Is This All There Is?

It is appointed unto man to die once, the Bible tells us in Hebrews 9:27.  No surprises there as it is an obvious fact even if you are not religious.  Many people believe that this life is all there is.  You get you 70+ years, if you're lucky, then your just gone.  

 

To me this is sad.  If this is all there is, what is the purpose?  Some would say it is to just enjoy the journey.  What does that mean?  It means to do what you want.  Do what makes you happy.  Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we shall die.  

Ultimately this is selfish.  Is our only purpose here to just please ourselves?  Grab all the gold you can for he who dies with the most toys wins.  Seize as much power as you can to leave your imprint in this world as that is the only way we live eternally.  Satisfy all of your desires while you can for that is all there is.

Chrsitianity says that this life is not all that there is.  It says that there is an eternal afterlife awaiting after we leave this body.  Accepting this truth changes everything.  It turns the outlook on life from a flash in the pan to one with a never ending view.

This outlook makes all that can be attained in this life unimportant.  Money is not hoarded, but used as a tool to help others.  Power is not sought after, but placed on one to oversee the betterment of others.  Earthly pleasures are seen for what they are, temporal distractions often fraught with unwanted baggage.

This view is ultimately selfless.   It is easy to put your own desires aside in favor of helping others needs be met when one knows that there is an eternity ahead and plenty of time for rest and enjoyment.  It is easy to give up earthly things now to share this good news with others that there is more than just this life.  It is no problem to give of yourself in assistance to others when time becomes timeless.

I know it is a lot to ask of someone to give up their own life, their own hopes and dreams, their own desires, to serve others instead of serving themselves.  It flies right in the face of the logic of those who believe that this life is all there is.  It seems foolish, even, to not to seek to better the self and serve the self when one believes there is nothing else besides the one life you have.

Jesus though was willing to sacrifice his life, not just at the cross, but his whole life, for us; so that we may be able to enjoy that eternal life.  He put away all of the selfish desires and sacrificed all he could have had in this world.  He allowed himself to be put to death even, giving up freely this only life.  He did that to redeem us; to make us able to have fellowship with our creator, Yahweh.  He shed His blood so that we might be washed clean of our sins, making us able to be in the presence of a Holy God.  Jesus arose from the dead to show His power over death, so that through Him, we too might have victory over death and eternal life.

Are you willing to believe in that afterlife and accept that sacrifice Jesus made for us that will allow us to enjoy our stay in eternity?