God the Father: Source and Goal of All Things

We have been thinking about the Trinity—specifically, the shared deity of Father and Son—from the perspective of 1 Corinthians 8:6, where Paul offers a most profound summary of God’s identity and our place in relation to him. The Father, we saw in a previous part, is truly God, as is the Son. Paul affirms this by including both in his rearticulation of the Shema.

But a core tenet of trinitarian theology is that the persons of the Godhead relate to his people in different ways. Paul hints at this in the text, where he addresses different aspects of the Father’s and the Son’s deity.

Having affirmed that there is one God, he writes of “the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist.” These words tell us where everything comes from, why everything exists, and what our lives are ultimately for. At the centre of it stands God the Father—source and goal of all things.

Paul begins by describing the Father as the one “from whom are all things.” This is a statement of origin. Everything that exists—seen and unseen, material and immaterial—finds its source in God (see Genesis 1:1). Creation is not self-generated. It did not arise from chaos or chance. It was the deliberate act of a personal, sovereign God.

To recognise that all things are from the Father affirms at least three crucial truths.

First, God is distinct from creation. He is not part of the created order; he is its maker. There is a clear and unbridgeable distinction between creator and creature. Everything that exists depends on him, but he depends on nothing. Theologically, we speak of God’s transcendence—the truth that he sits above and apart from all that he has created. This is not all there is to say about God, but it is one crucial aspect.

Second, God is the ultimate cause behind all that is. There are many secondary causes within the created order. God has, for example, instituted laws of nature that govern how his creation reproduces. But all these things trace back to him. Life, breath, time, history, and purpose all originate in the Father.

Thirdly, God is absolute in authority. Since all things come from him, all things belong to him. He is the rightful owner and master over every part of creation, including our lives.

Paul does not stop with origin. He moves immediately to purpose: “and for whom we exist.” This is just as important. Not only do we come from God—we exist for God.

This truth confronts one of the deepest (and wrongest) assumptions of the human heart: that we exist for ourselves. In a world that constantly tells us to define our own identity, pursue our own happiness, and live for our own fulfilment, Scripture speaks with clarity and authority: We are not our own. We exist for God.

Our life is not ultimately about our ambitions, our comfort, or our success. It is about him. We were created to know, love, worship, and obey him. This is not a burden—it is our design. As one of the prominent voices of the early church expressed it, our hearts are restless until they find their rest in God. To live for anything less is to live against the very purpose for which we were made.

When we hold these two truths together—from him and for him—we begin to see the full picture of reality. God is both beginning and end—Alpha and Omega. He is the source from which all things flow and the goal toward which all things are directed.

This means that life is not random or meaningless. It has a clear origin and a defined purpose. Every moment, every breath, every aspect of existence is grounded in and directed toward God.

It also means that true fulfilment is not found in turning inward, but in turning Godward. We do not discover our purpose by focusing on ourselves, but by recognising that we belong to him.

This truth is deeply humbling. It dismantles every form of pride. We are not self-created. We did not bring ourselves into being. We are not self-sustaining. Every breath we take is given to us. We are not self-directed in any ultimate sense. Our lives are accountable to the one who made us.

This cuts against the grain of modern thinking. We are told that we are free to define ourselves, to determine our own path, to live for whatever we choose. But Scripture reminds us that we are creatures, not creators. To acknowledge God as both source and goal is to take our rightful place in his world.

If we are from God and for God, then worship is not an optional activity—it is the most natural and fitting response. Worship is not merely singing or attending a service. It is the orientation of the whole life toward God. It is recognising his worth, submitting to his authority, and delighting in his presence. As Paul beautifully expresses it, “from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:36). This is the logic of worship. Because all things are from God and for God, all glory belongs to him.

When we lose this God-centred vision, everything begins to unravel. If we forget that we are from God, we begin to think of ourselves as independent and self-sufficient. If we forget that we are for God, we begin to live for lesser things.

This is the essence of idolatry—not merely bowing to statues, but giving our hearts to anything other than God. Money, success, comfort, and approval become functional gods when they take the place that belongs to him alone. This is a very present danger, even in the church. When God is no longer at the centre, everything shifts. Worship becomes entertainment. Truth becomes negotiable. Success is measured by numbers rather than faithfulness.

But when we recover a right view of God as both source and goal, everything is reoriented. Our priorities change. Our desires are reshaped. Our lives begin to align with reality as it truly is.

To say that we exist for the Father is to say that our lives are to be directed toward him in every way. We live for him in our worship, giving him the honour he deserves. We live for him in our obedience, submitting to his word and his will. We live for him in our relationships, reflecting his character in how we love others. We live for him in our daily work, recognising that every task is ultimately done before him and for him.

This is not confined to “religious” activities. It encompasses the whole of life. Every moment becomes an opportunity to live in the light of who God is.

It is also important to recognise that Paul does not simply say “one God,” but “one God, the Father.” As observed above, there is more to God than transcendence. He is also immanent—close to his creation. Divine immanence speaks to God’s personal and intimate connection to his creation, which is highlighted here—with specific reference to believers—by the title “Father.”

Through grace, those who belong to Christ are brought into a relationship with him as Father. He is not distant or indifferent. He is personal, loving, and faithful. He calls his people to himself, sustains them, and delights in them. To exist for him, then, is not to serve a cold authority, but to belong to a loving Father.

Ultimately, this verse calls us to examine the orientation of our lives. Are we living as though we are the centre? Are we pursuing our own ends as though they were ultimate? Or are we recognising that we are from God and for God? To live rightly is to live in alignment with this truth—to acknowledge God as both our source and our goal, and to direct our lives accordingly.