Like Jesus does at times, I'll start with a question to make readers think. Since Jesus promises to give life and life more abundantly than the world can(John 10:10), then it makes sense to get that, since it'll be more plentiful, fulfilling, etc. than what we could have without Him, right?
Our society loves to "live life to its fullest" - we hear many slogans about this. And yet, as I discussed in this ministry blog post, people have constant contact through the Internet but it doesn't provide the unconditional love and depth of relationships that a personal relationship with Jesus provides; He is personal. It is far more rewarding than just the physical, which as valuable or special. For example, this recent ministry post shared how a relationship with Jesus can help a child in a very difficult home life to feel loved - and how we should come alongside, a focus of shows 114 & 117 on the Youthquake site's radio page.(You can probably guess parts of this will be on the ministry blog, too. Please pray for such kids at Camp CHOF and elsewhere - sponsorship for underprivileged kids are always helpful.)
To have a true repentance revival in our nation, we need to take hold of that "life more abundantly" that Jesus promises first, since I've noted before that it must begin with us. Jesus wants to forgive each of us and save us from our sins. Forgiveness is something we all need, as this shares.
Then, let's consider how to pray for and interact in this society that is always giving messages about loving life, and for our nation as a whole.
To those who will love life - 1 Peter 3:8-11
I have, in my immediate family(counting retirees and spouses) more than a handful of doctors, nurses, and physical therapists. You can imagine I've heard much about how fleeting life is and living each day to its fullest. These occupations naturally cause one to think about that.
And yet, that is something even children can understand. As one example, my uncle was moved to be a doctor after seeing a Life Magazine article on kids with club feet at age 8.
Such things breed thankfulness, a desire to cherish each day, and so on. However, in that desire to enjoy life to its fullest, it's easy to forget God if we're not careful.
God loves and cares for us as His creation - we are each "fearfully and wonderfully made."(Ps.139:14) He wants us to pursue the dreams He gives us - just like He made sure my uncle saw that article and gave him that compassionate personality to know he wanted to help people. He took hold of what God had given him, and God blessed him. He has certainly lived life to its fullest, helping untold thousands of people.
It would have been terrible if he'd refused to think of others and instead done what some of his generation did. He'd never have helped all those people. "Enjoying life" has to mean more than just pleasing oneself - life is about helping others in a Christlike way, as noted in this post. And yet, there are some who think it's better to please themselves and only think about what they can get out of something, not what they can give.
Therein lies the problem. 1 Peter 3:10 addresses those who would "love life," and brings in verses 8-11 as well on being compassionate, doing good and eschewing evil, etc.. If a person turns away from a life of loving their neighbor, being kind to others, and so on, and turns to evil instead (for instance, throwing away a promising career with drugs or lustful behavior), they'll miss out on the great opportunities God has for them.
This is where we must be careful of the devil's wiles, so we don't follow a counterfeit. The idea of living life to its fullest can be used to make sure one gives all for the glory of God and tries not to miss any chance to glorify Him whether eating, drinking, whatever they do.(1 Cor.10:31). In this way, making the most of the one life we're given means using that life that we have for Him. However, "you only live once" has been usurped by the devil, as explained by Chris Townsend, to get people to think that they, and not God, have ultimate say in every aspect of their lives.
In other words, instead of adding 1 Corinthians 10:31 as a reminder to do all you can to spread the Gospel and show Jesus Christ's love through your actions, many take the idea of having but one life to mean one may do whatever they want, in blatant disregard for God and His eternal truths, because they are led to believe there are no consequences to sin.
There are consequences, however, to all sin, including especially the fact that Jesus Christ had to die to take the punishment for our sin, and then rise from the dead.
So, how do we make sure we're on the right path, and looking at that life we have as we should?
How To Be Transformed
Part of this show "Quest for Truth" did - on connecting with the culture - discussed those verses in 1 Peter 3, though of course there wasn't nearly enough time with all there was to cover.
