How to get the most out of life and death

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. ²² And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” ²³ But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

²⁴ Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ²⁶ For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? ²⁷ For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. 

Matthew 16:21-27

To have your best life now, follow the pattern established by Jesus.

Jesus rebuked Peter because his worldview was on this age and not on the kingdom of God. Peter saw things as men see them, not as God sees them. Humans want a “best life now” kind of life that includes all of the amenities of a pleasant human life. We want enough financial security, friends, comforts, and status that is adequate. We don’t have to have fame or extreme wealth. We want enough to do what we would like to do. Humans want a life that meets their desires and needs. It is frankly a selfish life we want, not a life of sacrifice.

Jesus made a substantial demand on anyone wanting to be his disciple and follow him. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself…” Wait! I thought this article was about getting the most out of life. Now Jesus says that if I want to follow him, I have to deny myself? How is that getting the best out of life? Then Jesus makes it even worse and says we have to “take up our cross and follow him.” We know what the cross is, an instrument of death and execution.

The secret to real estate investing is “location, location, location.” Likewise, a good understanding of Scripture is location, location, location; only in the case of Scripture we describe it as context rather than location, but it means the same thing. Before Jesus states the demand that we take up our cross, he tells his disciples about his own pending crucifixion. He will suffer many things, die, and on the third day, rise from the dead. When Peter rebuked Jesus for such a saying, Jesus rebuked Peter identifying the source of his thinking as being Satan, who had gained Peter’s mind to think in terms of this world and not in terms of the kingdom of God. Peter did not understand this principle of dying to live and living that will cause one to die.

When Jesus pronounced, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? ” He laid out the strategy for a blessed life that is diametrically opposed to how this world trains us to live. But, it was a strategy that Jesus was in the process of implementing himself. He was not telling us to live in a way that he would not demonstrate for us.

Jesus gave up his life and peace by being abused, flogged, and crucified for us. He was laying down his life for us. It appeared that his life was a complete dud.

But, Jesus was not losing his life or forfeiting his soul. He was, in fact, inheriting the whole of creation by dying for it. In laying down his life, he was purchasing the New Heaven and New Earth in addition to the salvation of all who trust in him. He was showing us the pattern for our best life. If we lose our life for the sake of the kingdom of God, we genuinely find it both in this life and in the life to come. In this life, when lived like Jesus demonstrated, we find love that can’t be experienced any other way. The greatest need we have as human beings is the need to be truly loved. In laying down our lives for Jesus, we discover what true love is. Jesus said it like this, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” When we lose our life, we find it.
Just as Jesus died for the redemption of the whole world, when we lay down our lives for him and his kingdom, we gain not only a current life in the kingdom of God, but we also will gain a glorious life in the New Heaven and New Earth.

Elsewhere Jesus put it this way, ” But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33) The “these things” are the necessary things for living life on this earth. Jesus promises to meet those needs for all who seek his kingdom first, that is, make the kingdom of God the ultimate goal of our lives, taking priority over our natural human desires for wealth, fame, status, etc. Some people will put the kingdom of God first and still, by Divine providence, experience more than average wealth, fame, and status. But, it will be by God’s design, not as a product of selfish living for self.
Jesus laid down his life for us and, in so doing, gained the whole New Creation. He is making all things new. He couldn’t be doing that without giving up his life first. So we will only inherit a rich inheritance in Christ if we lay down our lives for Jesus and his kingdom. To the extent that we continue to preserve our lives, our dreams and ambitions, our desires for wealth, fame, and status, we diminish our eternal inheritance and our current love and joy in Jesus.