The Purpose of Life

Why are we here? What is the purpose of life? Those questions have been asked by thoughtful people in every generation, in every society on earth, as long as there have been humans on earth.

Christians the world over will tell you the answer can be found in the Bible but most can’t point to any one scripture that has the answer. The answer is found in the Bible. And it is, in fact, clearly stated in one scripture.

One of the wisest men who ever lived, King Solomon, asked those questions and went on to answer them in one of the shortest books in the Bible. The book of Ecclesiastes has only twelve chapters but contains some of the most profound questions, and profound truths ever sought by man.

It is fitting that the most philosophical of questions is answered in the most philosophical of books in the Bible. Solomon’s conclusion of the matter is a part of Gods revealed word to mankind.

Ecclesiastes 12:13 states the answer…”Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” It’s that simple. And, it's that tough.

Note the first part of that scripture says to 'Fear God'. It doesn't simply say to keep His commandments. A mindless automaton could go through the motions of obedience. Fear, however, comes from inside us. No one seems to talk much anymore about fearing God. That’s because the kind of fear the scriptures refer to is widely misunderstood. The kind of fear the scriptures refer to is a part of respect. To fear God is like fearing ones loving parent. A parent’s duty is to correct and punish a child they love when necessary. Our Heavenly Father loves us. A healthy fear of Him, like a healthy fear of ones parents, serves to make us better people.

God gave us His commandments as an act of love for us. He gave them to us for our own good. God's laws aren't regulatory, they are revelatory. They reveal the way life works. God revealed them to us so we could lead happy and fulfilling lives. Rather than seeing them as a burden the way the world does, the believer should see them as a blessing. God’s word says to keep them is to show our love for Him.  To keep them, even when our own nature would have us act otherwise is an act of worship. To disobey them is to separate us from God.

The greatest irony is that most people calling themselves Christians have no interest in actually obeying God. Most of worldly Christendom reduces the message of the Bible into simply accepting Christ as ones savior without actually doing what He, or the rest of the Bible, says. The reason for that is also simple. To obey God is to act contrary to our own nature. The carnal mind is at odds with Gods way.

Like modern-day lawyers many Christians know God’s law but they construct elaborate arguments about why we don’t have to obey God’s law. The Gospel of Christ is much more simple and direct than that. His first word when He began His ministry was ‘Repent’…that is to turn from disobedience and obey God. That’s the first step in the gospel of Christ. One cannot truly accept the person of Christ while rejecting His message.

Keeping God’s law is about our obedience to Him. It is an acknowledgement that the God who gave us the commandments IS God and only He can determine what is good and what is evil. Only He can determine what is an acceptable act of worship. That’s a lesson that harkens back to Eden.

The quality of our lives is determined by the choices we make.  We can choose to look out only for ourselves and give in to every urge in life for the immediate gratification that offers. Or, we can exercise self control; choose to acknowledge the needs of others and help each other through life. God's law directs us to do the latter. God gave us the free will to make our own choices. Our character is formed by the choices we make every day. Every time we choose to obey God it strengthens our character. Like any loving parent God wants us to develop a strong, upright character because it is essential to a happy and fulfilling life. Good character is a trait God wants in His children both in this life and in His Kingdom.

Christianity is not just a statement of a belief in Christ as ones personal savior. Christianity is a way of life. In fact it was first called ‘the way’. The Christian way of life is to choose to obey God, not just in the letter but also in the spirit. It’s about obedience not just in our actions but also from our hearts. To truly accept Christ is to enter a covenant relationship with God. To obey God is to fulfill our part of that covenant. We don't do it for salvation. It's not a salvation issue. It's an issue of love for our Creator and our response to His love for us...

Keeping God's commandments is the most difficult and most rewarding thing one can do in life. To choose to keep them is to face a battle with our own nature every day. We will often lose that battle but we're not here to simply give in to our urges. We're here to fight the good fight. It's the battle that builds our character. 

The other side of keeping God's commandments is choosing to accept His Grace. God's grace, freely given to us through Christ's sacrifice, is His greatest act of love towards us because it blots out our failures in fulfilling our purpose. God's grace heals the chasm that our disobedience causes between us. That doesn't mean we should ever take His grace for granted. He is gracious in blotting out our failures for trying to keep His commandments. Those who claim His grace without even trying to obey Him mask a hostility towards God.

Our purpose is to live up to our part of the covenant we entered by by accepting Christ's sacrifice. Learning to obey God from our hearts is why we draw breath. His law is about His love for us. Our obedience is about our love for Him. God doesn't force us to obey Him.  He sets before us life and death and He implores us to choose life. In God's law is life...