The Quest for Beauty, Truth, and Love

You can find almost anything online these days—from clothes and shoes to phones, music, and travel. Still, no matter how long you search, some things simply can't be found online—yet they are the very things everyone wants the most! You can buy cosmetics, but you can’t actually buy beauty. You can find information, but where can you find truth? You can enjoy social media connections, but where will you find someone who genuinely loves you?

Why Do These Things Matter?

If we are only insignificant creatures walking around in time and space, why do we even care about beauty, truth, and love—not to mention a whole range of other desires that never seem to be satisfied? These thoughts lead us to an important realization: As human beings on this planet, we are searching not only for survival but also for meaning.

A first-century preacher named Paul talked about this with some people in the Roman city of Lystra (located in modern-day Turkey). His conversation is preserved for us in the book of Acts, part of the Bible’s New Testament. There we find Paul’s message about “the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea,” and everything else (Acts 14:15 NKJV).

Paul added that God “did not leave Himself without witness” (v.17). In other words, the great God who made the universe is also the God who wants us to know Him.

Evidence of God's Presence

Is there evidence for this? Yes! As Paul explained, God “gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness” (v.17). Do you see the deeper message here?

Let’s say you enjoy a good meal with your friends. Your body needs food to survive, but it doesn’t really need satisfaction. Yet God fills your heart with that sense of enjoyment to remind you that He is there.

Here we find a significant fact: You are more than just your body. You are not simply a stomach, or a heart and lungs, or eyes and ears. You have a soul that truly feels your emotions. What’s more, you have a spirit by which God wants to communicate with you. He has implanted in us a desire for beauty and truth, love, and joy, because He is the source of those qualities.

Beyond Joyful Experiences

But God’s message goes much further than any of our joyful experiences. Ultimately, He has reached out to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the One who embodies Truth itself (John 14:6). If we are honest, we can admit that we need more than beauty and truth. We need forgiveness for our wrongs. We need acceptance in our relationships. We need love that never fails.

The Offerings of Christianity

This is exactly what God offers you in the message of Christianity. If you come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ the Savior, confessing your sinful wrongs, receiving His forgiveness and seeking to live in His truth, you will find every beautiful grace and the fulfillment of every joy.

In your search for beauty, truth, and love, don’t forget to look up! God is there. He has not left Himself without a witness in your life, and He offers genuine forgiveness and unending love through Jesus, the living Lord in heaven.

— Stephen Campbell