An arrogant young man once approached Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher. The man proudly announced: “O great Socrates, I come to you for knowledge.” Socrates, who immediately recognized the man’s self obsession, led him through the city to the port and finally into the sea until they were both chest deep in water. Then he asked the man: “What do you want?” “Knowledge, O wise Socrates,” replied the man. Socrates seized the man and held him underwater for 30 seconds. When the shocked, would-be student was released, Socrates asked agin “What do you want?” The man replied the same way, prompting the philosopher to plunge him under again, this time for 40 seconds. The same question was asked: “What do you want?” Sputtering, the man replied again “Knowledge, oh wise…” Down he went again. This time, the teacher held him under for a full minute before releasing him and asking again: “What do you want?” The choking and panicked student shouted, “Air! I need air!” Socrates now replied, ““When you want knowledge as you have just wanted air, then you will have knowledge.” The point of the story is quite plain: we cannot seek knowledge and ourselves at the same time. Truth comes to those who pursue it above all else.
The story isn’t actually from antiquity. It doesn’t appear in any ancient texts and would be out of character for Socrates and his student, Plato, who recorded everything we know about the father of philosophy. However, we find a similar (and I would argue superior) account in the life of Jesus. A rich young man approached him one day and asked what he must do to get into Heaven. Jesus replied that he must obey the law and listed off part of the Ten Commandments. The man said he had obeyed them all. The trick was, that Jesus had only mentioned the commandments related to men. Those directing us to love/obey God were totally absent. Jesus demonstrated the man’s lack of love for God by telling him to give away his possessions and follow Him. The man walked away disheartened because he was rich and loved his possessions. Ultimately, his response demonstrated that he had disobeyed the commandments about loving God above all else. The message underlying the story isn’t all that different from the fictitious Socrates story. To know God is to desire Him more than anything else in this world. That’s not an easy task for us. The world is full of wonders and delights that we can easily fall in love with.
To love God is to love Him above all else. One popular worship song goes as far as to describe God’s presence as “the air I breathe” and “my daily bread.” One of the deeper meanings to the Biblical institution of marriage is that in loving your spouse selflessly, deeply, and totally, we simultaneously have eyes for no other. This is the love that Christ demonstrates for His people and the love we are called to live out towards God. That is a process that we engage in throughout our lives, but will only ever achieve perfectly when we are in His presence in eternity.
This is the meaning of life for those who are looking for something more. We were created by God to know Him and have a relationship with Him. The fallen condition of the world has broken that ideal. The story told in the Bible is the story of God reestablishing that relationship with us. All too often, people try to reduce it to a collection of “thou shalt not” statements and outdated regulations for diet and clothing. In reality, it is all about how much God loves us and how far He would go to reconcile us to Himself. When we come to understand that truth and are brought into our place as a part of that love story, we begin to fall in love with Him in return. This isn’t just a feeling kind of love, though that is a part of it. It is a love that is committed to the other person regardless of feelings. A mom once told me that she loved her kids, but sometimes she didn’t like them all that much. She was still wholly committed to their wellbeing and care. This is what it is to pursue God and need Him like the air we breathe. It is the idea behind the rich young ruler’s struggle. God desires that we love Him above all else. It is often the most misunderstood element of Christianity. The world is still there to be enjoyed, but we are to do it through the lens of our love for God. That perspective makes everything more wonderful and simultaneously less important to us.
