"Do you know what the secret of life is?" Curly (City Slickers)
If there was a true secret of life, would we be willing to believe it? In our post-modern world where many don't believe there are absolute truths, this is a relevant question.
Post-Modern Answer
In the movie "City Slickers" there is an intriguing scene in which Billy Crystal portrays a man going through a middle age crisis. He is beginning to see that his time in this life is limited, and is struggling to find meaning in it all. He is chatting with an old cowboy (Curly) about life when Curly asks him if he knows what the secret of life is (see YouTube video clip below or at this link: (https://youtu.be/X1cmvzRKCCg).
For me, the intriguing aspect of the scene, as characterized by Billy Crystal's character, is the display of yearning we all feel for something beyond ourselves that gives us true meaning, purpose and happiness. Curly's answer (which is basically, you have to figure it out for yourself) seems to carry some weight, but in the end is disappointing and leaves me unsatisfied. Why? Because no matter how much we try to assuage the ache of our mortality with our own anecdotes (money, sex, power, fame, even kindness or love) it doesn't change the fact that life is all too brief and in the end, in the secular worldview, none of it will really matter. Theologian Tim Keller summarizes the implications of the secular, post-modern worldview:
"What if human civilization lasted a billion years? In comparison to the oceans of dead time before life, and the oceans of dead time after the sun burns out, human civilization is just a blip. No one will be around to remember anything that’s been done. Nothing you do has any significance at all. Everything you do is insignificant whether you live a good life or a bad life." (1)
Astonishingly, in contrast to this bleak picture, there is a much better answer to the "secret of life" question, one that is filled with hope, joy, and peace. (2)
"Whoever has ears, let them hear", said Jesus Christ to a crowd after one of his public teachings. (3) Later, when his close followers asked him about the meaning of his teaching, he said “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you....Don't you understand...? (emphasis mine) (4) Despite their slowness, he patiently and graciously went on to explain the meaning of that teaching to them.
The same could be said of you and me. Do we want to "hear" about the secret of his kingdom? If you have an open mind and earnestly desire to know the "secret of life", I urge you to consider Jesus' message, which isn't really a secret at all. It is freely available and has brought hope, joy, meaning, and purpose to billions of people over the centuries.
Good News!
Jesus lived a remarkable life of "mighty works and wonders and signs." (5)
Here are a few of his teachings:
“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” (6)
"In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (7)
"...there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” “Behold, I make all things new." (8)
Of course, anyone could have said these things, although one would have to wonder about their sanity. However, Jesus backed up his claims by his mighty works and, especially, by his Resurrection from the dead after his brutal crucifixion. (9, 10)
"Seek, and you will find", taught Jesus. (11) He has the same patience and graciousness towards you and me that he had for his followers when they didn't immediately understand his teachings, as mentioned above.
I love the painting of Jesus on the Road to Emmaus, walking with his followers after his Resurrection from the dead. As they walked, Jesus explained the secrets of the kingdom to them. After the journey his two followers exclaimed “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”(12)
Do you want to know the secret of life?
Will you follow him? It doesn't mean your journey will be easy, or that you will always understand everything that happens to you. But it will be a lifelong journey of learning his truths and being increasingly filled with the hope that one day he will make all things new, including you.
Beautiful!
Footnotes...
(1) Tim Keller, Notes from his sermon "Sickness Unto Death". https://paulvanderklay.me/2013/11/07/notes-on-tim-kellers-sermon-sickness-unto-death/
(2) Romans 15:13
(3) Matthew 11:15; Mark 4:9, 23.
(4) excerpts from Mark 4:11-13.
(5) Acts 2:22.
(6) John 11:25-26.
(7) John 16:33
(8) Revelation 21:4-5.
(9) Acts 2:23-24.
(10) There is significant evidence of his Resurrection for those interested, but that is beyond the scope of this discussion and I have covered it in other posts: Ressurection from the Dead; and Risen - The Movie
(11) Matthew 7:7
(12) Luke 24:32
If there was a true secret of life, would we be willing to believe it? In our post-modern world where many don't believe there are absolute truths, this is a relevant question.
Post-Modern Answer
In the movie "City Slickers" there is an intriguing scene in which Billy Crystal portrays a man going through a middle age crisis. He is beginning to see that his time in this life is limited, and is struggling to find meaning in it all. He is chatting with an old cowboy (Curly) about life when Curly asks him if he knows what the secret of life is (see YouTube video clip below or at this link: (https://youtu.be/X1cmvzRKCCg).
For me, the intriguing aspect of the scene, as characterized by Billy Crystal's character, is the display of yearning we all feel for something beyond ourselves that gives us true meaning, purpose and happiness. Curly's answer (which is basically, you have to figure it out for yourself) seems to carry some weight, but in the end is disappointing and leaves me unsatisfied. Why? Because no matter how much we try to assuage the ache of our mortality with our own anecdotes (money, sex, power, fame, even kindness or love) it doesn't change the fact that life is all too brief and in the end, in the secular worldview, none of it will really matter. Theologian Tim Keller summarizes the implications of the secular, post-modern worldview:
"What if human civilization lasted a billion years? In comparison to the oceans of dead time before life, and the oceans of dead time after the sun burns out, human civilization is just a blip. No one will be around to remember anything that’s been done. Nothing you do has any significance at all. Everything you do is insignificant whether you live a good life or a bad life." (1)
Astonishingly, in contrast to this bleak picture, there is a much better answer to the "secret of life" question, one that is filled with hope, joy, and peace. (2)
 |
| Jesus giving his famous "Sermon on the Mount" (Matthew 5-7). Painting by Carl Heinrich Bloch (Danish painter, 1834-1890). |
The same could be said of you and me. Do we want to "hear" about the secret of his kingdom? If you have an open mind and earnestly desire to know the "secret of life", I urge you to consider Jesus' message, which isn't really a secret at all. It is freely available and has brought hope, joy, meaning, and purpose to billions of people over the centuries.
Good News!
Jesus lived a remarkable life of "mighty works and wonders and signs." (5)
Here are a few of his teachings:
“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” (6)
"In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (7)
"...there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” “Behold, I make all things new." (8)
Of course, anyone could have said these things, although one would have to wonder about their sanity. However, Jesus backed up his claims by his mighty works and, especially, by his Resurrection from the dead after his brutal crucifixion. (9, 10)
 |
| Road to Emmaus, by Robert Zund (1826-1909). |
I love the painting of Jesus on the Road to Emmaus, walking with his followers after his Resurrection from the dead. As they walked, Jesus explained the secrets of the kingdom to them. After the journey his two followers exclaimed “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”(12)
Do you want to know the secret of life?
Will you follow him? It doesn't mean your journey will be easy, or that you will always understand everything that happens to you. But it will be a lifelong journey of learning his truths and being increasingly filled with the hope that one day he will make all things new, including you.
Beautiful!
Footnotes...
(1) Tim Keller, Notes from his sermon "Sickness Unto Death". https://paulvanderklay.me/2013/11/07/notes-on-tim-kellers-sermon-sickness-unto-death/
(2) Romans 15:13
(3) Matthew 11:15; Mark 4:9, 23.
(4) excerpts from Mark 4:11-13.
(5) Acts 2:22.
(6) John 11:25-26.
(7) John 16:33
(8) Revelation 21:4-5.
(9) Acts 2:23-24.
(10) There is significant evidence of his Resurrection for those interested, but that is beyond the scope of this discussion and I have covered it in other posts: Ressurection from the Dead; and Risen - The Movie
(11) Matthew 7:7
(12) Luke 24:32
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