DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- A LIFE TO GAIN

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- A LIFE TO GAIN

"Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, 'What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.' " (John 11:47-48)

The religious leaders belie their true resistance to Jesus as the Messiah in this simple statement. If everyone accepted Jesus as the promised Messiah and He became king, they would lose their positions – their place of authority. They had it pretty cushy. Rome gave them some latitude in running their religion, but if people accepted Jesus as their Messiah who would set up His kingdom, and if Rome considered Jesus as a threat to their domination and took away what freedom they did have, then they would lose the perks that came with their political position. No doubt there were some theological issues, but also at play was their political status as rulers in Israel. They didn't want to let that go. So they didn't want Jesus.

I wonder how many people don't want to accept Jesus as their Messiah because they fear losing their "good life." If they truly made Jesus Lord, it would impact the way they live and they don't want to relinquish control of their lives to Jesus.

There is no doubt that their lives will change if they truly follow Jesus, but that is not a bad thing. Jesus said that He came to give us life and that abundantly. The change from the old life to the new life is not something to fear but to embrace.

It is true that the new life will result in a new world-view, new priorities, new loves, new motives, and new -- well, just about everything. But living under the lordship of Jesus is a thing to be sought after.

The Apostle Paul wrote that when we are in Christ, we are a new creation. Old things have passed away, and behold all things have become new (II Corinthians 5:17). Getting rid of the old life is not a negative. It is a positive.

Yet many people live in fear of losing their life if they believe in Jesus. But what shall a man profit if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul?

Following Jesus gives us everything to gain and nothing worthwhile to lose.

Love, Dad