The movie, Braveheart, tells the story of William Wallace, a common man, who led Scotland to freedom from the tyranny of English rule in the late 13th Century.
At the end of the movie, Wallace has been betrayed to the English and sits in prison awaiting execution. The Princess of Wales, who wants to free him, comes to his cell. She asks if there is any way he could recant his rebellion to save his life. Submit-ting to the English king would spare him torture and death.
Wallace sees clearly what is at stake, and he stands his ground without shame.
The princess says, “I come to beg you to confess all and swear allegiance to the king so that he may show you mercy.”
Wallace says, “If I swear to him, all that I am is dead already.”
Weeping, the princess says, “You will die. It will be awful.”
To which Wallace replies, “Every man dies. Not every man really lives.” (Braveheart, 20th Century Fox, 1995, written by Randall Wallace, directed by Mel Gibson; 2:31:40 to 2:32:53, scene 18 on DVD.)
That’s so true: We all die, but so few of us ever really live.
Tell me: Do you want to really live before you die? Do you want to grab a hold of the life that is truly life? Then I invite you to grab a Bible and turn with me to 1 Timothy 6, 1 Timothy 6, where the Bible shows us how to really live.
1 Timothy 6:11-12 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (NIV)
If we’re going to really live today, then 1st of all, we must…
GRAB TOMORROW.
We must seize the future. We must take hold of the eternal life that became ours when we confessed our faith in Jesus Christ. That means we must: run from those things that would tie us down to this life; pursue those things that will last forever; and fight for what we believe in as followers of Christ.
The picture here in verse 12 is of a Roman wrestling match. The word, “fight,” literally means “to wrestle," and in a typical Roman wrestling match, the fighters start in a standing position, they grab a hold of each other’s necks, and they don’t let go until one of them goes down.
That’s the kind of fight we’re in as believers in Jesus Christ. The pursuit of wealth would shove us down, but we must grab a hold of those eternal values that will go with us into heaven.
After nine seasons, the popular sitcom, Everybody Loves Raymond, broadcast its final episode in May of 2005. The star of the show, Ray Romano, went from life as a struggling stand-up comedian to one of the highest-paid actors on television.
At the conclusion of the last day’s filming, Romano spoke to the studio audience, reflecting on his past and his future. He read from a note his brothers had stuck in his luggage the day he moved from New York to Hollywood, nine years earlier.
“My older brother Richard wrote, ‘What does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, and loses his soul?’” said a tearful Romano. “Now I’m going to work on my soul.” (Ray Romano, "Biography," A&E, 5-13-05; www.PreachingToday.com)
Romano realized that wealth and fame did not satisfy. He had pursued it with all his might, but it all came to an end; it didn’t last forever. From the outside, it looked like he had grabbed a hold of life; but in the end, his hands and his heart were empty.
My friends, if we want to really live, then we must work on our souls, not on our salaries. We must grab a hold of eternity. If you don’t know Jesus, that means trusting Him with your life and your eternal destiny. He and He alone can save you. If you DO know Jesus, that means living for the things that really count. It means living for the things that last forever like “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness” (vs.11).
Who we ARE on the inside is much more important than what we HAVE on the outside. What we HAVE will all pass away when we go from this life into eternity. Who we ARE stays with us forever!
Many years ago, an American tourist in Poland visited a clergyman in his home. He was astonished to see that the home was only a simple room with some books, a table, and a bench.
The tourist asked, “Sir, where is your furniture?”
The clergyman responded, “Where is yours?”
“Mine,” replied the puzzled American. “But I’m just a visitor here. I’m only passing through.”
“So am I,” said the clergyman. (Rabbi Hofetz Chaim, Reader’s Digest)
In fact, we’re all just passing through, so why accumulate a bunch of stuff just for a temporary dwelling? Doesn’t it make better sense to work more for the place where we will spend eternity? Sure it does!
Now, I know this flies in the face of what everybody else is saying these days. The popular culture says, “Live for today! Enjoy the moment, because there is no tomorrow. Today is all that really matters.” Well, that’s nothing but humanistic, existential hogwash. It’s the spirit of our age, and we must fight that spirit if we’re going to really live. We cannot live for today as if there is no tomorrow like our culture tells us to do. Instead, we must live for tomorrow as if there is no today. We must live for eternity. If we want to really live, then we must grab tomorrow. 2nd, if we want to really live, then we must…
GUARD OUR LOVE FOR GOD TODAY.
We can’t let anything diminish or take away our commitment to the Lord in this life. We must keep our devotion to Chrsit strong until He appears at His second coming.
1 Timothy 6:13-16 In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen. (NIV)
Jesus is coming soon, but until then we are charged to “keep this command” (vs.14). Literally, we are charged to “keep THE commandment.”
