I used to sometimes say, "Of all the things I have loved and lost, I miss my hair the most." It might still be true. But since mid-December of last year, I have moved on (in accordance with my abiding desire to be thought of as a funny guy) to sulk about a more spectacular loss. Now I sometimes say, "Of all the things I have loved and lost, I miss my pituitary gland the most." (You can check out my entry of November 21, 2011 for the gnarly details.) All the while, I have been aware of the reality of a much greater loss than any number of body parts.

In his address to the 12 disciples that he had recently appointed as apostles, Jesus said (It's Matthew 10:39), "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." It's well worth noting, because it makes a great big daunting reality bigger and more daunting, that the word translated "life" (twice in this verse) is the Greek word "psyche" which means a "life" in the sense of a "soul" (and shows up in our words "psychology" [The study of the soul] and "psychiatry" [The healing of the soul].

"Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." From this shocking statement of Christ's, a perception may be very helpfully developed: Better to lose any number of well-loved body parts, or well-loved anythings, than to lose your life, that is, your soul, that is, your actual self. This thought was covered by the Lord Jesus when he said, (in Matthew 16:26), "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? [Same word here: psyche] Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?" (Same word again)

All of this points to a choice with which we are presented by an understanding of the gospel: the choice of how to lose our souls. This shouldn't be thought of as the choice of when to die. The Bible is bold in assuring us that that choice actually isn't something we are authorized to make. That particular biographical detail has been decided for us already by the One who does have that authority. (e.g Job 14:5; Psalm 139:16) But this statement of Jesus does present us with a choice about how each of us will lose the soul, that is, the life that he or she is. Sometimes, really important choices are not complicated. This choice is an example of that. You can choose to lose your soul by living your life as if it is your life to live or you can choose to lose your soul by giving it to Jesus, with the everlasting, happy outcome being that you will finally find "the real you." According to Jesus himself, this choice not only results in you finding your soul, but (Comparing other wordings of the same saying, e.g. Mark 8:35) it also is the way to save, that is, keep or preserve, your soul.

In other words, choosing to lose your life by dedicating it to Jesus Christ and his work (Check out Mark 8:35 on losing your life for the sake of Jesus AND the gospel) is the God-given way to save your life. If there was ever such a thing as a plainly good idea, this would be it. After all, you are going to lose your life anyway.

NOTE: These thoughts were part of Mike's sermon preached at West London on Sunday, June 10, 2012. An audio recording of it is on this website.