Mark Batterson - What Is The Good Life?

This weekend, we kick off a new series called «The Good Life.» Well, what is it? Well, maybe we ought to start with what it’s not. Can we start there? The good life is not no problems; the only people with no problems are six feet under. The good life is not good money. No, no, no. In the words of the Notorious B.I.G., «More money, more problems.» It’s not «no pain, no gain.»

The good life doesn’t mean you don’t have bad days. Bad things happen to good people. The good life is not fame and fortune; all the toys go back in the box at the end of the game. I’ve never seen anybody hitch a U-Haul to a hearse. The good life is not «eat, drink, and be merry.» Well then, what is it? Because you’ve canceled a lot of definitions that are floating out there. What is the good life? Well, okay, I do think the good life is good food. Can I get an amen?

Who loves language? There should have been six love languages, the sixth one being food. I think the good life—come on—is good food, good friends. I think it’s good health, good music, good movies, good times, and a thousand other things. But you and I both know it’s more than that, isn’t it? The good life begins and ends with a good God. It’d make a decent sweatshirt; if you buy this sweatshirt, wear it in the way that people perceive God to be good. Can I just say it that way? This one could work out either way; He is a good Father who gives good gifts to His children. He is working all things together for good. His gospel is good news; His will is good will. No good thing will God withhold from those who walk uprightly before Him. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. Every good and perfect gift comes from above. God is good all the time. All right, we are off and running.

I love the way G.K. Chesterton said this. In fact, I’ll put it on the screen; you’ll find it in the message notes in the NCC app. You can find it on the screen here and snap a picture as well. He said, «The more I consider Christianity, the more I find that while it established a rule and order—oh, I love this, I love this so much—the chief aim of that order is to give room for good things to run wild.» I’m just going to throw this out free: God is in a good mood. Wait, what? I think for some of us, like, yeah, He’s not a cosmic killjoy, and I hope you believe that by the time we’re done.

Well, let’s jump in with both feet. If we’re going to reverse engineer the good life, we have to go back to the beginning, and we’re going to go back to the Hebrew word for good, «tov.» We’ll get there in verse four, by the way—546 times in the Old Testament, seven times in that creation poem, Genesis 1. So the idea of «tov» is key to this whole thing. Really, today is just like a big word study. So here we go: Genesis 1:1—"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth.» «B’reishit Elohim bara"—the first three words of the Hebrew Bible. God first reveals Himself as Creator, and He creates ex nihilo, out of nothing.

Now, I know that there are those within the scientific community who sort of scoff at the idea of intelligent design, who have divorced themselves, in my opinion, from the God of Science. They seem to think that somehow intelligent design is less logical or less scientific. But I mean, with all due respect, I would argue otherwise. I mean, Sir Fred Hoyle, the guy who coined the phrase «Big Bang,» said this: «Let’s be scientifically honest: the probability of life arising to greater and greater complexity by chance through evolution is the same probability as having a tornado tear through a junkyard and form a Boeing 747 jetliner.» Even if you don’t believe in a Creator, you still have to account for origin; you still need a cosmological starting point. Christians believe in the virgin birth of Jesus; skeptics believe in the virgin birth of the universe. Choose your miracle.

Mark, why are you making a big deal about this? Because origin stories matter. If you cancel God, in my experience, you will cancel people. Which people? The people who are wrong. And by that, I mean the people who don’t agree with you. Careful. If you believe in a Creator, it’s the exact opposite. This is where our theology of dignity, theology of equality, and theology of solidarity come from. The image of God in me greets the image of God in you. We may disagree about a thousand things—important things—but you are still the image of God, and I’m going to love you that way. So I think this origin story, this vision of humanity, is the difference between common enemy and common humanity. And that’s another sermon for another day.

Verse two: «Now the Earth was formless and empty; darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.» Wish I had time to teach this. Suffice it to say, the Spirit of God is still hovering over the surface of the deep. The Spirit of God is still filling empty things. The Spirit of God is still bringing order out of chaos. Now, step back for a little thought experiment. There is nothing harder to imagine than nothing. But I want you to imagine nothing. No light, no sound, no plants, no animals, no time, no space, no nothing. And God said, «Let there be light.» Those four words—two words in Hebrew—are still creating galaxies at the outer edge of the universe, scientifically speaking.

