READ, LINGER, PROCESS…
We are not a God-shaped species as some would have us believe. We are a soul-image species (as in God created man in His own image). I believe our soul-image becomes a higher image when we are born again. It is at this new birth, spiritual, that God reinstates our spiritual heritage and honor as heirs of God in Christ. This new birth, through faith in Christ’s sacrifice, restores our original eternal destiny. It gives us an elevated view of God and our Father through a transparent window – a view of a transcendent sun painted on the canvas of time, centered in the cross of redemption.
The cross is the restoration of ultimate meaning. The cross is the manifestation of love and forgiveness. The cross is the spiritual light of eternity, centered in time for all to see from darkness (2 Timothy 19:10).
As I think about cause and effect, I realize I am saying that whatever begins to exist has a cause. Everything that has a beginning has a cause. If one says that everything that exists has a cause, then are they saying God had a beginning? Yes. And that is incorrect.
Because God is eternal – no beginning, no end, I must correctly state that everything that begins to exist has a cause, which is mortality. We sometimes fail to think in simple terms. Cause and effect is mortality – a beginning and an ending. Immortality has no beginning and no ending. If we say everlasting life, we are saying we have a beginning but no ending, ever. This is what God does for every believer: He gives us his eternal life, which has no beginning, no ending. So we believers have no ending. Death is only physical. We will live on in spirit forever. Reference Job 37:14.
I want to take the argument one step further. Plato and Aristotle assumed and proclaimed that the universe was eternal and therefore had no cause. Atheists have held this position for several hundred years. Period. In other words, the universe needs no casual explanation. Then why do we demand one for God?
May I just say that truth is not a physical thing. So, what is truth? Though we are untruthful, we understand truth. Truth is the standard by which we know untruth. Having said that, truth is a person – Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is deity and humanity in one hypostatic union forever. Christ is the unique person in existence, time, and eternity. He is The Ultimate Celebrity. If you indulge celebrity worship, change-up the target of your adoration to Him and Him alone; adult pretenders (a.k.a. actors) are just that – they’re pretenders who pretend for a living. Their opinions have no bearing on anything, or at least they shouldn’t. Eyes on Christ, people. Eyes on Christ.
Truth is an absolute – a manifestation of eternal deity. Christ is truth, truth is Christ. Deity is truth, truth is deity.
All quotes are by C. S. Craig unless otherwise indicated.