About 1,000 years ago, St. Anselm philosophized about the existence of God. He said that God is “that which nothing greater can be conceived.” And, since existing is better than not existing, it can be argued that God MUST exist. His “ontological argument” for God is still taught in philosophy and theology classes around the world.
Whether you find Anselm’s argument convincing or not, I would like to make an ontological argument for birthday gifts. A gift you receive is greater than a gift you only imagine. I might imagine that my wife and son will give me a set of new golf clubs for my birthday … but though the dollar amount for that gift exceeds the cost of the grilling equipment they gave me, the gift they gave me is FAR BETTER! I can’t swing the imaginary golf clubs, but I can put on the grilling gloves and keep my hands from burning when cooking outside. Therefore, the gift I receive exceeds the gift I imagine!
You may dream that you will have a “Lexus December to Remember,” but the Christmas gift you actually receive is way better, since it exists outside your own imagination in the real world.
Friends I say all this today because in Genesis 22 and Matthew 27 we have two events so graphic and frightful that some might be tempted to say that they are fictional accounts. The two stories take place on the same mountains, but separated by about 2,000 years. About 2,000 BC (in Genesis 22), we have Abraham and his son Isaac walking up a hill to worship God. Around 30 AD (in Matthew 27), we have God the Father looking on as God the Son, Jesus Christ, headed toward the hill of the skull in worshipful obedience. In both cases a sacrifice was offered. In both cases there was tremendous passion. Yet only in one of the instances does the Son die.
Here is the thing … these events really happened. They are not a fiction. They are not good intentions. They are not compelling literature. They. Really. Occurred.
Abraham and Isaac really walked up that hill. Jesus really went to the cross at Calvary. God really provided the alternative sacrifice and spared Isaac’s life. Jesus really died on the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice for our sins, so that our eternity could be secured.
Ontology is the study of being … the study of what really is. Jesus’ death on the cross is not a greeting card. It is not a nice idea about how much God loves us. He really endured the cross for you and for me. He didn’t just talk about dying in our place, He actually did it. This reminds us that we do not have a God who likes the idea of us, but not the reality of us – we know a God who ontologically loves us. And that is FAR BETTER!
This Sunday, August 31, at Wildwood Community Church, we will look at Genesis 22 together as we continue pulling the “Scarlet Thread” through the Old Testament to see shadows of the Savior. See you in our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 service as we sing, study God’s Word, pray, and celebrate the Lord’s Supper together. See you there … and bring friends!