Transcript:
When we open the Bible to page one, we come across the famous words "In the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth." This is the starting point of the Bible—everything flows from that key verse.
The first thing this establishes is that there are answers to our questions. Without thinking about God, we can think about how different things in life work, but we can never think about why certain things matter. That's something our culture is crying out for. For a long time, people were just looking for ways to make themselves happy and enjoy themselves, but they're discovering that's a really empty and futile way to live life. The Bible presents answers to what we are, why we're here, and what lies ahead in our future.
The Bible begins with the reality of God—there is a God as opposed to not being a God, and there's also a certain kind of God. The world, the universe, the material universe is created, but He is not. He's outside of it. If you like to use an analogy, He's like the chef—He's not part of the soup. He's not part of the created order; He's transcendent. He's above it all, outside of space, time, and matter.
It's important that when we think about God, we understand what kind of God we're speaking about. The Bible doesn't present a pantheistic God that's part of the material order. Rather, He is outside of all that, having created all of that. He's also a personal God. We should understand that God is not just an idea to be critiqued and thought about, nor is He just a list of properties to be studied. Much more than that, He is a person that we relate to and connect with.
He's active in creation and remains active in sustaining and, through His son Jesus, active in redeeming His universe. He wants to connect with the created order—in particular, He wants a relationship with human beings.
Christians believe in the reality of God the Creator and that He is a God who is in relationship with His creation. This means there's intentionality in creation—it's designed, made in a certain way and for a certain purpose. We're not just made by God; we're made for God. That's our highest purpose: to glorify God and enjoy His presence, His goodness, and His grace forever.
There are rules to the game, a way things are supposed to work. We live in God's world—like walking into someone's house, their rules. There is a Divine prerogative, and that's really important for understanding: if we want to connect with God, if we want that relationship with Him, we have to recognise that He is in charge and we are not.
This stops many people from becoming Christians. They see the value in Christian principles and ideals, but they don't want to surrender their lives to God. They don't want to submit to Him as the ultimate Authority in their lives and give up control. That's the requirement—if someone's going to become a Christian and really enjoy a relationship with God, they have to give up control and submit to Him, recognising Him as the ultimate Authority in all of existence.
