Not only is Jesus of Nazareth the only One who can pardon our sins, but He is the only One who can give purpose to life. The Bible says it was through the Son that God made the whole universe, and He has ordained that all creation shall ultimately belong to the Son.
One can really see that God has created everything for a purpose. There is order, system and design to the whole of creation. Man is the highest expression of God’s creation — the only part with intelligence. God created man with a free will, with a right of choice. He can say yes or no to God, and, for the most part, he has chosen to say no. Because of this tragedy, those who have said no have never discovered God’s purpose for their lives.
I have found through the years that people who do not know Jesus are like a ship without sails, drifting with the tide upon a rough sea. For example, H.G. Wells, a famous historian and philosopher, said, at the age of 61, “I have no peace. All life is at the end of the tether.”
Pascal, the French physicist and philosopher, wrote, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.”
Perhaps, in the quiet of your own heart, you are saying, “Yes, there is a vacuum; I am not satisfied with my life.”
There are great benefits to be derived from being where God wants you to be and doing what He wants you to do. Consider marriage, for example. Thirty-five years ago,* the American divorce rate was nine out of one thousand marriages. According to recent statistics, almost one out of every two marriages in the United States and 60% of second marriages now end in divorce.
But I have observed that where the husband and wife are Christians and have a family time where they read the Bible and pray together daily, the divorce rate is radically reduced. A relationship with Jesus Christ makes the difference. He brings real purpose to marriage. In view of the facts, who would dare take the gamble of marriage without Christ as Lord of the life of both husband and wife?
You may wonder, How can Christ make such a great difference? The answer is simple. If you are on the throne — or will — of your life, your ego and the ego of your spouse will war against each other. Friction is inevitable. But if Christ is on the throne of the lives of both husband and wife, He will not war against Himself, and there will be peace and harmony in the marriage.
The Bible says, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord” (Psalm 37:23, New King James Version). And “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28, King James Version). None of us will be truly fulfilled until we invite Christ to show us the very purpose for which He created us. No one else who ever lived can do this — no man, no religion, no philosophy — only Jesus of Nazareth who is God in the flesh.
* This was originally published in 1959.
© 1971, 1998 Bill Bright, New Life Publications. All rights reserved. Adapted with permission from Bill Bright, “Jesus and the Intellectual” (Peachtree City, GA, NewLife Publications).
Bill Bright was the co-founder of Campus Crusade for Christ International.
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