by Professor Pham Quang Tam

   In our daily life, each of us is faced with many questions that require answers. However none of them is as important as the following 3 questions that have troubled philosophers and scientists for ages. I am sure you too are sometimes troubled by them. They are:

1. Where do we come from?

2. Why are we here on earth?

3. Where do we go after we die?

Being a thinking person, once in a while in a clear night, you look up the sky at the twinkling of millions of stars, you have no doubt wondered: Where do we humans come from? Is there life elsewhere in the universe? And when you witness the killing of innocent people in war, the daily homicides, or people pushing and shoving each other for money and power, I am sure you might have also asked yourself: What is the meaning of life? It can’t be that we humans are just born, grow up, and then die. That’s not the meaning of life. And when you say goodbye to a friend or a loved one at their funeral, you must have wondered: Where do we go after we die?

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1.                 Where do we come from? Until the middle age, people still believed that the earth was the center of the universe, and we humans were the center of the earth. Now with advanced knowledge in astronomy we know that our earth is but a speck in the vast universe. The more we learn about vastness of the universe, the smaller we feel.

At the present, scientists have not found intelligent life anywhere else outside of our flimsy planet. The question then naturally pops up in   your mind: If so where do we come from? Why does life exist only on this little earth? Being a person of reason and with some scientific knowledge, you do not subscribe to the theory of spontaneous generation maintaining that life exists by itself. However, the Bible, God’s Holy Word gives you an answer. The book of Genesis tells us, “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.”(Gen. 1:1)

And verse 26 of the same chapter writes, “God said,

“Let us make humans who will be like us.” (Gen 1:1) The Bible also gives us more details about how human beings were created, “Then the Lord God took dust from the ground and made man. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nose, and the man became a living thing.”(Gen. 2:7)  So we know that we humans were created by God, not by spontaneous generation. The One who created human beings and all life forms on earth is also the One who created the universe because Genesis 1:15-16 says that God created the sun, the moon and the stars.  To give you an idea about the vastness of the universe: light travels at 186,000 miles per second. Even at such a tremendous speed, it takes light 8 minutes to reach earth from the sun, a distance of 96 million miles.  One puzzling phenomenon we should note: the distance between the earth and the sun is the right one for life to exist. If the earth is too close to the sun, we will all be burned up, and  if it is too far from the sun we will all be frozen to death. Is that right distance accidental?—No, because the Creator sets it that way.

At the present time we still do not know the limit of the universe. Our nearest neighbor, Alpha Centauri is about 4 light years away from us! With the most powerful telescope, we can only see stars that are about 20 billion light years from us. However, that is still not the limit of the universe! The existence of life on this little planet in the vast ocean of the universe consisting of billions of stars is one of the most intriguing puzzles that scientists have not been able to solve.

David, one of the most famous Jewish kings of old uttered these words when he saw the universe and God’s miraculous care for us humans, “When I look at the heavens that you made with your hands, I see the moon and stars you created, and wonder: Why are people so important to you? Why do you even remember them? Why do you even notice them?” (Ps. 8:3-4) A powerful God who created the huge universe cares for little earthlings like us! How great is his love for us!

2.      Why are we here on earth?  What is the meaning

    of life?  What is the meaning of our existence?

Nobody knows for sure when humans first appeared on earth. From the time the writing system was to record history (about 5,000 years ago) people have always fought with and killed each other through wars and battles. It is estimated that more than 90%  of the recorded human history or 4,500 years, was  spent in war!

     Everyday, we read about wars, homicides, terrorism,

     natural disasters etc. that make our already short lives,   

     much shorter! And when looking around, you see people

     going after material things, power, social positions etc.

     Trying to reach their goals, people would not refrain

from anything to hurt each other! You wonder: Is that the

     meaning of life? 

God’s command in the Bible says, “Maintain

justice and do what is right.” (Is. 56:1). He puts  us humans on earth to worship Him and serve other people, not to hurt or kill each other! He wants us to rule and improve this planet that He has created. God also tells us, “Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” (Ps. 82:3) Also our responsibility is to “rule over the works of His

hands.” (Ps. 8:5-6). That is the real meaning of life. That’s the real reason for our existence on this planet.

    No one can deny that our lives are insignificant compared with eternity! Moses, a great Jewish leader has written, “The length of  our days is seventy years—or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and  sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we

fly away.”  (Ps. 90:10). Since our days on earth are so short, let’s give them a meaning instead of wasting them. God’s children  always obey God’s command  by improving this temporary life both physically and spiritually. Their goal is to show the love of Jesus to every human being. Many have gone into the  jungles, living among the primitive people to bring the Good News of God’s love to them. And sometimes they have to pay for the price of that Great Love with their own lives!

3.                Where do we go after we die?  We are normally very busy with our daily lives that we rarely pay attention to when our existence on earth comes to an end. We tend to forget that every day that goes by brings us closer to our final day on earth! Only when we experience the sad separation with our friends or loved ones at their funerals do we wake up to the question: Where do we go from here?  When is it my turn to die?

Many people believe that death is the end of everything.   Why do they say that?—Because from the day of creation, billions of people have walked on this planet and died, vanishing without a trace. None has returned to tell us what happens beyond the grave. However, the Bible gives us a glimpse of what happens after death, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” (Heb. 9:27) The Bible

further reveals that, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Cor. 5:10).  Elsewhere the Bible tells us, “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” (Eccl. 12:14) Those are the events that will take place after death. In Revelation, a book written by John, one of Jesus’ disciples we read, “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books...If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Rev. 20:11-15) Also the Bible tells about the fate of those who will be punished after appearing before God’s judgment seat, “The cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” (Rev. 21:8).

So you see there are two kinds of death: one   physical, the other spiritual, that is suffering     eternally in hell. The physical death is temporary, the spiritual death is permanent.

John also gives a description of heaven, the place where God’s children, those who will not be 

       judged will live, as follows, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth...I saw the Holy City, the      

      new Jerusalem, coming out of heaven from God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will  

      be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Our  

     lives here on earth are temporary, our future lives in heaven are permanent.

          Did you notice that every religion on earth is trying to understand the other world beyond

     this one? Why?

     - Because most of us human beings believe that  there must be something else after death. However,

no religion gives us a clear explanation about events beyond the grave as the Bible, God’s Word  does.

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          Dear friend, if these are the three questions that have been bothering you, you now know the answers to them from the Bible. Although all of us have many choices to make while living, there are two that we cannot make: the day of our birth and the day of our death.

        If we have given a lot of preparations while living,

 should we not be more prepared for the day when

 we leave this life? I believe you do. How do you do it?

 Again the Bible shows us the way, “There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 8:1) Who are not condemned after death? –Those who put their trust in Jesus. The Bible tells us that, “For God so loved theworld that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (Jn. 3:16) How did God give his Son? By sacrificing him on the cross for you and me.

         Dear friend, after reading this little tract if you, like me, have been troubled by these 3 most important questions and would like to find a real meaning for your life on earth and eternal security in the future then you should put your trust in Jesus Christ today. Do not delay. He is waiting for you. You can come directly to him with a sincere heart by praying as follows:

    “Dear Jesus, I would like to have a meaningful life. I would like to have eternal life. I am willing to put my trust in your sacrifice on the cross. Please accept me as your child so that I can enter your kingdom. In Christ’s name. Amen.”