How Will I Live?

Biblical character traits form the basis in considering How Will I Live, rather than money, prestige, or people. This is a question we don’t ask often enough, and we don’t ask soon enough. We live in a very spontaneous culture, so we do not often think about planning How Will I Live, but for a teenager, this is exactly the time to ask this question.

5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
(1 John 1:5-10, New King James Version)

In a sense, How Will I Live is a summary of the first four Teen Devotions, because the answer to each of them them is included in the answer to How Will I Live? Many churches like to use catechisms to instruct their children (and adults) in the teachings of God’s Word. These catechisms are not a replacement for the Bible, and the answers to the questions are from the Bible.

In this Devotional, How Will I Live, we will look at two different catechisms that address this question, as well as the other four questions we have already answered.

What is Man's Chief End?

Answer: Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever? Man here is a generic term meaning mankind, which includes men and women.

This question and answer flies in the face of our culture today. In our world today, the most common answer would be, man’s chief end is to glorify man and enjoy man forever. How Will I Live? I will glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

Question: What is you only comfort in life and in death?

Answer: That I am not my own, but belong body and soul, in life and in death to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven: in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. How Will I Live? I will live knowing that I belong to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.

What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?

Three things: first, how great my sin and misery are; second, how I am set free from all my sins and misery; third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance.

Now, let us ask the question again, How Will I Live? The focus, again, is shifted from the normal thought pattern of: house, money, job, family, etc., to glorifying God, recognizing our sin, repenting and accepting Christ as the only payment for that sin, and living our lives, no matter what our vocation, in complete service to God.

In Who am I, we discovered what is necessary to have peace and joy. Along with being a Christian, we must surround ourselves with other Christians, go to church regularly, and read the Bible faithfully to experience that peace and joy that is only possible in Christ.

In What is my Purpose, we discovered that as a Christian, God has given me a purpose that is unique and is also a necessity in advancing God’s Kingdom.

In Where will I Live, we discussed location, neighborhood, city, town, or country, and noted that none of these are really the most important things to consider. Instead, we should ask, can I still live as a faithful Christian and have the opportunity to have friends with whom I may worship?

In When do I Decide Who to Marry, we noted that, as a Christian, we must marry another Christian, and it is very helpful to plan ahead as to the character traits we desire in a future spouse.

How Will I Live no matter what the circumstances, I will live knowing that I belong, body and soul, in life and in death to the Lord Jesus Christ. The decisions I make, the people I associate with, the places I go, and the things I do will all be governed by this knowledge. Decide, very early, that you do not live your life to please others. It doesn’t really matter, when you are an adult, what your parents think (although taking their advice can be very helpful at times), what your church thinks, what your next door neighbor thinks, or what your co-workers think.

Keep your focus on Christ. It matters what God thinks about my life. God goes everywhere I go, whether awake or asleep, He is with me no matter what I am doing, and He hears everything I say and even everything that I think. Believe it or not, it is much easier to please God than the changing whims of people around you, even Christians. It does not hurt to remind those other Christians as well, that they should not be focusing on you, but on their own relationships to Christ. How will I Live? I will live each day knowing that God is right beside me wherever I am.

This is true, because no matter what my occupation, my chief duty is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. We glorify Him in our speech, in our actions, in our prayers, and in our relationships with others.

I enjoy Him by fellowshiping and communicating with Him in worship, in prayer, in song, in words, in thoughts, and in sharing Christ with others. I’m afraid many Christians miss that close enjoyment and fellowship they can have with God; He is truly a Friend that sticks closer than a brother. A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a Friend who sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24

How will I Live? What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:7-11

How Will I Live?

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