on life…
Jesus said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear… strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.” (Luke 12.22,31)
What is life? People have given some very depressing answers to this question over the years. Shakespeare wrote, “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Longfellow said that life was “but an empty dream,” Thomas Browne that it was “but the shadow of death,” and O’Henry that it was “made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles— sniffles predominating.” According to Samuel Butler, “Life is one long process of getting tired,” and Ernest Hemmingway, who was both rich and famous, wrote, “I live in a vacuum that is as lonely as a radio when the batteries are dead.”
Contrast these views with what Jesus and one of His followers said about life. Take a moment to prayerfully reflect on these Jesus quotes concerning “life.”
• And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. (John 17.3)
• “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10.10)
• “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live.” (John 11.25)
In the Greek New Testament, there are three words for “life".”
Psychē: This is the word we get “psyche” from. It is our inner life… our “soul life,” as many want to say. This latter understanding is fair as long as we do not think this understanding teaches the soul's immortality. Psychē still remains bound by the limitations of the next word for “life” found in the New Testament.
Bios: This is the word we get “biology” from. It refers to life with all its wonders and limitations posed by death.
Zoē: This is the “life” Jesus speaks of and offers.
All creatures and species have bios. Brainwaves, heartbeats, senses. Bios has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Zoē, the life Jesus speaks of, is not part of the created biosphere. This life Jesus speaks of is not part of the created world; it is rooted in the coming one — the Kingdom of God. “Striving for His Kingdom” suggests that our lives can now experience the hints, foretastes, and glimpses of the world it was created in and created for. This is the life Jesus announces, extends to us, and fills us with. This is the life that the Holy Spirit testifies to with our spirit. This is the life that frees us from the tyranny of sin for the liberation of the Spirit. This is the life that enjoys fullness, joy, friendship, and community that geography, circumstance, and time cannot rob. This is the life that fully secures an identity rooted in love, acceptance, and forgiveness. This is the life that liberates us to be fully alive so we can be vulnerable, sacrificial, and courageous. This is the life Jesus secured by his cross and lavished us with by His resurrection. Even now, death must bow down to zoē, the world will vainly try to substitute it, and the devil will try to steal it. Their efforts will prove futile as we increasingly turn and press into this abundant life Jesus offers us and through us.
Your age doesn’t matter, and your successes or failures are irrelevant. For us to live in God’s Kingdom and bring it to our time and place, we must daily surrender our lives (bios) to this life (zoē). It is never too late to turn our bios lives over to the Lord anew… to give Him areas that defeat us so that we may experience and be inspired by his zoe life today.
How beautiful are the lives that embrace His gift of zoē!
