Four Fundamental Questions

By Dan Vis
May 02, 2022

This month, I am going to be sharing a number of posts about the importance of personal efforts for souls, and Bible work in particular. This is all to get ready for our summer Truth Corps class which we'll be opening for enrollment in a few weeks. Stay tuned!

Everyone has a worldview, whether they are aware of it or not. It is like the colored glasses we wear that give a tint to everything we see. It can be shaped by parents, friends, education, culture, media, politics, sports, entertainment, and countless other influences. Often these conflicting influences lead to confused and contradictory views about life.

A better approach, is to construct our worldview by reasoning from first principles. That is, by asking first the most fundamental questions of life. In particular, there are four questions every person must answer:

Question #1: Is there a God?

Our entire outlook on life ultimately revolves around our answer to this question. Either there is a God, that is sovereign, absolute, self-existent, external to us and independent of us, or there is not.

If there is a God, then there is truth and morality outside of ourself. If not, then God is a mere figment of man's imagination. The only divinity to be found is that which is hidden within you. There is no higher reality--everything devolves to individual perspective. There is no right and wrong--only individual interest. Life is fully subjective.

It reminds me of the verse in . "In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes." Because there was no king, no external, absolute ruler, everything degenerated to personal opinion.

I believe God exists. I believe He is a personal God--and that in fact, there is a God-shaped hole in every heart only He can fill. I believe He is a Creator God, and our only hope for a heart made new. I believe He is an absolute God, and the only fix for our broken moral compass. And I believe He is a loving God, that crosses bridges to connect with and care for those who seek Him.

I won't go into all the arguments for and against the existence of God here. Others have written volumes on the subject. My point is, this is the first and foremost question every person has to answer. There is or there isn't. And every aspect of our worldview flows from our answer to this question.

Question #2: Does the Bible reveal God?

Suppose you do believe in God. An absolute God. A God outside of yourself. What then? How can we learn more about Him? Has God chosen to reveal Himself in some way? And more specifically, is the Bible God's definitive and authoritative self-revelation?

Once again, it is a simple yes or no question. If yes, then the Bible is objective, external, factual. It reveals the truth about Jesus, salvation, and God's will for our life. It teaches absolute truth, and is our only rule of faith and practice. We may make mistakes in how we interpret it, but the problem is never in the source. Our faith is in something outside of ourself. The Bible is a reliable, textual record of what God has revealed about Himself.

If not, then there there is no sure way to know God. There are many paths to truth. The Bible is flawed, imperfect. Too confusing. Too subject to interpretation. Every person is free to follow their own path to God, and it doesn't really matter which path you take--because they all lead to God in the end. We can believe whatever we want to believe, as long as it works for us. And it doesn't matter if you and I view things differently--it's just a matter of perspective.

The Bible answers this question clearly. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God" (). "Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (). The Bible is indeed God's self-revelation.

And it provides its own internal evidence--independent of our thoughts and feelings about the question: Bible prophecy.

Isaiah 46:9-109 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.

Here, the Bible is appealing to external, objective, testable evidence. Evidence that distinguishes the Bible from any other sacred writings. It has nothing to do with personal opinion. It is the historical fact of fulfilled prophecy.

The Bible also make it clear what we believe about truth is important. According to , we are "sanctified" by truth, the truth found in Scripture. In other words, it corrects or fixes our life. Scripture reveals right or wrong. Good and evil. The path to blessings and cursings. It's not a matter of opinion or interpretation. It's a matter of revelation.

You see, it's not enough to just believe in a God. We must also choose how we are going to live our life. If we choose to follow our own ideas, desires, and values, it's a sure path to trouble. Each of us are broken, and we make poor choices. We didn't make this world, and we can't fully understand it. Nor can we see very far into the future. On our own, we can do little more than stumble along blindly in our efforts to make a way through life.

We need outside help. A higher power to guide us. We need divine illumination. That help is found in the Bible. It's our only credible source of divine revelation. The only safe authority to build our life upon. We can't afford to ignore it.

Questions #3: Is God's Law still important?

Here's our third question. Assuming there is a God, and assuming He has revealed Himself through the Bible--is His Law still relevant today? Is it something we still need to obey?

Answering yes means we recognize man needs a standardized code of right and wrong. That the Bible gives us that moral code in the 10 Commandments. That this moral code is external to us, independent of us. It doesn't ask what we think, but tells us what is. It's not subject to change, preference, modification, negotiation, or opinion. It's the definition of morality. The basis of all ethics. It's absolute.

Answering no concludes God's law is in some way irrelevant: outdated, flawed, localized. We're free to follow or not follow it as we choose. Yes, we are supposed to show the love of Christ--but we define for our self what that means. Yes, we are not supposed to sin--but sin is defined by our personal convictions. What's right for me may not be right for you, and vice versa. Nothing is inherently evil, it all depends on the circumstance and situation. To know what is right, one must look inward. Morality is internal, subjective, relative.

The Bible again answers this question. "The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul" (). "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good" (). It defines right and wrong. "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law" (). "I had not known sin, but by the law" (). And in the end it will serve as the standard in God's final judgment. "So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty" (). "Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment" ().

Some argue the New Covenant somehow abolished the 10 Commandments, but actually, it lies at the heart of it. The New Covenant is new in that it provides power to live in harmony with the law. It doesn't create a different law, nor does it invalidate it. Instead, it implants that law into the human heart:

Hebrews 10:16
This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;

When Christ comes into a person's heart through the Gospel, he becomes "a new creature: old things are passed away ... all things are become new" (). And that change consists of a shift from self at the center to God at the center. It's a shift to a life that chooses what God says is right over what we think is right. It's a shift to a life that is powerless to do good, to a life infused with power to carry out good choices.

The Bible teaches a saving Gospel, one that brings man back into harmony with God. It gives freedom from the character flaws that limit our success. From the negative consequences of poor choices. From selfishness, laziness, bitterness, and guilt. It gives power for lasting change through Christ!

Question #4: Is there some point to life?

Yes there is a God. Yes the Bible reveals Him, And yes, His Law is absolute. But one last fundamental question remains: is there some meaning to it all? Is there some point to life?

A yes answer implies we have a purpose, a destiny, a future, perhaps even some reward. That this life is not all there is. That if we put our trust in God, He will make all things right at last!

A no answer believes this life is all there is. What happens, happens. It is what it is. And there's nothing more after death. No one is there to pick up the pieces. So we might as well make the most of this life here and now.

The Bible makes it clear, there is a reward--and it is real. There is a purpose to our life. A destiny. A future. And interestingly, it connects that reward to how we answer our preceding three questions!

For those who believe God exists, and come to know him, the reward is eternal life. "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent" ().

For those who believe the Bible is God's self-revelation, the reward again is eternal life. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life" ().

And for those who believe God's moral law is essential today, the reward once more is eternal life: "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city" ().

There is a purpose to our life. We do have a destiny, a future. There is a reward for those who answer these most fundamental questions correctly. And that reward is far bigger than anything this world can offer us during our few short years passing through it. We dare not miss out!

There is a God. The Bible reveals Him. His law is absolute. And there is a point to our life.

Let's not get caught up in the swirl of confusing influences shaping society today. Let's instead pray for a worldview that is rooted in the most fundamental questions of life. Let's seek to build our life, both here and in the world to come, on the correct answers to these questions.

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