Better than life
'Life is good.' I was
browsing recently through the 'Friends Reunited' website, catching up on what
has happened to some of my old friends.
After nearly thirty years, it's fascinating. Some are living in far-flung parts of the
world; others have been there and come back.
Some have suffered great illness or tragic bereavement. Several seem to making a real success of
their careers but are not nearly so successful in their personal lives. But the comment that sticks most in my mind
is the girl that said 'life is good.'
Even in our bleakest moments, most of us would admit to finding life
better than the prospect of death; I'm reminded of Maurice Chevalier who when
asked his reaction to growing old said 'I prefer it to the alternative!' But there is something that is better; better
by far than even the most comfortable of lives: 'Your lovingkindness is better
than life,' said David the psalmist (Psalm 63:3). It is a staggering claim, and David makes it
in the full knowledge that his life is in danger as he flees from King Saul,
who was determined to kill him.
David is not on his own.
Centuries later, another servant of God is in danger and makes a similar
claim. This time it is the apostle Paul,
in prison for his faith and facing possible death. If he were to be given the choice to live or
die, he says, he would hardly know which one to choose, because 'for to me, to
live is Christ and to die is gain' (Philippians 1.21).
It is not just the great saints who feel like this: ordinary
New Testament believers, we are told, 'joyfully accepted the confiscation of
[their] property' (Hebrews 10.34). Why
did they do this? 'Because [they] knew
that [they] had better and lasting possessions.' For the same reason, believers
accepted suffering and rejoiced in it (Romans 5:3) – even when it led to
martyrdom. It is one of the best kept
secrets in the world: knowing God, knowing his love poured out in our hearts,
is the very best thing that the life can offer.
There may be great costs to being a Christian: sin has to be turned
from, ambitions may have to change.
Suffering and rejection may come.
But all these things have been found by Christian people to be as
nothing: not just (just!) because of the peace that having sins forgiven
brings, and not even because of the assurance of heaven. Rather, it is because of the joy of knowing
God himself. 'Your lovingkindness is
better than life.'
Raymond Lull
Raymond Lull was the first missionary to the Moslems – he
was born in 1235. In 1314, as a man of
almost 79, his love for Christ was
burning brighter than ever. He returned
quite deliberately to an area of North Africa
where he had preached as a younger man and known much danger. For nearly a
year, he laboured secretly among the little circle of converts that he had won
over previously to the Christian faith.
Then, weary of seclusion, he stood in an open market where once he had
been chased out, and proclaimed Christ knowing full well that it would cost him
his life. Filled with fury at his boldness, his hearers dragged out of town and
stoned him to death on 30th of June 1315. Why did he do such a thing? 'Your lovingkindness is better than life.'
Devotion like that can only come from an appreciation of the
love of Christ, and there are many such stories, even in our own day. John Piper quotes the story of a man from Haiti , named
Edmund. His church was having a special
offering, and one envelope contained $13 cash – equivalent to three months'
income for a working man and at least as striking, therefore, as a three or four thousand pound
gift would be in our own land. One of
the church leaders, knowing or guessing where the gift had come from, looked
round for Edmund in the meeting but could not see him. Later, though, he met him in the village and
discovered that he had sold his horse to raise the $13. 'But why didn't you come to the
meeting?' he asked. Edmund hesitated, and at first would not
answer. Finally, though, he admitted 'I
had no shirt to wear.' Why would a poor
man – too poor to clothe himself properly – make such a gift? 'Your lovingkindness is better than life.'
In the light of this verse and those stories, there are two
things that need to be said.
The first is that
too many of us Christians today live at far too low a level. Somehow, though we know God and rejoice in
the forgiveness of sins, we have allowed ourselves to be seduced again by the
world. Perhaps we can say 'to die is
gain' but we have grown to love the things God has given us in this world more
than we love the giver. We could not
take joyfully the confiscation of our property.
We find it hard to make sacrifices, even for the sake of the
gospel. We have grown used to giving our
tithe – surely it's enough? And when the
church has special needs, we will dip a little – a very little – deeper into
our pockets to help. And as a result of
our worldliness, the Holy Spirit is grieved.
Our Christian experience is impoverished, our Christian witness is
poor. And the cause of the gospel
languishes. Only a radical re-thinking
of our priorities followed by radical action will make any difference. 'My heart says of you 'Seek his face.' Your face, Lord, will I seek.'
The second thing
is addressed to those who do not know the Lord. Perhaps you're idly flicking
through this magazine, wondering what Christianity is all about or why some
people take it so seriously. This is
why: God made us for himself, that we might know him, love him and enjoy
him. He is infinite and eternal; there
is therefore no limit to his goodness, to his power – and to his
loveliness. However hard we might try,
the truth is we can never be satisfied with anything other than God
himself. As one old preacher said 'God
made us for himself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in
him.' Our sin has separated us from God
– and that single fact accounts for all the misery in the world, and all the
misery in our hearts and lives, too. But
God gave his Son, Jesus, to die for us, so that we might be reconciled to
God. That is the gospel; that is the
good news. And those who turn to him
find him to be great and gracious beyond words.
They begin to know him, and enjoy him – and look forward to heaven,
where they will love him and know him without any barriers between. Do not let anything else keep you away from
him, and away from the heaven he offers.
'Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that takes
refuge in him' (Psalm 34:8).
