Mark 8:36-38 (WEB)
36 For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life?
37 For what will a man give in exchange for his life?
38 For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man also will be ashamed of him, when he comes in his Father’s glory, with the holy angels.”

I have been thinking about how easily we can become absorbed in the temporary things of life. We spend so much time improving our bodies, our appearance, our careers, our relationships, our homes and our plans for the future. There is nothing wrong with these things, but perhaps we should occasionally stop and ask a more unsettling question: What if we become so busy building our lives that we forget about our souls?

Our bodies will change. Our appearance will fade. Careers will end. Money can disappear. Circumstances can change overnight. Even relationships we thought would last forever can unexpectedly change. Yet somehow, we often invest the greatest amount of energy into things that cannot remain.

Jesus asked a question that cuts through all of this: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”

What if that question is more relevant to us than we realise?

We can become physically strong while remaining spiritually weak. We can look wonderful on the outside while carrying an empty heart. We can have money without peace, success without purpose, and people around us without ever experiencing genuine belonging. We can achieve almost everything we once dreamed about and still quietly wonder, “Why am I not satisfied?”

Perhaps the problem is not that we have too little.

Perhaps we are expecting temporary things to satisfy an eternal soul.

And that is where Jesus Christ changes everything.

Jesus is not simply another part of my life. He is the foundation of it. I don’t believe the deepest problem within humanity is simply that we need better circumstances, better relationships or greater success. We need something much deeper.

• We need reconciliation with God.
• We need forgiveness.
• We need grace.
• We need salvation.

Christ came because God loved us enough not to leave us separated from Him. Jesus went to the cross, carried our sin, died, and rose again so that those who trust in Him can receive forgiveness and eternal life.

That is why the Gospel is not merely about becoming a better version of ourselves. It is about surrendering our lives to the One who created us and allowing Him to transform us from the inside out.

So perhaps the question we should ask ourselves is not simply, “How good is my life?”

Maybe the deeper question is:

“Do I know the One who gave me life?”

And here is an even more challenging question: If everything you currently have disappeared tomorrow, would Christ still be enough?

That question exposes what we truly worship.

We can enjoy our bodies without worshipping them. We can work hard without making work our identity. We can love another person without expecting them to become our saviour. We can enjoy possessions without allowing possessions to possess us.

Because eventually, everything temporary will pass.

But Christ remains.

So take care of your body. Work hard. Love deeply. Dream boldly. Enjoy the beautiful things God gives you. But never become so fascinated with what is temporary that you neglect what is eternal.

The world constantly asks, “What have you achieved?”

Jesus asks something far more important:

“What is happening to your soul?”

And perhaps the greatest discovery of our entire lives is not finding something that makes us feel complete, but discovering Someone who was there before we ever began searching.

Jesus Christ.

He is not merely part of life.

He is the reason life has eternal meaning. 🙏❤️

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