To put it succinctly, we need to eschew evil. Whereas this society has become very coarse and uncaring, we need to be the opposite, and "be not conformed to this world" but rather "transformed, by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."(Rom.12:2) Because, as this post shows, eliminating that coarseness but instead extending that forgiveness as Jesus has done for us will help make that life more abundant - and pleasant. First Peter also discusses suffering for one's faith, after all, so there is plenty of pain already without us adding to it. We should be showing Christlike love and forgiveness.
In so doing, we can pray for our country to do the same, for people to change on the inside and value the eternal rather than selfishly follow their own desires - to think about those good thoughts to think on from Philippians 4:8. Things that are true, just, lovely, and so on are certainly part of life, and can easily be thought about. Indeed, God can relieve our pain when we "think on thsoe things" and praise Him, just as the Psalms often start with anguish and end with the Psalmist praising God.
The world doesn't know how to accept sacrifice. When people only think of themselves and what they can get out of life, they can end up missing very important things, even if they know Christ as Saviour.
For example, a man I know, and his wife, didn't have peace about accepting a promotion he was offered to what he thought would be the job of his dreams, so he didn't take it. As it turned out weeks later, had he taken that promotion, he wouldn't have been home nearly as fast and his wife may have bled to death at the end of a difficult pregnancy, and the baby might not have survived; even if he had been home the transfer they'd have had would have mean they'd have been an hour away from a good hospital, not a few minutes like they were. God then gave him a better job a few years later. What a great testimony to God's Spirit working and helping us, as well as to what those aforementioned relatives would say about making every moment matter, family being most important (next to God of course, who as we see here provides for that), etc..
There is a great need for repentance revival in this country. And, it's not just because some people are putting jobs, money, and other things ahead of God - at times it's because some people are choosing to follow a life filled with lusts, selfishness, and other sins.
The evils of the world won't last, though. Neither will anything in the world, even the best things; Jesus says Heaven and earth will pass away. Jesus promises us something much better with those eternal rewards, because they can't grow old, rust out, etc., and nobody can take from from us. And, where our treasure is, there will our heart be also.(Mat.6:19-21)
So, a good part of the secret to loving life is building treasures in Heaven. That's because the life that matters isn't here on Earth.
The Life That Matters Is the Eternal Life God Can Give
The man I mentioned, a follower of Christ, is certainly very grateful that God led him to decline the position and thus probably save his wife and child's lives. However, had he decided on his own to decline it - though such a decision wouldn't have made sense from the world's perspective - he could still say that at least he put his family first, right?
Sure, that's why we have to remember that the life that truly matters is the eternal life God promises to those who trust Him to save them from their sins. Because, without that, we have to suffer for our own sins, and God doesn't want us to have to do that. We could love what we have till we die physically, and it could be somthing like family or relationships or helping others. However, it is by grace - a free gift - we are saved through faith, and "that not of ourselves, if is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph.2:8-9)
In other words, a person who always puts their family first, always cares about others, and all those other good things is still a sinner in need of a Saviour - if they sinned only 3 times a day that's still over 1,000 a year. Without calling on Jesus and receiving Jesus' free gift of salvation that person would also die spiritually.
That eternal life is the life Jesus gives that is much more abundant than what we have now. It isn't just the fact God can guide a man to turn down something worldly in order to save his wife and child because He knows the future and we don't. That's just the icing on the cake, the benefit of a personal relationship with God. The main part of that abundant life is that life Jesus Christ gives a person who puts their faith in Jesus Christ to save them from their sins. Only when one does this does one have eternal life. He who hath the Son hath life, and he who hath not the Son hath not life.(1 John 5:12) Just living a Godly life is not enough, one must know Christ personally. Eternal is much more special, much more abundant.
Still, part of that life we can love is in how we are living here on Earth, those things we are doing for the Lord, rather than pleasing ourselves. Instead of the evil motto of "do what thou wilt with no care for the things of God," following Godly principles is the way we love life and make the most of it.
