What Makes Us Human? ...

"Where is God my Maker? ... Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth?  (cf. Job 35:10-11). 

"Do you think we are mere animals? Do you think we are stupid?" (Job 18:3, NLT).

If you were the ultimate biologist, you could figure out how to make a robot come to life and find the secret to life itself that is common to all life forms.  But one trait of life is information storage in DNA and that is quite astounding with 23,000 genes and 3.1 billion rings in a helix ladder.  Every cell in your body has more information stored in it than all 30 volumes of an encyclopedia.  The possibility of making a human being a la Frankenstein is purely prima facie implausible.   What's more, mankind has not even been able to define life or duplicate it. All such attempts have failed to come off even if rigged in favor of it, in any life creation experiment; they have tried in vain even cheating by interfering or changing the so-called primordial soup.   

Note that if we did manipulate a primordial soup to form basic life forms, it would only prove that it takes the magic ingredient of intelligence. This begs the question, where did this soup come from?   We need an Ultimate Mind for that and to create the manifold lifeforms.  The divine order is Thinker, thought, thing.  Intelligence comes from a mind, not random, pure energy.  Signs of intelligence are signs of intellect. 

It is said that there is something about the way God is that we are!  We are in the image of God or imago Dei for a reason.  Yes, what is human nature and some worldviews deny there is one!  But why do we seem to act like there is one and there needs to be more proof?  We are not robots, automatons, puppets, or playthings of God but are free agents with a will of our own.  We are not animals who act by instinct, instead, we are rational, intuitive, artistic, poetic, musical, humorous, creative, moral, spiritual, and communicative. God gave only us the gift of language to facilitate a relationship with Him. Yes, all of the above traits show we are in the image of God and not apes.  Would you trust the convictions of a monkey?  We are capable of a complete worldview: convictions, beliefs, and ideas all about reality.  These things answer the deep and big questions of life that we uniquely wonder about: where did we come from, why are we here, where are we headed, is there a God? 

Plato said that if he wanted to live in reality, he would need to know what God is like.  We can know God and have a relationship with Him because He also is a person and wants to get personal with us.  A force or principle cannot love you.  You use things but relate to people!   God wants to relate to us personally and let us get to know Him because He loves us.  Note that Obi-Wan Kenobi didn't tell Luke Skywalker that the force loved him!  We all as humans need companionship, fulfillment, dignity, purpose, meaning, and respect and this we get in knowing God and we deserve it just because we are human.  It is because we are in the image of God that we have human rights; they are conferred by God but secured by the state.  

Christians are more human than infidels because they know God and are doing His will and finding purpose and meaning in serving Him.  Infidels generally live for themselves and not for some higher cause or power.  Religion is just trying to please God or earn salvation by good deeds, hoping they will outweigh the bad ones.  Christians can worship God because they are alive spiritually and the infidel is dead spiritually.  This is a whole new perspective and outlook on life from God's view.  We are made to worship and if we don't worship God, we will worship someone or something else.  It is not human as meant to be to worship power, fame, success, money, education, achievement, or celebrities.  These all are idol worship and are sinful and contrary to what we are designed for. Other things we are designed for are work and fellowship or friendship.  We are made for each other. It is said that those who have learned to serve others are the happiest people.  

Jesus was human as well as God and is the perfect Exemplar of what we ought to be and He led the sinless life that we all fall short of achieving.  To be human also means to sin because we are born in Adam but we have the chance to be redeemed from this state and be transformed into new creatures who can overcome sin and not be controlled by it. We can become dead to sin!  But this redemption and renewal is predicated on committing one's life to Christ as Lord and Savior.  We must first repent as the prerequisite and believe that Jesus is the living God who died for our sins and rose again to prove His deity.  We must then give Him the ownership of our lives and the helm of our soul to obey and follow Him wherever He leads us.  We must do all this by translating our creeds into deeds and proving, authenticating, and validating our faith and repentance by fruit or good deeds that we will be known and judged by. 

Now, what does this image mean to us? Man is like God and God formed us in His image, we didn't form God in ours! There is a bona fide similarity because God is a person, we are too, and able to communicate with each other; we have a mind to know God, a heart to love Him, and a will to obey Him--animals don't but are driven by instinct. Man is capable of rebelling against God and going his own way, and he does! The obvious truth is that if we are persons, God has to be greater than a person or a person Himself to a greater degree to create us! Except for our sin and limited nature, whatever we are as persons, you can say about God.

How are we like God then? We are rational, emotional, communicative, moral beings, that have dignity, purpose, and meaning in life. We can relate to God as a person because of this--God is just perfect, infinite, immutable, almighty, invisible, omniscient, holy, etc., and God is Spirit, while we have bodies! Originally Adam and Eve had no sin and were innocent, not knowing good and evil, nor what that means, but now they are guilty before God as sinners in need of redemption, and this image is marred and will be restored someday in glory. Being like God, we are creative and have an imagination that can be communicated and enjoyed.

