The Purpose of Life

Look up into the sky and stare at the clouds. More often than not, we tend to complain that there are too many clouds or too little for the day. When in reality, we don’t take the time to appreciate the simplicity of clouds and what they give us. Now clouds give rain, snow, and shade, but they also give us a life lesson from God. The one thing in life we constantly see, yet never grasp, is the thing that gives many things we couldn’t live without.

Don’t lose track with me now, I promise this will all make sense. When you observe clouds, you are watching the water cycle take place right before your eyes. Also you are seeing creation glorify God in a unique way. Clouds are made up of water molecules, and these molecules are the same molecules that have always existed on Earth. These are the same water molecules that bathed the dinosaurs, Jesus walked on, and Michael Jackson drank after every concert. The water we have on earth is finite and there cannot be any new water. That means no company could make more, no engine could produce it, and no contraption man made could create more.

There’s no production of something new whenever new clouds form. New clouds form when other clouds break away and join together with water moisture, creating another cloud. You see clouds in a sense co-produce more clouds. By co-producing what is there, by using the existing components and reforming it into a new design but producing the same results. It’s transforming the water that has always existed by using it for another purpose. It’s recycled you see, by using the best of the original and implementing it into a new version of itself. In that new version can come coldness, freedom, or even growth.

Now let’s see where that takes us. People are just like clouds, we are recreations or reproductions of an image.

“God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”- Genesis 1:27 ESV

Since we believe that to be true, we must understand one thing, that God created man to reproduce or co-produce His image, not an image of an almighty creator alone but rather a creator that joins with creation. Now that image that we bear, yes, is part from our parents, but ultimately is from the holy, powerful, and gracious God that is our creator. Now if this is true we must understand one important thing, God created us to look like Him and be like Him. If this is true, then we must come to the clear conclusion that the image we bear is nothing like anything else in creation. It is unique, and cannot be recreated anywhere else in nature.

Now before some take this to the extreme, no He did not create us to be gods of our own worlds, he makes it very clear that there is no God but Him. He is King and divine and we are His creation. But, it doesn’t mean humanity is not special, we have a uniqueness to us that makes us different from other beings. Now we know according to the scriptures we are living in a reality that is split in two, the spiritual and the natural. Now these two realities coincide at the same time and affect one another. Beings in this duality of realities include humans, angels, demons, and other heavenly creatures. Now with this in mind, we must realize that if humans are made in God’s image, that means that any other creature in the spiritual or natural realities doesn't carry the same authority as us! That’s insane to think about!

With that in mind, we must take another look at humanity. If we, being children of God, are to take a life, we extinguish the image of God. If you were to ask a child if murder was wrong, most would say yes. Now as we grow older and see the actions of humanity that opinion changes. Most would say this comes from the maturation of thought, but what if we have it wrong? What if our childhood selves were right in this worldview?

Because if we extinguish the life of another human being, that means we have destroyed an image of the creator of the universe. If that is true, then the creator would have every right to destroy us Himself, with full justification. How would you feel if someone took your child, the only one you had and loved, and killed it right in front of you?

The taking of a life removes the image of God that was meant to bear part of God's image to the rest of humanity and it cannot be replaced. It can never return. But God in His great mercy and sacrifice, gave up His own son, to be extinguished like so many on this planet, unjustly. He bled out for every murderer, rapist, pedophile, liar, and idolater that ever lived. Once His image was extinguished, He rose again three days later, defeating the grave and bringing the gift of salvation to all. So that no one would be extinguished forever but rather, would live with the one whose image we bear forever in eternity.

Now this may seem overly dramatic as there are billions of solar systems, organisms, and planets, so how can we be the center of attention? Especially God's attention. Be that as it may, we are the only ones to bear His image and in being the only ones, have a unique purpose compared to the others. But if what the scriptures say is true, the life of every human matters, black, white, republican, democrat, or anything else we choose to help identify ourselves with. It allows for each race, ethnicity, and culture to display a different part of God’s heart. Is any culture or group perfect? Absolutely not, but there is a reflection of God’s heart in the cultures we create. We believe, according to this view of life, that we must stand for one another, when one part of the body is unjustly attacked, we all must respond. So stand for life, no matter whose life it is. Because when you stand for someone, you stand up for the image of the God you serve. Even if they are gay, homophobic or full of other prejudices. Love conquers this, just look at the cross. So stand for the image we bear, a loving, righteous, and kind creator that stands for you. Let’s do the same as the one, whose image we bear.

Adrian Espinosa is the leader and founder of Lighthouse Ministries, and has worked within a variety of ministry positions for 10 years. He has led evangelism teams, served in homeless ministries, and led anti human/drug trafficking outreaches to at-risk youth in Dallas. He has a bachelor in Secondary Social Studies Education, and has been theologically trained at Southwestern Assemblies of God University. Originally from California, he now resides in McKinney, Texas.

adriane_1441@gmail.com