“The Lord did not create the universe for His own sake, but for the sake of those with whom He is to be in heaven; since spiritual love is such that it wants to give what is its own to others. So far as it can do this, it is in its being, in its peace and in its blessedness. . . . From this it follows that the divine love and the divine providence from it, have as their end a heaven consisting of people who have become angels, or who are in the process of becoming angels, upon whom the Lord is able to bestow all the blessings and joys that belong to love and wisdom, and to communicate these from Himself in them.” Divine Providence #27
Creation arises from the divine energy which radiates love, and seeks to bring happiness to others outside of itself. This is why God created the universe – so that beings would exist that could benefit from this love. There is nothing selfish in God.
In trying to grasp the immensity of this concept, I imagine a kind of dialogue with God. This is put into ordinary language not to be irreverent, but to communicate this deep concept in a simpler form.
We can imagine a conversation something like this:
Interviewer: God, we marvel at your creation. Why did you create such a vast and complex system. What is the point of it all?
God: Because of the intensity of my love. I care, and I want to share my love with others.
Interviewer: What does this do for the people you have created?
God: They are filled with happiness and bliss. That is the point of creation, to spread happiness.
Interviewer: Unfortunately some people find life really difficult. They aren’t particularly happy.
God: I know, and it grieves me. I love it when people are happy, but I am willing for them to go through unhappy times if they lead to a deeper and more lasting happiness. My main concern is not with people’s happiness on earth. I am interested in their long term happiness, and I mean really long term. I want them to be happy forever.
Interviewer: Don’t people have any say in the matter?
God: Of course they do. I gave them freedom, and this means that I will not force happiness on them. They have to learn how to find it. They have to search for it.
Interviewer: Suppose they choose not to be happy.
God: I will let them have whatever life they choose, but I will always seek to guide them to a higher happiness than they would settle for by themselves.
Interviewer: Where do they find that happiness?
God: It’s my happiness, and so they find it by making a connection with Me. As long as we are connected I can share my joy with them, and make it full.
Interviewer: How do you do that?
God: By sharing myself with them, and by entering their hearts. When I am in them I can fill them with joy from the inside out.
Interviewer: Is that something people can only get after they die?
God: No, it’s available to them here on earth, but not to the same extent that they will experience it after death.
—Rev. Frank Rose, Former Pastor of Sunrise Chapel, Tucson, AZ