What Choice Do I Have?
We live our lives within this world system, where our capabilities, opportunities, and motivations are all different. The result is the magnificent diversity we see all around us.
The primary measure of worldly success is wealth. There are others, power, prestige, honor, fame, legacy, and the like, but money is the main thing.
Quite a few of us have no money at all, or very little. These are the homeless. There are other examples, but when Jesus mentions, “The least of these,” it’s the homeless that come to mind.
The wealth of the world is unevenly distributed; therefore, the choices available to each of us are different. No surprise, everyone knows this.
What is interesting is that the choices God wants us to make have nothing to do with wealth. No money is necessary when it comes to choosing to seek God, his kingdom and his righteousness. We all have the opportunity to make this choice. Almost everyone knows this, too.
When it comes to success by the world's standards, most of us are somewhere between homeless and millionaire. Most of us will never be homeless or millionaires. I suspect we all imagine a future for ourselves where we move at least a little in the millionaire direction.
We spend our lives sacrificing something now for something in the future. Something worthy of the sacrifice. Work hard now to get that promotion later. Train for weeks to be ready to run the marathon. Set aside what you want so that your children can have what they need. Go to school for years so that you can get that good-paying job and begin a promising career. Curb spending for a season to save up for the down payment on that house you desire.
This sacrificing is not fun, but we all do it for what we have decided is worth it. We sacrifice for the things we can envision in the future that we need or really want. Parenting is perhaps the best example. Once a parent, your life no longer centers around yourself. This unselfishness endures for years, driven by a natural sense of responsibility and the hope of a glorious future for your children.
Jesus teaches that we must die to ourselves in order to live. That means that we are to reject the world’s teaching that our lives center around ourselves. To move off of that focus and put our relationship with Jesus at the center of our lives. Set aside selfishness and replace it with an ever-strengthening faith and trust in Jesus. In following his example and obeying his commands, our focus will shift from ourselves to our relationship with Jesus and the other relationships he puts around us. This is good Gospel teaching and represents God’s will being done and his kingdom coming to earth, here and now.
This dying to self is a sacrifice with the ultimate in the “it's worth it” department. The rewards include eternal life and being part of God’s team. Pursue this, and God will provide everything you need.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33 ESV)
Dying to self is a lifelong process of asking and allowing God to transform your mind. Some examples of what will change:
- Your prideful independence will shift to a dependence on God.
- You will see yourself as God sees you, a forgiven and loved son or daughter.
- You will see others as God sees them; He loves everyone.
- You will be aware of God’s presence and his will in the midst of everything.
- You will be thankful and joyful regardless of circumstances.
- You will hold no offence or have any desire for vengeance.
- You will possess a deep understanding of creation and Godly wisdom.
- You will be radically generous and experience miraculous prosperity.
- You, in partnership with God, will have an incredible positive impact on the lives of others.
Dying to self is living the life God desires for you; it is wealth beyond measure.
