Created for a Purpose
December 13th, 2012
Colossians 1:16-22 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: (17) And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. (18) And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. (19) For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; (20) And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. (21) And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled (22) In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
Millions of dollars are spent every year to unlock the secrets of life and the universe. People will buy books and watch documentaries on the secrets to eternal youth, the keys to understanding time, and the hidden truths to happiness. We are surrounded everyday with so many questions. People all around us are looking for so many answers. We have theories. We have philosophies. We have many opinions. Yet, we often still lack real answers. As a result, so many lives go on pointless and frustrated. They live without hope.
Life can only be unlocked by answering the 3 great questions about life.
- Who am I?
- Where did I come from?
- Why am I here?
People everyday turn to so many sources for the answer to these 3 questions. Again, they gain a lot of theories and limited opinions, but most people searching realize they still don’t have the answers. Some people even settle for the half-truths and theories they already found. They convince themselves that they can never really know the answers. So, they settle for another person’s guesses.
Until a truthful answer is reached to these questions, nothing else we learn in life will matter or even make sense. We can dance around the proverbial bush all we want. We can distract ourselves with all kinds of alternate realities or escape fantasies, but we will still be faced with these three unanswered questions that will plague our life.
Life is about purpose. The answer to our questions stirs the topic of having purpose in life. It has been often said, “he who aims at nothing will hit it every time.” On several occasions I have played LazerTag with the teens of the church. We have two kinds of units we use. As we begin to hand out the equipment, the first decision is who gets to use our rifles. We have two rifles that have automatic shooting much like a machine gun, and they also come mounted with a rocket launcher. Everybody knows that in certain circumstances the rifles can cause a great amount of damage. We also have several pistols. Though smaller, the pistols allow for easier maneuvers and quicker movements. Regardless of which unit is chosen, the key to victory and ability is learning how to aim. To swing the pistol or the rifle through the air and pull the trigger will simply leave you out of ammo and vulnerable to attacks.
To understand our purpose or to answer these 3 questions, you must go back to the beginning. An understanding of our own lives will come from an understanding of the beginning of life. Many theories exist about the beginning. Some teach that our great, great, great grandfather was a rock. They try to tell us that the rock turned into life which in turn became me. Was your great, great, great grandfather a boulder? We need to take a look at the creation account given to us in Genesis. The beginning of the Bible is the beginning of faith and purpose.
The creation account is our foundation. If we tear apart what God says happened in the beginning, then we will lose the answers that only God can give about life and purpose today. The Psalmist said in Psalm 11:3, “if the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” We can answer these important questions when we will believe God’s Word as truth starting from the very beginning of the Bible.
In the next several chapters we will study and see 4 integrated pieces to the beginning.
