Just Be Good For Goodness Sake?

For centuries mankind has been trying to deny the existence of God. While God has declared His existence to all mankind through general means such as creation (Psalm 19:1-2; Romans 1:19-20), the human conscience (Romans 2:14-15), and His loving care of all mankind (Acts 14:16-17) and has revealed Himself through the special means of His Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2), mankind still chooses to suppress and distort this truth about God (Romans 1:21).
One such attempt to deny God was made in the weeks leading up to Christmas a few years ago. The American Humanist Association launched a $40,000 holiday ad campaign in Washington D.C. by putting the message, “Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness sake” on the sides of city buses. A spokesman for the group stated in an interview that, “We are trying to reach our audience, and sometimes in order to reach an audience, everybody has to hear you. Our reason for doing it during the holidays is there are an awful lot of agnostics, atheists, and other types of non-theists who feel a little alone during the holidays because of its association with traditional religion.”
The D.C. ad campaign came on the heels of a similar anti-God barrage in England. The British Humanist Association ran ads on London buses declaring, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” This ad campaign in the U.K. goes to show that foolishness knows no geographical boundaries (Psalm 14:1; 53:1).
But as I read and considered the content (or lack thereof!) of the ads and the comments of their propagators, I was immediately struck with the absurdity of their argument. Simply wishing God away or denying His existence does not change the fact that He does exist. I may not believe in gravity, but one step off the Perrine Bridge sans parachute and I will be quickly convinced, at least for a second or two, of the truth of the force of gravity. Month after month I can choose to deny my accountability to the bank for my mortgage, or even go so far as to deny the very existence of the bank itself. But the bank will be quite quick to remind me of their existence and the consequences of my denial when they begin foreclosure proceedings. Why believe in a God? Because the overwhelming evidence leads us to the existence of a God who has made Himself known. God exists and He is far from silent about His existence.
The message, “Just be good for goodness sake” is not good news at all, because as hard as we may try, we cannot be good enough. The message of the Bible and the Gospel is not “clean up your act and try harder and be good for goodness sakes.” The Good News of the Bible is that Jesus came because I cannot be good. He embarked on a divine rescue-mission where He would deliver sinners from the penalty of their sins through His death (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Timothy 1:15).
And while many “agnostics, atheists, and other types of non-theists” feel alone during the holidays, they only feel such because they have rejected God. The message of the Bible is that we are not alone: the God of this universe cares for us. The message of Christmas that makes them feel “a little alone during the holidays because of its association with traditional religion” is the one that proves to them that God loves them enough to send His Son to save them (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).
Is anyone really willing to rest their life on the shifting sand assertion of “there’s probably no God”? Besides that, if there is no God, then I have lost all capacity to “stop worrying and enjoy your life.” The problem is that if there is no God then all I can do is worry. If there is no God then I have been cut off from the only thing in the universe that brings true joy to my life and is able to satisfy the deepest longings of my heart (Psalm 73:25; Isaiah 43:7). If there is no God then life ceases to make sense and nothing really matters at all.
Jesus came because I cannot be good. Jesus came because I do feel alone. Jesus came because I need hope for this life and hope for the life to come. He came for “agnostics, atheists, and other types of non-theists” and for just run-of-the-mill sinners like you and me. There is a God. And this God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him would not perish, but have eternal life. Now that’s a great message for an ad campaign (Acts 1:8)!