Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 14:6

Dear friends, I find the following passage really worth looking at:

...I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

John 10:10

I know I've already written once about this but in a different context. It's about living life at its fullest. Going back to the question I pointed out several weeks ago, many of our friends, relatives, even people in television and radio gives this advice: Live life to the fullest. But what really is a full life? How can you really live a full life? Have you bothered asking them this exact question?

I find it really amazing that many people who gives this advice will give a chain of explanation and try to swirl you down, but ultimately, the answer won't really come out as you would've expect... or basically, it's a blurry answer, a patched up answer if you may.

So if you ask me dear friends, how can one live life to the fullest? well... John 10:10 gives you the answer. Jesus came so that we may have life... and not only life, but the fullness of it. This is the big difference Jesus can bring... and unless you accept Him in your life, you're just gonna feel something is missing. Something is just not right... and you'll never really live your life to the fullest no matter how much you try. You can take people's advice, but the only advice that would give you a full life, is to accept Jesus Christ.

Have you ever heard of the words, "life of the flesh" and "life of the spirit?"

The desires of the flesh are wordly things, self fulfillment, sex, money, lust, all these things... and God is cast aside. To this day, with the word of God preached to almost all of the world, many people are still living a life of flesh, because our brothers cannot understand the life of the spirit.

Who among you watch porn for pleasure? Who among you go with your group of friends in a late night beer bashing? Are you robbers? Stealing intellectual property rights? Are you intentionally sinning right in front of God who sees each and everything that you do? Have you no shame that you sin intentionally yet proclaim to the world that you love God? Do you think by this a person would be able to live life to its fullest?

These are the desires of the flesh... and many people choose that life.

On the other hand, the life of the spirit is different. The desire of the spirit is to be one with God, to be Holy. Therefore, the spirit seeks truth, love, gentleness, peace, patience, perseverance, self-control, faith, and hope. The spirit desires the good things God can offer... and only a few choose this life... because the life of the Spirit is impossible for man... and unless you always hold on to Jesus, you will never like the life of the spirit.

Once I was talking to a friend who was a former atheist. I asked him, so... how come you decided to become a Christian? He told me, "well... it's a long story. But to make the long story short, I almost committed suicide, until in that very day I realized that something is missing in my life... and that something is Jesus Christ."

"So what did you do?"

"I prayed to Him. I prayed to Him to help me get over with all the problems that has fallen upon me."

The conversation lasted for a couple of hours, then finally I asked, "so, how's your life now that you have Jesus in your life?"

"Never been better. I just couldn't imagine how I would want to go back to the life without Jesus."

This person I am talking about is one of my playmates in online games of all sorts... and we're both natural trashtalkers until we came to realize that trashtalking is wrong... and apparently, things started to patch up with Christ. What were formerly unruly and beer bashers have found life and ended up putting their gifts for the love of God. My friend has stopped playing games now. He's now running his own business and working as a photographer in his church. On top of that he now teaches in sunday schools for young children. He is also the very same person who surprised me of a sudden change that made me say,

"Hmm... Christianity is interesting. Let me try to get serious about it... and see if something comes up."

I've never really seen anything like this before. Life changing events from destruction to holiness? C'mon... in those days I would've thought, naahh... too good to be true.

But now I can attest... it is too good... and it is true. I looked for Him with all my heart, and in the time I least expected it, in the time that I had to pray to God to grant peace to others, that very day, a prayer uttered unselfishly, a prayer not for my own good but for the good of others... in less than 24 hours that prayer, which is pretty much I'd say, against all odds, against any logical reason, happened and came true. Less than 24 hours. In that day I realized, wow... who could've make the impossible things possible but God? And that day, I gave up everything and accepted Him.

We can always have life at its fullest when we have Christ in us. But. Friends, this is very important to read on. Some people who found Jesus and accepted him, still has the tendency to cast him aside. My friends, believe me when I say this because the more I draw closer to Jesus, so is the temptation to go back to the previous life. I will be very honest that so many times here in Minneapolis that I am tempted to go back to whence I was, hot-headed and irritable. I remembered at one time out of so much anguish I almost bury my fist on the table here. But thank God I remembered to pray and things started to calm down...

I have seen people walk away from Christ after they have accepted Him. I've seen people get transformed and people who always put God before them. But after some time I saw God being pushed further and further into the background... then things just happened so fast they are now in their old lives again.

Friends, Satan cannot keep us from knowing Christ, but he can keep us from being with Christ. When you are tempted, remember, temptation gives you two choices, Jesus or Satan. Both offers life, but one of them is a liar... and we all know who that is.

Life is with Jesus Christ. If you accept Him, you will receive the life you never received before... and it's the life man would always want... because it is too good, and it is true.

TODAY'S PRAYER

Heavenly Father we thank you for this day that you have given us. May we always put you first before anything. May we receive you with an open heart so that life may come to us. We pray that none of our brothers and sisters would stray away from you... but when we are tempted to cast you aside, give us the strength and wisdom to pray and to call on you for help... and bring us back... and keep us with you at all times.

All these we pray in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit...

AMEN!

Grace and peace be with you.