A LIFE WITHOUT GOD

A LIFE WITHOUT GOD 

The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labor which he taketh under the sun? — Ecclesiastes 1:1‭-‬3 KJV. ‬‬

These were the words of a one time king in Israel. The man who made history by being the most affluent and wisest, not only of his generation, but also the generations that came after him. He was so much endowed with Godly wisdom, blessed with practical knowledge and overwhelmed with understanding that he became the cynosure of all eyes during his own days. Kings, queens and princes came to enquire of his wisdom. He was able to produce so many parables that cut across various areas of human living. He was indeed an epitome of great insights. 

From the above stated verses, you will, at least to an extent, marvel at this man’s philosophy of life. You will be coerced to ask yourself, “what was he trying to say about life ?” what did he mean by everything being “VANITY”. This man, having reflected thoughtfully on all issues of life, and being led by the spirit of God, came up with this philosophy that ALL (everything in life and life itself) IS VANITY! Just imagine. How can life, and everything that is in it be vanity ? With all these seemingly endless daily pursuits and the complexity of the issues of life, all is vanity? For him, according to the spirit of God, to have arrived at that pessimistic conclusion about life, there must be more to it than just the statement. 

Well, I also sat down and think deeply on this philosophy, and I discovered that truly ALL IS VANITY.  Life is indeed meaningless and useless. But wait! What kind of life? It is a life without God! Beloved, I like you to understand that life is nothing but a meaningless and useless game if it is devoid of God. You know what? A life without God, as described by the preacher, is futile. It has no meaning and essence. What gives meaning and essence to life is God. He is the originator, creator and sustainer of all things. Without him, nothing would have existed. And anything existing without a sense of God is just existing for itself; it is meaningless. 

Backing off to the account of creation, after Adam, the first man had been created. Now, imagine Adam waking up, without having anyone to guide, direct and lead him as to what it is to experience life. Imagine him just waking up without having anyone to explain to him what and who he was; why he was? And for what purpose he was. It would have been so much frustrating. There was no how he could have discovered o essence and purpose of his existence. Probably, he would have ended up believing that he just evolved from somewhere, Just as some people erroneously believe. But with God, he (Adam) understood what life is all about, he discovered the essence of his existence; he also knew where he came from and what he came to do. His life had meaning because he had God  life could have been the otherwise for him had he not had a sense of God. 

What I’m trying to say, beloved, is that a life that is without God is nothing but a life of no meaning. If you really want your own life to have meaning, then a relationship with God is not just an option but a necessity. It is sadly to note that quite a lot of people are just existing but not living. They are in world just for the purpose of being in the world. Their lives have no impacts, meaning and significance because there is no God in it. One thing I like you to understand about life is this: what gives meaning to one’s life is

1. Understanding of where you came from 

2. Understanding of why you came 

3. Understanding of who you are 

4. Understanding of where you are going. 

You can never realize all these without God. It is in God that you discover these things and then life becomes meaningful and lively to you. Without the understanding of these things, life is nothing but a game of trials and errors, and which leads no where. But with answers to these, life becomes a product of cause and effect. Oh, how miserable  it is for one to  be without God! Many people believe that life is all about acquiring wealth, wisdom, knowledge, fame, position and power. Their philosophy of life is that the possession of these materials things is what brings happiness, peace and success. But that is not true! These things are good actually but do you know what? Without God, they amount to nothing but vanity. They can never give you lasting happiness and joy. If it could, King Solomon who happened to have anything that could be had in his own time – money, fame, power, knowledge Wisdom, pleasures, wives, material possessions, etc.– wouldn’t have concluded that all is vanity. Those things could never give him lasting joy and satisfaction. Hear what he said again, 

“I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.  And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.”  – Ecclesiastes 1:16‭-‬17 KJV.

 In fact, he eventually ended woefully without God, the life he started successfully with God. ‬‬

One more thing I like you to draw your attention to is the story of the rich man and Lazarus narrated by the great master — Jesus, our lord. The rich man had all he could have in his lifetime. He had fame, power, wealth, etc, yet these things could not be exchanged for his soul in hell. Where as, Lazarus who wasn’t fed eventually got to the abode of God. The rich man’s life ended shamefully because she had not e

This is the point of what I’m saying: your life is not defined by the amount of wealth you are able to acquire, the level of position you are able to attain, the level of the power and fame that you command, etc. It is rather defined by one thing only – your relationship with God! It would be a great tragedy for you to discover, at the end of your life, that life has been meaningless all the while. Nothing can be more tragic than that. What else can satisfy without God in this life? Absolutely nothing. 

I will beseech you at this juncture to consider this fact of life. Do you have any relationship with God at all?

 Listen, I’m not asking if you attend church or not.  Being a member of a church or any religious organization is not what really matters. That’s not the real issue now. The real thing is what concerns Your Own life; Salvation! That’s the key to establishing a relationship with God. Apostle Paul, the preacher of the gospel to the gentiles, realized that his life had been all the while meaningless. Here what he would later say, having given his life to Christ: 

"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” — Phil. 3:8

It was when he had given his life to Christ that he got a new and proper orientation of what his life was meant to be spent for. I’m sorry, life can be so much frustrating and meaningless, if it is devoid of God. This is more of understanding what life really is than of a religious matter. 

If you really want to live a life that is not only meaningful here on earth, but also relevant to God even after this life, a relationship with God, now, is a MUST!  consider Jesus, the only true son of God today. Invite him into your life so that you'll not just waste your life on earth. He only can reconcile and introduce you to your creator — God — from whom you have lost relationship. I repeat once again, consider Jesus today. Give your life to him and your life will never end in vanity. 

A life without God is indeed a useless and meaningless life! 

God bless you 

©OLAKUNLE PAUL