A worldview that is based on Darwinian evolution yields this
idea, "For we were born by mere chance, and hereafter we shall be as
though we had never been…" If that
is your understanding of how you came to be and what will be, you might come to
the conclusion the best thing to do is to enjoy life all you can, experience
all you can, get all you can for yourself because this is all there is. "Remember you are but dust, and to dust
you shall return" would be then the most hopeless thing to ever hear. If this is all there is, why bother? In Ecclesiastes, Solomon tells the truth,
everything under the sun is nothing more than vanity, a chasing after the wind. He knew that truth, he tried it all. If there is no ultimate judge of all, there
is no one to whom we must give an account, there is little basis for morals and
ethics and whatever basis we choose matters little in the end, it is arbitrary
and non-binding. We, however, have a
different understanding, we were made for incorruption, in the image of
God. Morality and ethics, however, are
not based only on the fear of judgment, they are also a loving response to the
love of God, our desire not just to obey Him but to please Him and represent
Him well in this life.
Jesus says that the Son of Man is Lord of Sabbath. What an offensive statement that must have
been to the Pharisees. First, the
grinding of the grain in the hands was considered work and Jesus didn't bother
to address that issue. Second, his
comparison with David is certainly surprising on many levels, begging the
question, does He think He is as important as David. Finally, to claim to be the Son of Man and
Lord of Sabbath raises all kinds of red flags about His sanity or His
arrogance. It is even more interesting
when you consider the temptation to produce bread from stones and Jesus'
refusal to satisfy His hunger on that occasion. Why did He allow the disciples
to do this on Sabbath? It was the
minimal amount of work they could do to satisfy their hunger, a human
need. When He heals the man on the
Sabbath, He provides far more justification for His actions, appealing to their
own case law that allows saving life and doing good on Sabbath.
Paul's prayers for the Colossians are for their spiritual
growth but that is presumed to have a bodily effect. He prays that they "may be filled with
the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding" but
not so that they may have some mystical experience that gives them a private
joy but so that they may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. We aren't dualists, a body and a spirit, we
are embodied spirits, what affects one affects the other and too often
Christians get caught up in private reverie of contemplation and forget this life. There is a way of life that makes us whole,
that way is to live according to the Spirit of God within us. We have been transferred to another kingdom,
the kingdom of His Son, and we should be like Him with respect to our attitudes
about things of earth and eternity.
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