Can I tell you what God said? God said, «Let there be electromagnetic radiation with varying wavelengths.» Let there be infrared and ultraviolet. Let there be gamma rays and X-rays. Let there be radio waves and microwaves. Let there be photosynthesis, bioluminescence, and the Aurora Borealis. Let there be laser surgery and satellite communication. Let there be Crayola crayons; and last but not least, let there be rainbows after rainstorms. And we could go forever, couldn’t we? Because light is the basis of everything, and God does it with two words.

Can I tease this out a little bit? I’m going somewhere with this; it’s going to make the payoff better. Christmas Day 2021, NASA launched a rocket carrying a $10 billion telescope. The James Webb Telescope started sending back these unbelievable images to Earth—mind-boggling! There are an estimated two trillion galaxies in the universe, and I’ll show you just one of my favorites. It’s called «The Pillars of Creation,» and this is so fun. This phrase is actually taken from an 1857 Charles Spurgeon sermon where he used this phrase, and evidently, whatever astrophysicist named it thought, «Well, that’s a pretty good way of saying it.»

I mean, take a look at that. Those pillars are 7,000 light-years from Earth. One of those fingers is four light-years long. That’s more than 23 trillion miles long! And as big as that is—I mean, it’s so small compared to the Milky Way galaxy, which is a small galaxy. But the Milky Way is 100,000 light-years from one side to the other. In other words, if you could travel at the speed of light, 186,282 miles per second, it would take you 100,000 years to get from one side to the other side. And that’s one of two trillion galaxies.

So what? Well, when God said, «Let there be light,» it includes the Pillars of Creation and every spiral, elliptical, peculiar, and irregular galaxy. It included every yellow dwarf and red giant star. It includes planets and exoplanets and former planets called Pluto. We’re better, not bitter. Some people had an issue with that. Right? Right? Pastor Mark, do you really expect me to believe that this universe was the result of two words? With all due respect, do you really expect me to believe that all of this is the result of random chance? The order came from chaos without any outside intervention or outside intelligence? That makes no scientific sense; it violates the laws of physics. It violates common science and common sense. We recognize intelligent design when we see it. I’m just going to call it like it is: you are not an accident; you’re the image of God. You are fearfully and wonderfully made! Like, who is orchestrating those 37 sextillion chemical reactions that are happening in your body? Did you wake up this morning and just go to work? «In Him, we live and move and have our being.»

So Genesis 1:3—God said; Genesis 1:4—God saw that the light was good. I think the English translation falls a little bit short, so let’s just get down to business. I don’t think «tov» is good; I think it’s gooder than good. I think it’s as good as it gets. I think it’s too good to be true, but it is! «Tov» is the pure essence, the quintessence of goodness, of all that is good and true and beautiful that came forth from the creativity of an Almighty Creator.

Now, let me set a framework for the next ten weeks because we’re talking about the good life, and it really is the «tov» life. A little etymology on that word «tov»: there are 171,000 words in English; there are 8,000 words in Biblical Hebrew. So English has more words, but Hebrew words have more meaning. Jewish rabbis would say that every word of Scripture has 70 faces and 600,000 meanings! In other words, these words are kaleidoscopic—it’s almost like they’re living words. They’re creative words; they’re catalytic words; they’re explosive and expansive. Lois Tverberg said it this way, and I love this: «The richness of the Hebrew language comes from its poverty. Because ancient languages have so few words, each one is like an overstuffed suitcase bulging with extra meanings that it must carry in order for the language to fully describe reality.»

Well, since a picture is worth a thousand words, we’ll get into some more of the definitions. Let me just try to paint a picture. When Dr. Tony Campolo was a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, he was giving a lecture and he asked a question of someone sitting in the front row, one of his students: «How long have you lived?» That student answered his age, which we would probably do. But Tony said, «That’s not what I’m asking. That’s how long your heart has been pumping blood. That’s not how long you have lived.» Then he explained it with a story: in 1944, Tony Campolo was in the fourth grade and he went on a field trip to New York City to the top of the Empire State Building. It was the tallest building in the world, and when they got out on that observation deck at the 86th floor, it was «tov.» It was a moment he would never forget. Time stood still as he saw the panorama of New York City. He said, «If I live to a million years, that moment will still be part of my consciousness, because I was fully alive when I lived it.»

Just jot down «tov moment.» These are holy moments when the monotony of life, the mundanity of life, and just something happens. You kind of step out of your normal routine and reality and you wake up to wonder; you wake up to something that’s bigger and better than anything you could have imagined. The top of the Empire State Building was a «tov» moment; it was a Genesis 1:4 moment. And here’s what it says: «And God saw that the light was good.»

