A person’s philosophy of life is the motivating factor that dictates every action taken in the course of that person’s life. The most basic axiomatic point from which a person constructs a philosophy of life is called the first principle. A person’s first principle is the source from which a person derives all metaphysical, epistemological, and axiological conclusions that are the backbone of all subsequent philosophies. Therefore, before the Christian can decipher and define any personal philosophy concerning the purpose of their life, how they should live their life, or what life even is that Christian must make a conscious decision concerning what or who is that Christian’s first principle and if that first principle is absolute. 

The most pivotal director in any person’s life, especially a Christian’s, is a sure foundation of truth. The basic directing guide in a Christian’s life is their perception of truth and reality, philosophy of life. Many modern thinkers and much of contemporary western society view reality and truth subjectively. When this subjectivity is central to an individual’s life philosophy it is inevitable to conclude as Tolstoy did in his A Confession (1990), “Reasonable knowledge had brought me to acknowledge that life is senseless” (p. 23). This senselessness is the consequence of an uncertain first principle. Naturalists such as Tolstoy cannot truly define a first principle because, from a naturalist standpoint, the first principle is an unknown and unknowable happenstance.

Senselessness is a useless perception of reality and truth in anyone’s life. It cannot supply the surety necessary for purposeful living. It cannot account for the certainty sought after by reasoning men or the lawful order in the observable universe. Such a conflict is subversive to the individual who seeks to hone their ability to discern what is founded and what is questionable for in senselessness there is no absolute truth or reality to use as a buffer.

Anyone who seeks to be able to know anything for certain must establish all truth and reality on or in an unalterable first principle. Not just any causative force or intelligent designer will suffice, however, to meet the unalterable standards that a purposeful life demands. It is the God of the Bible, when held to the test, which sets a sure foundation of truth and reality. As Jeremiah 10:10 testifies, “But the Lord is the true God and the God who is Truth; He is the living God and the everlasting King” (Amplified Bible).

The God of the Bible most logically aligns with the natural ethical expectations, natural physical laws, and overwhelmingly agreed upon desire to be loved experienced by mankind. Via the logical and creative aptitude of the human mind (Genesis 1:27), the consistent fine tuning of the universe for life (Genesis 1:1-31, Job 26:11-14, Psalm 19:1-5, Psalm 33:6-9, Psalm 148:1-6, Nehemiah 9:6, John 1:3, Isaiah 40:26-28, and Colossians 1:16-17), and Jesus Christ (John 1:1-4, John 1:14, John 14:6, I Timothy 3:16, Titus 1:2-3, Hebrews 1:1-2, and I John 1:1-3) the Trinitarian God of the Bible has made His presence known and character knowable to mankind throughout history and His inerrant word (Psalm 119:160, John 17:17, I Corinthians 2:13, II Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 6:18, II Peter 1:20-21, and Hebrews 4:12), the Old and New Testament, and presented Himself to be the First Principle. 

The God of the Bible alone supplies the Christian’s philosophy of life and worldview with the surety necessary to explain observable laws within the universe, give meaningful direction to inquiries, provide the standards necessary to critically deduce what is and is not invariably true, and exhibit that both knowledge and life have meaning. From this steadfast First Principle, reality, truth, and ethics can be known, studied, tested, and trusted. Mathematical measurements and physical laws are not subject to change because they are set by the God of the Bible. Right and wrong are not reliant on personal interpretations or differing experiences or what works, right and wrong are secured by spiritual laws created by the God of the Bible in the beginning and publicized in the Bible. Therefore, if anyone desires to live a purposeful life with any amount of certainty, it must be based on the God of the Bible—He alone is the knowable and unalterable First Principle.