The Meaning of Life.

Nothing is more calculated to strengthen the intellect than the study of the Scriptures. No other book is so potent in elevating the thoughts and invigorating the faculties as the broad, ennobling truths of the Bible. If God's word were studied as it should be, men would have a breadth of mind, a nobility of character, and a stability of purpose rarely seen today.

This earth is our training ground for the new heaven and the new earth. If we cannot love God and our neighbor now, we will not be able to love them later. The meaning of life is to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and to love your neighbor as yourself. Mt 22:37, Mk 12:30, Lk 10:27

You may wonder how this is possible. Only by having God's love within us can we love God completely and, with that same love, love our neighbor as ourselves. If we look at the rich young ruler in Mt 19:20-21, Lk 18:22, and Mk 10:20,

What did the young ruler lack? The ability to surrender not only all his earthly goods but also his heart to Jesus. This is what we are called to do daily: surrender our wills to Jesus, allowing Him to replace them with His own and to take control of our hearts and lives. The carnal nature resists surrender; we have given the word surrender a negative connotation. 

When we look at the whole situation, we can see that the one we are surrendering to has only the best and greatest intentions for us. With that in mind, we can take the next step and trust Him, knowing He wants a personal relationship with each of us. We need to start the day by thanking Jesus for the life He has given us and asking that He have complete control over our hearts and minds.

Then He can direct our paths and fill us with His love so that we can love God first and foremost (Prov 3:5,6) and, with that same love, love others as ourselves. It is the daily dying to self that Paul described when he said that it was not he who lived but Christ who lived in him (Gal 2:20).