Is God An Escape? Yes and no, in the Bible we read, in the world you will have trouble but take heart I (Jesus) have overcome the world (John 16:33), or come unto me (again Jesus speaking) all of you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28-30). So yes, when you run into God you can escape trouble in the world. Therefore God is an escape. There is a lot of trouble in the world and needing an escape doesn’t make you less of a person. It gives you a source of strength to draw on that is not your own. But on the other hand God is not an escape like: gaming, photography, music, film, sports or other things. There’s nothing wrong with those things. He created them and He wants for us to enjoy them, but He Himself is so much bigger.
People and God
In 1964 the song “People”, written by Bob Merrill and composed by Jule Styne became a hit. The songs basic message is “People who need people
Are the luckiest people in the world.” It seems wrong, especially when you’re alone and wishing that someone was there to share your life with, but the flip side of it is if you didn’t need people you would likely never experience the joy of having fulfilling friendships. It seems that the same logic can be applied to a relationship with God. It’s God who put the need for relationships with people in our hearts. It is also God who put a longing for Himself deep within our hearts. We have the opportunity to love Him because He first loved us. He wants us to know Him and those who do come to know Him are blessed.
Perhaps you’re unconvinced, yes there’s a longing for something more and people often try to escape troubles in life, but how does that relate to God wanting a relationship with us.
The Bible
Years ago, I was sitting in a university Logic class. There in front of all of my classmates the professor challenged me. He said, why would your surrender you intelligence to a superior being? Just prior to that I had acknowledged I was a Christian. Obviously, he didn’t approve. At the time, I had no response for him. What I wish I had said was, “Why would you assume, He doesn’t exist?” Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the father but by me.” You might want to ask, well how do you know the Bible is true? There is more historical evidence for the Bible than there is any other work of antiquity. Jesus did walk the earth and he did claim to be God.
CS Lewis
The next question which logically follows according to CS Louis is Jesus: Lord, Liar or Lunatic. Below is the quote from his book Meer Christianity.
– “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. . . . Now it seems to me obvious that He was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view that He was and is God. (Mere Christianity, 55-56)
Lots of people have set out to prove that God doesn’t exist and actually come to the conclusion that He does exist and then they become Christ’s followers. Here’s an article – Four Atheists Set Out to Disprove Christianity. Being a Christian isn’t hard. It’s about a relationship with God so it makes sense that Christians read God’s love letter, the Bible, and that they pray. Yes there are a lot of dos and don’t in the Bible but it’s not supposed to be a religion of just does and don’t. It’s about a relationship with God. Just like when a person loves another person, they try to do things that make the other person happy.
Church
Church is not a requirement, but if you love God why wouldn’t you want to connect with other brothers and sisters who love God, sing songs to him and hear the pastor preach from the word of God. There are a lot of churches in Hong Kong. Personally, I like the Vine because it feels less traditional and more alive to me. Years ago Tracy and I went to the Vine in WanChai, but now we have been at the Yuen Long Vine for more than a year. The Yuen Long Vine is a church plant with both an English and a Cantonese service. Some weeks we go the English service and some weeks we go to the Cantonese service. It’s a smaller church, so it’s easier to meet people and strike up conversations. In addition, once a month they host a bring your own lunch gathering for people to hang out with each other. Yes, you still have to be intentional about finding community, but there are a lot of kind hearted caring people to interact with. Above is a short clip from a recent service.
Is God an Escape?
I guess the short answer is yes, but don’t we need an escape. The world and it’s worries can be overwhelming at times. Blessed are those whose sins are forgiven. Blessed are those who have peace with God. I’m grateful for the escape that God has made for us.
