Why Did God Make Us?

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I will say to the north, Give up,

and to the south, Do not withhold;

bring My sons from afar

and My daughters from the end of the earth,

everyone who is called by My name,

whom I created for My glory,

whom I formed and made.

Isaiah 43:6-7

J.R.R. Tolkein’s classic novel The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring has many famous quotes, but there is one in particular that I believe stands out from the rest. In the story, Gandalf explained the evil forces who wanted the one ring to destroy the innocent and take over the world. Frodo, horrified that this evil is happening and that he is the one who has been given the ring, responds, “I wish it need not have happened in my time.” But Gandalf offers a comfort not from false assurance but from wisdom as he says, “So do I, and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” ¹ These are not just poetic-sounding words that make us feel good without really understanding what truth it is conveying. It is true that the life we have is a gift to us from God, and we must decide how to use what He has given us. But how can we know how to use this gift well? Many surrounding voices provide different answers, but there is only One who can provide us with the true answer, and that is God Himself, the One who created us. To answer the question “How should I live?”, we must answer the question “Why do I exist?”

In my previous article, I explained how the present moment matters because it is filled with purpose. But to have a holistic understanding of our purpose, we cannot just look at the present. We must look at the reason for our existence, which has not changed since Adam and Eve, to grasp the purpose of life from the past to future, from life to death. So, what did God make us for?

Did God Create Humans Because He Was Lonely?

I have heard some say that God created human beings because He was all by Himself, and He was very lonely. Our reason for existence, then, is to provide God with companionship, or even to give Him a creative and social outlet. Christian Apologist and Author Sean McDowell explains this reasoning and its fault very well:

Some people have speculated as follows: Since aloneness was not good even in a perfect world [see Genesis 2:18], God must have felt alone too and that is the reason he created humans. Perhaps he wanted or needed a human relationship, so he created human beings to remove his own aloneness. One big problem with this thinking is that it implies something is lacking in God. And yet if he is perfect, nothing can be lacking.

The other problem with this notion is that the eternal God never has been alone. Consisting as he does of three persons, he has existed eternally as a relationship. A continuous cycle of perfect relationships has been eternally experienced within the Godhead of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It’s true the first human was created alone (again, not lonely). ²

As McDowell explained, if God made us to fill some void within Himself, a void of companionship and love, He would be insufficient, imperfect, and honestly, a lot more like a human being than God. However, God is completely self-sufficient, complete in Himself, all-powerful, sovereign, and filled with life that He gifts. In the scriptures, Moses asked how he should answer the Israelites when they asked him who spoke to him, so “God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ And [God] said, ‘Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I am has sent [Moses] to you’” (Exodus 3:14). In defining Himself as “I Am,” He is showing that He is all encompassing and is not limited by anything, not even time. He is the Author and Definer of all things. Before everything existed as we know it, He was still the great “I Am.” So no, God did not create us because of loneliness or because of any need, for God needs nothing.

God Made Us So That He Could Enjoy Our Suffering

This cynical view is mostly held by atheists, or people who say they do not believe in God, yet say things such as “I hate God,” or “Why is God laughing at my suffering?” as if to admit that God exists but only to bring pain. The truth is that the world started out completely free of suffering. When God made the garden of Eden, He placed Adam and Eve in it and told them to take their fill of any food that they wanted, except for the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. God saw that His creation was good, and He allowed Adam and Eve to enjoy its goodness and beauty. What ruined their enjoyment was not God but their disobedience to His one command. When they ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, their eyes were opened to see not only good but evil, so that what was once good became evil in their sight, and their hearts became distorted (Genesis 3:17). God cast them out of the garden because they did not obey His one command, and life became filled with work and toil because of their sin (and continued sin). We are not any different than Adam and Eve. We also sin and rebel continuously against God and so do the people around us. The fall of Adam and Eve was the first fall of humanity, but it is a reflection of the fallenness of us all. God has made everything good, but it is our sin that distorts it, and it is because of our sin that destruction, suffering, and death have entered into the world.

Does God laugh at this? No, the scripture shows that God is compassionate toward our suffering in this life. Jesus, God in the flesh, told His disciples, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Jesus does not say “you will never suffer,” or “if you suffer, there’s nothing I can do for you.” Jesus Christ gives us hope that although we will suffer in this world, if we believe in Him and live for Him, He will be with us, and He will provide us with wisdom, strength, and even joy amidst our suffering. Then we will leave the brokenness of this world and be united with Him in heaven, where “He will wipe away every tear from [our ] eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). Even though we ourselves have sinned against God, He will give us perfect peace and joy with Him if we turn to Christ. Our God is the greatest reflection of justice, and He is also the greatest example of mercy and compassion. It would take so much more than an article to write on the topic of suffering, but know that it is not the ultimate purpose behind God making humanity.

