Permanence and Significance

    The naturalist believes the human race exists as a fairly recent development of the evolutionary process he maintains to be the source of all things.  Moreover, his model projects that humanity will cease to exist when our sun incinerates our being and our consciousness in a supernova (if not before, in some lesser cataclysm).  Thus, the expectation of the naturalist projects annihilation as the ultimate end of the human race.  The natural model predicts we will fade from our brief moment in the universe with little trace that we ever existed.  The implication for humanity: utter meaninglessness and insignificance.

   The supernaturalist, particularly, the Bible-believing Christian, views the universe and humanity from a completely different perspective.  He believes the human race exists as a special creation of God, made in His image, and thus eternal in being and existence.  He maintains that all consciousness endures forever, both in the individual and collective sense.  Joy or sorrow await all in a forever of awareness, our eternal lot having been determined by our response (or lack thereof) to God during our earthly lifetime.  This being the case, everything matters concerning such a race of beings for whom each moment, condition, and circumstance bears vital significance and meaning.

    We presently live in a generation wherein a growing population holds to the former perspective of forlorn fatalism.  This provides great opportunity for born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ to “shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15).  Deep within the soul of the most ardent naturalist yearns a cosmic longing for permanence and significance.  We all want to be, and we want to be forever.  And, we will.  As Solomon declared, "I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before Him” (Ecclesiastes 3:14).  The human race exists as the primary expression of “whatsoever God doeth.”  We will indeed be, and we will be forever.  We also matter, another sensibility that pervades human consciousness and sensibility.  The Gospel of Christ proclaims that our Creator values us to the degree He became as one of us, experiencing life and death for the purpose of redeeming us from our sins. The person and work of the Lord Jesus thus assigns significance, eternal significance to our life and and being.  “Ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ” (I Peter 1:18-19).

    Let us boldly proclaim this truth for which every person longs, and let us do so with both promise and warning.  The matter involves not our existence, but rather the nature and condition of the eternity we will experience.  Everything matters because everything is more than matter.  This is our message of joyful hope and solemn seriousness in Christ.  May our Lord enable our faithful communication of permanence and significance…

“Lead me in the way everlasting.”

(Psalm 139:24)

Weekly Memory Verse

   Ho, everyone that thirtieth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money, come ye, buy and eat, yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

(Isaiah 55:1)