We live in an
individualistic society. In many parts of the world today, and in every part
historically, a person was identified by their family, tribe and nation. There
was a great sense that the individual’s identity was bound up in the group. The
theory of our culture is that you can make your own identity, and it doesn’t
matter about your family, tribe or nation. That’s the theory anyway.
In reality though, these
things still matter. Most of us would feel a certain amount of pride if we
found out one of our ancestors did something heroic in war, but we would feel
ashamed if we found out that one of our ancestors was a coward or a traitor.
Why? Why do we want our nation to have been the good guys historically? Why are
many adopted children curious about their biological parents? Why has the BBC
series Who do you think you are? been so popular? The answer is because
“no man is an island”. We are not disconnected from our past. Origins matter,
and ultimate origins matter ultimately.
Human value
If we are, as atheist
chemist Peter Atkins says, “just slime on a planet belonging to one sun” then
it’s hard (i.e. impossible) to see how we could have any intrinsic
value. That leaves us with very little basis (i.e. no basis) for condemning as
wrong the taking of innocent human life. Only a psychopath lives as if that
were true.
It would mean humans would
only have extrinsic value, which means our value would lie in what we
are able to do for others. On such a view, the weak, sick, poor, uneducated and
old would have less value than the strong, healthy, rich, educated and youthful.
Only the most obnoxious people live as if that were true.
However, if we have been
created by God in His image then we have real value. We are precious, not
because of what we do but because of what we are, which means
that every human being is to be treated with dignity and respect.
Human purpose
Imagine you went to your
friend’s workshop and he showed you something he was working on to give you.
You had no idea what it’s for, so what would you do? You would ask him – the
creator would be able to tell you the purpose of the creation.
But now imagine you picked a
bit of wood up off the floor and asked what it was for. He would probably say,
“It’s not for anything. It’s just a bit of wood I didn’t need.”
The gift he was making for
you has a purpose. You can use it correctly or incorrectly. The bit of wood on
the floor doesn’t have a purpose. You can use it as a paperweight or as a
doorstop or anything you can imagine, and no one can say you are not using it
correctly – it has no objective purpose.
If we have not been created
by God, then we have no purpose. Sure, we can invent purposes for ourselves.
Someone might say, “My purpose is to eradicate cancer.” Another might say, “My
purpose is to eradicate humanity.” If we have no creator, then neither of those
aims is right or wrong. No one can say to the person who wants to wipe out the
human race, “You aren’t meant to do that.” We are meant to do anything.
However, if we have been
created by God then we have a purpose – to know, enjoy and glorify Him. We
don’t have to wonder through life trying to find something to do to fill the
years until our eternal annihilation. Every day we live and every thing we do
can have eternal significance.
There are three big
questions every thinking person asks: Where did I come from? Why am I here?
Where am I going? The answer to the first is the answer to the others. If I
came from nothing, then I’m here for nothing and going to nothing. But if I
came from God, then I’m here for God and I’m going to Him to give account for
the life I’ve lived.