Here’s what I think is happening here—it’s almost like God steps back, right? Almost like an artist stepping back from a canvas, from their creation, at their own unveiling of their artwork. God kind of steps back and surveys His creation. Don’t miss this: «tov» is God’s original reaction to His creation. This is critical: God takes delight in light as good. Might I outdo myself if that were possible? This happens on each of those creation days. God steps back and it’s sun, moon, and stars—"tov.» He surveys the land and the sea—"tov.» God marvels at every plant on His green Earth—"tov.» God enjoys every fruit and vegetable—except broccoli. «Tov,» sorry, that’s my translation. Every fish of the sea—bird of the air—the entire animal kingdom—"tov.»

Can I suggest that what God experienced at the end of each creation day is what He designed you and I to experience? That the good life is curating what I would call original emotion. And this is where we open the suitcase because there are overtones and undertones that I would define «tov» in the emotional capacity as pure delight, as unspeakable joy. And maybe to get to the heart of it, just this childlike wonder. It’s almost like the Ancient of Days becomes a child and then experiences His creation.

Can I suggest that it is our first responsibility to do what God did? That it’s almost like there’s this ritual or rhythm in life. But, Mark, I have so many bad days. I get it! But you’re still here, friend. There are things that we can and I’ve learned that the bad days help me appreciate the good days. I’ve walked through seasons of grief that have created greater capacity for joy. Remember, the good life is not «no pain, no suffering.» No, everybody’s going to die. So it’s got to be something more than just a zero-gravity existence. It usually lasts for like two seconds.

All right, where were we? Let me kind of just have a little bit of fun with this because my goal would be for you to experience and re-experience some «tov» moments. So let me ask you the question: What are the most beautiful places on Earth that you’ve ever been? Just take a moment, put it in the chat, and just take a moment and think about it. And just turn to your neighbor. It could be anywhere in the world. What are the most beautiful places on the planet that you have ever had the joy of witnessing? Just turn to your neighbor and maybe share one or two of those. Don’t get into a long conversation.

All right, all right, all right. Let’s reel it back in, folks. Come on, reel it back in. Some of you just went on vacation—a long vacation. Come on, reel it back in! Reel it back in! Okay, and then what are the most memorable moments of your life? And we’ll save this for a lunch conversation, okay? What are the most memorable moments? When did time stand still? When and where were you fully alive? Like that moment on top of the Empire State Building. Those are «tov» moments.

You know, for me—I mean, just to kind of crank the engine a little bit. I mean, I’ll never forget the first time I witnessed the Grand Canyon. I would highly recommend timing it for sunset because when it paints those canyon walls these pinks and purples. It’s even better if you hike it rim to rim or raft through the Colorado River. I’ve done both, and it’s «tov.»

I think of Machu Picchu at sunrise, but it’s better when you hike four days to get there and you time your arrival at the sun gate with sunrise. What a «tov» moment! I think Aurora and I on our 15th anniversary, the Blue Grotto—one of the natural wonders of the world. This iridescent cave water! And man, if you can score a gondolier who sings, oo, it’s even better!

I think about the Galapagos—closest thing to Eden left on Earth. It’s on a mission trip—hey, the Galapagos need the Lord too! I have been strategic on occasion choosing where to do these mission trips. So I remember pelicans that looked like prehistoric pterodactyls diving into the ocean and coming up with breakfast in their beaks. It was «tov!» I remember snorkeling and I swear I’m pretty sure I saw Nemo and Dory. They’re in the Galapagos; I saw them there. And then we jumped in the ocean and were swimming with sea lions—which we discovered afterwards is not altogether safe—but it was «tov!»

I think one of the best things you could do at the beginning of this series is just audit your life. What are the «tov» moments, the most beautiful places, the most memorable moments? And relive those! Part of rejoicing in the Lord is rejoicing in His creation. You can call them happy places. Celtic Christians called them thin places, locations where heaven invades earth and eternity invades time. I think that’s a good way to define «tov.» It’s this childlike wonder.

Now let’s keep going. Let’s get to the very end: Genesis 1:31—"And God saw all that He had made, and it was very 'tov.'» I love that. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. But what’s «very tov»? Well, you have to back up the bus a little bit. And God said, «Let us make man in our image.» In the image of God, He created them, male and female, He created them. And Scripture says we were made just a little lower than the angels and crowned with glory. So when it says «very tov,» God is just in childlike wonderment!

What is it? What, what? Can I suggest that God steps back one last time, does a survey, and what does God see at the end of the sixth day? You and me! You are «tov!» Those who have children, do you remember that moment? We never get close enough or still enough with other adults when you’re holding a baby a few inches from your face and you look into the pupil of their eye. What do you see? Your reflection.

