Finding God: Easier Than You Think

We all have tried at one point or another in our lives to find a higher meaning, a higher power, a reason for being, an answer to why things are here and why they are the way they are. We have all searched for a god or force that would explain why we do what we do and how to better conduct ourselves. We have an innate knowledge of an afterlife, and we want to gain favor so as to spend eternity with whatever created us in some sort of paradise.

Inside ourselves, we know and desire all these things in a general way, but no further.

The reason we look for a god to believe in is because we have been given knowledge of God (1), but it has been clouded by sin and evil. The close relationship our forefathers had with God over time became more and more diluted, and, as is inevitably expected, we now know that there is A god, but we have no idea, in and of ourselves, who He is. We know there is a law--even secular society knows that killing, stealing, adultery, usury, abandoning your elderly parents in their time of need, and unjustly punching a stranger in the nose are all inherently wrong, with no need for explanation. We just know. Why? Because God wrote that Law into our hearts, where it still resides, but, just as with knowledge of God, it has become clouded by sin and evil. Therefore, we know that taking another's life outside of a government-sanctioned and -executed death penalty is wrong, but worshiping a golden calf is not as clear of an infraction.

We know there is A god, and we know he or she or it or they have A law we need to obey, but that's all we have, in and of ourselves. But is there any way to really know who that god is, and what that law specifically says?

Yes, there is.

God gave us a book that contains the laws we must obey to gain entry into eternal paradise, and the consequences of breaking those laws. This book also tells us his name, his attributes, deeds He has done, and things He has said to us. This book makes it abundantly clear who this god is. This god is Jehovah, YHWH, Holy, Wonderful, Christ, Holy Ghost. This god is The Lord (2, 3, 4).

But how can we be absolutely sure that this book does indeed accurately tell us who He is, what he expects of us, and what happens to us depending on how we conduct ourselves? Part of the answer to this question also lies in the answer to a question that will be asked in the next paragraph.

The Lord demands perfection. No less. "Whosoever shall keep the WHOLE law, and yet offend in ONE point, he is guilty of ALL" (James 2:10). He makes it very clear: It doesn't matter if we led a life of crime that left a trail of dead in its wake, or if we told a little white lie to get out of a day of work; if we sin at all, even once, even something as seemingly small as taking a quarter off a friend's dresser without telling him, we have broken the whole law. We await everlasting torture, punishment, and banishment in hell--punishment worse than can possibly be envisioned by man, enduring FOREVER. Never ending. Never ceasing. For all time. So are we all doomed? No. By God's infinite grace, He has provided us the escape from this fate of doom: Jesus Christ (5, 6, 7).

Christ, true God, begotten from the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, came into the world to do two things: to fulfil the law of God perfectly in our stead, and to suffer the very pains of hell itself and die, also in our stead. Because God is gracious, He did not desire that we be doomed, but because of His perfect justice, He couldn't simply write off our very real sins. As the solution, He sent His Son into the world to take our place under the law, both in keeping it for us and suffering the punishment that we deserve. By imparting our sins onto Christ, and, likewise, Christ's perfection onto us, His perfect justice was fulfilled, as was his perfect love and grace. Such a plan for salvation no man could devise. This is also part of the answer to the question asked in the previous paragraph. No human mind could devise a triune god, which is not three gods, but one God in three persons. Also, no man could devise the Father in the Godhead sending his eternally-begotten Son to lead a perfect life and die in our place in order to give us access to eternal paradise. This is all utterly beyond the comprehension, let alone the creativity, of mankind.

However, the fact that a human mind could not conceive of the ideas of a triune god and sacrificing a son begotten before time even existed is merely appeasing human logic, and nothing more. The most important and sure way we know it to be true is that true believers believe it. Backwards and redundant as this may seem, it is truly a miracle. A book which in and of itself makes no sense when compared to modern scientific "wisdom", and states many miraculous and seemingly impossible feats and situations and events, has the power through the working of the Holy Ghost to cause us to believe every word of it, crave more and more of it, put it into practice in all aspects of our lives, and tell others of it. Yes, turning water into wine was a miracle; walking on water was a miracle; the Lord appearing to Moses as a burning bush was a miracle; but so also is the fact that we have eternal life through this Word, and that it works the very faith in us that brings about our sure salvation. This, dear readers, is also a true miracle.

We only have God to thank for all this. He created us, sustains us, and gives us salvation. In the next article, the author will discuss how this salvation is obtained and, as is sadly the case most of the time, rejected. Thank you for your consideration. (I will provide references with Bible verses as time permits)

References:

1. Romans 2:15: "[The Gentiles] show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another."

2. 2 Peter 1:21: "Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."

3. 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture is given by inspiration [from the Greek, in-breathing] of God."

4. 1 Corinthians 2:13: "We speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth."

5. Genesis 3:15: "And I will put enmity between thee [Satan] and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heal."

6. 1 John 4:9: "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only-begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him."

7. John 3:16: "God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."