Making the Most of Life by Glorifying God, Pray Others Do the Same
To put it succinctly, we need to eschew evil. Whereas this society has become very coarse and uncaring, we need to be the opposite, and "be not conformed to this world" but rather "transformed, by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."(Rom.12:2) Because, as this post shows, eliminating that coarseness but instead extending that forgiveness as Jesus has done for us will help make that life more abundant - and pleasant. First Peter also discusses suffering for one's faith, after all, so there is plenty of pain already without us adding to it. We should be showing Christlike love and forgiveness.
In so doing, we can pray for our country to do the same, for people to change on the inside and value the eternal rather than selfishly follow their own desires - to think about those good thoughts to think on from Philippians 4:8. Things that are true, just, lovely, and so on are certainly part of life, and can easily be thought about. Indeed, God can relieve our pain when we "think on thsoe things" and praise Him, just as the Psalms often start with anguish and end with the Psalmist praising God.
The world doesn't know how to accept sacrifice. When people only think of themselves and what they can get out of life, they can end up missing very important things, even if they know Christ as Saviour.
For example, a man I know, and his wife, didn't have peace about accepting a promotion he was offered to what he thought would be the job of his dreams, so he didn't take it. As it turned out weeks later, had he taken that promotion, he wouldn't have been home nearly as fast and his wife may have bled to death at the end of a difficult pregnancy, and the baby might not have survived; even if he had been home the transfer they'd have had would have mean they'd have been an hour away from a good hospital, not a few minutes like they were. God then gave him a better job a few years later. What a great testimony to God's Spirit working and helping us, as well as to what those aforementioned relatives would say about making every moment matter, family being most important (next to God of course, who as we see here provides for that), etc..
There is a great need for repentance revival in this country. And, it's not just because some people are putting jobs, money, and other things ahead of God - at times it's because some people are choosing to follow a life filled with lusts, selfishness, and other sins.
The evils of the world won't last, though. Neither will anything in the world, even the best things; Jesus says Heaven and earth will pass away. Jesus promises us something much better with those eternal rewards, because they can't grow old, rust out, etc., and nobody can take from from us. And, where our treasure is, there will our heart be also.(Mat.6:19-21)
So, a good part of the secret to loving life is building treasures in Heaven. That's because the life that matters isn't here on Earth.
The Life That Matters Is the Eternal Life God Can Give
The man I mentioned, a follower of Christ, is certainly very grateful that God led him to decline the position and thus probably save his wife and child's lives. However, had he decided on his own to decline it - though such a decision wouldn't have made sense from the world's perspective - he could still say that at least he put his family first, right?
Sure, that's why we have to remember that the life that truly matters is the eternal life God promises to those who trust Him to save them from their sins. Because, without that, we have to suffer for our own sins, and God doesn't want us to have to do that. We could love what we have till we die physically, and it could be somthing like family or relationships or helping others. However, it is by grace - a free gift - we are saved through faith, and "that not of ourselves, if is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph.2:8-9)
In other words, a person who always puts their family first, always cares about others, and all those other good things is still a sinner in need of a Saviour - if they sinned only 3 times a day that's still over 1,000 a year. Without calling on Jesus and receiving Jesus' free gift of salvation that person would also die spiritually.
That eternal life is the life Jesus gives that is much more abundant than what we have now. It isn't just the fact God can guide a man to turn down something worldly in order to save his wife and child because He knows the future and we don't. That's just the icing on the cake, the benefit of a personal relationship with God. The main part of that abundant life is that life Jesus Christ gives a person who puts their faith in Jesus Christ to save them from their sins. Only when one does this does one have eternal life. He who hath the Son hath life, and he who hath not the Son hath not life.(1 John 5:12) Just living a Godly life is not enough, one must know Christ personally. Eternal is much more special, much more abundant.
Still, part of that life we can love is in how we are living here on Earth, those things we are doing for the Lord, rather than pleasing ourselves. Instead of the evil motto of "do what thou wilt with no care for the things of God," following Godly principles is the way we love life and make the most of it.
