Being of spiritual significance is the only way to live life on Earth (Part 1)
Living your life as a Christian means living it for Jesus, as stated in Matthew 16:25, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”
This verse clearly teaches that true life is found only when we live in surrender to Christ, not when we seek to fulfill our own desires or personal ambitions.
The moment we live for ourselves, outside of God’s purpose, we are essentially embracing spiritual death.
This is why the Bible selectively records moments from the lives of biblical characters when they were living fully for God.
These moments are significant because they represent the only times in their lives that truly counted in God's divine records.
For instance, while we know Peter and Andrew were fishermen before they were called by Jesus, their lives only became spiritually meaningful the moment they answered Jesus' call.
The same principle applies to David, who was introduced in 1 Samuel 16:13 when he was anointed by Samuel, marking the start of his divine purpose. “So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.”
This moment was significant because it was when David’s life truly began to count in spiritual terms.
Similarly, Noah's life in Genesis 6:13 is marked as significant when God called him to build the ark: “So God said to Noah, ‘I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.’”
It was from this point that Noah's life took on divine meaning, as he lived according to God's command.
The life of Prophet Jeremiah begins to take spiritual significance when God calls him in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
This reveals that Jeremiah's purpose, like that of many others, became evident only when God called him into His service.
For Abraham, the moment of divine significance began in Genesis 12:1, when God instructed him to leave his homeland: “The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.’”
Abraham's life truly began in spiritual terms when he answered God's call and stepped out in faith.
The principle is clear: living outside of God’s will results in spiritual death. As Jesus said in Matthew 16:25, seeking to preserve your life on your own terms leads to losing it, but losing your life for Christ leads to finding it.
This is why even for those outside the faith, like King Cyrus, their lives were recorded as significant only when they fulfilled the will of God. Isaiah 41 speaks of how God anointed Cyrus to fulfill His purposes.
Similarly, the Roman Empire played a role in fulfilling God’s prophecy in Daniel 2:31-45, which described key moments in world history, from Babylon’s fall to the fragmentation of the Roman Empire.
The same principle is at work in our lives today. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 declares, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
This shows that our life before Christ, no matter how successful it may have appeared, is spiritually void. Only in Christ are we truly "born again," and our lives begin to count for eternity.
Finally, the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32 illustrates that it is possible for God to love us even when we live outside His will.
Yet, living apart from God, as the prodigal son did, leads to suffering and separation from the fullness of life that only God can provide.
The son’s return to the father symbolizes the spiritual rebirth and significance that only comes when we live in alignment with God’s will.
Remember: Righteousness or nothing