Westminster Shorter Catechism Q&A 1:
What is the chief end of man?
Man’ s chief end is to glorify God, (1 Cor. 10:31, Rom. 11:36) and to enjoy him for ever. (Ps. 73:25–28)
31 So,
whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31
36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To
him be glory forever. Amen.
Romans 11:36
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And
there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but
God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
27 For behold, those who are far from you shall
perish;
you
put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
28 But for me it is good to be near God;
I
have made the Lord God my refuge,
that
I may tell of all your works.
Psalm 73:25-28
When I was
eight years old, I asked this question to myself. What is the purpose of my life? Why am I here in this world? Why was I born at this time? Why my dog is so carefree whereas I have to
work hard, do chores, do homework, and many other things? Why am I a boy? Why am I a Chinese? Why
was I born in Indonesia? What must I do? All these questions seem to be too heavy for an eight year old. But for some reasons my mind was occupied with them. It was probably not as serious as when I asked it again in my teenage years. Especially when I finally submitted my life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Then I began revisiting those questions again, but with a different perspective. This time it was through the deeper sense of the framework of the Christian worldview. When I was eight I was only beginning to absorb the stories of the Bible, because I was introduced to Christianity when I was five in my first year of elementary education. My cultural upbringing and its Confucian strict teaching shaped my formative years. But about ten years getting acquainted with Christianity finally brought me to a certain point where my curiosity prompted me to seek further. So when I was fifteen God brought me to the realization of my existence before him. My being created in his image, and my sinful tendency, plus all my sinful deeds, all were laid out before my eyes, confronted with a calling to believe his Son Jesus Christ, who died for sinners like me on the cross 2,000 years ago through a voluntary sacrifice of a holy God who was also a holy man, hanged between heaven and earth, judged by God and man, to suffer the wrath of God in his execution of his perfect justice even through the full blown injustice of man, which through his death expressed his love and lavishly bestowed his grace to even a sinner like me. So I bowed before him that night. And my life was changed significantly after that.
was I born in Indonesia? What must I do? All these questions seem to be too heavy for an eight year old. But for some reasons my mind was occupied with them. It was probably not as serious as when I asked it again in my teenage years. Especially when I finally submitted my life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Then I began revisiting those questions again, but with a different perspective. This time it was through the deeper sense of the framework of the Christian worldview. When I was eight I was only beginning to absorb the stories of the Bible, because I was introduced to Christianity when I was five in my first year of elementary education. My cultural upbringing and its Confucian strict teaching shaped my formative years. But about ten years getting acquainted with Christianity finally brought me to a certain point where my curiosity prompted me to seek further. So when I was fifteen God brought me to the realization of my existence before him. My being created in his image, and my sinful tendency, plus all my sinful deeds, all were laid out before my eyes, confronted with a calling to believe his Son Jesus Christ, who died for sinners like me on the cross 2,000 years ago through a voluntary sacrifice of a holy God who was also a holy man, hanged between heaven and earth, judged by God and man, to suffer the wrath of God in his execution of his perfect justice even through the full blown injustice of man, which through his death expressed his love and lavishly bestowed his grace to even a sinner like me. So I bowed before him that night. And my life was changed significantly after that.
Those questions
I asked when I was eight came back to me rushing with heavier demand, but this time
my eyes were enlightened, the Scripture had become my point of reference. The answer could not be shallow anymore. Those questions demand serious answers. And my longing soul would not be satisfied until
the Bible answered them. One single question
became the main determinant factor to answer all the other questions. The question: “What is the purpose of my life?”
was the one to be tackled properly.
The Westminster
Shorter Catechism Q&A 1 provides guidance to answering my urgent question. Generically the catechism answers the question
of purpose of life. Its answer is that man’s
chief end of life is: 1) to glorify God forever, and 2) to enjoy him forever. Eternity is undeniable. Man is created for eternity. So the forever-ness must be mentioned. But living forever just for the sake of living
means little. It must have something weightier
to fill that eternity. And the first one
that the catechism identifies is to glorify God. This is very important. Rev. John Piper argued:
The created universe is all about glory.
The deepest longing of the human heart and
the deepest meaning of heaven and earth are summed up in this: the glory of God.
The universe was made to show it, and we
were made to see it and savor it. Nothing
less will do. Which is why the world is as
disordered and as dysfunctional as it is. We have exchanged the glory of God for other things
(Romans 1:23).
“The heavens declare the glory of God”
(Psalm 19:1). That is why all the universe
exists. It’s all about glory.[1]
The meaning of the universe points
to God’s glory. The meaning of man’s existence
cannot be separated from it, therefore. And
the catechism correctly puts it that our existence is, in addition to Piper’s suggestion
for man to see and savor God’s glory, for the purpose of glorifying God. This active act of glorifying God is the dignity
of man. It is the natural urge of man as
a being created in the image and likeness of God. And this answer from the catechism finds its basis
on the word of God as written by the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that instructs:
“31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to
the glory of God.”
This instruction covers every single act man may do. It covers even the most basic survival instinct
to eat and drink. A simple act such as eating
or drinking must find its meaning in the glorification of God. We often don’t even think or consider that eating
a meal would have its purpose to glorify God. We seldom reflect that drinking water would closely
relate to the glory of God. But the Scripture
says that eating or drinking must be done for the glory of God. So we do not eat merely for the sake of eating.
We do not drink merely for the sake of drinking.
