Human Nature
Many things have changed over the past two thousand years. Back in earlier times, civilizations had chariots, aqueducts, and amphitheaters. Today, we have airplanes, indoor plumbing, and social media. But in spite of these many changes which have come over the years, the contours of human nature have remained consistent. We are not first and foremost God-oriented beings, but instead we love and live for things that aren’t Him. What we observe today has been true of human nature since ancient times: “as it is written, ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God’” (Romans 3:10-11).
I’m convinced that these words potently describe our biggest problem as human beings. Our problem, ultimately, is that no one seeks for God. There is nothing greater than God that is worthy of our pursuit, and yet our heart’s default setting is to desire things contrary to God. Though God is kind, and supernaturally works to draw many people to himself, we wouldn’t go looking for Him on our own. A posture of seeking God is foreign to the corrupt human heart, and this is the epitome of wrongness.
Seeking Something, but Missing Everything
Yet from our human perspective, our ungodly lives don’t always look like a train wreck. Notice carefully – those words quoted from Romans 3 – they don’t say, “No one seeks for morality” or “No one seeks to have a happy life” or “No one seeks to be kind to others.” Because each of those statements would be patently false. People do try to live moral lives. People do seek happiness and they do look for ways to be nice to other people. But the tragedy is that we’ve pursued these things in the place of God, without seeking for God. And that’s the big accusation being levied against humanity here.
The Rise of Superficial Morality
In popular culture, people tend to define something as moral if it’s pragmatically helpful for human freedom, and they define something as immoral if it violates someone’s human freedom. The problem with this definition is that it assumes from the very beginning that God doesn’t really factor into matters of morality. Society has imbibed an understanding of right and wrong which is inherently atheistic – without reference to God.
If you try to suggest that someone is immoral for ignoring God or neglecting to pledge allegiance to him as the King of the Universe, they may look at you strangely. Yet the worst crime we could commit is not to offend another human being, but is instead to offend the Sacred Majesty of our Creator. Humanity has created the greatest evil by rejecting the greatest good – that is, by refusing to pursue God. For as long as we’re blind to the authority, worth, and expectations of God Most High, American culture is doomed to misunderstand what true righteousness is.
“None are righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.”
Do Christians Seek God?
I wish I could say this was only a problem among people who have never read the Bible, or among people who have never heard the name of Jesus. But I think there are many people in Christian churches who would misunderstand or misrepresent what the Bible actually teaches. Too many voices speak about Christianity as though it is merely a philosophy of moral education. Others suggest that Christianity simply provides a social network to support your mental health. Yet these descriptions insult the unique dignity of true religion. Christianity isn’t just a self-help routine that enables people to check boxes off of their list of personal priorities. Instead, the true treasure that Christianity offers is God himself.
A God Worth Seeking
So do you love God? Do you appreciate what He has done for you? “…[W]hile we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). When we were failing to take the initiative to seek God, God took the initiative to pursue us. We were unrighteous, so God sent his Son to pay the penalty for our crimes and to clothe us with his righteousness. We weren’t understanding, so God sent His Spirit to renew our hearts and illumine our minds. We weren’t seeking for God, but now the way into friendship with God has been opened for those who receive Christ’s work for their salvation.
The greatest goal that humanity could ever aim for isn’t just to have God’s gifts, but is to have God himself. So resolve in your heart, relying on divine grace, that you won’t neglect the greatest thing. Seek first after God.
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
