Are you tired – either physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, or relationally? Are you just going through the motions of life – sleep, eat, work, exercise, scroll social media, watch movies, occasionally go to church or on a trip? Day in and day out you go through life, days pass by, and you live on repeat. Do you think this is the life God intended for you?
Think about the verse John 10:10. Jesus says, “I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly.” Some translations read “life to the fullest” or “a rich and satisfying life.” This statement only represents the second part of Jesus’ teaching. The first part of what Jesus said is, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.” Think about the contrast in John 10:10.
The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My [Jesus’] purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. John 10:10
Satan is in the world with a specific purpose in mind toward you. Satan wants to steal, kill, and destroy the life God intended for you. Jesus entered the world on purpose for a purpose. Jesus’ purpose is to give you abundant life, meaning the life God intended for you to live with Him. Jesus knows Satan’s purpose. Yet, Jesus is fully committed to accomplishing His purpose for you.
Jesus also knows that sin and death are problems that hinder you from experiencing the life God intended for you. Therefore, Jesus overcame sin and defeated death for you through His sinless life and His death, burial, and resurrection.
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. Romans 8:1-2
Jesus did not overcome your sin and death problem only to leave you on earth to “go through the motions” in this life. When you entered a relationship with God through faith in Jesus, you received a new life to be lived with God, Himself. Yet, you remain on this earth that God created with Satan working to accomplish his purpose of robbing you of this abundant life. But with Jesus, you live and move and have life.
He [Jesus] is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since He is Lord of heaven and earth, He doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve His needs—for He has no needs. He Himself gives life and breath to everything, and He satisfies every need. …. For in Him [Jesus] we live and move and exist. Acts 17:24-25, 28a
Jesus is God. Jesus gives life. Jesus satisfies every need and through faith in Jesus you can live the life God intended for you. Jesus not only overcomes sin, defeats death, and secures your life in His through belief in His death, burial, and resurrection, but also desires to engage in daily living with you. Satan cannot undo your relationship with God, your eternal security in Jesus, but you can allow Satan to rob you of living life to the fullest with Jesus.
You may think like these “men of Athens” from Acts 17 whom the apostle Paul was speaking these verses (reference Acts 17:22-33). They were trying to pursue life without Jesus. They had become convinced that God could not be known and that Jesus’ resurrection was untrue. Thinking this way allows Satan to rob them of the abundant life that could be theirs through faith in Jesus.
If you have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus, how could you approach life to prevent Satan from killing, stealing, or destroying any more of your days?
1. Live every day of your life as if God is present with you because He is – God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit are present with you.
…….And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Romans 8:10-11
2. Live every day of your life without fear because most fear works against you trusting God.
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful … Romans 8:15a
Fear can be present in daily life circumstances. You can moment by moment conquer fear by trusting God. When you choose to trust God instead of allowing fear to rule your thoughts and behaviors, you could find yourself in a “holy tension” between what you know are your current life circumstances (i.e., what you see, touch, taste, feel, and hear), and what God says about Himself and you and how God instructs you to believe and act despite your circumstances. When you fear, your focus is on life circumstances and who you are.
And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as His adopted children, including the new bodies He has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.) And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. Romans 8:23-26
When you trust God, your focus is on God – who He is, what He has done in the past, and what He has promised in the present and for the future.
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:35-39
3. Live every day of your life with an eternal perspective.
Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all His glory. …. Put on your new nature and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him. …. Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ. Colossians 3:1-4, 10, 23-24
Your life with Jesus is meant to be lived in His presence, without fear, and with an eternal perspective. Going through the motions does not result in “a rich and satisfying life” with Jesus. Jesus offers you this abundant life with Him – it’s His purpose for coming into the world (reference John 10:10). Choose to break the cycle of going through the motions by pursuing the abundant life Jesus offers you but realize that you have an enemy, Satan, who has as his purpose to steal, kill, and destroy your life. But with Jesus, you can experience life to fullest!
Watch the LIVE REPLAY to learn more about living life to the fullest with Jesus. Join us LIVE every Monday at 3 p.m. ET on @GodGivesCourage Instagram for our Spiritual Growth Series and check back here on Tuesdays for the companion blog post.
