Creation of Humanity

Why did God create humans? If He knew many of us were not going to follow Him, wasn’t he just condemning us to hell?

Firstly I want to warn that in looking into this I have to address issues of choice to follow God as necessary for ‘salvation’, and some of it may come across as preaching. This is not what I am trying to do at all, it’s not intended to convince you of the need to do this or that, but simply to explain how it can work in a Christian context.

I guess to start with the best thing is to consider how it all fits together. The idea is that God knows everything, because He is God. And so when he created humans, he knew that some of us were going to rebel against him and thus suffer ‘eternal separation from God’, or hell. It’s important to note that this is not saying that he predestined us to this fate, but that he knew what we would choose through our own free choice in our lives.

I think the best way I can see this is that it is giving people an opportunity out of love. I’ll draw an analogy here with parents, based on a generalisation that they are loving and caring (I know there are exceptions). Parents have children with the full knowledge that their child could grow up and have a terrible life of some sort – through illness and suffering, crime and hatred, depression, whatever it may be. Everyone on earth suffers in some way, and the reality is that life is hard, and so our parents are ‘condemning’ us to the suffering of this world, as well as the good. But parents still have kids despite this hardship. However the reason parents usually have kids is out of love – to give them opportunities, hope, and the chance of a good life, as far as possible. Their kids won’t always take these opportunities, or may have them snatched away by something like illness, but their parents gave them this opportunity out of love for them.

What if this is why God created humanity? He knew full well that some of His children would suffer terrible lives, and worse, that some would suffer a terrible eternity through their own choosing. But in creating life, and creating humanity, God was providing them with an opportunity of an amazing nature. He gave much more than any parent on earth could hope to give. In a (non-religious) view of parenting, the best they can hope to achieve is a child that grows up generally happy and well off, living a decent life. But in taking this view of why God created humanity, people may suffer a hard life on earth, but if they choose to follow God they are then given the gift of an eternity with God, and all the blessings that come with that.

Yes, God knew that some of his children would choose not to take the opportunity to follow Him, but the reality is that they are condemning themselves. Just as it’s not a parent’s fault if their child chooses to go ‘astray’, nor is it God’s fault if his children do the same thing, and condemn themselves.

So I think it is possible to understand the way God can have created humans not to condemn them, but to love them. I’m not going to say that that’s likely to be the full story, there’s sure to be a lot more to it than that, and this also leads into many other topics. But I think a significant part of the story is that God wanted to create beings who could share with Him in His love and life, if they choose to follow Him. I don’t think it’s a case of God creating to condemn, as any condemnation we bring upon ourselves. John 3:17: “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” God is only filled with love for us.

Naturally, this means the ball is in our court as to whether or not we follow God, and I don’t intend to ague that issue. All I want to do is see how God is not an unloving God who created people to condemn them, but instead a God who loves his people and wants all of them to share in eternity.

Some Bible verses to check out on this topic: John 3:16-17; Romans 8:1-2; Genesis 1:26.

Salvation for the 'good'

Does a good, moral, ethical person, who happens to be atheist, go to hell? And do people who call themselves Christian but commit terrible crimes go to heaven? Why should a good person go to hell?

This is heavy! It’s also something that has huge repercussions for how people understand Christianity, and is thus a sensitive topic. But it needs to be looked at, because it really is an important issue.

The question of the ‘bad Christian’ going to heaven is slightly more straightforward. I would strongly question the actual faith of a ‘Christian’ who continually commits crimes, or willingly and knowingly sins against their God. Sure no-one is perfect, and naturally Christians will do things wrong, sometimes majorly. But I don’t think someone who acts repeatedly and intentionally against the values of Christianity is taking their faith at all seriously, if they have any at all. “If we claim to have fellowship with him [Jesus] yet walk in the darkness we lie and do not live by the truth” – 1 John 1:6.

There’s also another aspect to this – is it ok for a person to just ask for forgiveness and all their sins be forgotten? As I see it, there’s a big distinction between asking for forgiveness and actually meaning it. Sure, anyone can say a casual “oh sorry God”, but unless they really mean it, I doubt God’s going to be paying much attention. And again, if they really meant that they were sorry they wouldn’t go out and willingly do the same sort of things repeatedly. So the concept that “I can do anything as long as I ask God for forgiveness afterwards” is somewhat flawed, because it’s clear this person doesn’t actually mean what they say to God.