We do not do them merely just to keep our
body alive. And not even merely for our own
enjoyment. But the deeper meaning lies with
the more serious and glorious purpose, namely the glorification of the Supreme Being
who is the Creator of the whole wide world. Now, if the simple eat or drink is to have its
aim toward glorifying God, how much more our other more impactful actions? This then covers the entire existence of man.
We have come to the point where we have to take a look at
the glory of God. The question that is often
raised is: “Why do we have to glorify God?” Some rebellious people sneer at Paul’s instruction
and mock God by judging God as self centered egotistical being, who is more of a
tyrant dictator malevolent God than a benevolent God. They do so because they do not wish to submit to
God’s supremacy. They do not want to acknowledge
that God is the creator of all things, including them. They want to be free and they want to be their
own god. This is where the doctrine of creation
plays an extremely important role. Sadly,
many Christians today undermine Genesis 1 and 2 and consider it as myth. These people do not have respect for the word of
God. Worse, they do not have respect for
God, the creator himself, who inspired Moses to write the account of creation so
we all may know where we come from. These
people think that the creation account is not important for their salvation. So they act as if they are god, and then judge
the Scripture of which is important and which is not. Little do they know that if there is no creation
there is no redemption. All is tied together
in the grand scheme of God’s plan.
The fact that man is created in the image and likeness of
God becomes the foundational basis for the meaning of our origin. We owe our existence to God. And God purposefully designed man for Himself.
The grand display of God’s glory is set through
the voluntary desire of man to joyfully glorify God. Man is the only creature on earth that is capable
to project the desire to glorify God through deliberate action. All other creatures operate through instinct, but
man thinks, plans, and carefully orders things and even themselves to deliberately
glorify the Creator they cognitively know through God’s revelation. If man detaches themselves from God, then they
would be confused and corrupted, no longer knowing who to glorify. So they bow to man-made idols, carved stones or
woods or gold or silver that have eyes but cannot see, have ears but cannot hear,
have mouth but cannot speak, have legs and feet but cannot walk. So confused and corrupted that they degrade themselves
to the point of destruction. For ridiculously
they are glorifying these idols which hold very insignificant value compared to
the intrinsic value of man. The only one
deserves to be glorified is God and God alone. Man as the crown of creation must only glorify
God the creator, from whom all came into being. The doxology in Romans 11:36 is the unshakeable
foundation of man’s purpose to glorify God: “36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To
him be glory forever. Amen.”
The catechism unfolds yet another layer of the chief end of
man, which is to enjoy God forever. This
enjoying God purpose of life reveals the grace of God and his love toward his creature.
Contrary to the accusation made by those
rebellious people, God is not a tyrant. God
is not a dictator. He is not a malevolent
being that rejoices in the agony and suffering of his creatures. He is a good God, a benevolent God who desires
only what is good for his creatures. He is
a just God who executes perfect justice. Therefore he is a trustworthy God who cares for
his creatures. The psalmist expresses his
confidence in the Lord even when his surrounding and the things he sees seem to
be against his faith. His faith is tested
when he sees the wicked thrive and prosper, whereas the faithful is poor and suffering.
But God shows him the end, so he then glorifies
the Lord and proclaims his confidence in him again, rejoicing:
25 Whom have I in heaven
but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I
desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart
may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and
my portion forever.
27 For behold, those who are far from you shall
perish;
you
put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
28 But for me it is good
to be near God;
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
that I may tell of all your works.
Psalm 73:25-28
No matter what happens, the circumstance
might be against us, we might be pressured from all sides, but God is faithful,
so that we may enjoy him forever. God shares
his delight and joy with us. Jesus tells
a parable of the talents and for the faithful servants, the Master rewards them
with the best reward any servant may dream of, that they may join in the joy of
the Master. Matthew 25:21 & 23 records:
21 His master
said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over
a little; I will set you over much. Enter
into the joy of your master.’
God certainly created us for himself.
But he is not the self centered egotistical
God who cares not of the well being of his creatures. On the contrary God cares for the well being of
his creatures that he sacrifices himself for the sake of them. He sent his Son to the most gruesome death so that
those he loves might be saved. And as his
redeemed people we are brought into his kingdom in order to enjoy life with him
for eternity. And this is the understanding
of “Enter
into the joy of your master.” We
do not deserve any of it, but out of his mercy and grace, God desires to share his
joy with us. What more can we ask? This is the ultimate joy. And God has made this to be our purpose of life.
I, therefore, do not exist to enjoy myself. I do not exist to glorify myself. I do not exist to seek happiness for myself. I do not exist to be rich for myself. I do not exist to gratify my own desire, how much
more my sinful desire. I do not exist to
eat and drink till my heart content. In my
existence I eat and drink even for the glory of God. In my existence I go to school to glorify my God.
In my existence I read a book to glorify
my God. In my existence I help others for
the glory of God. In my existence I work
for the glory of my God. In my existence
I raise my children to glorify my God. So,
definitely I do not exist for myself. I exist
for my God. He created me with a purpose.
I owe him my existence. I owe him my life. And God is a good God who desires only good for
me. So in everything I do, I do for the glory
of God. And he desires for me to enjoy him
forever. What is the purpose of my life?
I exist to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.
In this purpose my existence matches perfectly
in complete harmony. It is my dignity that
I may glorify the one true God, the only one deserving to be glorified forever,
and it is my honor to be included into the joy of the Lord my God for eternity.
And that is the meaning and purpose of my
life. And I believe this too should be the
meaning of your life. This too should be
the purpose of your life. Amen.
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