SPIRITUALITY AND FAITH
money, and whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with income." Have you ever asked yourself, "Why is it that I have more money than I have ever had before and yet have less contentment?" Jesus answered that in Luke 12:15 “…Be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” In reality…
D. You won't find the Good Life in Position. People often think that if they receive a certain promotion, or reach a certain status, or live in a certain area then they would be happy. Yet they find that the effort they have to put in working the job or fulfilling the position they have sought depletes their energy. Further…
E. You won't find the Good Life in Pursuits. Some people are deluded into thinking that if they stay busy enough and if their pace of life remains at an intense level then they will discover life. Yet all they find is stress, ulcers, and heart attacks. You will wake up one day and say “Is this it? Isn’t there more to life than THIS?” To find it you need to secondly look to…
THE SOURCE OF LIFE
A. The Good Life is not found in pleasure, performance, possessions, position, or pursuits; it is found in the person of Jesus Christ. After the mention of Satan and things that rob us in life, Jesus in John 10:10 says “I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly”. As the author of life, Jesus adds in John 11:25 "I am the resurrection and the life" and later in John 14:6 "I am
the way, the truth, and the life”. Truly to live the good life, we need Jesus!!
B. To understand how this Good Life is entered we must look at the special relationship between a shepherd and his sheep. George Adam Smith, an Englishman found out what Jesus’ words in John 10:7 “I am the door of the sheep” meant traveling in the Middle East. One day he came across a sheepfold and asked the shepherd, “Is that where the sheep go at night?” "Yes," said the shepherd, "and when they are in there, they are perfectly safe.” "But there is no door," George said. To this the shepherd responded "I am the door. When the light has gone out, and all the sheep are inside, I lie in that open space, and no sheep ever goes out but across my body, and no wolf comes in unless he crosses my body; I am the door.” When Jesus said He is the door, he meant that the fold of heaven has one entrance; life has one source; spiritual blessing is obtained one way. Access to this is Jesus!
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF LIFE
To help us understand what the Good Life truly is…it goes beyond the time between one's birth date and one's death date! This good life from God comes only as we cross the doorway of Jesus and enter into a relationship with God. It is not duration because this life is not limited by time, nor hindered by death. To enjoy this good life, we must know who He is and be changed by why He came to earth. In being “born again” we gain a new purpose, a new significance, a new outlook, a new hope, a new joy, a