What’s your (real) objection? (Part 3)
“Que sera sera, whatever will be will be, The future's not ours to see, Que sera sera. What will be will be.”
—Doris Day
Among his objections to the truth of the Christian worldview [link to Series Introduction], my friend cited Doris Day’s song, “Whatever will be will be.” While I don’t know exactly why he did so, it is certainly the case that many today have a fatalistic view of their future after death.
In this regard, the following quote from a recent CTV News article is particularly relevant.
“A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
“Conducted in February and March, the survey gathered responses from more than 2,000 Canadians, with a variety of religious affiliations, across the country. Continuing a trend found in prior surveys by ARI and Gallup, at least three in five respondents said they believed in an afterlife…‘Only one-in-eight (13%) Canadians “definitely” ruled it out.’”
While this survey indicates that a majority of Canadians believe in life after death, one could logically infer from what they say and do that most give very little thought to the questions raised by this belief.
While this survey indicates that a majority of Canadians believe in life after death, one could logically infer from what they say and do that most give very little thought to the questions raised by this belief. Most importantly, is there anything they can do that would affect where they spend their afterlife?
Other surveys reveal that a majority of Canadians (most of whom descend from ancestors espousing a Christian worldview) believe that God exists. However, they generally live autonomously without regard to God. Although they might believe God exists and there is life after death, they live without reference to Him and His purposes in creating them. They are, in fact, functional atheists.
Per my blog “Heaven bound or ‘lights out’?”, most seem to be operating on the theory “Que sera, sera.” That is, using their five physical senses and their intellect, they maintain they cannot know with certainty what happens to them after death and conclude that whatever will be will be - even though they hope for a positive future unrelated to the choices they make while alive.
During my business career, I understood that uncertainty about the future outcome of an investment cannot relieve me of the responsibility of taking risk on purpose. Indeed, even scientific theories are simply the opinions of scientists supported by evidence. And they change as more data becomes available. For example, the current scientific consensus that the universe began in finite time is a significant departure from the prior scientific view that the universe had no beginning.
Ironically, while there can be no bigger question than life after death, most give little thought to its implications even though the question of where we will spend eternity cries out for personal investigation! According to the Bible, God made us in His image with the freedom - and responsibility - to make life choices. In fact, “que sera, sera” is a choice with profound consequences, since Jesus said that no one gains access to an eternal relationship with God except through him. By extension, the biggest life choice is our “yes” or “no” response to Jesus’ invitation to trust in him alone for a fulfilling life and afterlife.
What’s your choice? Please connect with me if you would like to explore this question further.
Next week, I’ll address blind faith. It turns out that Richard Dawkins, world-renowned atheist, might be guilty!
Photo by Meghan Schiereck on Unsplash
