In the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus tells a story about us preparing to meet God in the mystery of death. The “oil” is our good works; the “absence of oil” the lack of good works. Seize every opportunity to do good now. Life is short; don’t “let time run out.” “Be prepared” is an everyday Christian motto.
So are we ready to meet God today? If not today, when. We know that there are some things we can do to delay death. We can exercise and eat the right foods. We can stop smoking, and so on. But there’s a basic truth: there’s an appointed time for everything, a time to be born and a time to die.
The good news is that as people of faith, we know that the God who gave us life will transform our earthly self in death into a new glorious heavenly self. The question is, what do we have to do today to be ready?
Medical
technologies may be able to lengthen our years. But the underlying question is,
“Will life still be worth living?” Increased lifespan is of little value unless
it’s a life of quality.
A surgeon, Atul Gawande, wrote a bestseller titled Being Mortal. It's a narrative about the care and treatment of the elderly and the dying. The doctor questions whether employing technologies at the expense of a quality life is the right thing to do. The question becomes when to “let go,” when to stop treatments that likely don’t work. Gawande asks, why submit the dying to a full panoply of procedures only to see them merely exist in institutions and lose their independence. After all, birth and death are both integral to life.
God has created us for one purpose: to live in a relationship with the triune God forever. Saint Augustine wrote, “God, you have made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” Yes, no matter who we are or what we do, that’s our purpose. That's what makes life worth living.
Many people try to find meaning in money, power, pleasure and fame. But all these pursuits turn up empty handed. For Saint Paul, a life worth living is knowing Jesus Christ “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom.” Paul’s desire was for Christ to be magnified in his body, “whether by life or by death.”
Though Paul longed to be with Jesus Christ, he also wanted to stay alive because that meant “fruitful labor” for Christ. Paul seized every opportunity to spread the gospel, the good news. And so too should we.
We are called to be missionary disciples of Jesus, to make our lives worth living especially by courageously living the gospel.Yes, many times, the first question we have to ask ourselves is, “What is the right thing to do?” And just do it.
Then our “lamps” will be filled with the oil of good works so that God will welcome us in the mystery of our death into his heavenly banquet forever.