Hebrew scholars believe that this idea of the «apple of God’s eye» is the idea of God looking in the pupil of the eyes of His creation and seeing Himself, and that, my friends, is «very tov!» I feel like we could just stop here. But can I just say, what do I do with this? What? Curate a holy curiosity, a childlike wonder. I get it that God’s invisible qualities, Romans 1:20, are put on display through His creation. In a perfect world and an inside-out world, joy would be a key factor in forming those core memories, that I would re-experience the wonder that maybe I had as a child. Like, I get all of that, but what do I do with this?

Well, I think for starters, it just doesn’t seem right for you to see yourself in any other way than the way that God sees you. What a joy! I read a children’s book with my daughter Summer called «God Speaks and Whispers,» and she gets credit for the rhymes. But man, the last few pages—I won’t show you the pictures, but I have this memorized: «Above all else, know this is true, that God is singing all around you.» And what is He saying in that voice? «Still and small,» that «you, my dear, are His favorite of all!»

Turn to your neighbor and say you’re His favorite! Now turn to your other neighbor and say you’re His favorite! Mark, how is that possible? I don’t know! How are two trillion galaxies possible? Two words! God doesn’t exist within the four dimensions of space and time we created. You are seen, heard, and loved by God—the image of God, the apple of God’s eye.

I want to close maybe with a practical application. And this, I promise you, this is not just for dads; this is for everybody. But I spent three days with ten leaders of men’s ministries from around the country this week. One of them, my friend Jeff Z, has done a couple of bike centuries with me. Jeff is a tall drink of water—six-seven. I’ve drafted behind him in a peloton or two to get to that 100-mile mark, and he is the classic Minnesota nice. Jeff started an organization called Dad Awesome because we could rally around dads. It’s hard; it can be hard always to celebrate it the way it should be. But he created Dad Awesome and I highly recommend the podcast. I love their mission statement: «Lead with wonder!»

When I first heard it, I thought, «You could have picked a thousand mission statements.» For some reason, that just didn’t immediately feel like the primary responsibility of dads. And then that meeting is the week I’m preparing a message on «tov,» and I’m reminded that God’s original reaction and original emotion is wonder. I’m like, «Well, maybe our first responsibility is that childlike wonder!» The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, but it doesn’t mean fear as in afraid; it means fear as in overwhelmed. Our God is an awesome God, right? That chorus starts running through your head, doesn’t it? That our God is an awesome God; He reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power, and love. Our God is an awesome God. Instilling that in our children is a pretty good starting place.

Calisto—a Greek theologian—said, «It’s not the role of Christianity to provide easy answers to every question but to make us progressively aware of mystery.» God is not so much the object of our knowledge as He is the cause of our wonder. That’s a different approach to God.

I’ll close with this. It reminded me of a story—a story that I love—about Arthur Gordon. So, on that anniversary trip to Blue Grotto on the Island of Capri, Italy, I brought along a book titled «Wonder» by Arthur Gordon. I think he used to be in charge of Guideposts Magazine. But he shares in that book about one of the most memorable moments of his life as a young child—he would go to a little seaside cottage, and that’s where many of his early memories were formed. So late one night—this is in a chapter called «The Night the Stars Fell"—he had fallen asleep. He was sound asleep when his dad came into his room, picked up little Arthur, and carried him outside. Arthur would later say that his dad believed that a new experience for a child was more important than an unbroken night of sleep.

So he carried Arthur outside, and at this seaside cottage, there were nights in August when shooting star after shooting star would just light up the night sky. Arthur’s dad said, «Arthur, look up!» He said, «Six decades later!» Can we just call it «tov»? Can we just call it what it is? That it was a «tov» moment? It was a moment where he was overwhelmed with the greatness of God’s creation!

He said this about his dad: «My dad, to a marvelous degree, had the gift of opening up doors to new experiences. That is the most valuable legacy we can pass on to the next generation: not money, not houses, not heirlooms, but a capacity for wonder.» Did you know that Aristotle said that good philosophy begins with wonder? Isn’t that interesting? I would argue that good theology begins with wonder. I would argue that worship is wonder.

Are you climbing the right ladder? Lord, I pray that the good life would begin right here, right now. For some, that it would begin with a good God, a good Father who gives good gifts to His children. That it would begin with the good news of the Gospel. And so, Lord, we give You thanks for the example You set on day one, two, three, four, five, and six. May we experience more «tov» moments. The good life. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.