but—as much as we may resist it—that purpose is found only through a relationship with God.

What do you think?

www.RidgeFellowship.com

Footnotes

1. Leo Tolstoy, A Confession, chapter 5. Accessed at The Literature Network,http://www.online-literature.com/tolstoy/a-confession/5/, March 12, 2013.

2. Alexis de Tocqueville, “Why the Americans are so Restless in the Midst of their Prosperity,” Democracy in America. Accessed at Sewanee.edu,http://www.sewanee.edu/faculty/Willis/Civil_War/documents/TocquevilleRestless.html, March 12, 2013.

3. The Holy Bible, New International Version © 2011, Ecclesiastes 1:2.

4. Ibid., Ecclesiastes 1:14. “I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”

5. Ibid., 2:17. In fact, the word “meaningless” occurs about thirty-five times in Ecclesiastes. This term appears only once elsewhere in the Bible—in Job 27:12.

6. See The Holy Bible, Genesis 1:26–3:24.

7. C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2001), 49–50.

8. The Holy Bible, Revelation 21:4.

9. Photo Credit: Ryan Jorgensen – Jorgo / Shutterstock.com.

Written By:  Matt Shores

This Sunday we begin our new series, Explore God!  Each campus will explore the topic, “Is there a God?”  Leander on  9/8/13, Jarrell & Taylor 9/15/13.  Hope you can join us!  Below is an article from www.ExploreGod.com to get us thinking on the topic.

Football players point heavenward after scoring touchdowns or making great tackles. Grammy winners thank God for their success. Police officers wear Saint Christopher medallions when on patrol. Millions of people flock to churches and synagogues and temples each weekend for prayer, meditation, and praise.

Is this odd behavior—even a bit outdated for modern society? Some think so. What’s all the hoopla? With science and technology increasing our life expectancies and providing more control over what once was deemed “destiny,” it seems to matter less and less if God exists or not.

In fact, who really cares?

A Timeless Need

And yet so much in society still points in that direction. In my own job as a newspaper reporter, I come in contact with hundreds of people from all walks of life, all belief systems, all socio-economic backgrounds. Countless times I have seen true tragedy—from fires to floods to fatal car crashes—and in the majority of these instances, the survivors reveal a belief in God.

Part of this may be simply human nature. It seems that deep within our human fabric there is a need or desire for there to exist a higher being, a creator who oversees all, considers all, and takes appropriate action on our behalf.

This desire dates back to the earliest peoples who walked the earth. All major societies—from the ancient Egyptians to the Babylonians to the Meso-Persian Empire to the biblical Israelites—were structured around a core set of religious beliefs. In most cases, these beliefs permeated all aspects of corporate and individual life.

Today’s societies are not all that different. Though Muslims operate under a different set of principles than Buddhists do, both still live in accord with the structures and codes of a centralized belief system. A quick Google search of any major American city shows a diverse choice of churches to pick from—and that’s just Christian churches alone.

The Search                      

With so many options available to us, I think it’s safe to say that the majority of people are interested in or invested in—to put it another way, they care about—the existence of a higher power or powers. In fact, today, only approximately 12 percent of the world population identifies themselves as atheist or agnostic.¹ Many people around the world are searching for God, wish to live in some type of relationship with God, or believe they have already found God.

The search for truth, the force of the intellect and will, the pursuit of love, the untiring struggle to find some kind of meaning to life—these human endeavors seem almost inherent. They cross time, culture, and geography.

Could they, in part, indicate that human existence is born from a higher consciousness, the result of a divine design that surpasses chance? Even science, as far as it has come in explaining the world around us, doesn’t have all the answers. The definite, true answers to many of our basic inquiries remain enshrouded in mist and uncertainty: Why am I here? What is my purpose?

So What?

So who cares if there’s a God? I think we all do—on varying levels—at least in the sense that we care what that would mean for our lives. For if God does exist, his presence and nature could very well affect us all. From the most fervent congregation member to the most adamant man of science, we all must at least consider God’s existence when trying to answer the great questions of life.

• If there is no higher purpose, why am I here?
• If God exists, then what is his will for my life?
• If God doesn’t exist, where do I turn for direction?
• Does God think some things are good to do and others are bad?
• If God is real and good, why does he allow bad things to happen?
• If God isn’t real and there is nothing beyond this world, why do so many people feel empty and hopeless no matter what they attain materially on earth? 
• What happens when I die?

Whether or not you actually believe in God, the very nature of life—the answers to the above questions and more—is reason enough to care if there is a God out there.

What do you think?

www.RidgeFellowship.com

1. “Religion Statistics by Adherents,” Religion Facts, last updated January 2, 2013. Statistics come from the World Christian Database of Gordon-Cromwell Theological Seminary and can be found athttp://www.religionfacts.com/religion_statistics/religion_statistics_by_adherents.htm.

 Written by:  Ben Sharp

This Sunday we begin our new series, Explore God!  Each campus will explore the topic, “Is there a God?”  Leander on  9/8/13, Jarrell & Taylor 9/15/13.  Hope you can join us!  Below is an article from www.ExploreGod.com to get us thinking on the topic.

You’ve likely heard people talk about God, but is all that just a bunch of nonsense? Or could God be real?

What distinguishes a claim that an invisible God is present in the world from claims about the reality of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, or a child’s imaginary friend? Is God real? If so, where is this God that people claim to know?

