A Life Well Lived

John 12 : 24 - 26, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor. NKJV

A life that is well lived is a life that lives to bring glory to the Lord. Salvation isn't just about being saved from sin; it is the beginning of a brand-new life in Christ. Through Jesus, we are empowered to live the life that God intended us to live before sin entered into creation. 

Paul tells us in Ephesians 2: 10, "We are the workmanship of God, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." As Christians, who are made alive in Christ, we must understand and accept the life that God has ordained for us to live; therefore, we must be willing to lay aside our own plans. It's not that God doesn't want us to enjoy our lives; He just doesn't want our "self" nature to distract us so that we have no time for God.

In today's scripture, Jesus tells us that if we love our lives, we will lose them. In other words, if we allow the cares and the pleasures of this world to consume our hearts and our time, then we will miss the life that God has ordained for us to live in Christ. The enemy of our soul (Satan) wants you and me to believe that pleasure equals life. However, there is NO LIFE apart from abiding in Christ and keeping His Word. To prove my previous statement further, let's look at how Paul addresses the issue.

Galatians 2: 19 - 21, For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain." NKJV

Paul held a different perspective about salvation than many believers and church leaders of our day. He viewed salvation as being raised from the dead... so that we can live for Christ. Consequently, when we see ourselves as one who has been raised from the dead for the sole purpose of serving Christ and living our new life through Him, it changes everything about us. It's no longer about us; it is about Christ being in us and working through us to fulfill God's will throughout the earth. 

Finally, Jesus knew the reason God sent Him to earth. He came to suffer and die so that the world through Him might be saved. We should have the same kind of clarity about our calling on the earth as Jesus did when He was here. If we keep an eternal perspective, we will be saved from becoming entangled in the trappings of this world. We are not here to please self, but to die to self; we are to sow our temporal lives on the earth in preparation for our eternal lives and rewards to come. Except a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it will abide alone. Consequently, we must die and be resurrected in Christ. When this happens, we can rest assured that we will carry out God's plans and purposes for our lives as believers. We live solely to bring glory and honor to the Lord through the new life that we've been given in Christ.  

Walking In Newness of Life, 

Pastor Asa Dockery