We've all asked this question, in one form or another. Why am I here? What am I supposed to be doing? What's the point? What on earth am I here for? This question has many forms, but they're all the same. What is our purpose for existing?
According to Plato, the meaning of life is attaining the highest form of knowledge. His pupil Aristotle disagreed, and came to the conclusion that the purpose of life is attaining happiness. Epicurus thought the meaning of life was pleasure, while Existentialists believe everyone creates their own purpose, and Nihilists believe there is no meaning at all.
So who's right?
I turn to the Bible for my answer.
There are many passages in the Bible to which we could turn to help us answer this question. While none will be so clear as to say, The meaning of life is . . . ., many do answer the question. And despite the fact that the Bible was written by around 40 different individuals over a period of a millennium and a half, each author was inspired to reach the same conclusion.
The meaning of life is God.
Someone once asked Jesus about the meaning of life.
The story is found in Matthew 22, verses 34-40. A Pharisee, an expert in Jewish law, asked Jesus, "Which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" For him, the Law represented God's will and purpose, so he was really asking, "According to the Law, what am I supposed to do?" In other words, what is the meaning of life.
Jesus' answer, known popularly as The Greatest Commandment, is simple. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.
There it is. According to the source of all knowledge (God Himself), the meaning of life is to love God and love your neighbor as yourself.
Now what?
If the meaning of life is to love God and love our neighbor, how do we do it?
Honestly, I think we already know. Loving God means putting Him first, serving Him with everything we have and are. Loving our neighbor as ourselves means treating Jane and Joe the same way I would treat me, or the way I would want to be treated. It's not hard to understand what those two rules mean.
It's the application that's difficult.
We have to put God first in all things. I wrote about idols yesterday. If we are going to apply the meaning of life to our lives, we have to get rid of the idols that are in God's rightful place, including ourselves. That kicks us down to the second rung of the hierarchy of importance. That step is hard enough. The next one is even harder.
Now we have to move over and make room, on the same level we are, for everyone else. As we learned in the story of the Good Samaritan, our neighbors are not just our friends and relatives; our neighbors include our enemies. And we have to love them. Just like we must love ourselves.
Love God. Love people.
That's what it boils down to.
That wasn't so hard after all.
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