How do we know we are not animals, that we're unique? Have you ever observed an animal of any species building a chapel, or communicating with God in prayer? Do animals have a conscience, and feel guilty when they've disobeyed or sinned? Animals have a will of their own, for sure, but not to disobey or obey God--animals are oblivious to God's presence and dimension. Only man can reflect on the past, present, and future, making plans, etc., and to criticize himself or see himself through other people's eyes objectively. Man alone is rational (you can reason with him, and he can reason and learn from it), and can communicate all thoughts and feelings, in written, verbal, and body language.

Man alone judges and criticizes and this is because he has a conscience that knows right and wrong by nature; you don't call something crooked if you don't have some idea of what straight is. Man has discernment, the ability to distinguish spirits, and insight; however, animals have instinct--they're basically creatures in heat, seeking food and shelter, only to perpetuate their kind. Do animals appreciate art and design, though they may be beautiful, none appreciate it, except in the opposite sex for the mating ritual?

Furthermore, do you realize that man alone can enjoy something vicariously? Man can accumulate and increase a body of knowledge and pass it on to succeeding generations and build civilizations and cultures. Animals stay at the same level of learning (by instinct) their full lives and never increase in knowledge generation after generation. Animals can mate for life, but they do not fall in and out of love, it's a basic instinct, hormones, and testosterone in action, not the soul or spirit. Animals, such as dogs and cats can show similar qualities of love and affection but have no desire on the abstract level with God (or ideas, learning, wisdom, causes, etc.), and that dimension of relationship.

Now, God says in Genesis 1 that He breathed into Adam the breath of life and he became a living being! This is the distinction: God has only given man the concept of eternity and the hope of eternal life in his heart, he alone ponders the afterlife and looks for answers to life's spiritual dilemmas. Aren't you glad that you aren't some grand fluke of nature or cosmic accident, but have a reason for being and purpose in life? And so it's not as simple as the proverb: To err is human, to forgive divine! In sum, some people have a psychological need to conceive of themselves as animals--they desire to act like them! Soli Deo Gloria!

 Soli Deo Gloria! 

Man, The Religious Creature

"I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:32, HCSB).
"... God have mercy on me, the sinner!"  (Luke 18:13, NASB--the sinner's prayer). 
"...But I am not ashamed, because I know the One I have believed in ..." (2 Tim. 1:12, HCSB).
"... My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection..." (Phil. 3:10, HCSB).
"If only I knew how to find Him..." (Job 23:2, HCSB). 
"Yes, You are a God who hides Himself..." (Isa. 45:15, HCSB).

Kids are taught in the schools they are animals, and is it any wonder they act like them?  But we are not animals!  Have you ever observed an ape building a chapel?  Man is incurably religious in his core being and nature and if he doesn't worship God, he'll worship something in its place: himself, fame, fortune, power, celebrities, heroes, an engrossing hobby, a sport or sports team, you name it!  Mankind is hard-wired for worship and religion--it's his nature!  Religion dates back to the Garden of Eden when Adam and Even made themselves aprons of fig leaves--Operation Fig Leaf!  Mankind has been termed Homo religiosus or the religious being.  He's also been called Homo divinus, or the divine being.  It is really obvious that man has a spiritual dimension and inclination, which in itself is a sort of proof of God's existence, as when one feels the tug of a kite, knowing it's there.  We feel pulled toward God as if gravitating in His direction.  Man has always been on the quest to find Him but God hides Himself (cf. Isa. 45:15) only to be found by the diligent (cf. Heb. 11:6) and not triflers. He will authenticate Himself if searched for!

The answer though is that we cannot find Him unless He reveals Himself and He has in Christ. But a poll was once taken in the UK and they found out that a certain percentage of people actually believe in "the Force," of Star Wars fame, though it's fictional!  People grasp at each passing straw hoping for hope and light at the end of the tunnel.  And George Lucas, the producer of the Star Wars saga, said that he's come to the conclusion that all religions are right!  This is impossible due to the inherent contradictions of beliefs, but it is logically possible they all could be wrong!

As Pascal said, "There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which only God can fill through His Son, Jesus Christ." Augustine said that our hearts are restless until they find their rest in God.  We are empty, unfulfilled beings without God in the picture.  We need God to find meaning, purpose, and fulfillment in our life.  Without God, life makes no sense--it's a useless passion.   The ontological proof of God is that He is worshiped in some manner in every culture around the globe.  All culture, it's been claimed, is shaped by religion.  The stability of society depends upon religion as the guiding light and principle of moral principle.  In fact, George Bernard Shaw, quoted by William Barclay, said that "no nation has survived the loss of its gods."

As a matter of fact, we are all inclined to think we can gain the approbation of God in many ways:  religion, morality, good deeds, philosophy, or ritual!  We aren't called to become do-gooders or goody-goodies or even Goody-Two-shoes!  Our good deeds or do-goodery amount to naught in God's eyes, even as filthy rage according to Isa. 64:6!  We must do all to the glory of God (cf. Col. 3:17, 23) and in the Spirit of God, not by might nor by power (cf. Zech. 4:6).  Religiosity accounts for zilch in God's economy and the way up is down, it's a matter of how low we can go, not how high we can attain on our own merit.  We all like to compare ourselves with others (cf. 2 Cor. 10:12) and think we are more "religious," righteous, or holy (cf. Isa. 65:5) than others, but God doesn't grade on a curve and we are all in the same boat--God has leveled the playing field.  We are all justly condemned apart from grace and fall short of God's glorious ideal and standard of holiness (cf. Rom. 3:23).

