Existence

What does the word ‘is’ mean?

The simple answer is that it means, “exists”. To say that something is, is to say that something exists. “Is” is a conjugation of the verb to be, meaning existence. I am, you are, he is, she is, they are.

But this is a false answer, because we haven’t defined anything, we’ve just swapped synonyms. It’s as bad an answer as “Something better than something else” when asked, “What is good?”

In order to define something, we need to put it in terms of things that are already known, and if we are really so lost as to not know what is means, we probably don’t know what exist means, either.

But it may be a little easier to tackle the question, “What is existence” (it’s the same question), because it’s a more familiar way of asking it.

But I’d like to offer two very simple definitions for the word “is”.

1)It’s the name of God. I AM WHO I AM. Go tell the Israelites, “I AM has sent me to you”. God is the wellspring of existence. Something that is, is something that proceeds from God.

2)’Is’ means created by Jesus Christ.The set of things which exist is exactly the set of the things Jesus created.

For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  — Colossians 1:16-17 (NIV)

‘Is’ really isn’t all that tricky or flexible a word. It has quite a clear, non-recursive, unambiguous definition.

But try and define it without God and see what happens You pretty much get philosophy. The more I think about it, the more I think that Occam’s Razor really does work in favour of God’s existence, after all.