Manically thumbing through the pages of an economics college textbook before my recent ‘materials interpretation’ certification test, I came to the conclusion that economics is yet another science that expresses the infinite beauty of God’s creation.
The physical and spiritual aspects of man directly relate to micro and macroeconomics. Microeconomics has a singularity that is most involved with the affective nature of man, whereas macroeconomics encompasses the effect of the world community upon standards set for man. The micro economy of a man’s spirituality is his company that can be run down or become amazingly successful. The macro economy is the level of spirituality that man is held too according to God’s law.
Scarcity, in particular, is the mover and shaker of the science of economics. Scarcity is when our wants are greater than the resources available to satisfy them.
(Microeconomics 7th ed., Arnold) The science of scarcity is then broken down into: infinite want versus finite means and how the individual and community deal with it.
Imagine then, that the will of man is a desire to attain perfection. Men desire at different levels, but all to the same end. The imitation of human saints is a finite resource, where the imitation of Christ is infinite with God’s will. The infinite desire and will of God, who satisfies completely, has no ceiling as far as human knowledge extends. But, God has set the high standard for the community of man as the life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Using our definition of scarcity, man’s desire to be like Christ, is limited by his formed will and knowledge, both finite resources. After God’s grace takes over, man’s will meets at a higher place with God’s will. Fig. 1 is an imagined attainable region and slope of desire for man to succeed in his endeavor to be holy.
Unfortunately, man does not always know his true wants, knowledge of God.
Consider a quote from Tanquerey’s
The Spiritual Life that examines the value of the knowledge of God. “All creatures, according to their degree of perfection, are an image, a likeness of God; all proclaim God for their Maker and bid us join in praise of Him, since their own being, all their beauty and goodness, is but a created and finite participation in the divine essence.”
Man’s participation, or desire to participate, is limiting to himself. Thus he defines his slope to perfection pre-empted by Jesus Christ. The weakly formed will of man is a slower slope to the full will of God for man to seek Christ. Where the greater will, or desire to be like Christ is the faster slope to attain saintly perfection. Fig. 2 is too simple to show that God’s will is ingrained in men no matter if they acknowledge Him or not. But it does allow for varying degrees of man’s desire.
This is only a limited interpretation of an exact science with abstract infinites. But God’s complex creation of man and Earth, for me, is easily seen in various forms of science that reflect physical attributes of perfection and organization. In the same way that economics depends on scarcity, God’s 'Kingdom Come' is seen in man’s desires. We are limited so far as what grace God provides and what level of desire we have for God's grace.