But God has not called us to a to-do list; He's called us to a to-know list instead. The bottom line is that man is incurably addicted to doing something for his salvation and wants to give himself some credit.  We don't need a to-do list and Christianity is not a catalog of rules or list of dos and don'ts, but it's a list of to-knows!  We need to know God, know we are saved, know the will of God, know Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, know the Word, know the gospel, know our enemy, know our calling, know Christian ethics, know sound doctrine, and to know the Lord first-hand not second-hand, and even to know ourselves for who we are, etc. But don't forget, in knowing, we must apply what we know!  Christianity is a religion of knowledge and we know that we know--we don't conjecture or surmise, but know by the testimony of the Word itself with certitude.  There are basically three ways of knowing something:  experience (the empirical), revelation, and rational thought processes and reasoning faculties--we have the revealed Word of God.

Christianity is a revealed religion, not one of religious imagination or concoction.  It's the only faith that is based on facts, history, and evidence and we can know for sure of what we are talking about or believing.  Many religions are referred to as "faiths," but only Christianity stresses this as the instrumental means of salvation--faith is stressed as the goal and primary virtue!  But note that it's the object of the faith that saves, not faith per se--we don't have faith in faith, but faith in Jesus!  Jesus is the only Savior!  We don't just acquiesce or agree to a creed or recitations, we know a person!  Christianity isn't selling some good work or philosophy of life, but freely offering the gift of salvation to all!  But note that Christianity has nothing to say to those who don't realize they are lost and in sin.  The prerequisite is being lost before being found!

But fortunately, Christ doesn't call us to religion!  The Bible even frowns upon the term itself and prefers to call our religion a "faith" or the Way.  We know the way to eternal life!  What we are called to specifically is a life of holiness, righteousness, good works, and fellowship with God.  We are called to walk in the light and be lights.  To be the salt and light of the world at large.  Our righteousness is as filthy rags and all our good deeds don't benefit God--He just turns everything to His glory, even making the wrath of men to praise Him (cf. Psa. 76:10).  Our righteousness, then, is God's gift to us--not our gift to God!  We have nothing to boast of, and nothing that we didn't receive (cf. 1 Cor. 4:7).

Man naturally wants to do something for his salvation and must receive it by grace as the free gift of God, unearned, and unmerited.  Salvation is much more than the offer of forgiveness for our past, but the power to live in the present, and hope for the future.  Only Christianity promises and delivers on that promise from the power of sin and also the freedom from its bondage.  We cannot pay it back nor do we deserve it--or it wouldn't be grace.  God owes no one salvation and didn't have to save anyone (or it would be justice), but freely chose to save those whom He foreknew according to His favor and will or purposes (cf. Eph. 1:5). As a result, we are all called to a life of walking with Christ in fellowship and getting to know Him personally and spreading this message--to know Him and make Him known as the marching orders.

Salvation is open to all and offered freely to all (cf. Titus 2:11) who realize their sinfulness and deem themselves unqualified and sinners by nature, birth, and choice, i.e., born in sin and a slave to it.  In fact, the only qualification is to recognize one's not being qualified!  We all need grace and no one is any more righteous than another--we cannot claim holier than thou type (cf. Isa. 65:5) attitudes.  The fact is, that we are never good enough to be saved and cannot do any so-called presalvation work to qualify--but we are bad enough to need salvation.  God has judged all under sin, that the gift of grace may be offered to all.  God doesn't grade on a curve and no one gets in automatically, we all go through the turnstile of salvation one at a time via the same formula:  by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and God alone getting the glory, while the Scriptures alone are the rule of faith and authority.

Christianity is more than a religion or philosophy--it's a more abundant way of life with Christ, knowing Him personally and putting this faith into action.  It was originally called the Way!  The phenomenon of Christianity is "changed lives" that cannot be attributed to anything but the work of God's transforming power.  And subsequently to translate creeds into deeds.  It would be an insult to tell a Christian that he has "found religion," when he has found the Lord! In principle, religion is based on human achievement, not a divine accomplishment; what we do, not what God has done!  Religion is man reaching out to God, not God reaching out to man. Religion is basically a do-it-yourself proposition and a lift-yourself-up-by-your-own-bootstraps undertaking.  Viva la difference!  

Finally, there is no caste system, no elite, neither are there any spiritual classes to be conscious of (there's no class warfare!)--we are all saints and children of the King and members of the royal family of God as brethren of Christ. We're all one in Christ (cf. Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11).  We are all family in Christ!  (A word to the wise:  pure religion, as described in James 1:27, won't save; only Christ saves through faith by the grace of God.)   Soli Deo Gloria!