Practice Self-Denial Without Despising Good Things: The Tension of Life & Death

Why Pain Is Not Proof and Pleasure Is Not the Enemy

A Christianity that avoids self-denial is false. A Christianity that despises created goods is false. Both errors wound real people and misrepresent Christ. Most of us don’t intend to choose either error. We often slide there, leaning hard into “life” and ignoring the cross, or clinging to “death” and forgetting the gifts God calls good. Let’s look at how and why we tend to drift and discover a better way to hold both truths together.

Is it wrong for a Christian to earn a strong salary and enjoy good things? Exploring Jesus’ answer may unsettle us. He tells the rich young man to choose Him over wealth. He praises a widow who gives everything. He says you cannot serve God and money. He blesses the poor in spirit. It is clear, the message we receive from scripture, from our Lord’s very words, and from Church tradition is that lasting joy is not found in purchases. The Kingdom asks for inner freedom. Is your plan mostly about getting ahead or about becoming holy? Jesus both blesses generosity and warns about wealth. He offers new life and then calls us to die with Him. So take inventory before we go on. What do you pursue first? What do you refuse to release? Do your habits lean toward comfort without the cross or severity without gratitude? This is the tension we will face together.

Scripture consistently speaks about “life” and “death” from the start of the gospel to the end. There are numerous passages that promise life in Christ and others that call us to die with Him. These two aspects are not separate choices but a single path leading to our divine destiny. Because many of us tend toward one extreme, we need to learn again how to hold both together as Jesus teaches.