Dichotomy of Decision

One of the greatest questions of all time is whether God exists or not. Atheists believe that deities are just creations of ancient peoples who were unable to explain the world around them by scientific means. Instead they invented myth and legend to answer the how, why and who of the creation, purpose and finality of humans and the universe.

Indeed, if atheists are right, then everyone who’s ever lived will eventually end up nowhere in a state of non existence sort of like liberals who are perpetually stuck in a logic dead zone. But in all reality, believing in God is a “nothing to lose” proposition. Christianity in particular bases salvation on simply accepting Jesus Christ, God’s son, as a savior.

Salvation can best be illustrated in a truth table. One possibility is God’s existence, the second is whether one believes in him or not. If God doesn’t exist, it won’t matter what one truly believes. The same celestial worm ridden eternal earth nap awaits everyone regardless.

If God does exist, the fate of the believer is different from the non-believer. The believer gets eternal life in heaven while the other gets to find the many ways a pitchfork can pierce bodily orifices. Yeah, hell is a pretty bad place. Well, it is hell.

And God supposedly doesn’t want anyone to go to hell. If that’s so, then why doesn’t he just reveal Himself making his existence undeniable? In that way, he could make it such a no-brainer even by the standards of the most ardent of atheists. Obviously, God has another motive. Now, no one can presume to know the mind of God, but inferences can still be made on what he’s thinking.

For instance, God remains largely hidden because he just might want to differentiate the doubters. He presents a world where one can make a case for either possibility like when Jesus was crucified. Jesus did not die alone, which is an interesting fact in itself. From a worldly perspective, God should have wanted his only son to get the entire crucifixion spotlight so to speak in order that his death would be set apart from all others.

But for God, nothing is by accident. Earth is really a planet that’s a “planned net.” Everything here has a purpose and connections that God deliberately put. Nothing is here by coincidence including everyone who lives and who has ever lived.

Thus, God wanted two thieves, i.e. common criminals; to die with the lamb that was saving the world. Obviously, neither of these thieves were an angel. But like Jesus both were condemned to death and would also be dead in a matter of hours. To say their options in life were rather limited at this point would have been a great understatement. Both had essentially nothing to lose when their crosses were raised.

As Jesus was dying the doubters from their worldly perspective questioned, “If he is the Son of God, why doesn’t he save himself?” Even one of the criminals joined in the chorus of insults. But the other thief rebuked him and then asked Jesus to remember him when he reached the kingdom.

Where upon, Jesus immediately promised, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Jesus never asked him what crimes he had committed. “Wait brother, depends on what brought you to the cross?” What he had done was of no consequence concerning his place in God’s holy place. Still, no one can prove whether this thief is in heaven or not, but there’s no doubt the other one’s not.

Yet, the thief that believed risked nothing more than his accepting Jesus as the Son of God. He certainly wasn’t going to return to his family and hear them laughing at his sudden silliness. In reality, this same decision faces everyone whether it’s a few seconds or even several years away. And if one is generally a good person, accepting Christ is easy because living a life of loving one’s neighbor is technically half the battle.

And heaven is worth technically everything that one has. Take it from someone who’s been to heaven, Jesus. What it offers far surpasses what’s here on earth. When Jesus fasted in the desert for 40 days, food for him would probably have been an orgasmic experience. Even if he had been presented with tree bark and grass as North Koreans eat, these un-delectable delights would likely have tasted better than any gourmet meal possible.

Yet, even though Jesus was offered the best of everything this world has, he rejected it all in favor of dying the most horrible death imaginable. For Heaven and getting as many people there who are willing to go was worth that much to Him.