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The Good Life - Ben part 1 - 5pm
Sermon Summary
Ben teaches that true abundant life comes not from wealth or possessions, but from trusting God fully, living generously, and aligning our actions with His will through a daily choice to surrender and follow Jesus.
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The abundant life refuses to be confused with abundance. Jesus names the world’s pitch for the good life as theft that steals, kills, and destroys, and he offers life that is truly life. Paul then puts handles on that life for the rich in this present age: hope must not sit on the uncertainty of riches but on God, who richly provides for enjoyment. The text insists that the path into this life runs through doing good, being rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, storing up a better foundation for the future in order to take hold of “the life that really is life.”
Proverbs exposes why shifting hope is hard. Riches are sprinters with wings. Budgets, calendars, and shopping histories often tell a different story than stated beliefs, which reveals a gap between what disciples say is the good life and how they actually live. Generosity closes that gap one act at a time, moving behaviour toward belief.
Jesus sharpens the point with the rich young ruler. Eternal life in view is not merely postmortem rescue but kingdom life now. Commandment-keeping was not the missing piece. Attachment was. “Go, sell… give to the poor… and follow me” surfaces the rival love, and the man’s grief shows how strong that love is. Jesus then describes the reality: it is hard for the rich to enter the kingdom. Entry requires a death to the old self and a daily cross. Choosing life means choosing a kind of death, and Jesus’ word to Martha anchors that costly trust: “I am the resurrection and the life.”
Micah names what God calls good: do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with God. Status, comfort, and control do not appear on that list. Repentance therefore begins with a mind shift. Not ten per cent God’s and ninety per cent mine. One hundred per cent is God’s, and disciples are caretakers. The question changes from “How much should be given?” to “How much should be kept?” Practised over time, that stewardship mindset becomes a generosity muscle. Being ready to share means planning to be interruptible, treating every unexpected provision as a chance to ask what portion to keep and what portion to release. Each act stores up treasure as a good foundation and helps disciples take hold of the abundant life Jesus gives.
Key Takeaways
1. Abundant life is not abundance:
The life Jesus gives is richer than having options. It is participation in his care, presence, and purpose, not the removal of limits. Limits often become the place his provision shows up. Abundance without him is empty, but constraint with him overflows.
2. Rich in good works, ready:
Paul does not just commend generosity; he commands readiness. Planning to be interruptible means holding time, money, and attention with an open hand. Readiness dignifies the neighbour and trains the heart to expect God to provide through it.
3. Close the gap with generosity:
Beliefs become believable when bank statements and calendars change. Every gift recalibrates desire, reminding the soul where real security lives. Over time, giving is not loss but a way of taking hold of “the life that really is life.”
4. Kingdom life requires daily surrender:
Entry into the kingdom is death and resurrection in practice, not just theory. Saying “not mine, but your will be done” reorders loves and loosens the grip of possession. The cross taken up today becomes room for the life Jesus promises.
5. Shift from ownership to stewardship:
If a hundred per cent is God’s, discernment replaces entitlement. The better question becomes how much to keep for faithfulness, not how little to give to appease guilt. That mind shift frees joy and makes space for surprising obedience.
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