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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * IV. The Goal of Life (A) This quest for meaning and purpose drives people to explore all manner of Eastern mysticism, meditation, New Age religions, and other man-made philosophies. They attempt to fill the vacancy in their spirits with thrills, outlandish behaviors, and the pleasures of sin for a season. At the end of each new experiment, however, the haunting question remains: “What is my purpose in life?” IV. The Goal of Life (A) The Bible has provided the answer to this question for centuries to anyone who would seek its wisdom. Paul the apostle wrote, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. . . . In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:4-5, 11). IV. The Goal of Life (A) Believers in Jesus Christ discover their purpose wrapped up in one quest. Before the world was framed, the Lord chose to establish a family of believers who have an eternal inheritance in heaven. Our purpose is to live in such a fashion as to please the One who loved us and died for us, to be obedient to His Word, and to prepare for an eternity spent with Him. This is the whole duty of mankind while on earth. Without question, our position in God’s family gives us significance and meaning. IV. The Goal of Life (B) To Keep Our Eye on the Mark When instructing a child to swing a baseball bat at a pitched ball, there is one instruction that comes more often than any other: “Keep your eye on the ball.” It is a given that no one can hit a ball at which he is not looking. The most skilled hitter on earth will flail helplessly if he is blindfold