Mark 8:35 For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s shall save it

Charles Thomas Studd, who served as a British missionary to China, penned a famous poem that helps us to consider the only worthy way to use the life God has given to us—for Christ! May God help us to be ever mindful that only what is done for Christ will last. Lord, help us.

Only One Life C.T. Studd

Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way; Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one,
Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet,
And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
When this bright world would tempt me sore,
When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way,
Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,

Only what’s done for Christ will last. This is only a part of his poem.

“So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12
America’s colleges and universities have absolutely been ruined and decimated today.

Eighty-five of the first one hundred colleges in America were built for the preaching and the propagation of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Yale began in 1701, and Yale was founded to train preachers of the gospel. Timothy Dwight was the president from 1765 to 1817. Here’s what he said to the class of 1814.

Try to imagine the president of Yale University saying this today to the graduating class. “Christ is the only, the true, the living way of access to God. Give up yourselves therefore to Him with a cordial confidence, and the great work of life is done.”

Harvard was founded as a Christ-centered school. Here are some of the rules listed in 1646 at Harvard:

(1) Everyone shall consider the main end of his life and studies to know God and Jesus Christ, which is life eternal.

(2) Seeking the Lord giveth wisdom. Everyone shall seriously by prayer seek wisdom of Him.

(3) Everyone shall so exercise himself in reading the Scriptures twice a day that he shall be ready to give an account of his proficiency therein, both in theoretical observation of language and logical, practical, and spiritual truth.”

Fifty-two percent of the seventeenth-century Harvard graduates became preachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Princeton, in its early days, insisted that every faculty member be “convinced of the necessity of religious experience for salvation.” Jonathan Dickinson, who was the first president of Princeton University, said this,

“Cursed be all learning that is contrary to the cross of Christ. Cursed be all learning that is not coincident with the cross of Christ.” “Cursed be all learning that is not subservient to the cross of Christ.”

Something has happened in America. Denominations have become apostate.

Many preachers have jettisoned the faith. And yet they receive money, stand behind the sacred desk, and sabotage the Savior.

The path of God exalting joy will cost you your life. If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.

We are not concerned about how to avoid a wounded life, but how to avoid a wasted life. Some of us might die because of our allegiance to Jesus, but that will not be a tragedy, the tragedy will be treasuring this life above Christ. Piper

Will I waste my life

Graduates, and all of us. What really motivates us?
I mean, what are our personal goals?

Is the first thing in your life to be a godly person, to seek the Kingdom of God, or are you trying to be a successful person?

Are you more consumed with material things than spiritual things? Have you tried to put God in second place, when the Bible says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God” (Matthew 6:33)? Your eyes are looking around, and you see things and say, “I want that. I want that, and I need this; and I want that.”

What are you more concerned about what school your child graduates from, and their degree, and their success; or, their holy, godly character?

Is there any material possession you would not depart with for the glory of God?

Answer that question in your heart. Are you more interested in the lives of the rich and the famous than you are the righteous and the faithful.

What is the Pride of your life?

What are we after in this life, what draws us?
There is the lust of the flesh, that’s our passions; it deals with doing.
There’s the lust of the eyes, that’s our possessions; it deals with having.
And there’s the pride of life, that deals with being. That deals with position.

Get Wisdom

Proverbs 4:1–13

4 Hear, my sons, the instruction of a father,
And attend to know understanding:
4And he taught me, and said unto me:
Let thy heart retain my words;
Keep my commandments, and live;
5Get wisdom, get understanding;
Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth;
6Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee;
Love her, and she will keep thee.
7Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom;
Yea, with all thy getting get understanding.
8Exalt her, and she will promote thee;
She will bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her.
9She will give to thy head a chaplet of grace;
A crown of beauty will she deliver to thee.
10Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings;
And the years of thy life shall be many.
11I have taught thee in the way of wisdom;
I have led thee in paths of uprightness.
12When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened;And if thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.
13Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go:
Keep her; for she is thy life.

I believe all men have this in common: that they want to be happy.

They do not all agree on what brings the greatest happiness, but they do all long to have it.

Evil consists in trying to find happiness in ways that displease and dishonor God. Goodness consists in finding happiness in ways that please and honor God

God Made Us to Be Eternally Happy

This does not mean that there is no discipline, no self-denial. “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:34, 35).

But it is clear from Jesus’ words that self-denial is a means to saving our lives. This means simply that we must stop seeking our happiness in one way and start seeking it in another. Therefore what sets Christians off from the world is not that we have given up on the universal quest for happiness, but that we now seek our happiness from a different source and in different ways.

