There was a time when topics like God, salvation, sin, and Gospel were openly discussed and central to the culture. In most places these days, that is not the case. Tremendous pressure is exerted on us to avoid such topics. Internet discussions turn these topics into ideological war zones. It is widely believed that “science” has disproved God. When I say widely believed, I do not mean among scientists or people with a sound grasp of philosophy. I mean in popular discussions where historical perspective is lacking and superficial investigations are the norm.
Religious talk tends to push political buttons, on all sides. Our in-group may disapprove of religious talk. Having a conversation about God and Jesus might not be safe.
We know we could go to one of those churches we pass on the back roads and highways of our lives. But they’re all so different. Some of them may believe weird things or try to get us “healed” or “delivered from demons” or something. And we can’t just pop in out of curiosity because we know they will harangue us, call us, email us, and maybe even knock on our door to try and keep us coming.
Maybe we have a “religious” friend we could talk to. But we tried that a few times and discussions got political very quickly. And they kept inviting us to their church—the very thing we’d hoped to avoid.
Maybe we picked up a Bible and tried to read. This works for some people, but many people find it to be a confusing book offering little help to the uninitiated.
Maybe we tried learning about world religions and thinking to ourselves, I’ll pick one. There has to be one that makes sense and explains my life and these longings I find within me.
It’s just not easy in the twenty-first century to discover God. Times have changed and the topic is relatively taboo. But the longings do not disappear; they only go under the surface for periods of time. And when they resurface, we don’t know where to go.
For all that times have changed and social acceptance of religious belief has greatly diminished, other things have not changed. We are still deeply in the muck of the human condition—creatures yearning for permanence and true satisfaction of our desires while battling with present needs for survival and well-being. Disturbing news greets us daily and we could easily get disenchanted with life.
We find no earthly satisfaction, not one that lasts. Thrills come and go and we can’t find them again. Our deep anxieties seem to call for God-sized answers. I mean, we have tasted true joy—all of us have. When it went away we mourned for it like a lost friend. At least a few times in our life we’ve felt the heart-rending, perspective-altering kind of joy that must be out of this world because we can’t return to it. And we know a kind of holy dissatisfaction. With ourselves. With the world.
Ultimately, your reasons and mine for wanting to know about salvation are deep within us. Others might try to make us feel weak or inadequate for wanting the promise of Jesus. Marx famously compared religion to opium—a sort of spiritual drug for fragile, comfort-seeking people who refuse to accept that the struggle for survival is all there is. What if life has no meaning? What if we are irrelevant creatures born from random chance in a purposeless universe destined to dissolve into nothingness and chaos?
If that view of the universe is true, then placing hope in God and Jesus is like shooting up with heroin—a meaningless act in which we seek comfort.
Philosopher after philosopher has given the advice: be true to yourself. But being social creatures, we ignore this and care far too much what our peers think, what our family thinks. We avoid religious seeking so as not to face ridicule or uncomfortable questions.
But something inside you must be curious. Otherwise, why are you reading this? So, let’s seriously consider reasons why seeking answers about God and the meaning of life is not only worthwhile, but desperately needed.
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