In 1952 the philosopher Bertrand Russell, a self-described atheist and agnostic, wrote an article for Illustrated magazine entitled “Is There a God?”¹ In it, he introduced his famous “orbiting teapot” idea. Russell claimed that the burden of proof lies with those who make claims that cannot be verified scientifically:

If I were to suggest that between the Earth and Mars there is a china teapot revolving about the sun in an elliptical orbit, nobody would be able to disprove my assertion provided I were careful to add that the teapot is too small to be revealed even by our most powerful telescopes. But if I were to go on to say that, since my assertion cannot be disproved, it is intolerable presumption on the part of human reason to doubt it, I should rightly be thought to be talking nonsense. If, however, the existence of such a teapot were affirmed in ancient books, taught as the sacred truth every Sunday, and instilled into the minds of children at school, hesitation to believe in its existence would become a mark of eccentricity and entitle the doubter to the attentions of the psychiatrist in an enlightened age or of the Inquisitor in an earlier time.²

Russell suggested that believers must prove God’s reality rather than expect nonbelievers to disprove God’s reality. Some have even satirically applied Russell’s idea to those who believe in invisible pink unicorns and flying spaghetti monsters.³

Russell’s point makes some sense. Just because somebody claims that something is true doesn’t mean that it is true or that we should feel compelled to prove that it is not true.

However, the claim that God is real is a bit different from Russell’s teapot—and from the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus for that matter.

Physical or Spiritual?

We know things about the physical universe that would make the teapot claim seem unjustifiable. Teapots are, after all, physical objects. Based on our present knowledge of the laws of the physical universe, we have no rational reason to believe in an orbiting teapot.

On the other hand, most religions describe God as a spirit, not a physical entity.⁴ If this is true, it would put the reality of God and that of an orbiting teapot in altogether different categories.

Visible or Invisible?

Disbelief in the reality of God is also based on the fact that God is unseen. However, we believe in the reality of numerous things we cannot see. For example, we accept the reality of historical figures such as Plato and Socrates, although we’ve seen neither. Historical evidence points to their existence, so we accept them as real.

We deal differently with mythological characters such as Mickey Mouse or Superman. We reject them as fantasy because we have no evidence pointing to their reality. If someone denied the existence of Socrates, we would expect them to make their case for unbelief, whereas if someone denied the existence of Superman we would not demand a case be made.

At the same time, we accept other invisible, non-scientifically verifiable realities. For example, how can I scientifically prove that I love my children or my spouse? Yet I know without question that I do. Am I willing to label that knowledge as specious?

We cannot see wind, yet we know it is real based on how it affects the things around it. We cannot see odor or sound, but their reality is evident to all who can see, smell, and hear. Within our universe, reality is not demonstrated merely by visibility and provability, but also by affect, historical reliability, and plausibility.

So Is God Real?

Christian thinkers would answer yes, but we must be careful to define what is meant by “real.” Christians speak of God’s nature as being spiritual rather than physical.

Among the implications of this claim is the idea that God is neither bound nor described by the physical laws of this universe. God does not consist of matter.

Christians believe that God is present equally and fully in all the universe, and yet is also distinct from and lord over it.⁵ No place exists where God is absent; the entire universe reveals his presence and power.⁶

Dallas Willard, a philosophy professor at the University of Southern California, describes humans as “spiritual beings” with physical bodies. He observes, “You cannot find me or any of my thoughts, feelings, or character traits in any part of my body. Even I cannot. If you wish to find me, the last thing you should do is open my body to take a look.”⁷

In an analogous way (and all analogies break down), he says that God relates to space as we do to our bodies. God “occupies and overflows it but cannot be localized in it.”⁸ In short, God is everywhere, fully and completely.

The ancient Hebrew poet understood this of God and spoke of it in the psalms: “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”⁹

If God is real, then we are faced with a more personal question. Can we know this invisible God? If the nature of spiritual things is that they cannot be perceived by the five senses—that they are non-physical realities—how does one find God?

The testimony of men and women who have staked a claim on the reality of God over the centuries is summed up in the words of the ancient Hebrew prophet named Jeremiah: “‘You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’” declares the Lord.”¹⁰

Christian thinkers have understood that human beings have a capacity for relationship with the God who created us. We, too, seem to have a spiritual dimension, a way of being that is more than the five senses. Perhaps it is the quest to know God that best puts one in a position to answer the question, “Is God real?”

www.RidgeFellowship.com

www.ExploreGod.com

1. Bertrand Russell, “Am I an Atheist or an Agnostic? A Plea for Tolerance,” The Literary and Rationalist Review 64, no 7 (1949): 115-16. In this article, Russell describes himself as an atheist and agnostic.
2. Bertrand Russell, “Is There a God?” (1952), The Collected Papers of Bertrand Russell 11: Last Philosophical Testament (1943–68), ed. John G. Slater and Peter Köllner (London: Routledge, 1997), 543–48.
3. Bobby Henderson, The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (New York: Random House, 2006).
4. For the Christian perspective, see The Holy Bible, New International Version © 2011, John 4:24.
5. The Holy Bible, New International Version © 2011, Psalm 139:7–12. “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”
6. Ibid, Romans 1:20. “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
7. Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God, (New York: HarperOne, 1998), 76.
8. Ibid.
9. The Holy Bible, Psalm 139:7–8.
10. Ibid, Jeremiah 29:13–14.
11. Photo Credit: mtr / Shutterstock.com.

 Written by:  R. Robert Creech, Ph.D.