Receiving The Abundant Life!

Dear Friends, I recently heard a sermon on receiving eternal life and inheriting a full life as it was meant to be lived on earth that I want to share with you!

The scripture I want to talk about is Matthew 19:16-22:

¹⁶ Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life ?” ¹⁷ “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” ¹⁸ “Which ones?” he inquired.Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, ¹⁹ honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” ²⁰ “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”²¹ Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” ²² When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

The question that the man is asking here is quite simple, he asks Jesus how he will get eternal life. And what he means by eternal life is a full life that starts now on earth! I think we can all relate to this question, at least I know I can.  Because in some way or another, each one of us has already answered this question for ourselves, in fact, our own answer is most likely driving a significant portion of our lives. Because we are all seeking a significant and full life, one that will last beyond our years, one that is eternal.  And so fellow greek sisters and brothers, I challenge you to ask yourself, what does your life say is the answer to how you get eternal life?

Now, if you’re like me than you are probably feeling a little convicted at this point, I realize so often in my own life that I tend to take the bible as good advice, instead of seeing it as it is—the Word of God who is our only source of life! Even the rich man in the passage does this, notice how in verse 17 he calls Jesus, “teacher.” And while yes, Jesus was a teacher, he certainly spent a lot of time speaking and teaching to people about God, but it is important that we don’t limit Jesus to simply a teacher, because Jesus is soooooo much more than just a good teacher.

If we simply limit Jesus to being a good teacher, we as sinful and selfish humans are not likely to take his advice to heart. How often do we as college students tend to question what our professors say, or the advice that they give.  Jesus is not just a teacher, he is the source of life, eternal life! We know this because in John 10:10 Jesus says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Notice in this passage Jesus doesn’t say I have come to teach them how to have life, no He, God in the flesh, has come so that we might receive the undeserved gift of eternal life through His death and resurrection on the Cross! Wow!!!!

If we read on in the passage you may say, wait a minute, why does Jesus list off a whole set of commandments that this man must follow to receive eternal life? While I dont really know what Jesus was thinking, the most likely answer is that Jesus knew this man’s heart, he knew that the rich man did not regard Jesus as King.  Jesus also knew that there was one thing this man loved more than anything else…. Money!  And so when Jesus says, “go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” I think he actually means it! Now, this is not to say that we all should go and do this. But what Jesus is saying here is that he wants all of us! Jesus, our King, wants us to submit EVERYTHING we have to Him, to the one who is good, as it says in verse 17. You see dear friends; the God we serve is a jealous God who wants all of our hearts to be captivated by Him. And for the rich man, money was the one thing that he was unwilling to let go of in order to follow Jesus.  The irony in all of this is that the rich man would experience a true richness of life if he really would just let go of his money and learn to regard Jesus as far more precious.

Friends, we really can experience Christ and the abundant life here and now if we are willing to submit our lives to the King. The best part...... is that God is not a stingy God who is holding out on us, no rather when we submit our earthy possessions and treasures to Him, we receive much more in fullness of joy from our Creator, who knows exactly what we need to be satisfied!

Some questions to ask yourself in reflection are:

1)      What is keeping me from submitting my life to God?

2)      What areas of my life is Jesus calling me to submit to Him?

3)      In what ways has Jesus been generous to me?

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶ For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷ He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. -Colossians 1:15-17

Written by Michelle Faucett