Making the Most of Life by Glorifying God, Pray Others Do the Same
So, as with other things mentioned in various posts here, for there to be repentance revival in our country, there is a part we play, so we can get to the part where we pray.
That part we play is by making sure each of us, individually, knows Jesus Christ as Saviour. This "God's Simple Plan" site above is great, this with the four spiritual laws is also an excellent summary.
Then, we let the Lord transform us continually by helping us to put away those selfish desires and "whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all for the glory of God."(1 Cor.10:31) We use our talents, abilities, and opportunities to glorify Him and to share His love with others. This is something those who do not have eternal life can't do. They can only glorify themselves, and if they give glory to God it is not because He is their savior, it is because they are simply paying lip service or believing in some vague force and not in who God is, a personal God who must punish sin but has done so by taking the punishment for our sin, dying on the cross for each of us and rising from the dead.
At the same time, we need to be careful not to look like the world. Look at 1 Peter 3:8-11 again, that life more abundantly includes eschewing evil. Going back to my earlier examples, if a person chooses to do something selfish - getting into drugs, following their own lusts, being cruel, etc. - they are not loving the life God has given them. They are not glorifying Him. It is impossible to turn from God and say, "I am glorifying God" in the same way it is impossible for a person to put on bathing trunks near the ocean, get all read to swim, and then go into the desert with no water around and say "I am swimming."
Not everyone reading this will be a celebrity or even famous in any way, but these are some good examples in the next paragraph because they involve the images that we see int he media. They can, however, be analogized to anyone - for instance, a factory worker (and there are still some left) can consider how he or she relates to others and making sure they are being a Godly example. And, they can make sure they aren't overly critical. At times, it appears that those who criticize, for instance, baseball players for showing off may themselves crave the spotlight by bringing so much attention to the matter instead of being more forgiving, as was mentioend before, and accepting the different culture.
So,
if, for instance, a performer is singing, acting, or
whatever in some secular role, they can still glorify God by being light
in the darkness. They can choose never to use lyrics that are vulgar or
suggestive, but instead ones that uplift. They can encourage things
like in Philippians 4:8.(Focus on a
song's words forward, not how some used to talk of stuff backwards or
even the type, things which distract from the real issue. Frank
Sinatra's "My Way" may be the most often quoted secular song by pastors - used
in sermons on false pride - and it doesn't even have a guitar.) They
can make
sure the focus is on God and what He can do, not on themselves. Songs about relationships can be about loving ones with no sex till marriage and fabulous stable ones afterward. (Kenny Rogers' "Through the Years," for instance.) The performers can refuse to do songs about forcing oneself on someone or sinful lusts. They
can, in other words, eschew evil.
Why is that important? Those who try to have everything for
themselves are never satisfied. They can't find fulfillment and so they
keep trying to find it in pleasure, sometimes drugs, and usually in
things that glorify themselves. However, if they are never satisfied,
they are truly getting the most out of life, are they? They know
something is missing, but not what.
This
is the way the devil feeds them. It's a lie that says
that they can please themselves with no consequences and that will be
sufficient. They might
trick themselves into thinking they will be happy if it's always all
about them and what they can get. However, they wind up not being happy
and that sin has consequences, all the way to a devil's Hell if one
doesn't trust Jesus Christ by faith by calling on Him to forgive them
for their sins and make them new inside.
So,
to love life, focus on the right kind - make sure you have made that
choice to accept Christ's free gift of salvation by calling on Him by
faith to save you. Then, live for Him, so you can have Him work in you
and give you that fulfillment.
Then, of course, pray others do the same. Pray God will move people through His Holy Spirit to come to know the Lord and then start to be less coarse and more forgiving, less selfish and more caring, and so on.
It takes time and effort. But, it is very much worth it in the end.
Then, of course, pray others do the same. Pray God will move people through His Holy Spirit to come to know the Lord and then start to be less coarse and more forgiving, less selfish and more caring, and so on.
It takes time and effort. But, it is very much worth it in the end.
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