The Purpose of God

What is God's Purpose?

         Recently, an individual related they had no use for God and would never have as long as it appears God has no purpose in this world. It prompted me to respond. The resulting question is, “What is God’s purpose?” The idea of purpose, when in reference to God, can only be meaningful when it is directed toward His creation. The Bible tells us that in the beginning God determined it would be good to have man (and woman) as a companion—someone in His image with whom He could have a relationship. He did not do this because His existence was incomplete and it filled a need that was lacking in God. No, he created all that is, including man, simply because He knew that it was a good thing to do. Now, He did not wish to have a robot but someone with free will who could make a conscious decision to have a relationship with God. That gives US purpose. We are to fellowship with Him. That’s what we are supposed to do. When He created us, it gave purpose to us as part of His creation.

         God is indefinable. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. He exists beyond time and dimension. When asked to define Himself he responded to Moses that He was “I Am.” That in itself is a very indefinable statement. What does it mean? It means He is that which no name can really be applied. He cannot be categorized and placed in the pantheon of human understanding. As such, we cannot establish God’s purpose any more than we can categorize Him. Purpose, in relation to God, is something He gives to us. Without God there is no purpose. To even attempt to classify God and limit Him regarding His purpose would be to imply we understand God and know His limits and boundaries, which we don’t know and will never know this side of glory.

         How totally presumptuous and conceited we have become. The Apostle Paul said of the Roman philosophers, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.” They were the kind of folks who asked, or actually required, the “purpose” of God. What makes us believe we can define God? What makes us believe we can place limits and boundaries on Him? What makes us believe we can understand His purpose, to any degree at all? We can barely discern our own purpose, much less the purpose of God. The pride and arrogance of man is evident when he stands toe-to-toe with God debating and demanding answers as to God's purpose, as if he were God's equal, holding any possible allegiance to God as a prize which is granted when God correctly responds to his questions. I contend the one, who proclaims they can never believe in God until they understand His purpose, does not truly want to believe. That one is more concerned with affirming their own elevated worth. To truly encounter God one must confirm he cannot define God. He cannot find God on his own, and he will never understand God's purpose.

Now, the question arises, “If we cannot understand God or his purpose and if He is so unconceivable, why even try?” In fact, if the evidence of a loving and caring God were not so compelling, our life would truly be hopeless and a relationship with God would be meaningless. However, even though we cannot know God to the fullest and understand the total detail of His nature, we know enough to rely on our limited understanding and value the relationship we have established with Him as being important and necessary. One must not see the distant city to heed the sign posts directing us to it’s limits. The family pet need not understand the position of his master in the framework of society to recognize the gentle hand and the shelter provided him. Similarly, we need not realize God to his fullest to seek a relationship with him and hold it precious. Fortunately, our capacity for love and devotion has never been limited by our ability to understand intellectually. Suffice it to say our limited understanding of the character and nature of God is sufficient.

Created man will never find God; He finds us. In addition, the act of finding God is actually Him establishing a relationship with us. To accomplish this we must admit we are imperfect and needy—something many people refuse to do. To establish a relationship with God, we must realize that our purpose is complete only when we yield our self to God. Purpose in relation to God, is what He gives us; it is not something we require of Him. Therefore, purpose in the life of a Christian is understood only when we align our life with God’s will and concede it is not necessary to seek nor understand why God is. His purpose is not the issue; ours is. As to God, well, He just is.