But as for atheists, on the surface it seems really straightforward – “whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16). BUT there’s more to it than this. This is in the context of preaching the word of God to the nations, so it concerns only those who know of the Biblical message, however that does leave us with all the atheists who live ‘good’ lives.

There is a major concept I think is important here – asking what actually constitutes ‘good’. In thinking about this I realised that all our values of what things actually make up living a supposedly good life are shaped by religious and societal values. Western countries are generally based on mainly Christian morals (right or wrong), rather than on any universal morals. By contrast, in some societies it is ok to exact revenge on others, to kill certain people, or even to steal (eg. ancient Sparta). So in essence, there isn’t any actual reality of ‘good’ other than what this society values as good. So that means that a ‘good’ person is really just conforming to the values of society, whether or not these values may be the same as Biblical values. This is important for society, but not something that makes somebody ‘worthy’ of heaven.

Also, the nature of salvation is something huge, and it comes as an undeserved gift from God. Just like I couldn’t earn the right to rule the world, nor can I earn God’s salvation by being ‘good’ by whatever standards, as it’s quite simply beyond our reach as humans. While Christianity involves trying to live a ‘good’ life, I don’t think this has as much to do with earning salvation as being willing to serve your God. I don’t give my friends my time and effort to earn their friendship; I do it because I care about them. Same with God, it’s not about me earning salvation, but about being willing to do things for God out of love. This is the whole idea of salvation by faith, not by works. One of the best-known Bible verses, John 3:16, says that whoever believes in Jesus shall have eternal life. Not that whoever does good will have eternal life.

I don’t know that I like my thoughts here any more than anyone else will. Naturally I want everyone to experience an eternity in heaven. But I don’t think our standards as to what should ‘earn’ us a place in heaven – living a ‘good’ life – are really as rigid as we might think. After all, God makes it clear that because we have all failed, none of us actually deserves anything from God (See Rom 3:23-24). So while at first it can seem harsh that ‘good’ people can be condemned, I have to question what it is that makes them ‘good’, and that if God is real, why would they not do everything possible to search out the truth about God, whatever this may be?

Some Bible verses to check out on this topic: Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 3:9-18, 23-24; Mark 16:15-16; Matthew 7:17-23.

Feeling God

If God is here in this world, and here in my life, then why can’t I feel Him?

This is something I struggle with at times. Sure everyone goes through ‘dry times’, but why do these times occur, and why can’t some people who are exploring religion feel God when they search for Him?

The first part of this addresses Christians who can’t feel God. Sometimes an answer is easy for me. I can’t feel God because I’m doing something in my life that I shouldn’t be. When I’m caught up in sin of some sort, whatever it might be, that’s at least part of why I can’t feel God, because I’m turning away from Him. But sometimes I seem to be doing things mostly right, but am feeling very distant from God.

Feeling God when we’re doing well is something I think we’ve come to expect from religion. That as long as we’re doing what we’re meant to do as Christians, then God should be here with us all the time. I think a major part of the problem here is that we often expect that God should be here with us as long as we’re not doing anything wrong. But just because we’re not doing something wrong doesn’t mean we’re doing everything the way we should be. And if we’re living a really ‘easy’ Christian life and just expecting the good bits of Christianity, God has every right to let us know that it’s not just about the ‘good life’, but that it’s about so much more. Not being able to feel God could be a good suggestion that we need to pay more attention to what He wants of us. We all need to do that regardless!

And I think God sometimes tests us even if we are doing things God’s way. It seems harsh and cruel, but I don’t really think it is. Although not feeling God at times is one of the hardest parts of being a Christian, at the same time it builds us up and makes us stronger. Sometimes God leads us into the ‘desert place’ for a purpose, even if we don’t always know what it is. That’s certainly true for me, in reflection. Hanging on to the ‘memory’ of God in the ‘alone’ times has helped me to trust and engage with God so much more in the long term. It doesn’t make the ‘dry times’ easier, but it means that I can understand that just because I don’t feel God doesn’t mean He’s not there. And often God’s presence comes subtly, not in the big signs or booming voice we might expect or want.

Lots of the Psalms show people crying out to God, searching for His presence. It’s encouraging to see how this isn’t something unusual, but a part of every Christian’s journey. And even in crying out in desperation, they still continue to praise God, recognising that even when they can’t feel Him, He’s still worthy of their praise.

The other major part of this question is about people who are just exploring faith, who try praying or searching for God but just can’t feel Him. This is probably even harder to comprehend.

