R. Scott Rodin:Have you died?

All in the name of saving our life and finding our own happiness.

Ironically, Jesus names this process “losing our life.” This is not about physical death, but the death of the life God created us to live. It’s the enemy’s way of killing, stealing, and destroying the “life in all its fullness” that John describes in John 10:10. Such a life cannot be found on this path. Yet that is the lie our culture shouts to us every day.

In its place, Jesus offers us a shocking alternative. Instead of pursuing a life that leads to death, we follow Him by losing our life to find it. In other words,

Contentment is only found on the other side of death.

What death is required? It’s death to our self-rule. Death to our desire to own and control life. Death to our pursuit of reputation, status, and fame. Death to our need for the approval of others to sustain our identity. Death to vesting our security in the possessions and wealth we amass. Death to putting our confidence in our own expertise, wisdom, and experience. Death to loving our friends and hating our enemies. Death to the need to be right, to win, to be applauded, to triumph in our own efforts, and glory in our own strength. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die.”

The question that determines the extent to which we can experience the holy contentment Jesus has for us is not, “Are you living a good Christian life?” but rather, “Have you died?” Everything Jesus promises us comes after we die to self and live for Him. Paul entreats us to “let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.” (Colossians 3:15)

Here is a simple formula: Where God rules, there is freedom, abundance, and peace. Where pride rules, there is bondage, a sense of lack, and discontentment. Put another way, you cannot say ‘scarce’ without ‘scare,’ or spell ‘abundance’ without ‘dance.’ Scarcity breeds fear while abundance brings joy!"

R. Scott Rodin in Enough: Finding Deep Contentment in an Anxious and Fearful World (Morgan James Faith: New York, 2026) 64-65.

I have really enjoyed this new book. It just came out this month. Find it here. This marks the seventh of seven posts from it.

In my global travels, everywhere I see people trying to save their lives. They pursue a counterfeit form of comfort and security. They never find what they are looking for, because they are looking in the wrong place.

Alternatively, Rodin rightly notes that Jesus tells us the counterintuitive pathway to finding life only comes when we are willing to lose ours, also described as dying to self.

So, Rodin's shocking statement - Have you died? - seems as a fitting way to conclude our exploration of his book, Enough.

Jesus does not call you to live a good Christian life. He invites you to die, to surrender, to put your total trust in Him.

People ask me practically what this looks like for stewards.

I always point to the Parable of the Minas in answering them. See Luke 19:11-27.

There we learn that the Master wants us to "put to work" what we have. But what did the stewards have? Each had a mina.

A mina in antiquity was three months income. It was the operating capital placed in their koinon or purse to function faithfully.

As they put the mina to work and returned the gains to the Master, He entrusted them with more responsibility and authority.

The one who did not behave this way, rationalized his disobedience which sealed his demise. I urge stewards worldwide not to fall into that trap.

You show where your total trust is by how you use the resources entrusted to you by the Master. If you physically died today, are you prepared to meet the Master?

If the answer is no, then there is still time to die spiritually.

Jesus is inviting you to die today. You've got this. God's got you. Until Christ is all you have, you don't realize He is enough to meet your every need.

Put to work what you have. You not only take hold of life. You prepare yourself to give an account in eternity. And you can anticipate unfathomable joy.