“If you give up your life for Me, you will save it.” Luke 9:24 CEV
Squandering life is a terrible waste, while the sacrifice of one’s life is the noblest gift.
My thoughts and comments today are about “noble sacrifice.”
When I see the faces of soldiers serving bravely in Afghanistan, most barely out of their teens, I am intrigued and humbled by the courage of these young men and women who have barely begun their life journey, but are willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of their fellow soldiers or countrymen. Jesus said, “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” For Jesus, that was His lifestyle and example, much more than mere words.
They do not regard life as expendable or to be cheaply given. In contrast, more than most they see the inestimable value of life and are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice of giving their life to save the lives of others. Only the person who would willingly give their own life has truly realized how precious life really is.
Squandering life is a terrible waste, while the sacrifice of one’s life is the noblest gift. Jesus crucial call of true discipleship is. “If any man would be My disciple, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23. The people to whom He personally spoke those words had no confusion of their meaning. As a means of Roman judgment, a man bearing a cross was not an uncommon scene. In the historical era of the Roman Empire when Jesus lived, if a man were seen shouldering a cross there was no confusion about where he was heading and what he was doing. That cruel cross meant only one thing to any observer, his own death.
Jesus issued a monumental challenge that still resonates within hearts where He dwells, “If you give up your life for Me, you will save it.” Luke 9:24 CEV. But what does it mean to give up your life? It does not mean to depreciate your life as unimportant or of little value. I think it means living for something and Someone much greater than yourself.
Yes, that must be it, sacrificing something treasured for something eternal and more valuable by far. Jesus told a story about a merchant trading in pearls. They were admired by him, acquired by him, prized by him. Until the day he saw a pearl he had only dreamed of, more magnificent than any he ever hoped to own. Its price to some would have seemed outlandish – “who when he had found one pearl of great price went and sold all that he had and bought it.” Matthew 13:45-46. Paying all he had still seemed a small price for what he could no longer consider living without.
That is what the Kingdom of Heaven is, something for which you joyfully surrender what previously was most precious to you to exchange for what otherwise could never be your own. Jesus Himself and His eternal Kingdom are that “pearl of great price.” But there is another side to the equation. Be aware of Jesus’ somber warning, “If you try to save your life for yourself, you will lose it.” Luke 9:24. Refusing the fitting sacrifice rightly given is squandering life, a tragic loss.
My prayer for you today is that you value your life as a gift to be given back to God.