Jump Start # 1142

Luke 15:12 “The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.’ So he divided his wealth between them.’”

  The choice of words is interesting. What we say and how we say things can be helpful or they can open the door to all kinds of trouble. Our verse today, taken from the parable of the prodigal son, is an interesting example of the choice of words.

The younger son came demanding. He was through with home life, his father and the lifestyle that he was being raised in. He wanted out and he wanted out now. Give me the share of the estate that falls to me were his words. Bold and brazen today, offensive in that culture. He couldn’t wait until his father’s death. He wanted his now. He would have received one-third of the estate and his older brother would be in line to receive two-thirds. He wanted his father’s stuff, more than he wanted his father.

The text states that the father divided his wealth between them. Both received. Both benefited. The word “wealth” is what catches our attention today. The KJV uses the word “living.” We often use that concept to describe our jobs, “We are making a living.” The Greek word used here is “bios.” We know biology– the study of living things. Biosphere refers to the environment that sustains life. The father divided his life between the two sons.

Interesting that the word for possessions was not chosen. It was the word for life. What the father was dividing was not merely stuff, it was life, his life. He had poured years and years and another term we use, “sweat equity” into acquiring his wealth. Back then, most of his wealth would have been in land and then in sheep. Today, we buy land. We own a piece of property. Back then, the land owned you. Land was special. It was passed down from generation to generation. Many farms in this country were once that way. Some of this carried over from Israel getting an inheritance, land. Each tribe was given a portion in the promise land. The father, divided his life, his land. The younger son sold his and left with money. He didn’t take sheep down the road with him. He left alone with big dreams of big times. He came home alone with nothing but regrets and guilt.

The father divided his bios, his life, between them. That is just an amazing thought and choice of words. Consider some ways we can look at this:

• As parents we give our lives to our children. It’s not the stuff that we give them, it’s us. Our time, our hearts, our devotion, our concerns, and certainly our prayers. Our life is given to our children. This is the greatest blessing we have to give them and this is the greatest advantage that they will have. They have been given us. Our wisdom, our love, our dedication to the Lord, shared and given to our children. They will start off on life miles ahead of others their same age. Others will flounder, trying this or that, some things habit forming, some things harmful, bouncing around fads, ideas, and churches that are more interested in good times than God. Some of these people will make it, many don’t. Some will turn to the Bible and find God, many won’t. Our children start off with more than a good education, they have been given us. We have shared our lives with them. They have a foundation about God and truth and righteousness. We have shared our lives.

• As followers of Christ we give our lives to our church family. We pour hours into worshipping together, being with one another, growing, sharing, shaping, forgiving, and helping each other. Literally life is shared among each other. After a funeral the other day, many of the church family was standing in the cemetery and we were sharing where each planned to be buried some day. I once wanted to be buried where my mom is at, but that’s so far out in the sticks, that none of my kids could ever find it. I said that I thought I just be buried in the church parking lot. I’ve spent so much time at the church building that it’s like home to me. Life. We give our life to what we believe in and what interests us. This is why some folks will pour hours and hours into projects, hobbies, and other things. It becomes a part of them. This is the way our spiritual life ought to be. We ought to give our life to it.

The opposite of giving your life or bios, is wasting your life. That happens. We waste time. We waste money. We waste effort. We waste life. Some excel in wasting life. Some must think that they are a cat and have multiple lives. They don’t. One life. One life to live. One life to give or one life to waste. This is an interesting way of seeing things. There is a commercial on TV about the dangers of smoking. A young lady goes into a convenience store to buy a pack of cigarettes. She doesn’t have enough money. She pauses and then pulls off a piece of her face and lays it on the counter. The ad tells the horror of smoking that it causes wrinkles and other bad things. The thought is profound and is fitting to our thoughts today. All that we do costs us some of our life. We have only so much life. Would we at the movie theatre think about paying two hours of our life to watch a movie? We do. We just don’t see it that way. All that we do costs “life” or bios. Seeing things that way ought to help us with our priorities and keeping us on the essential things in life.

The father divided his life. What is interesting about this is that he had already given his life to his sons. Now they were getting more. Today you are giving your life: to others, to hobbies, to work, to family, to God. The greatest sacrifice and the greatest gift you have to give is yourself. Give life. Divide life. Share life.

Remember Jesus did. The hymn, “I gave My life for you, what hast thou given to Me?” asks a fair question. Have you given “bios” to God? Have you given your life to God?

Roger