Purpose and values make life worth living

Jesus Christ made some very profound statements.

One is found in St. John's Gospel chapter 10, verse 10, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

Abundantly is translated from a strong Greek word meaning, "superior in all aspects of quantity and quality." Thus Jesus is saying that the purpose was to teach us how to experience a life that is superior in richness. It is a strange irony that the Gospel and the Bible are criticized and rejected on the false basis that it is irrelevant and impractical. That the Bible is too relevant, too true, and too practical may be closer to the truth. It is just that we prefer to live in a world of fantasy rather than the real world of life and death. It takes much more honesty and courage. For example, the Bible speaks frankly and often of the reality of death yet death is a subject we avoid if at all possible. On the other hand, the Bible also tells us that life was meant to be more than existence and yet that is the unfortunate life experience of many people. The crisis of suicide and drug use in our generation is the reaction to the emptiness of life lived without purpose and values that are higher and more important than life itself, as sacred as life may be. Purpose and values are the very ingredients that make life worth living.

A quality life does not just happen automatically. It requires discipline, courage and sacrifice. Contrary to a popular notion, the best things in life are not free. Even though they cannot be bought with money they are not without cost. Jesus sacrificed His life and died on the cross that those who believe might have forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life. Those among men who have contributed the most to the world have done so through painful sacrifice and the exercise of great courage.

Jesus turns the human view of life upside down. He tells us that a rich and abundant life is achieved, not by giving, not by being served, but by serving others; not by being blessed, but by being a blessing. The Divine principle is that the fulfilling of our purpose and the discharging of our duty, both to our Creator and to our fellow man may seem, in the beginning, a lonely path but it leads to the rich and abundant life with incredible potential.

That is why Jesus tells us in St. Matthew 16:25, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: And whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it."

n Gene Holman is pastor at Living Word Fellowship.