BOOKLET 3
Understanding life
Chapter 1: Different kinds of life Chapter 2: The Giver of life Chapter 3: Which way of life?
Chapter 3: Which way of life?
How then should we live our lives during our short time on earth in this physical body?
God has created us with a very meaningful purpose that will continue after we die physically and leave this body. However, this purpose will not be fulfilled in us if we do not want it or if we choose to follow our own desires. If what you want is to enjoy yourself in the things of this world, you will be feeding your physical body and its desires, but there will be death in your spirit.
If we want quality and meaning in our spirit, then we must choose to concentrate on the spiritual life that we can receive from God. What meaning is there in life if we are born into this world only to keep ourselves physically alive until we grow sick or old and die? We are not surprised when we see that after an animal is born into this world, it grows big and it becomes food for us. Yet, within ourselves, we know that our lives are not meant to be just like that of the animal.
When you see an animal eating and growing...
...would you expect it to look for meaning in life?
Animals live according to the natural and physical abilities that they are born with. Although we may say "pigs are lazy" and "ants are hardworking", yet we know that they are made that way and that is how they will live in this world. What they are doing is not morally good or bad. However, for human beings, it is wrong for us to be lazy and it is right for us to be hardworking when it applies to the things that are good for us to do. This is because we have a spirit that can recognize what is good or bad, right or wrong and we can obey God and become like Him in His goodness, or go against Him and become morally bad.
During my fourth or fifth year in the university, I saw an old lady in the hospital ward. Her hair had all turned white. She was admitted to the hospital for an operation for her gall-bladder problem. She was probably of about the same age as the old ladies that I saw at the Old Folk's Home. However, I noticed that she was very cheerful and life was very meaningful to her although she was waiting for her operation.
I spoke to her and she told me that when she was much younger, she had lived in China, sharing with others the meaning in life that she had found through the Lord Jesus Christ. When she was talking with me, she was writing a letter to her daughter who was in another country, also seeking to help others find life through the Lord Jesus.
Whether we are young or old, life will always be meaningful if we make our choices according to God's ways, in the path of what is morally and spiritually good. As we develop our spirit by receiving spiritual life from God, we grow in the quality of our being. The Lord Jesus, in His prayer to God, said, "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (John 17: 3). When we humbly come to God to walk in His ways and to receive life from Him, our heart will become pure. The greater the purity of our heart, the more deeply we will know God in His greatness, His glory and His goodness.
In your daily life, you can choose to live for yourself, seeking the things of this world to satisfy your bodily appetites; or you can choose to live for God and for what is good, seeking the things of the kingdom of God and satisfying the deepest longings of your heart, your inner man. Where your treasure is, your heart will be there also. In Booklet 1, we saw that King Solomon sought to satisfy himself through what this world could offer him. What he found was emptiness in life. If we follow him, we will also find emptiness.
If you learn to walk with God, you will find life to be meaningful even when the situation is difficult, even when you are sick and in pain, and even when you grow old and weak. This is because the meaningfulness of life is found in your inner man. When you walk with God faithfully, your inner man grows strong and your heart remains joyful even though you go through very difficult and painful times. God in His grace and love will be with you, to guide and to strengthen you.
I once knew an old lady who was about seventy years of age. She had been sick for about fifty years and she was in pain most of the time. Her legs were greatly swollen, her hands were not normal in shape and she could hardly walk, even with the help of a walking stick. However, she was very cheerful and concerned for others. She would often pick flowers to make into small bundles to give to people who came for the first time to attend church meetings.
I talked to her about her sickness and she told me that she was very thankful to God that she had suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for fifty years. She explained that when the symptoms of her disease first began, she was a young lady of about twenty years of age. If she had not been ill, she probably would have followed her friends to enjoy herself in the things of this world. However, because of her illness, she could not move about so freely and it helped her to draw near to God, to seek His help.
She said that God was very close to her and very good to her. She prayed to Him for help even when she turned around in bed and when she got up from the bed, as there was pain when she moved. She had learnt much about the things of the Kingdom of God as a result of her illness and her concentration on the moral and spiritual areas of life. Though she was often in great pain for prolonged periods of time, her spirit was peaceful and joyful.
When an animal dies, that is the end of its existence. When we die, our physical body dies but our spirit continues to exist; it is still there. Whether there is spiritual life or spiritual death in our spirit will affect what happens to us after we die physically. Only when we have chosen to follow God and His ways will our spirit continue to grow in meaning in life. If we choose to go our own way, we will be separated from God, the Source and Giver of life.
When the Lord Jesus came to save us, He said, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners" (Matthew 9: 13). He was speaking of human beings who need forgiveness for their sins. He did not refer to animals because they are neither sinful nor righteous (as they are not created in the image of God). If you think that you are righteous and do not need forgiveness, then you will not know God's forgiveness. It is only when you choose to repent and seek God's forgiveness that you can experience God's life for your spirit.
What brings meaning to life?
Why is it that when we live according to our natural desires to satisfy the longings of the physical life, we do not find meaning in life?
Why is it that we need to come to God in order to find meaning for our life?
If, for your body, and not your spirit,
you work so hard, take so much care;
What will then happen to your spirit,
when this body no more is there?
With God's help, I will seek to share with you the subject of "Enjoying Life" in the next booklet to consider how we can meaningfully enjoy life.
I am also looking to Him to share with you the area of "Developing in Life" in Part 2 so that if you have become a Christian, it may be of help in the process of spiritual growth.
P.S.
If you have not yet received God's forgiveness and you have now decided to come to God for forgiveness, you could pray to Him. You could tell Him you are sorry you went your own way and now you want to follow Him and His ways and ask Him to forgive you for all the wrong things you have done. You could thank Him for the eternal life that He offers you through the Lord Jesus and receive Him into your heart. The Lord Jesus died for our sake, bearing the punishment that we deserve because of our wrongdoing, making it possible for us to be forgiven and to receive the life of God now.
In order to deepen your walk with God, it is important to read the Bible and pray to God regularly. It is also helpful for you to learn from other Christians with good character, who deeply love God. You could also take some time, prayerfully, to look for a suitable Christian congregation that is faithful to God, where the Bible is carefully taught and applied to daily life. Look for one where you can be helped to know the Lord Jesus more personally each day, relate meaningfully with others and grow in the quality of your character.
If you have difficulty getting information on the availability of this and other booklets on this subject, A Journey in Life; for enquiries, you could write to the following address:
Ghim Moh Estate Post Office
PO Box 348
Singapore 912742
Please write your postal address (and contact number if you wish).
Then God said, "Let there be light",
and there was light
Have you received spiritual light and life from the Creator and Giver of light and life?
ISBN 981-04-2777-8