From the cradle to the grave we hear, “Eat drink and be merry, for tomorrow you may die.”  Young people feel oppressed by advancing age. They believe they must enjoy life quickly or they will soon be too old.    Middle-aged people often feel their life is “nearly over” and they need to hurry to enjoy themselves. Senior citizens often think they must enjoy this world quickly while they are still able.

But Jesus came with an entirely different message to what He said about life here on earth. He said God has His reasons for having us here. Jesus taught us that living to please ourselves leads to certain failure.

God builds into each person a desire to help other people. If that desire is quenched, we will always feel that something is wrong – life is fading away and nothing worthwhile is happening. So, we intensify our efforts to get to the right place – by running in the opposite direction!

Jesus describes that attitude or lifestyle in Matthew 16:25: Whoever wants to save his life will lose it.

On the other hand, those who take the risk of living to help others will always wonder, “Is it worth it? Does anyone appreciate my efforts? Will all my endeavors accomplish anything worthwhile?”

We have Jesus’ answer in the same verse. Whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.

Those who have spent most of their lives in trying to follow Jesus’ example have had a united testimony. They say they were glad they did. Those who have lived selfish lives nearly always end with a bitter, angry, lonely attitude about life.

Most people practice a little of both selfishness and trying to help others. If we have that attitude, we can become quite contented. Jesus had another name for it. He called it being “lukewarm.” Neither hot nor cold.

Most of us are both selfish and unselfish. Accepting Jesus as our Savior doesn’t seem to completely change that. But followers of Jesus can be changed by Him. Each day we can rearrange our lives so they will be more like His. We can make many decisions every day, which will cause us to follow His example.

There is one delightful part of becoming more like Jesus that many people never discover. The more we become like Him the more we want to be like Him! And the reverse of this is true. The further we stray from Him the further we want to stray.

If you haven’t already done so, I urge you to make a decision to strive to become more like Christ. Decide to give more of yourself, your time and material possessions to help Jesus fulfill His life in you. Don’t give in to the temptation to feel you have already done your share. Be more of what He would be if He walked in your shoes.

Yes, His life led to a cross, but think what He accomplished for us! Think of the glorious reward He has for us in eternity!

Let’s strive to treat our lives as Jesus did. The more we do that, the more God will treat us as He treats His Son!  (Reprint from March 1994)