WHERE THERE IS NO GOD 2

Chapter 2
God in the World

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened (Romans 1:20-21).

Gerar, at sunset, is a beauty to behold. The rolling hills, the undulating landscape, and the golden rays that of the sun that is reduced to a virtual crescent by distant horizon points at one thing: God’s glory as evidenced in creation. Yes, God’s glory speaks loudly of His presence, yet Abraham sniffs from the air differently. Torn between the force of faith in God’s omnipresence and that of doubt that arises from his feelings, he unconsciously slips on a piece of stone. But for Sarah’s feeble but firm hold, Abraham would have fallen flat on the ground.

There are two classes of people on earth: those who, through personal experience and observance of creation, believe that there is God; and those who, in spite of visible mystery of creation, refuse to accept that there is God. The Bible refers to the latter as fools, and concludes that they have no excuse for their stand. Abraham stumbles because he bases his conclusion on his observation of a people he feels do not believe in God. His is a conflict of faith and feeling. There is God, and He is firmly in control of the world. He created the world; so the world belongs to Him. There has never been a world without God. Rather there was a time when God was without a world. The first few verses of the Book of Genesis tell us the level of confusion there was then.

Man’s living without God started with Adam’s expulsion from the Garden. Sin led to that expulsion, and as sin continued to increase, man’s distance form God continued to widen. It has been widening ever since because sin has the capacity to multiply and spread. This raises some concern about godlessness in the world. How should we recognize this spread? How should the church and the believer react to it?

Verse 11 of Revelations Chapter four explains to us God’s intention for the world. It says, “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.” He created everything in the world for His own pleasure and glory. Without Christ the world will not know this truth. It cannot! Christ came to show the world the Truth, the Way, and the Life. The world needs these three to fulfill God’s purpose for its creation. Without them, it acts as if there is no God.

Abraham entered a strange city, observed the people’s lifestyle and concluded that they were living without God. Mere instinct could not have led him to this dismal conclusion. He had interacted with God and he knew what gave God pleasure and glory. He watched for them but could find none. So he concluded, waiting to be proved to the contrary. We, believers, were once in the world; we know the type of life we lived then (Ephesians 2:2-3). Now we are in Christ, in God’s family. We should be able to feel as Abraham did. We should be able to relate the happenings in the world, their value system and world-view, to God’s word. The Bible tells us what gives God pleasure and glory. Therefore, a believer who feels at home with the world has not experienced Christ intimately.

Wisdom of The World
The world, in its wisdom, chose not to know God. It is a deliberate choice that led them to conclude that there is no God. For centuries, it has battled with the problem of where and how to place God. All areas of human endeavour have tried, with their technical common sense, to define a comfortable niche for this abstract concept, God. Generation after generation has tried to put God away from the mind and from view. However they try, the problem of what to do with God remains intimidating, and the world finds itself in a perplexing dilemma

If the world accepts the existence of God, many other questions crop up: Where is he? Who made him? What is he like? And many other questions! But these are man’s attempt to fit God into his thought frame; and the more one asks, the more the problem, the more the confusion, and the more the frustration. So, to get out of the circle of futile mental exercise, the world concludes that there is no God.

It does not need to voice its rejection out. The world speaks through its thoughts, its actions, its attitudes, and its lifestyle. A man in the world may not hear this verdict or even see an evidence of it because it is the world’s culture that actually speaks. Culture defines the environment and pattern for living, establishes the limit of vision and reason, and herds everyone along.

God sees the world in its true colors. He looks down from heaven and surveys man’s heart, his thoughts, and then his actions. And since what He sees does conflict with His purpose for creation, God concludes that the world is corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one that does good; no one understands; no one seeks God.

Yes, the world holds the conviction that there is no God. And while man basks in this, God warns of its immediate consequences and the far-reaching eternal implication. The Bible says:

Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know (Rom 3:15-17).

This Scripture is clearly written on the face of the world today as we observe suicide bombers, terrorists, rapists, serial killers, strange behaviors of different group cultures, patterns of governance, global interactions in business, and individual lifestyles. All these originate from one source: a conviction that there is no God, or a desperate effort to put Him away from human affairs. This desperation shows in three forms which a discerning observer can see, ranging from the collective to the personal stand on the convenient approach to dealing with God.

Institutional Godlessness
Where this form of godlessness exists, the State or organization designs policies to control the way people should see the true God. They can tolerate an idea of a 'god' that does not play any part in the people's lives. The ultimate power of the State will not brood the idea of a strange God. Nebuchadnezzar had this problem; so he came up with an effigy (Dan 3). Presently, most nations deliberately avoid the mention of God in their official discussions; they feel quite comfortable with it. We know of societies where the State serves as god, taking care of people’s felt needs. State policies are meant to tow everyone along. There are societies where mere mention of the name of Jesus Christ attracts a heavy sanction (God can be mentioned but not Christ). In some places, where the framework for godlessness has not been institutionalized, people are free to serve God but in their individual capacities and in their closets. God should not interfere with the affairs of the State or the orderly running of the society.

Situational Godlessness
When a person's is materially comfortable and he is able to provide for his needs, God ceases to be relevant to his situation. As far as he knows, there is no God. But this thinking negates God's purpose for creating man. Man is created to depend on God for solutions to his needs, both felt and real. But sin introduced a separation and independence; man started to fend for himself. The more he is able to solve his physical problems, the less the need for God-so he thinks. Evidence of situational godlessness is more in the so-called developed societies; where technology takes God's place in the hearts of the people.

Attitudinal Godlessness
Created in His image and likeness, we are in a father-child relationship with God, a relationship that should not make us unduly familiar with Him. It changes us gradually until we imbibe His character and virtues. Our character stands out because we live a God-fearing lifestyle. We do not just act any more on our instincts; we do things to show that we love Him. God no longer exists for us to exploit. We know He can provide our material needs, but make allowance for His sovereign right to turn down some of our requests. We know that our desire cannot override His will in any situation; and God ceases to exist if He lets our desire influence His will.

Attitudinal godlessness makes a believer act as if God exists to meet his material needs. God ceases to exist, in the life of such a person, the moment the one can provide those needs himself; or God fails to meet his need at the crucial time. God could also cease to exist when the person goes through times of intense emotional pain or disappointment. He had felt strongly that God would intervene in his or her situation; but God did not.

All the three forms of godlessness originate from the nature of relationship with God. The first does not want to relate with Him at all, and does everything possible to avoid Him. The second does not find God relevant in life because all man’s needs are provided by society. The third wants to relate with God on its own terms as long as it is convenient. In all, God has no place.