Aspects of an Abundant Life
By Jerry Batson, Th.D.
Special to The Alabama Baptist
Previously consideration has been given to images of Christians as children in God’s family, soldiers in God’s army, athletes in God’s arena, farmers in God’s field and pilgrims on God’s journey.
Given some biblical truths suggested by these images, what kind of lives should these kinds of people be experiencing or at least aspiring to?
Under the general theme of an abundant life Theology 101 will consider various biblical descriptors of Christian living at its best. This was best described by Christ when He explained His mission in John 10:10: “I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly.”
Alive and practical
Theology that moves beyond the theoretical or academic to make a difference in our lives is theology that is alive and practical. Giving thought to an abundant Christian life is as practical an exercise as we can engage in provided we seek to move beyond intellectual understanding to the doing of the truth. After all the Bible admonishes us to “be doers of the Word and not hearers only” (James 1:22). With such a goal in mind Theology 101 for several weeks will seek to explore some aspects of an abundant life.
We might borrow Jesus’ words from Luke 6:38 to think of an abundant life as one that is meaningful, full and overflowing. In that passage He spoke in terms of “good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.” That could be a good description of Christian living at its fullest and best.
God specializes in causing abundance. In a meaningful doxology Ephesians 3:20 says God is able to do what we “ask.” Even more He is able to do what we “think” or ask. On top of that the verse tells us that God can do “all” that we ask or think. As if that is not encouraging enough the passage reminds us that He can do “above” all we ask or think. He can even do “abundantly” above all we ask or think. And if that were not enough the verse declares God can do “exceedingly” abundantly above all that we ask or think.
So as not to leave us wondering how God can do this the promise ends with the explanation that this is “according to the power that works in us.”
Using various Bible passages in coming weeks we will consider some key descriptors of this kind of life. As contradictory as it sounds at first next week we will be directed by God’s word to think of an abundant life as a crucified life.
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