If we are smart, we will seek wisdom.

We should bend all our efforts to become wiser tomorrow than we are today. This is not just to students and graduates, but to us all.

Graduation today gives us an occasion to say something that applies to us all, namely, that formal education is only one stage in the process of becoming a wise person.

So much of life has been professionalized and institutionalized that we easily slip into the notion that it is the responsibility of some profession or some institution to impart to us wisdom.

You can see this tendency in the fact that continuing education in many spheres is thought of entirely in terms of taking courses from professionals in institutions. The implication seems to be that wisdom and understanding are something you purchase with tuition and class fees, rather than being a daily, lifelong process of growth.

I want to stress this morning is that we should never be content with the wisdom we attained through formal education, and we should not think that the only way to grow in our understanding is by taking more courses.

When the wise man says in Proverbs 4:5, “Get wisdom, get insight,” he does not mean, “Go to school, take more courses.” That might be part of God’s plan for you. But for most of us it is not. Yet the command comes to us all: “Get wisdom!” What does this mean? How shall we do it?

Why is it Important to get Wisdom?

The reason that getting wisdom is important is that it is the practical knowledge by which we gain this true and lasting happiness. Proverbs 3:13 says, “Happy is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gets understanding.”

When you get wisdom you can make your way into a hope-filled future. It is the key to lasting happiness.

Proverbs 19:8 says, “He who gets wisdom loves himself.” In other words, do yourself a favor: Get wisdom!

The ultimate, eternal happiness that all people long for will only be found by those who first “get wisdom.”

Ultimate and eternal happiness is what wisdom will bring, but not all happiness comes from true wisdom. Proverbs 15:21 says, “Folly is a joy to him who has no sense.” Our thirst for happiness is insatiable in this world, and if we do not have the wisdom to seek it in God, then we will find whatever substitutes we can in the world.

The sources where people seek happiness apart from God are countless: drink, drugs, television, eating, talking, walking, etc.

But the happiness that these things bring is not true and lasting. It is not ultimate and eternal. This worldly never lasting happiness leaves us unsatisfied, frustrated, incomplete, knowing that there must be something more.

What Is Wisdom?

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight” (Proverbs 9:10).

The wisdom that leads to life and ultimate joy begins with knowing and fearing God.
It means fearing to seek refuge, and joy, and hope anywhere other than in God.
The fear of the Lord is, the beginning of wisdom not only in the sense that it is the first step in a wise way to live, but also in the sense that all the later characteristics of wisdom flow from the fear of the Lord like a river flows from a spring.

Proverbs 11:2 says, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace; but with the humble is wisdom.”

The wise person is characterized by humility

Humility, in turn, is foundational for the other aspects of godly wisdom because humility is teachable and open to change and growth.

A good definition of godly wisdom, would be: hearing and doing God’s Word.

God’s Word is a divine prescription for how to be finally cured of all unhappiness. Wisdom is the practical knowledge of how to attain that happiness.

A famous example from Solomon’s life illustrates this (1 Kings 3:16–28).

There was no biblical command to tell Solomon what to do when two harlots claim the same baby. Therefore, wisdom must go beyond knowing and doing the Word of God. Wisdom must include a sensitive, mature judgment or discernment of how the fear of the Lord should work itself out in all the circumstances not specifically dealt with in the Bible.

There has to be what Paul calls in Romans 12:2 a “renewing of the mind” which is then able to examine and approve the will of God. He calls this a “spiritual wisdom”

The Process to gain Wisdom

To get wisdom, we must desire it with all your might. Proverbs 4:8 says, “Prize her highly and she will exalt you; she will honor you for your embrace.”

To get wisdom we must apply ourselves in study and meditation to know the Word and do it, since wisdom is found in the Word of God, The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.” (Psalm 19:7).

To get wisdom we must pray. Solomon was not born a wise man. He prayed for wisdom and God said, “Because you have asked this and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold now I do according to your word” (1 Kings 3:11).

To get wisdom we must think frequently of our death. We must think of the shortness of this life and the infinite length of the next. Psalm 90:12 says, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”

There is one last, absolutely essential thing to do if you would get wisdom, you must come to Jesus. He said to the people of his day, “The queen of the south will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold something greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42).

Jesus is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24, 30). Others had spoken truth; he is the truth. Others had pointed the way to life; he is the way and the life (John 14:6). Others had given promises, but “all the promises of God find their yes in him” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Others had offered God’s forgiveness; Jesus bought it by his death. Therefore, in him are “hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). To know and love and follow this Jesus is to own the treasure of ultimate and eternal happiness.