Why did God create us? Was it because He needed another automaton to control so He could feel more Godlike? Was it because He thought He something was missing? No. To understand His purpose we must go before the beginning. Before God created the universe and us, God was not lonely. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–the Three in One– ived in perfect relationship, perfect fellowship, perfect community.
John 1:1 gives us a veiled glimpse into this rich fellowship that God had with Himself:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
“The Word” is Jesus, the Son of God. John writes that the Son of God was “with” His Father. John doesn’t use the typical Greek word for with. Instead, he uses the word pros. In selecting the word pros, John shows us that Jesus was not merely existing alongside the Father but that there was deep intimacy between them. Pros carries with it the meaning toward or facing a thing.
With this language, John paints a beautiful picture for us. Before anything was created, Jesus the Son was always turned toward the Father in intimate, personal relationship. The three persons of the Trinity enjoyed one another. God was fully satisfied in “hanging out” with Himself. He lacked nothing. He had no needs outside of Himself. He didn’t need to create us to be fulfilled or to give Him something to do on a particularly quiet day in Heaven. Thomas Scirghi offers us a beautiful metaphor of what God was doing before the beginning, “In love, the Father and Son [were] intertwined like dancers moving to the music of the Spirit.” God was having a eternal party with Himself.
If everything was perfect as it was, why did God create us?
God is love (1 John 4:8 mouseover vs) and love always gives of itself. God, in love, wanted to create the opportunity for us to share in the richness of the fellowship He was experiencing with Himself. If you are a parent, you can relate to this in some measure. You don’t have children because you are unhappy. You have children because you want to share the richness of our fellowship with them. In this giving spirit, God created the heavens and the earth and put us, humankind, as the centerpiece of His creation. He wanted to multiply the eternal community and offer us the abundant, eternal life He was experiencing.