What does it mean to live an abundant life?
It’s easy to misunderstand what it means to have an abundant life. In the 80s and 90s, Robin Leach became famous with his TV show Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Each episode took us into the lives of the fabulously wealthy. Admittedly, it was hard not to be a bit envious, watching Leach stroll the sprawling grounds of mansions and riding in luxury cars. His signature line at sign-off, champagne wishes and caviar dreams, was a final reminder of what constituted an abundant life. Looking back on it now, it seems rather ridiculous, with all the conspicuous consumption and flaunting of wealth in the face of a world with such need. But, at that time if one wanted an example of abundance, that was it.
What does it mean to live an abundant life? Well, even in the arena of faith the idea of what constitutes an abundant life can be misleading. There are the prosperity preachers who present the gospel as some kind of celestial ATM, full of money for the taking if you only use the correct formula to unlock those material riches that God has for you and wants to provide to you.
Our Scripture reading today is John 10:7-18. In that passage Jesus says I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly. What does it mean that Jesus has come to give us an abundant life? Well, there is much we can say about that verse, but I will narrow my thoughts down to only two points this morning. The verse about the abundant life is in a larger context that is important, so we must talk about it as well. Follow along with me, as I read today’s Scripture text, from John 10:7-18.
7 Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.
8 All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them.
9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.
13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—
15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.
17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again.
18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
Listen to verse 10 again –
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.
The desire of Jesus, as we find in this week’s Scripture reading, is that his followers live an abundant life. But to Jesus, abundance has a far different meaning from that presented by Robin Leach. What does it mean to live an abundant life?
#1. There are two kinds of life, and both need care and tending.
The Greek language has two words for life. One is bios, which is the root of our word biology. This definition of life is obvious. The bioslife is our physical lives and its attendant need for things such as food, water, and shelter – the biological requirements of life. This word, bios, is used only sparingly in the New Testament. As much as the New Testament speaks of life, it rarely is speaking about the biological life. The other Greek word, and the one that is most often used in the New Testament, is zoe, which is the kind of life that relates to our spiritual selves; it is life that relates to the heart and soul, not just the physical aspects of life. It is the life of meaning, purpose, faith, and love.
When Jesus speaks of life, and having an abundant life, he is speaking primarily of zoe life. This is a life that is not about quantity and accumulation of possessions. It is a life that has to do with fulfillment, but not the kind of fulfillment that comes from large houses and big bank accounts. C. S. Lewis, described the difference between these two types of life in a very interesting way. He described it as being similar to the difference between a statue and a man. A man who changed from having bios to zoe would have gone through as big a change as a statue which changed from being a carved statue to being a real man. That’s a very dramatic difference.
The danger is this – the bios life, the physical life – so very often threatens to overtake the Zoe life, the spiritual life. The demands of the physical life – work, commerce, schedules, etc. – threaten to turn us back into the statues of which C. S. Lewis spoke. Now, I will make an admission here. I know what it is possible to think right now. It is possible to think, Dave, your naivete is so quaint. You live in a bubble. You live in your church world and that world removes you from many of the realities of life. You don’t really know what it is like out there in the real world, trying to make a living, trying to deal with the realities of the workplace, trying to deal with the realities of balancing it all. And it is correct that I have been out of that world for a long time. And it might be correct that I am a bit naïve, although I would prefer to think of myself as idealistic rather than naïve. The realities of the bios world do quite often crash into my bubble of a world. I have spent a lot of time over the years dealing with the ways in which the harsh realities of that real world intrude into people’s lives, and into my own life. I know how harsh it can be, and I know how hard it is to find some semblance of balance. Balance isn’t easy in anyone’s world, including mine. I do know this – I know that the bios life is one that pushes very hard into life. I know it is a life that forces many demands upon us. And I also know there are times when we have to push back against that part of life.
When I read the story of the calling of the first disciples – Peter, Andrew, James, and John – I find it remarkable the way in which they responded in such an immediate way to the call of Jesus. It was as if they were acknowledging hey, there is more to this life than the 9 to 5 and we want to be part of something that is greater than everyday life. Yeah, we need to make a living but there’s got to be something more than just earning that living; there’s got to be a sense of life as well. For Peter, Andrew, James, and John, life was not easy. They lived in a time when most people worked hard to earn a living, and it was not much of a living. Even though they had to work hard to eke out a living, they knew there had to be more than just a bios approach to living.
The message of Jesus is one that runs counter to the intrusion of the biological life, the bios life that seeks to say that only the comforts of life, the possessions of life, the attainments of life matter. The message of Jesus is one that pulls us to the spiritual life. It is in Luke 12:15 that Jesus reminds us so powerfully of this truth when he said that one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. An abundant life, to Jesus, means more than what we can accumulate as we move through life.
