Life is learned, and we’re all learning how to live from someone. And at the end of the day, we will live our lives in one of three ways: by Default (replicating familial patterns), by Drift (doing what everyone else is doing), or by Design (building your life with intention).
In this sermon, we explore two philosophies of life, one religious and one secular, and compare these to a third way, the Way of Jesus.
- Moralistic Therapeutic Deism: God set up the world to work best for those who live rightly; so, if you want a whole and happy life now and Heaven when you die, be good. The problem is if you try to build your life on this philosophy, it simply can’t support the weight of your life. It won’t be able to handle the pressures that come your way, and in the end, it’ll collapse. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism is sinking sand.
- Expressive Individualism: Life is about finding our deepest, inner self and expressing it authentically in the face of all expectations; so, if you want a whole and happy life, be yourself. The problem is if you try to build your life on yourself, it simply can’t support the weight of your own life. It won’t be able to handle the pressures that come your way, and in the end, it’ll collapse. Expressive Individualism is sinking sand.
- Gospel-Centered Life in Jesus: We are made for abundant life with God, a relationship we lost because of our sin, but one that Jesus gave Himself to restore; so, if you want a whole and happy life with God now and forever, believe in Jesus. If I’m building my life on what I do, or if I’m building my life on who I am, at the end of the day, my life is built on myself. And I’ll never be enough because it’s a life built on sand. But if I build my life on whose I am, at the end of the day my life is built on Jesus. And He is always enough, so it’s a life built on The Rock.
Takeaway: On whom is your life built?
