The Bible is divided into 2 primary parts, The Old Testament, that describes the beginning of the universe, origin of man, and the history of God’s chosen people. The Old Testament also holds prophesies that point toward future events, including information about the coming of a Messiah (Jesus Christ), who will provide the means for mankind to successfully transcend the physical plane and reunite with God on a spiritual plane.

The second part of the Bible is the New Testament, which tells of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The arrival of Jesus onto the spiritual path of mankind adds another dimension to the purpose of man. Jesus introduces mankind to the spiritual nature of man. With this enhanced view of the spirit of God within us we are taught to connect with, and rely upon our spiritual intelligence as well as the word of God to guide us through life. In the New Testament Jesus indicates that He is the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament. A large part of the purpose of man as taught in the New Testament is to believe that Jesus is the Messiah.

In” John 6: 29 we read “Then they said to Him, “What must we do , to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”.

In Christianity we believe that Jesus not only taught man how to perform in a way that responds well to God’s desires but also showed us through His actions how we should aspire to behave in order to be in alignment with the will of God. But beyond that, Christians believe that Jesus also provided a necessary mechanism to fulfill certain spiritual requirements for our acceptance into the realm of heaven that other humans were unable to perform. So, along with the belief in Jesus comes a belief in the spiritual nature of man and a new directive to provide this very important information to the world. To do so requires a change in attitude. In the Old Testament God’s people weren’t particularly concerned about the spiritual wellbeing of others. God had provided them with the means to improve their own spiritual nature, but they weren’t encouraged to spread the word to any people outside of their own kind. The New Testament does away with many of the barriers that isolated the spiritual nature of God’s chosen from the rest of the world.

Matthew 22:36-40 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law? And He said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”.

Love for one’s neighbor can cast a pretty broad net over mankind. Jesus didn’t make any distinctions regarding the neighbor’s ethnicity or social status, nor any other restrictions. John 3:16-17 puts an even finer point on it, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”

The “…in order that the world might be saved…” should make it clear as to who is included in God’s desire for mankind.

I don’t look at these changes of purposes as noted in the 3 segments of this series as different. They look more like progressive steps necessary to bring mankind to the point where were are better equipped to perform our subsequent tasks. In Part 1 we were purposed with becoming familiar with God and His physical creation, Part 2 is all about learning to obey God and Part 3 is about Jesus and His role in bringing us to our next purpose.

Ultimately, I think our purpose extends beyond our physical realm and will be more impactful spiritually than we can imagine. But, one step at a time. If we can fulfill the present purpose God has for us, we will understand the next purpose when we are ready.