The question is: What is THE commandment? There are a lot of commands in this chapter, but none of them seem to stick out as THE primary command. In my mind, the only command that could be called “THE commandment” is the one Jesus called “The Greatest Commandment” in Matthew 22 – “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37-38). It fits the context here in 1 Timothy 6. Instead of “loving money,” which is “the root of all kinds of evil” (vs.6), we are to love God more than anything else.
That’s the command we are to keep. That’s the command we are to guard, not letting anything diminish our love for the Lord. For, you see, nothing compares with Him. God outshines anything this world, or even the universe itself, has to offer.
Just this past July (2010), Paul Crowther, professor of astrophysics at the University of Sheffield, announced that he and his research team had discovered the brightest star ever found in the universe. The mass of the star is roughly 265 times that of our sun, but even more impressive is its brightness, which he said is 10 million times greater than our sun.
Think about it: The star, currently named R136a1, is not twice as bright as our sun, which would be overwhelming in itself. It is not just 10 times brighter, which is a light so bright we can hardly imagine it. It is not a hundred times brighter or a thousand times brighter than our sun. It is not a million times brighter! This newly identified star is ten million times brighter than our sun! How can anything be that bright? (Michael Sheridan, “Scientists find what may be universe’s heaviest star, R136a1,” New York Daily News, 7-21-10; www.PreachingToday.com)
Well, the Bible tells us that our God is even brighter still! Verse 16 makes it very clear: “[God] lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see.” God outshines anything this whole universe has to offer. Everything else pales in comparison, so He, and He alone, is worth loving and giving your life to. To love anything else, especially money, is going to leave us feeling empty on the inside.
Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), whom God used to spark the First Great Awakening in our country, once said, “The enjoyment of [God] is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied… Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends are but shadows, but enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the fountain. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.” (Heartcry! Issue 26, 2003; www.PreachingToday.com)
Dear friends, don’t be satisfied with the mere trinkets of this world. Don’t be satisfied with shadows and drops. Instead, jump into the ocean of God’s love and find your satisfaction in Him.
Albert Pujols, the first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals, is a World Series champion, an eight-time All Star, the recipient of three National League MVP awards, and according to a 2008 poll of 30 Major League Baseball managers, the most feared hitter in the sport. He has certainly reached the top of his game, but that is not what brings him any real satisfaction.
While speaking at an event at Lafayette Senior High School in Missouri, Pujols told the audience of men and young boys, “As a Christian, I am called to live a holy life. My standard for living is set by God, not by the world. I am responsible for growing and sharing the gospel.” Then after some comments on humility, he told the crowd, “One way for me to stay satisfied in Jesus is for me to stay humble. Humility is getting on your knees and staying in God’s will – what he wants for me, not what the world wants.” Then he added: “It would be easy to go out and do whatever I want, but those things only satisfy the flesh for a moment. Jesus satisfies my soul forever.” (Tim Ellsworth, “Holy Hitter,” World magazine, 2-27-10; www.PreachingToday.com)
If we want to find lasting satisfaction, then we must do what God wants, not what we want. That’s what loving God is all about – not pleasing ourselves, but pleasing Him. & That is the only way to really live.
If you want to grab a hold of the life that is truly life, then 1st, grab tomorrow by living for eternity; 2nd, guard your love for God today; and 3rd, if you want to really live, then…
GIVE AWAY AS MUCH AS YOU CAN.
Be generous and share all that you dare.
1 Timothy 6:17-19 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. (NIV)
If you want to really live, then don’t acquire wealth as a status symbol. Don’t let your money become a source of pride. Verse 17 says, “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant…”
For many people, Their wealth is a source of pride. Their significance is defined by their material possessions, and they openly display their affluence so that others will know how important they are.
In the story of Pollyanna, there is a woman who runs the town. She’s not the mayor and doesn’t even sit on the city council. It’s just that she has inherited a tremendous amount of money from her father, and she has a controlling interest in all the major businesses in town. As a result, no one wants to cross her for fear of losing their jobs.
She even tells the preacher what to preach every Sunday; and for four years, he allowed himself to be swayed by her opinions. After all, she was a major contributor, but it nearly destroyed the church. Then the preacher meets a little girl, Pollyanna, who tells him, “No one owns the church,” and it brings him to his knees.
It’s a glorious moment in the story when the pastor dares to say what he feels God wants him to say even though it crosses the woman. There is a scowl on her face, but a new spirit in the church as they are set free to follow the Lord.
There are those who think their money gives them a right to be heard & to tell everybody what to do, even in the church. Well, let me tell you: There is only One Person in charge. That’s the Lord, and those who have money need to submit to Him instead of expecting others to submit to them.
If you want to really live, don’t acquire wealth for status, and don’t acquire wealth as a means of security either. Don’t depend on your money to keep you safe and free from harm.
