God's people are the beneficiaries of His unfathomable grace.
Foundations for a Christian Worldview: The People of God (3)
“For you area holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” Deuteronomy 7.6-8
What am I here for?
A question that every worldview seeks to answer addresses the reason for human beings, and for each of us individually: What am I here for? Does my life have a purpose? Am I supposed to be something? Do something? Achieve something? Or am I just a random product of natural causes in a universe that has no meaning? Is life absurd? Why am I here?
Every human being has to deal with this question in some form, and at various stages of life. Major life decisions are spin-offs of this question: What should I study in college? Should I get married? Should we have children? Should I accept this promotion, or this job offer? Should we take our children to church?
Within the framework of most worldviews, answering this question is a guessing game based on emotional satisfaction. We try to figure out some aspect of the answer to this question, then we make a choice, and try to make the choice work. As long as we feel good about our decision, and it seems to fit our emotional expectations, we continue in it. If not, we ask the question again and go looking – for a new job, a new hobby, a new mate, or any of a million new distractions.
Christians don’t have to cast about for an answer to this question. God, Who made us, has also told us why He made us, and what’s in store for us as we take our place with Him in the worldview framework of His Kingdom and glory, to which He calls us (1 Thess. 2.12).
To be brief: We are here because it pleases God to give us life, blessing, fellowship with Him, and the eternal bliss and privilege of His company and provision.
We are here because God chose us for Himself, out of the enormity of His unfathomable grace, that we might be a peculiar people of all the peoples in the world, to know, enjoy, serve, and glorify Him forever.
Here for God
Rick Warren began his widely-read book, The Purpose Driven Life (subtitled, “What on earth am I here for?”), by stating simply, “It’s not about you.” Your life is not about you. If you think your life is about you, that is, ultimately about you, then you must think that you are God. But if you can set aside the tendency, natural to us all who are fallen in sin, of thinking that you are the center of the cosmos and that everyone should do for you, then you can begin to discover the real meaning and purpose of your life, which is to be found in God alone.
God chose the ancient people of Israel for Himself, as He said through Moses. But it’s not that God was lonely, or that in His Three-in-Oneness He lacked something. Quite the contrary. It is that He loves us with an infinite, unfathomable, and irresistible love. So completely fulfilled, satisfied, and overflowing with joy and love are the members of the triune Godhead, that they desire others to know that same intimacy and fullness. This adds nothing to their joy; instead, it spreads joy to undeserving creatures who could never realize it on their own. God longs for His people to live within His love, participate in His being, experience His Presence, join in His work, and exercise His power, not because this does something for Him, but because it does so much for us.
If we continue thinking that our lives are all about us, we’ll spend them trying to attract people and things to ourselves, and we’ll miss the ultimate point of human existence, which is to surrender to the attractional power of God’s grace, and be drawn into fellowship with Him and those who know Him.
Here for holiness
In that context, then, we will discover, as God told His ancient people, that He intends us to be holy, as He Himself is holy. God is holy, and in His holiness, God lacks nothing; He is completely satisfied and fulfilled, abounds in joy and love, exercises remarkable creativity, does all things well, wants for nothing, and has an infinite supply of grace to overflow toward sinful people and their fallen world.
And He intends for His people to participate in that project.
People tend to equate the term holiness with something like, straight-laced, sober, sad, and bored. God is none of those things. He is holy. It the serpent’s lie to make us believe that holiness is a condition to be avoided at all costs, or, at least, not something to become fanatical about.
But God has called His people to holiness, to be like Him, live like He does, rejoice as He does, love as He does, and fill the earth with goodness as He does. And the path for all this fullness and blessing is the path of holiness.
Here to bless
For only as we are immersed in God and pursuing holiness can we be a blessing to the world. This is what God promised the fathers, beginning with Abraham: That His people will bring the blessings of the knowledge of God and His glory to the world – all that fullness and joy and love and goodness and wonder and thrill of being alive. God’s people are the blessing-bringers to the world. This is God’s plan for us, as seen throughout the Law of God and all of Scripture.
God draws us to Himself. He fits us for holiness. He dispatches us to the world. And the world is set right again, back to that “very good” condition in which God made it at the beginning.
Why are we here? We are here for God. And for love. And for blessing. And for the glory of Him Who alone is able to make such a wonderful way of life possible. It’s not about you or me; it’s about God, and knowing His joy and bringing His blessings and goodness to our world.
It’s all about grace.
For reflection
1. What is grace? Why is grace so important in the Christian worldview?
2. What does it mean for you be a blessing-bringer to your world? Is this how people regard you?
3. Why is holiness so much to be desired? Why do Christians exert so little energy in trying to increase in holiness (2 Cor. 7.1)?
Next steps – Transformation: What are the major components of your life? What’s one thing you could do in each of those areas to begin bringing holiness to completion? Begin praying daily that God will allow you to increase in His holiness.
Are you realizing your purpose in life? Our book Joy to Your World! can help you to improve in your calling as a joy-bringer to the people around you. Order your copy by clicking here.
The Christian worldview focuses on Jesus. Do you know Him? Our book, To Know Him, can help you answer that question confidently, and equip you to tell others about Jesus as well. Order your copy by clicking here.
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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.
