The Meaning Of "Life" with Michael Schroeder —
Some of the greatest philosophers of all time have contemplated the meaning of life.
While you can read the thoughts of men on this subject in countless books, I’d rather
look at the meaning of “Life” as it’s defined in the book of God’s Word.
The meaning of life typically leads to 3 main questions:
1. Where did I come from?
2. Why am I here?
3. Where am I going?
As we look in God’s Word for the answers to these questions, we see just how well He knows
and loves us, as we learn from His Word that we come from God himself.
Jeremiah 1:5
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart
Job 33:4
"The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
What’s the address you live at today? Do you think it’s by accident that you live there?
Did you know that God determined the time and place you would live?
Acts 17:26
From one man he made every nation of men, that they
should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for
them and the exact places where they should live.
Did you know that every blessing, every good thing you have in your
life is a gift from God, your heavenly Father?
James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the
Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting
shadows.
Did you know that God is more than with you, that He delights in you
and that He even sings over you?
Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, He will
rejoice over you with singing.
You’ll find in His Word that God knows everything about you, down to
the smallest detail, as you read these verses from Matthew 10 & Psalm 139
Matthew 10:30
"And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered."
Psalm 139
1 O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to say, even before I say it, Lord.
5 You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.
-13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me
together in my mother’s womb.
-16 You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded
in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
17 How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!
18 I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up, you are still with me!
How much does God care for you?
Every day God thinks of you. (Psalm 68:19)
Every hour God looks after you. (2 Thess 3:3)
Every minute God cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)
Because every second He loves you. (Jer 31:3)
Even when we rebelled against and separated ourselves from a perfect and Holy God by
our unholy sin, He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him again by forgiving our sin and
paying our debt through His perfect and Holy Son Jesus. Jesus, who came to serve
as our substitute by living the perfect life in our place, and to die in our place as payment for the penalty of our sins, in order to save us from eternal death. (John 3:16-17) He then rose again,
conquering sin and death, so that by grace, through faith, we could know the gift of
salvation from a Savior, with Jesus telling us after His resurrection,
John 14:19 “Because I live, you also will live.”
Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the
forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace.
Acts 13:38-39 38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the
forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is
set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.
Now, it is by grace though faith that we are no longer dead in our sins,
but made alive in Christ. (Eph 2:1-8)
When we hear the phrase “ The Meaning of Life,” we tend to think of it in terms of this temporary, earthly life, instead of how God uses the word “Life” in the eternal view.
John 3:16-17
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him.
When Jesus says in John 6 “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry,
and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Or in John 14:6 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through me."
Or in John 10:9 “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
He is talking about the real meaning of “Life”: eternal life in Him.
All this comes from a God who gave us the right to become His children:
John 1:12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become children of God.
These verses from God’s Word answer our first question – who we are and where we came from.
By grace through faith we are the children of God, who gave us “Life” in more ways than one.
Now to the 2nd question: “Why am I here?”
Isaiah 43:7
Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.
How do we glorify God with more than a song?
You’ll find in these verses of 1 Corinthians 12 that God gave each of us different gifts to
serve according to His purpose.
1 Corinthians 12
4 There are different spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them.
5 There are different ways of serving, and yet the same Lord is served.
6 There are different types of work to do, but the same God produces every gift in every person.
7 The evidence of the Spirit’s presence is given to each person for the common good of everyone.
8 The Spirit gives one person the ability to speak with wisdom. The same Spirit gives another
person the ability to speak with knowledge.
9 To another person the same Spirit gives courageous faith.
To another person the same Spirit gives the ability to heal.
10 Another can work miracles. Another can speak what God has revealed.
Another can tell the difference between spirits.
Another can speak in different kinds of languages. Another can interpret languages.
11. There is only one Spirit who does all these things by giving what God wants to give to each person. 12 For example, the body is one unit and yet has many parts.
As all the parts form one body, so it is with Christ.
-27 You are Christ’s body and each of you is an individual part of it.
And the reason why we are each uniquely gifted is answered in
Ephesians 4:12
to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared
in advance for us to do.
So using our gifts in the work God prepared for us is how we glorify God and why we’re here.
Jesus said in Matthew 4:19 “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
C.S. Lewis said, “In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.”
So we are not here to serve in labor, but in love. Living “life” to the full in the fruits of His Spirit
means knowing the very source of love, joy, peace, kindness, and goodness, while using the gifts
God gave us to do more than speak about the Gospel, but share the good news
with our hearts and lives by showing the world the love of Christ in the place where He put us.
Surrendering the life and values of the world and self before all things, for a "Life to the full" is not becoming less of yourself, but actually more fully the person God intended us to be.
“Think God can’t use you? Think He only uses perfectly qualified people? Take a closer look.
Moses was not a great speaker. Jonah ran from God. Jacob was a liar. Noah got drunk.
Rahab was a prostitute. David had an affair. Jeremiah was depressed.
Solomon was rich in wisdom but poor in lifestyle. John the Baptist was just plain poor.
Timothy was too young. Abraham was too old. Lazarus was dead. Sarah was barren.
Naomi was a widow. Gideon and Thomas both doubted (so did Sarah).
Peter lacked self control. James and John were self righteous.
Paul had a short fuse. Well, so did Peter and Moses. Actually lots of people did.
God’s army isn’t perfect . It never has been. It’s the march of the unqualified.
Get in line!”
(The paragraph quote above adapted from the writing of Mark Tullos. Transcript from Igniter media’s video March Of The Unqualified)
God says in John 15:16
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my Name.
John 15:5
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
These verses from God’s Word answer our second question – why we are here.
We are here to bring glory to God by using the gifts He gave us in our prepared work, with the love of Christ where He has placed us, so that we might go and bear lasting fruit.
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Now on to the last question: Where am I going?
If the meaning of life as we know the phrase was to be about this limited lifetime and the values of this world, over in just a few short decades on earth, what a sad definition of life that would be.
1 Corinthians 15:19
And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.
But the answer from God’s Word about where we are going after our earthly life is over
is that by grace through faith, we are going to our eternal life with our Savior and Heavenly Father.
1 John 5:13
I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of
God, so that you may know you have eternal life.
John 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the “life”. He who believes in me will live,
even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.
Jesus says in John 14:1-6
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.
2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am
going there to prepare a place for you?
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me
that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.
”5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the “life”. No one comes to
the Father except through me.
Have you heard the analogy of when God created fish, he spoke to the sea. When God wanted to
create trees he spoke to the earth. When he wanted to create us, he spoke to himself. What happens when you take a fish out of the sea? It dies. - What happens when you take a tree out of soil? It dies. - What happens when we become disconnected from God? We die. God is our natural environment. We were created to live in the presence of God! It is only in him that life exists!
s
The meaning of life for many that value the worlds point of view is an earthly existence of
self and its limitations, ending in death after a short time on earth, (1 John 2:15-17) (Matt. 16:26)
while the meaning of “Life” as something deeper, richer and eternal found in God and His Word is
the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Heb. 13:8)
It can only be found through the one who says, “I am the Way, the truth and the “Life”, (John 14:6)
the one who God’s Word says is “the bread of Life,” (John 6:35)
the one who says, “I am the resurrection and the “Life,” (John 11:25).
The meaning of “Life,” you see, according to the Word of God,
can only be found in him through faith in Jesus. (John 14:6)
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Matthew 16:26
And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
Is anything worth more than your soul?
Matthew 10:39
Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
Matthew 11:28–30
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you
will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Matthew 7:7-8
Ask, Seek, Knock
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
John 15:5
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in
you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
John 10:10b
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full”.
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Artist info at www.michaelschroeder.com
