Jesu Juva
“What God Gave for Your Life”
Text: Mark 8:27-38; Romans 5:1-11
In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
What can a man give in return for his life?
That’s the question, isn’t it? How can I have life? The life I want? For that, many are striving, but few attain. And what would you give, what would you do, for such a life? Sadly, the answer for many is often to trample on the life of another. Be it with abortion, or euthanasia, or sex trafficking, or embryonic stem cell research, or genocide, or abandonment, or a whole host of other life issues facing us today.
But the life that is being saved in those cases is my life in this world. And the life that is being lost - or at least, lost sight of - is the life that really matters: the life of eternity. The question is: which life matters most? If we get that answer right, chances are we’ll get the rest right, too.
But perhaps the problem is not that, not which life, but that I want both. I want the life I want now, and I want the life of the world to come, the life of eternity. That’s not bad to want that, to want both. The question is: what is the life you want now? And is wanting that life compatible with also wanting the life of eternity? Perhaps not. For as we heard Jesus say today: whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. And remember that Jesus said this, too: No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and [mammon] (Matthew 6:24).
Now notice something very important here: the problem is not with what you have but with what you want. Not what’s in your home, but what’s in your heart. It’s not money that is the root of all evil, but the love of money. And then, Paul goes on to say: It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs (1 Timothy 6:10). And you don’t have to look far to see those pangs in our world today . . . even within our own churches and families . . . maybe even our own hearts. How easy it is for us, like Peter, to not set our minds on the things of God, but on the things of man. The things of this world and life. And instead of getting the life I want, the result is the pangs of strife, division, heartache, guilt, shame.
So maybe this life I imagine, I crave, maybe that life isn’t good for me, or for the others I trample to get it. Maybe the life I want isn’t the life I need. Maybe there’s a better way . . .
This season of Lent that we’re now in helps us to focus on just that: there’s a better way. A better way than the way we’ve been going. A way that may not seem better, but is: and that is the way of the cross. For the cross is not what man gives in return for his life, but what God gave in exchange for my life. Whatever I give is too little, and whatever I may gain won’t last. But what God gave is His only-begotten Son, a gift of priceless worth, and what I gain from Him and through Him lasts forever.
It is said that the value of something is what the market will bear, what someone will pay for it. So if someone is willing to pay half a million for your house, that’s what your house is worth. Our heavenly Father gave His only-begotten Son for you. And the Son laid down His life for you. That’s how much you’re worth in His eyes! And not just you, but all people. Those we consider really big, bad sinners, and those we think not so bad. The able and the disabled, the wanted and the unwanted, the strong and the weak, the young and the elderly, those not yet born and those close to death. All of them together and each of them alone, for Jesus, every life worth His own.
That’s why we’re here today. As sons and daughters of God by the new birth of water and the Word, how God looks at life is how we now look at life. Not perfectly, of course. We still have much to repent of. But having been justified by faith and at peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, we march to proclaim that every life is valuable, precious, and important. And that all people may know that. That all may know that if they have abused, misused, or taken life, there is forgiveness for them. That those who have been trampled or shoved aside, know they are loved. A truth that is for you and me, as well.
So while it would be nice to have legislation passed to protect life, that’s not really the answer. Remember, the problem is not what you have, but what you want. Not what’s in your home (or state, or country), but what’s in your heart. And the truth is that even if abortion and euthanasia and assisted suicide and all other life issues were immediately outlawed, they would still be wanted and found and offered by some. The Law has its role and place, but is not the answer. The answer is Jesus. The answer is His life and joy.
So we march today in joy, not in anger. The joy of the life we have been given, and the joy of the life we have been promised. And if we must suffer here, for a while, because of this, Paul says still rejoice! For suffering, in the end, produces hope. A hope that will not put us to shame, but will be fulfilled, for our hope is in Jesus and all His words and promises. His Word that has given you life now, and His promise of life everlasting.
So we march today and confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Saviour of all people. Of those who march with us and those who don’t. And we pray that our Lord and His Spirit would work in all hearts, to turn them to Him, to value all life. We march, but the battle is His. And the victory, too.
So we, as we sang,
Entrust your days and burdens
To God’s most loving hand . . .
Our hands and feet, Lord, strengthen;
With joy our spirits bless
Until we see the ending
Of all our life’s distress.
And so throughout our lifetime
Keep us within Your care
And at our end then bring us
To heav’n to praise You there (LSB #754).
In the Name of the Father, and of the (+) Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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