Here I think it comes down to the willingness of the person involved to actually search for God. If anybody could just pray “Hey God, if you’re there, answer me now” and it happened, then it wouldn’t really be faith. It comes back to the idea of actively and vigorously searching for God. A brief prayer ‘just in case’ isn’t really searching for God or wanting to follow Him, and understandably it’s not going to result in much!

And yet there are some who search for years, and still haven’t felt God. Here I have to say that I honestly believe that if people truly search, then they will find God and God will show Himself to them in time. If you lose something in the house that’s really important, you won’t just look for it for a little while and give up, not even after a long while. If God could be real then that’s pretty important, and so warrants more than a short search. If God’s real, He’s worth searching all your life for, and not giving up on. So just because someone hasn’t felt God after searching for a while doesn’t mean that He’s not there, or that they should give up.

I don’t like not feeling God any more than anyone else, and it’s a hard thing to come to terms with and can be a major cause for doubt, but in the end I do believe God remains with us always, and I have to trust that even when I can’t feel Him, He’s still there. That’s the very nature of faith.

Some Bible verses to check out on this topic: Psalm 77; Job (all); Matthew 7:7-8; James 4:8.

'Follow up' evangelism

What is the point in ‘follow up' after someone has become a Christian? Sure, letting people know about Christianity is one thing, but why do Christian groups work hard to retain people, bringing them into the church? Doesn't this suggest their faith is thanks to our own efforts, and not God?

Often in Christian groups I hear people saying "once they've become a Christian that's great, but it's really important to follow up, or else they'll fall away and stop believing". This is a really hard concept to come to terms with, as it suggests that person's faith depends on us following up. That is, taking their details, calling them, inviting them to a youth group and so on. Shouldn't 'salvation' be a case of us presenting them with the Christian message and them making the choice to follow God with the help of the Holy Spirit, and not dependent on our efforts to 'convince' someone by chasing them and 'integrating' them into the church?

I have two thoughts to give here. The first is that where evangelism incorporating follow up is used 'successfully', Christians accept that it is by the work of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God who works within us. So God knew that the person would need encouragement and support in their faith, and thus sent a Christian along to follow up and give this support they needed.

Secondly, if this follow up weren't to occur, the idea is that God would send someone else down the track to do so in a different way, and so a person doesn't fail to know God just because one Christian failed to do what God wanted.

So if you were to have some outreach event, and 'Joe' accepted God and became a Christian, if another Christian then follows up and makes sure he's doing ok, and encourages him to come to church and so on, it is (generally) by the Holy Spirit's guidance. And if the person still ends up drifting away or turning away from Christianity, it's because Joe has decided other things matter more to him than God. A Christian 'intervening' at this point isn't going to change their ultimate belief in the end, only support or encourage them in their faith.

Also, if the same thing were to happen with Joe but no-one followed up and he drifted away, the idea is that later on, God will provide another opportunity, and another person, to meet that need in him.

The hardest thing for me in understanding this question is that it is so hypothetical. But I think I can say that 'follow up' is not strategic recruitment of followers, but a part of God's way of presenting His message to the world, and those who carry out the 'follow up' are simply doing God's will. Looking into this, I found that most of Paul's letters in the New Testament do just this – encouraging small communities of Christians after they had accepted the gospel (see for example 1 and 2 Thessalonians).

I'm not sure if this explains it fully, it's still something I'm thinking about and working through. But at least this looks into how ‘follow up’ is a part of God’s plan for encouraging people in their faith, and seeing how it is something God often calls us to do as part of presenting the message of Christianity rather than 'convincing' someone to be a Christian by integrating them or socialising them into the church. Ultimately it’s not about integrating anyone into a church or group, but about encouragement. And still, after this effort some will make the ultimate choice not to follow God, and that is their decision. The Christians who presented the message and 'followed up' gave them the opportunity and they chose not to accept it.

As with anything, 'follow up' can be misused, but that doesn't make it wrong as a concept. I'm sure we all know people who've been pestered incessantly, and that's not good. But as a concept in itself, Christians need support and encouragement just like anyone else, and so 'follow up' is a part of this process, with God calling us to make that commitment to another person to encourage them in their faith, trusting that whatever happens God will provide what they need to remain strong in faith, if they so choose.

Questions?

If you have any questions you think would be good to explore at a deeper level, or any really heavy topics that just don't seem to make sense, add them as a comment here and I'll see what I can do :-)