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“The life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and
short,” said Thomas Hobbes. In Macbeth, Shakespeare
wrote that life is “a tale told by an idiot, full of
sound and fury, signifying nothing.” John Masefield
expressed the opinion that: “Life
is a long headache in a noisy street.” Pretty
depressing stuff! Not a very encouraging note on which
to start a new year!
But, entering a new year with all its potential for good
or ill and all its uncertainties, is a good time to ask:
What is the purpose of life? Why are we here? Why did
humanity come into being? Are we just an accident of
natural selection? Are we, to quote a very green New Age
writer, a cancer on the face of Gaia (Mother Earth) -
bringing ecological disaster?
On a more personal level, what is the purpose of your
life? Why are you here on earth? Is there anything
beyond domestic duties, family relationships, trying to
keep healthy, working, having some fun, going on
holiday? All of these things are important. But have
you asked yourself: Is that it – and then you’re dead?
The Bible tells us that we are very special beings: we
are “made in the image of God.” That means we aren’t
just higher animals. We are creative beings, we
appreciate beauty (in sight or sound). We are capable of
great love. Above all, we are spiritual and eternal
beings.
One excellent old definition of the purpose of life is
this.
“The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him
forever.” This gets forgotten, or ignored. Christianity
is also about loving your neighbour. But first and
foremost it is about loving God.
I firmly believe that you are here, first and foremost,
to glorify God, i.e. to worship him, please him and
serve him. Maybe you haven’t realised this. Maybe you
are concentrating on all the other purposes I mention in
the third paragraph, or on loving your neighbour. But
the fact is that you were made to glorify God and, if
you’re not consciously doing so then, deep down, whether
you realise it or not, there is a fundamental
frustration and dissatisfaction.
However, it isn’t only about glorifying God, it is also
about enjoying him forever. Like many Christians, I
really enjoy God. I look up at the universe on a clear
night and enjoy knowing, and perhaps speaking to, the
Creator. I walk alone in the country and sense God
looking down at me. Sometimes (not always) in church,
the worship lifts me out of myself, so I feel (as the
Communion Service puts it) I am worshipping “with angels
and archangels and the whole company of heaven.”
Sometimes when I am preaching in church or teaching a
group, I experience a deep happiness that far transcends
any other happiness. Anyone who says that real
Christianity isn’t enjoyable is greatly mistaken. Yes,
there are difficult times too, as in all human life. But
the enjoyment is out of this world!
In fact, literally out of this world, which is limited
by time and death. We are created to enjoy God for ever.
That’s why the Bible speaks of eternal life. I wrote
about heaven last month, so I won’t say more now. But
the enjoyment of God does go on for ever.
What is the secret of enjoying God forever? Well, it
isn’t a secret actually, it’s been well-known for 2000
years. It is by trusting in his Son, who came as a baby
to live, die and rise again to make possible our
forgiveness, and to bring us into a lasting relationship
with God our Father.
Tony Higton |
Do
We Believe in 3 Gods?
