What are you living for?

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When you really think about it this is one of the most important questions that you can ever answer in life. We only live once, and it is up to us to decide what we will live for. When we come to the end of our life this question will probably mean a lot more to all of us. In fact, if we are given the opportunity to think about what we lived for at the end of our life we will probably hope that we didn't waste our life living for the wrong things. 


In the days when eastern Emperors were crowned at Constantinople, it is said to have been a custom to set before the Emperor a certain number of marble slabs, one of which he was to choose to be his tombstone. It was considered good for him to remember his funeral at his coronation. They believed that life should be lived in order to prepare for eternity. Much like the eastern Emperors used to imagine their future as being grand and meaningful, and with the hopes of leaving a positive influence on their generation, so does each one of us hope that we can leave the world a better place than what it was when we came into it.


These are wonderful aspirations to have in life. Doing good for others and helping one another prove that we are caring people. However, did you know that our kindness to one another is actually secondary to God in what is most important for us. The reason I say that is because there is a story in the Bible that tells about a time Jesus' followers came back from a missionary trip rejoicing, because they had done many great things, like healing the sick and feeding the poor. The odd thing about this story is that Jesus did not congratulate them for a job well done. Instead, Jesus told them, "Do not rejoice" because of all the "good deeds" you have done, but instead, "Rejoice because your names are registered in heaven" (Luke 10:20).

So now I get back to one of life's most important questions, "What are you living for?" No matter what "important" things you are doing in life, and no matter what accomplishments you have made, the thing that matters to God above everything else, is if your name is registered in heaven or not.

In order to get your name registered in heaven, Jesus tells us you must "confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead" and you will be saved. Jesus said, "It is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved" (Romans 10:9-10).

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