If you answered, "I'd give them the $2!" you're probably right. That bank would give you $4, and you would be proven right. And rather than bore you with the exponentials, i'll go directly to the hyperbole.
If you gave the bank $25,000 and the next day they gave you $50,000, you'd gladly give the $50,000 to that bank!
But what if you had to give $1,000,000? I mean, come on! That's a TON of money! You'd still do it! And you would receive $2,000,000.
What would happen if you gave this bank your life?
What would happen if you gave this bank your life?
One of the calls of the Bible is to "lay down your life" (see John 13:37-38, 15:13, I John 3:16). And another call is to "carry your cross" (Luke 14:27). But why should we do such horrifying, frightening, dare i say "expensive" and costly acts?
John 10:10 says, "I have come to give [you] life, and life abundantly."
I feel like my thoughts on these concepts have taken another evolutionary step recently.
"Stage 1: If i do enough with my life for Jesus (lay down my life, carry the cross), i'll go to heaven." Which, by the way, is a complete falsehood. but that's what i believed.
"Stage 2: God laid down His life through Jesus, i need to lay down mine, and one day i will go to heaven for it." A small step away from Stage 1 in that Jesus laid His life down for me and i'm responding, rather than the other way around. But i'm still believing at this point that i earn my reward.
"Stage 3: Jesus is full of grace in not only laying down His life for me, but offering me life now, and if i'm responsible with it i will be satisfied on this side of heaven, and abundantly full of life on the other side of heaven." Closer. But still not where i'm at now which is...
"Stage 4: Jesus showed us that by daily giving over His life to His Father, He daily made a transaction with the Father, and constantly lived a heavenly life here on this earth and impacted earth with heaven through His deeds and words (the cost). And i can also live in this ridiculously multiplying abundance if i follow His example."
If i "lay down my life" for Him (daily) i will inherit "life, and life abundantly" (daily). It's not that i earn anything, it's simply Heaven's bank statement on my resources and how i spend them.
In math terms it looks like this: cost of my life = His life in me more and more and more and more each day. life = life + life
In the parable of the talents in Matthew 25, the man with five talents gained five more AND THEN entered the Master's joy (i'm presuming to be heaven). Notice the servant's talents doubled on THIS side of heaven!
Folks, the Gospel is going to cost us, but each day we are willing to lay down that cost, we are promised life and life abundantly back.
And mind you, this has nothing to do with money; that's just the analogous term. Could this involve money? Of course. But this has to do with security, confidence, peace of mind, vibrancy, joy, laughter, generosity, freedom, etc., and all i have to do is say with my life, "Your will be done" through my life rather than "my will be done."
That's an awesome bank.
life = life + life
Interesting and positively provoking thoughts, Phil. Some of my own in response:
ReplyDeleteThings that I work at defining in my own heart & mind (questions, really):
What is laying down my life? (it seems that whatever the answer, it must bring freedom to my inner life - heart, soul, mind).
Which brings to mind the next question...what is abundant life? I'm thinking that this has something to do with me(us) FREELY being who God created. This is NOT being somebody different, but rather being me without being driven & motivated by the the fears and insecurities that can produce negative emotions, thoughts & deeds - being someone driven by a TRUST in God's good nature towards me and all that was created. (note: this is not being without fear & insecurity. it is living with a growing trust in God that enables me to respond to life despite fear - with a spirit/attitude that is like God's).
Finally, with these thoughts in mind I wonder if it's possible to have "more of God in us?" If He is in me(us)(and it seems he HAS to be on account that 1) he made me, and 2) I invite him into my life (most days!)). Or do we let our fears & insecurities, however legitimate or illegitimate, conscious or unconscious they may be, quench (grieve) his spirit that lives in us?
I guess some of what I want to express is that I don't think we can ever be someone different than who we are (which is not what you were getting at, but is something many of us Christians are trying to do). Many of us try so damn hard to be different, be better, be someone that we are not, all with good godly intention. Perhaps we should be or want to be living differently, but we end up putting all of our effort and willpower into this without ever really surrendering to God. We think we can pull it together for God, pleasing him by being more prayerful, more scriptural, more pure, more disciplined, a nicer person. All of these are good things, but we forget that the ONLY way to please God is by trusting him. Everything else comes after that. If we should succeed at being a better person (abundantly living?) by our own inner strength and not by trusting in & utterly depending on God, that very well may be the most miserable place a human could be.
Thanks for this Phil, I appreciate the analogy. Also, reading this as well as Davey Mac's comment makes me miss you both and how much I learned from you!
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