Most people didn’t give one thought to growing wheat until the war in Ukraine. This hit home when the store shelves weren’t as stocked as they once were. Now people know that most of the wheat people use in the world is grown there. Without wheat, there is no flour, and without flour, there are no baked goods. This affects the supply chain at grocery stores and restaurants, and beyond. If you can’t sow any seeds, you will not have anything to harvest. Jesus uses this analogy to say, “Don’t lose your life.”
JOHN 12:25
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
Bear Fruit
When a wheat kernel is planted, the seed has to go through a process of dying to produce a wheat stalk that will bear fruit. If the seed remains in the same state that it is planted, it will never produce anything. Jesus uses this analogy to illustrate to His disciples that unless they die to their life here on earth so that they can bear fruit. That means you can’t have your old life or all of the ambitions for personal success and still expect to be fruitful in your walk with Jesus. You have to die or give over those things to follow Christ.
Don’t Lose Your Life
Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matt 6:33) The point of that verse is to instruct disciples to have their priorities in order. Make Jesus your main passion and pursuit, and He will add everything else. Following Jesus can never be a side gig or an add-on you sprinkle onto your life. He has to be the main focus, and through our trust in Him, we trust for the rest. Don’t lose your life to gain something that won’t last.