God Made Us So That We Can Do Whatever We Want

A popular message that is spread in our post-truth society today can be heard on a college campus or on a podcast, or read on social media or in a spiritual-labeled book. The message is said in many different ways, but essentially it is a response for a person to justify their sin by saying, “Jesus loves me for who I am,” or “Jesus already paid for my sins.” There is some truth in this. Yes, Jesus has invited us to come “as we are,” that is, we do not have to clean ourselves up before going to Christ - He is the One who cleans us. However, when Jesus stood before the woman caught in adultery by the Pharisees, He did not say, “I do not judge you, so back to what you were doing!” Instead, He says something incredibly profound, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more” (John 8:11). Jesus first forgave her and freed her of the guilt of her sin, and then He commanded her to live for holiness and righteousness. It is only possible to be freed of our sin if we have the gift of grace given to us by Christ, but it is not a freedom to go back to sinning as if nothing had happened. Rather, it is a freedom to pursue Christ, the greatest treasure there is, without the fear that our sin will separate us from Him. Jesus loved you and paid for your sins while you were still a sinner, but it was so that our hearts would be changed, and so that our hearts would be brought out of the darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9). God did not create us to engorge in the desires of our flesh. He created us for something much greater.

We Exist to Glorify God

The reason that God created humans and all of creation is for His glory. This is clearly seen in Isaiah 43:6-7:

I will say to the north, Give up,

and to the south, Do not withhold;

bring My sons from afar

and My daughters from the end of the earth,

everyone who is called by My name,

whom I created for My glory,

whom I formed and made.

Everything and everyone from every end of the earth, and all the universe, was “created for [God’s] glory” (Isaiah 43:7). Sometimes it is difficult to understand exactly what it means for God to be “glorified” because it is a term that is often heard but rarely explained. For God to be glorified is for God’s greatness to be seen and appreciated, whether by an individual or a multitude. Anything that points to the power, sovereignty, creativity, goodness, and beauty of the One True God is glorifying Him. When we sing songs of praise to God, obey the commands He has given us, tell others about what Christ has done for us to save us, thank God for the undeserved gifts He has given us, and even show love and kindness to others because of the love shown to us by Christ, we are glorifying God. Some might wonder, if God made us to make Him look great, is He selfish? The answer is no, not only because God is perfect and cannot sin, including selfishness, but also because it is right that He desires His glory. He is fully deserving of glory and the only Being who is worthy of it. “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created” (Revelations 4:11). “Who is like You among the gods, O Lord? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11). The fact that God created us to glorify Him just shows the kindness and compassion of our God. The greatest possible purpose we could ever have is to live for the greatest possible Being. He made us so that we could have the most magnificent treasure - Himself - to love and adore. John Piper puts our purpose of glorifying God so beautifully:

God’s love for us is not mainly his making much of us, but his giving us the ability to enjoy making much of him forever. In other words, God’s love for us keeps God at the center. God’s love for us exalts his value and our satisfaction in it. If God’s love made us central and focused on our value, it would distract us from what is most precious — namely, himself. Love labors and suffers to enthrall us with what is infinitely and eternally satisfying: God. Therefore, God’s love labors and suffers to break our bondage to the idol of self and focus our affections on the treasure of God. ³

God’s love for us frees us from pursuing lesser treasures in vain, wasting our lives for things that will never satisfy. This is why His Word so lovingly instructs us “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

The reason God made us is to enjoy Him and enjoy showing His greatness in our lives. When we recognize God as our Lord, Father, and heavenly Creator, we hold our lives in greater value, seeing that the magnificence of God’s work can be witnessed in every moment, and we can have the satisfying joy of standing in awe of Him.

References

1. Tolkein, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring. 2nd ed., Harper Collins Publishers. 2004.

2. McDowell, Sean. “Did God Create the World Because He Was Lonely?” 6 Oct. 2015, Sean McDowell, https://seanmcdowell.org/blog/was-god-ever-lonely.

3. Piper, John. “How is God’s Passion for His Own Glory Not Selfishness?” 24 Nov. 2007, Desiring God, https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-is-gods-passion-for-his-own-glory-not-selfishness.