What is Existentialism?
I first heard the term existentialism when I was in college years ago. It took a long time to get a good understanding of what it meant because those who write about it seem to exhaust the English Dictionary of technical terms and seldom heard words. So, I decided it was time to explain it so the average person could understand it. By the way, I’m an average kind of person myself.
I’ll start with a definition: Existential derives from the Latin “existentiālis” relating to existence. The critical issue of Existentialism, when applied to human life, is to discover the true nature of one’s existence, which emphasizes the existence of the individual person through acts of the will, being a free agent responsible for determining their own development, and directed by their experience and mind. The word existential can also apply to something existing in the present. For example, “There is a concern of the existential (existing) danger of a third world war.”
In human terms, Existentialism is a philosophy that claims there is no one consistent truth and no inherent rules or guidelines. Accordingly, no one has the answers to guide life that fits everyone. Therefore, each person has to decide what moral code will guide their life. In conjunction with that, there is no definite right or wrong, good or bad, so each person must also decide what is right for them or bad for them. There is no relevance to life other than what each individual chooses to be relevant. Each person is free to direct his own life on a horizontal plane without considering a vertical relationship with God. Therefore, all and all, each person decides on how to determine their existence. The bottom line is people are dehumanized, and Christianity is emptied of meaning and has no relevance to life in the present or the future. God becomes only an idea or object of the mind.
The danger of Existentialism is trying to rationalize or philosophize the existence of God with theories and ideas, which can result in being a substitute for the real thing, misleading people and reducing God to an object of the imagination. Therefore, making it impossible to have a personal relationship with Him.
Existentialism is an attempt to take the real meaning of life away and replace it with a false system of ideas, ideas that condemn the reality of truth, and the existence of a personal God. Even though some existentialists may say that they believe in God, it seems to be only an idea of the mind that does not include a personal relationship with Him. The greatest need to defeat the false concept of Existentialism is understanding truth and its origin.
What Is Truth?
Contrary to Existentialism, No one lives by what appears to be true solely by their own experience or mind. Truth is both of God and in God, and he has spoken it in His word, through His Son, Jesus Christ, and the Apostles of the early church. A belief in, and commitment to God’s Word alone is the only source of true meaning and certainty. Only the revealed truth of God can make any sense of life. Otherwise, it is hopeless and meaningless. Only through the truth of God’s word is there hope for the spiritual new birth in Christ, eternal life, and membership in God’s kingdom. Existentialism is the direct opposite of that, which is unwilling to be bound by the word of God. To Existentialism, validity of truth depends upon man to discern from within, not from an external source like the Bible.
. Existentialism foregoes the principle of truth through faith in God and His word. The idea that the source of truth can be found only in the human mind rather than a transfer from God’s mind to man is a perilous and false premise. Truth is a gift from God alone through absolutely no merit of humanity. Nowhere in the Bible is there any indication that God leaves sinful man to grope around within himself to find the source of absolute truth. No person can rely on what appears to be the truth in his own experience and his mind, or that the essence of human life is what we as individuals choose to make it. It is not up to each person to decide what seems right or wrong, good or bad for themselves, nor is it up to the individual to make their own meaning in life.
True meaning begins with a relationship with God. Without God, there is only nihilism, the belief that life has no meaning. It is God’s purpose for your life to have meaning and purpose, but before that can be, you have to have a relationship with God through Jesus His Son. If you are wondering how that is possible, it is pretty simple, as simple as A, B, C: A is admitting the fact that you are a sinner in need of God’s forgiveness, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23. B, is believing Jesus died and rose again to pay the penalty for your sins, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” Romans 5:8. C, it is confessing your sins or repenting of them and confessing Jesus as your savior. “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation,” Romans 10:10.
Prayer is how “with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” It is communicating to God your faith in Jesus and desires to be forgiven, but you are not saved by prayer; you are saved through faith and by the grace of God. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9Not of works, lest any man should boast,” Ephesians-2-8-9. If you have a desire to have a relationship with God, the sample prayer below is your approach to ask Him for that relationship:
I ADMIT, dear God, that I am a sinner, and I am sorry that I have sinned against you. I BELIEVE in my heart that Jesus died on the cross to pay for my sins and arose again to life. I CONFESS my sins and want to turn from them. Please forgive me. I invite you Jesus to come into my life and be my savior and Lord. Thank you for loving me and saving me, In Jesus name. Amen.”
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