This world (and my own sinful flesh) are very big on “self-realization,”which is a fancy way of saying “keeping my own self happy and fulfilled.”

Two different words for life are used in this verse. The first one is ψυχή (psyche), which is often translated “soul.” The second one is ζωή (zoe), which means life in the sense of “being alive.”

If I live my life with a temporal focus, on keeping my own life (psyche) fulfilled and happy, I will end up not only wasting my life, but losing everything.

The word translated “hate” here is μισός (misos), which means to hate in the sense of “to despise, to treat with contempt, to persecute.”

If I live my life on this earth with eternity’s values in view, it will look as though I despise the idea of self-fulfillment, as though I have no regard for my own happiness, but the result is a life that not only fulfills its true purpose, but continues forever.

Lord Jesus, help me to keep the long perspective, to live with eternity’s values in view. Help me to discover, like the grain of wheat sown into the soil, the true purpose of my life. Help me to let my self die, to live forever!
Amen.

Pastor Dan Giles