The zoe life, the spiritual life, can be a very fragile and tender life. It can be easily squashed as the bios life pushes in upon us. If we think of those two kinds of life as human personalities, zoe possesses a personality that is not vocal or pushy. It would be a personality that would be considered shy and quiet. The bios life, however, is loud and boisterous, and is never content to be anywhere but in the middle of the spotlight. The zoe life, then, can grow dormant and inactive under the weight of the insistence of the bios life, but what happens when that bios life is not enough, when we suddenly hit that wall that says there has to be more. I am in this crisis and no possession, no job, no title, and no entertainment pursuit can or will give me what I need. Sit at the hospital bedside of a loved one in the midst of a terminal health crisis and it is quickly apparent which life suddenly becomes important. Sit in the midst of the brokenness of life and shattered dreams and it is quickly apparent which life suddenly becomes important. Sit in the heartbreak of a broken relationship and it is quickly apparent which life suddenly becomes important.
We cannot allow the zoe life to be sacrificed for that of the bios. If, for instance, we work only for the attainments in life, what does that do to our relationships? How many marriages have suffered because so much time has gone into work and so little into the relationship? How many parent/child relationships have suffered because of neglect born from too much time spent on things that do not nurture the relationship? And what does all that striving do to our souls? Jesus is trying to bring to us a perspective that will make us think about this contrast of two different ways of living. It is not withdrawing from life but embracing life at its most important. It is not a rejection of earning a living and caring for our families and ourselves but is, rather, a reminder of the very real danger of losing our souls in the search for attainment and accumulation. Indeed, as Jesus asked, what good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? (Mark 8:36-37).
Sometimes, we need a readjustment of our perspectives, a reminder that there is more to life than just biological life. Over the course of ministry I’ve spent a lot of time in hospitals, nursing homes, and funeral homes. I’ve spent time with individuals and families and I have seen the face of suffering and it is always a reminder that there is more to life than what we can accumulate and accomplish. If you want an adjustment to life go visit in a nursing home or a funeral home. But I’ve also learned how quickly we can forget those lessons. I’ve stood in those places and thought to myself I cannot forget what matters most in life, and not long after I get in my car and start down the road those stark reminders are already slipping away from me and the zoe life begins to become overwhelmed by the insistence of the bios life.
We have enough of the bios kind of abundance; we have, very often, a superabundance. We have all the stuff we need. Drive around a neighborhood in the spring, when people have their garage doors open and look at the amount of stuff that’s piled up. But in spite of all of the abundance what is it that is so often missing? It is a sense of security, a sense of purpose, a sense of hope – things that are intangible and spiritual. Those are the elements of the zoe kind of life, the abundant life of which Jesus speaks.
What I am saying is not a rejection of the bios life, but the importance of balance and perspective. We have two lives – the bios and the zoe– and both must be cared for and tended, but both must remain in their proper places as well.
#2. If you have an abundance in life, give abundantly to others.
I heard a news report the other day that said 40% of Americans would go into a financial tailspin if they received a parking citation of several hundred dollars. And, yes, some parking citations can end up costing that amount. 40% of Americans is a lot of people. Tens of millions of people, obviously, are not living an abundant life when it comes to material prosperity.
The audience to whom Jesus spoke of an abundant life could not comprehend of an abundant life, at least not in a material way. His audience was filled with people who struggled to eke out their daily existence. They certainly saw a few people who had great wealth, but they had no hope of attaining such a lifestyle for themselves of their families. Jesus was not, as he spoke of an abundant life, providing a vision for how they could attain a better standard of living or their best life now. Jesus was not selling a first-century version of the American Dream. He was not promising a life that would be rich in money and wealth, and those who present the gospel as a formula for attaining wealth are perverting its true meaning. Jesus’ listeners did not hear him as offering a scheme for how to achieve wealth or a home full of possessions. They knew instinctively that Jesus was speaking of something far deeper. Jesus was offering a life that provided fulfillment, meaning, purpose, and love regardless of one’s economic or social standing. It was a message that reminded his listeners, who were under the iron-fisted rule of Rome, that they could live in freedom regardless of their political circumstances. It was a message that promised that regardless of how tenuous and fragile life might be, life could be full and meaningful, and life would continue after one drew their last breath of bios life.
It is for this reason that we can never forget that we are called to share in the abundant live that we have received, because there are those who need to be given a portion of that abundance. When we have achieved a financial abundance, we are called to share of that abundance, but it’s not just the financial abundance; it is also the sharing of the abundance of meaning and purpose. It is also the sharing of our voices to speak out about the realities of a world that takes advantage of people and allows policies to be put into place that harms those who have less – less money, less power, and less influence. Let’s be honest and acknowledge that in the world in which we live you get more justice and more fairness if you have more money, more influence, and more power. Life ought not to be that way, but it is. But just because that is the way it is does not mean it must stay that way. Jesus spoke out against the injustices of the day, reminding us that we must as well.
