A Wonderful Life?

It’s a question that has been asked for millenia, even making multiple appearances in the Bible itself. What if, or in statement form, I wish, I had never been born? Capra’s account of the life and impact of the fictional George Bailey is a masterpiece, the greatest Christmas movie ever and one of the greatest movies of any kind whatsoever. Clarence demonstrated a brilliance beyond his simplicity in showing George the fruit of a life unlived.

Except, of course, that it was a rather biased and inaccurate portrait. George Bailey is a fictional character with a fictional life, one devoid the all too real ravages of his own sin. The central message, that life would have been worse for the people of Bedford Falls had George Bailey never been born, is false.

The fundamental faith of those outside of the Christ is this- they have no judgment to fear because their good outweighs their bad. It doesn’t. Even if God were to weigh our filthy rags against our blots and blemishes, the blots and blemishes will always win. Even for Mother Theresa, RC Sproul Jr., RC Sproul and George Bailey. Every mother’s son of us. To look back at one’s life and sigh with contentment that one is leaving the world better than one found it is foolish pride.

Some well-meaning pro-lifers make the same mistake with one their common arguments. They will look out over the more than 60 million dead and say “Maybe we have the problems we have because we killed the ones who would have solved them. Perhaps the person who would have cured cancer was aborted, or the one who would have negotiated peace in the Middle East.” That is certainly possible. It is also possible that among the 60 million dead are a passel of Hitlers, Stalins, Maos and Neros. What is not possible, given our condition in Adam, is that any one of them, or any one of us would be a net gain for the world as the world. The world would be better off without each one of us, and every one of us.

Why then should we cherish life? Why should we give thanks for each new day? Because our lives are not about ourselves. Our lives are not about others. Our reason for being isn’t to make the world a better place. Our reason for being is to bring glory to God. While that certainly includes our giving Him worship and praise, it is far more than that. God’s worthiness to be praised is revealed in His judgment against the wicked. God’s worthiness to be praised is revealed in His grace toward the wicked. It is precisely so that He can make all things new again that we are here, we being chief of the things that need to be made new.

Clarence, for all his wisdom in choosing to show George a world without him, erred again with his last word, the inscription he left George in his copy of Tom Sawyer, “No man is a failure who has friends.” Every man, save One, is a failure. And He, praise God, is my friend.