Verse 17 says, “[Don’t] put [your] hope in wealth, which is so uncertain.” It is here today and gone tomorrow.
That certainly has become very evident in the last two years with the longest and worst recession we’ve had since the Great Depression. A lot of people lost their jobs, and many saw their retirement accounts and investments reduced by as much as 40% or more. But there was one lady who must have felt very secure when banks around the world failed and the financial markets tanked. She actually slept on her wealth every night.
In June of last year (2009), the Associated Press ran a story about an elderly woman in Israel, who had hidden her life savings worth $1 million in her bed mattress. She had had a bad experience with a bank and lost trust in them. So she withdrew all her money and stuffed it in her mattress. In fact, she did not tell even her own daughter what she had done.
Then one day her daughter decided that her mother needed a new mattress. Who knows, maybe she sat on the bed, and it felt a bit lumpy – one of those ten thousand dollar lumps perhaps – and she thought, “What a cheap bed this is!” She decided to replace the mattress and present the new mattress as a surprise gift to her mother. So the new mattress was delivered without her mother’s knowledge, and the old, lumpy mattress went into the garbage.
Her elderly mother didn’t comprehend what had happened at first. But after a night of sleep on her new mattress, she woke up and screamed. She had suddenly realized her life savings was literally “trashed.”
News reports showed the daughter walking through a garbage dump hunting for the lost mattress. She and several workers were combing through the trash as bulldozers moved piles of garbage attempting to uncover the lost treasure. (Ian Deitch, “Israeli woman mistakenly junks $1 million mattress,” www.ap.org, Associated Press; www.PreacingToday.com)
No matter where we put our money, we cannot count on it to be there when we need it; and even if it is, we cannot count on it to make us feel secure. Money means nothing when you have a diagnosis of a terminal illness, or when you’ve lost somebody you love, or when you face an uncertain future.
Money means nothing in those times, but God means everything. In fact, God is the Only One we can count on so put your hope in Him and not in your wealth. Put your hope in God, verse 17 says, “who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”
It’s not wrong to be rich. If God has given you wealth, enjoy it! Just don’t depend on it for your significance or your security.
Instead, share your wealth and really live! Be generous and grab the life that is truly life. Give it away and have a blast!
1 Timothy 6:18-19 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. (NIV)
If you want to take a hold of the life that is truly life; then be rich in good deeds, and be generous and willing to share all that God has given you to enjoy.
Kurt Warner, the two-time NFL MVP quarterback of the Arizona Cardinals, started a family tradition he calls The Restaurant Game. The night before he heads out for a road game, Kurt and his wife take their seven children out to eat a family dinner. Once the Warner family is seated, one of the children will scan the dining area like a quarterback looking for potential receivers. When the Warner child picks a table, Kurt asks the waiter to add that table’s dinner tab to his own—all anonymously. At a steakhouse before a September game against the New York Jets, a family of four received a free meal without knowing it came from an NFL star.
The idea for The Restaurant Game came to Warner and his wife after Warner led the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl victory in 2000. It’s a natural fit for them. They remember the days before Warner’s NFL career – when Kurt was working a night shift at a grocery store, and they only had food stamps to feed their family. With that in mind, giving is a joyful family tradition for the Warners. Kurt Warner said, “We never want [our kids] to lose sight of what it’s really about. Our circumstances are not the most important thing. It’s what we do with those circumstances.” (Karen Crouse, “Warner Sets Example for His Family and the Cardinals,” www.nytimes.com, 9-26-08; www.PreachingToday. com)
Kurt Warner and his family have discovered the joy of giving! What a blast to be able to pick a family in a restaurant and tell your waitress, “put their tab on my bill.”
Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). And that’s very true! Give it a try. Pay for someone else’s bill anonymously next time you go to a restaurant. Next time you’re on the Illinois Tollway, pay for the people behind you, and then glance in your rearview mirror to see their reaction when they are waved through without having to pay. Pay someone’s utility bill when they can’t afford it. Give more than you dare to those who have real needs. Give more than you’ve given before to the ministries you support. Put twice the amount of money in the benevolence box than you thought about giving before. Give generosity a try, and see if it isn’t a whole lot more fun than keeping your money just for yourself.
If you want to really live, then grab tomorrow; guard your love for God today; and give away as much as you can.
Remember: Money will buy a bed but not sleep; books but not brains; food but not appetite; finery but not beauty; a house but not a home; medicine but not health; luxuries but not culture; amusements but not happiness; religion but not salvation – a passport to everywhere but heaven. (“Voice in the Wilderness,” Leadership, Vol. 5, no. 2; www.Preaching Today.com)
For THAT we need Jesus, so trust Him today. Stop pursuing wealth and start seeking the Lord. Then, and only then, will you take a hold of the life that is truly life.