In my work as a minister I am called to fill several roles. One is pastoral care, and I am comfortable in that role, as it suits my personality. Another role to which I am called is that of prophet, which has never been very easy for me. The role of a prophet does not come natural to my personality, and I regret that there have been too many times over the course of my ministry that I have not used my voice for others to the extent that I should have done so. I often think of the famous lines by Martin Neimoller, a Lutheran pastor in Germany during World War II. He wrote these lines about the failure to speak on behalf of others –
First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
There is a danger in every age of not speaking for those who need our voices to speak for them, but the difficulty is that we don’t always see – or perhaps acknowledge – the need to speak out and speak up for others. It is easy to think, I’ve got what I need, so if someone else doesn’t have what they need, perhaps it’s their fault. Why would it be mine? But there are times when we must speak out, and we must remember that it’s not just fear that will quiet our voices; it is also indifference.
I used to wonder what Jesus meant in some of the other verses of this morning’s Scripture text, especially when he says that I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd(verse 16). I have come to understand that verse as a reminder that we cannot think only about ourselves, or only about the people in our congregation, or our community. No, when Jesus speaks of other sheep that are not of this pen it is a reminder that all people are his sheep and he gave his life for all people. This means that those other sheep are people to whom I am called – called to love and called to minister to in whatever ways I am able.
It is for this reason that I wrote my own version of Neimoller’s words, not that they needed to be rewritten, certainly, but I did so as a reminder of the call on my life to speak on behalf of others, to love others, and to share of my abundant life with others, and the tragedy that comes if I do not do so –
I did not speak up for those in other towns who were suffering, because it was not my neighborhood, so why should I worry and why should I speak?
I did not speak up for those of other ethnicities, because I am not of those groups, so their suffering did not apply to me.
I did not speak up for those who are poor, because I am not poor. I have all I need and I would like to protect what I have.
I did not speak up for my female coworker when she was passed over for a position or promotion because I am not a female and I told myself “maybe she just wasn’t as qualified.”
I did not speak up for those who lost their jobs or were denied housing because of their sexual orientation because I already have my rights and protections.
I did not speak up and I did not speak out. Why? Because, frankly, these things did not affect me, so why would I speak? Why should I worry if I am not affected?
But one day I might awake to find myself in the crosshairs of injustice and unfairness. I might look around in vain for someone to speak on my behalf, but there will be no one. I might hope for the voice of another to rise above the din and the clamor of a world that suddenly will not notice me, and will not care about me or my sufferings. I might look around in vain for someone to stand with me and I might search in vain for an ally, for one who would stand shoulder to shoulder with me.
And I will find myself alone, and why would I not be, because I did not stand with anyone. I will be frightened at what might become of me. I will be alone and without the aid or the voice of another because I did not raise my voice when it was needed, but instead remained silent. Instead of turning my feet toward those who needed my voice and my influence and hurrying to them, my feet too often turned towards myself and my own indifference.
Because I chose the safety of indifference rather than the call to love my neighbor, because I chose to look after myself rather than offering my life in service to others, and because I did not stand with others in their time of need, the question comes to me, why then, would anyone stand with me in my time of need?
I will not, then, be a person of indifference or silence. I will use my voice. I will allow my feet to take me where there is hurt and will allow my hands to reach out to those in need and to those who suffer.
I will feed the hungry and I will visit the sick and imprisoned. I will give mercy and grace to all and I will love my enemy, because that is what Jesus did, and that is what he asks of me, and above all else, I want to be like him.
We live in a difficult world, of that there is no doubt. Sometimes, tragically, it is made more difficult by others who will create policies to make life more difficult, or they will prey upon others because they have the opportunity and the power to do so. When Jesus talks about an abundant life, he is well aware that not everyone has an abundant life – either bios or zoe life. He is calling us then to reach out a hand from out of our abundance and offer something to others. Sometimes what we offer is a tangible item, such as food or other needs of the bios life, and sometimes it is our voices; voices that will speak to what Paul calls the principalities and powers of this world that keep people from achieving an abundant life (Ephesians 6:12 – for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms). We will allow our hands and our feet to take us where we do not want to go because that is where Jesus is leading us and compelling us to go.
That is an abundant life. An abundant life is not always a secure life. Sometimes it is a scary and insecure life. Jesus faced difficulties because he was willing to bring an abundance to others, and as he did, he challenged those who prevented that abundance from being received by all people. He was willing to challenge those who stood in opposition to an abundant life for all.
It’s not just me who should have an abundant life, or you. An abundant life is meant for all people, for all the sheep in the next pasture, and the next, and every pasture, until it comes to all the sheep in all the pastures. This is what is offered by the Good Shepherd, Jesus, and it is an abundant life.
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