Death is the way to Life (John 12:24-25)

Life, it is our most valuable possession here on this earth.  We strive so hard to make it better, easier, more fulfilling.  To some, it means working 60 hours per week to sustain a life of extravagance and financial security.  For others, life is filled with busyness to ignore the struggles and pain that lie deep within.  Still for others, life is a daily grind of the same old thing, because that is all they know it to be. 

But life, no matter how hard we grab hold and strain, cannot be controlled or manipulated into what we think we want it to be.  You see, life, your life, is completely out of your control.  The tighter you hold on to it, the more it slips away.  Jesus says it in this way: 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.   “He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.

Jesus, in speaking about His own death, reveals a truth about how life flourishes in God’s kingdom.  A seed that is not placed and trusted into the dirt will never break forth with the life that is within it.  The same is true for humanity.  If you do not let go of the death grip that you have around your life and trust it into God’s hands, you will lose it and remain alone.  But if you are willing to let it go and entrust your life to God, you will receive abundant life that will bear much fruit.