The Beautiful Belief

God. 

That was the beginning, or prime reality as some call it. He is the beginning point from which the universe was spoken into existence. 

Personal, infinite, transcendent, omniscient, sovereign, good, holy, loving, self-reflective and self-transcendent, He needed no other. He exists in a perfect relationship, coequal and coeternal, of a Triune of persons: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

Universe. 

There was nothing apart from God,  but He created all ex nihilo by speaking it into existence. It was not created out of Him but instead out of nothing, a demonstration of the extent of His power. 

He could have controlled us, yet the universe is one of cause and effect, where human interaction does change the course of the Universe and can make change, not simply preprogrammed. In sum, it’s an open system, in which our actions have consequences. As such, this external reality is one of dual natures, both spiritual and physical. 

Humans. 

God created Adam and Eve and put them in the garden of Eden. They were made in His image, yet fell short and sinned against Him by disobeying the one thing He asked them to not do. 

This impacted the rest of humanity as we are now born and fallen. The image of God in them is marred, leading to the disharmony in the world, and dysfunction.

History. 

History flowed out of creation, with an overarching meta narrative: the world was created, Adam and Eve fell, yet redemption comes through Christ and eventually, God will be glorified forever in a new heaven and a new earth. 

 Time continues on, unable to be reversed, linear and unable to repeat itself. 

God is the one thing that remains constant, as he interacts and intervenes in history.

A choice. 

There is still hope. God offers every person a choice: to follow Him or to not. It’s up to them. He is the only agent in the redemption process that can truly change someone. Without Him, we would be left in this mess. 

Revelation. 

Humans can know God and this choice is revealed to us through both the universe we live in, as nature and man’s spiritual awareness point back to the God who formed him, and supernatural instances where God intervenes. There is both general revelation and Special Revelation, reflecting the dualism of the world we live in. God wants to know each human and for them to follow Him, which is why He reveals Himself in both facets of life- the supernatural and the natural, the mundane and the paranormal. 

Death. 

This choice that each person makes, to either follow Him or reject Him, influences the eternal trajectory of our lives. Either way, our souls live on after our physical life. A gateway is opened at death, giving hope to the Christian and terror to the disbeliever: eternal life with God for those who believed, or eternal separation for those who do not. 

In short,  two destinies exist: heaven, or hell. And everyone will enter one of these one day. 

Change. 

While our future is dependent on the choice we make to follow or turn away from God, salvation does not pend on our actions. However, change happens when God intervenes. 

There is a clear standard for morality : God’s character. He is perfect and true, and the goal of Christian living is to become more like Him. God communicates what is right and wrong through His word. By looking to Jesus, the complete and perfect man, we can determine what is right and wrong; as well as by observing the Scriptures. 

Jesus died so that we might be free and enjoy the redemption that God offers. He gave us that choice, and is now seated at the right hand of God. 

Thus, we can know what to do because simple reliance on the moral sense God gave us as human beings is easily skewed, because we are fallen. He provides a way to a better life, while still offering forgiveness along the way as we fall back into our sin nature. 

Action. 

God calls us to a response. 

Because of his sacrifice on the cross, we should worship Him. He is perfection, the ultimate thing we all desire, that nothing else in this world comes close to. There is no other like Him.

So, we worship and adore Him, and search to place Him at the center of our lives, in the place that was intended when He created us. 

Ultimately, a Christian will be with Him forever, which is the greatest thing: the presence of God in their lives forevermore. 

The end.