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Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this
world will preserve it for eternal life. John 12:25
This is one of the many powerful and even shocking statements of
Jesus. A similar statement by Jesus is found in all four of the
Gospels. In this, John’s version, the words “love” and “hate” are
used. By loving our lives we lose them, but by hating our lives we
preserve them. At first read, one may think that those words “love”
and “hate” were accidentally reversed. One might conclude that what
Jesus meant to say was, “Whoever hates his life loses it”
and “whoever loves his life preserves it.” But that’s not
what He said. He did in fact say the opposite.
It must be understood that the words “love” and “hate” here are not
used in the way we normally use them. In this passage, Jesus is
using the word “love” to refer to selfishness or self-centeredness.
And He uses the word “hate” to refer to selflessness or sacrificial
self-giving. In other words, whoever is selfish in life will lose
everything in the end but the one who is truly selfless and
self-giving in life will ultimately gain everything. This profound
teaching of our Lord is difficult to comprehend without the gift of
grace. Our human reason alone may struggle with the idea that
selfless living is good. It is easy to rationally conclude that it
is far better to elevate ourselves before everyone. The rational
mind might conclude that happiness and the “good life” is found in
obtaining riches, status, power and the respect of all. But this
form of selfish self-centered living, though tempting on a purely
human level, is actually the path to losing everything that is
truly good. On the contrary, it is only when we allow God’s grace
to inform our human reason that we will arrive at the conclusion
that being selfless rather than selfish is what’s best. To be
selfless means our eyes are always turned to the good of the other.
It means we do not sit and dwell on ourselves. It means we are
fully committed to the service of God and our neighbor no matter
the cost to us. We must give everything away in the service and
love of God and that is the only way by which God gives back to us
more than we could ever hope for.
Saint Lawrence, whom we honor today, was a deacon and martyr in the
third century. This great saint literally gave up everything,
including his very life, so as to say “Yes” to God. As a
deacon in the Cathedral Church in Rome, he was entrusted with the
task of distributing alms to the indigent people in need. In August
of the year 258, the Emperor issued an edict stating that all
clergy were to be put to death. After the pope was killed, they
came for Lawrence and, before killing him, asked him to turn over
all the riches of the Church. He asked for three days to gather
those treasures, and, during those three days, he distributed all
he could to the poor. Then, on the third day, he presented himself
before the prefect and brought with him not the material wealth of
the Church but the true wealth. He brought the poor, crippled,
blind and suffering and declared that the Church was truly rich and
that the people with him were the Church’s true treasures. The
prefect, in anger, sentenced Lawrence to death by fire, to which
Lawrence freely submitted.
Reflect, today, upon the high Christian calling you have been given
to live a life that is completely selfless and self-giving in every
way. If you find that you dwell on yourself most often, then try to
change that habit. Turn your eyes to God and the service of others.
Try to care more about the needs of those around you than your own
concerns. Do so because this is what Jesus calls us to do, and, if
He calls us to such a selfless life, then we must know and believe
that it is worth it in the end.
My sacrificial Lord, You gave Your precious life away to all out
of love. The total self-giving of Your life resulted in the
salvation of those who will accept this glorious gift. Help me to
not only open myself to this freely given gift of Yours but to also
imitate Your selfless life by giving myself in service of You and
others. Saint Lawrence, deacon and martyr, pray for us. Jesus, I
trust in You.
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Featured image above: The Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence
By Jean Baptiste de Champaigne, via Wikimedia Commons
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