Is Christ the Blazing Center of Your Life?

Every now and then a quote about Jesus catches my eye. And yesterday the following quote from Pastor John Piper really caused me to pause and reflect on how to keep, and why to keep, Jesus as the focal point of my life. Piper shared the following: “Keep Christ as the blazing center, and you will be satisfied; the world will be served; and God will be glorified.”1

In this devotion I would briefly like to discuss how to do this and why we should want to make Jesus the blazing center of our life.

The how is simple. The more we read the Scriptures the more we will understand just who Jesus is. And the more we realize that Jesus is the Creator and sustainer of the universe, the one who existed from everlasting to everlasting, the only one worthy of our worship and highest praises, and the God who redeemed us and saved us from eternal damnation, the more we will understand why we should make Him the blazing center of everything we do in life. When we fully comprehend just how much God loves us, the price He paid to redeem us (the death of His own Son), and the incredible promises His Word tells us are ours in Christ, we would be foolish indeed to not let Christ take center stage in everything we do!

But notice the three things Piper mentions that take place when we make Christ the blazing center of our very being. I believe if we get a full picture of these three blessings they will provide us with the motivation to give back to Jesus our entire lives.

First, Piper says: “you will be satisfied.” (Psalm 37:4) tells us: “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” When we put Christ first in our hearts and totally delight in Him and His Word, God does a wonderful thing. He makes His desires our desires and deepens the love relationship we have with Him. My friends there is absolutely nothing more satisfying than abiding in Christ and discovering just who we are in Christ. When we realize that God considers us a treasured possession, a royal priesthood, a joint-heir with Christ, and the many other accolades we now are, how can we not want to delight in this wonderful Jesus. And when you delight in something it always brings with it amazing satisfaction.

Second, Piper says: “the world will be served.” As Christians, once we get saved, our mission on earth is to serve one another, in the love of Christ. Again, John Piper lets us see that service to mankind provides us with a deep sense of meaning, purpose, and joy on our journey through life. According to Piper: “The greatest cause in the world is joyfully rescuing people from hell, meeting their earthly needs, making them glad in God, and doing it with a kind, serious pleasure that makes Christ look like the Treasure he is.”2 Thus, when Christ is the center of our lives, we can’t help but want to fulfill our mandate to serve the world we live in and share Christ wherever we go.

And third, Piper says: “and God will be glorified.” This third point flows beautifully from the first two points. When we are satisfied in Christ, and enjoying the privilege of serving mankind, we can’t help but want to praise, thank, and worship the One who has so blessed us – Jesus Christ! And when everything within us wants to tell God just how much we love Him and are satisfied with Him, He becomes glorified through us. John Piper puts it like this: “God is most glorified when you are most satisfied in Him.”3

So, let’s get busy working to make Christ the blazing center of our lives. When we do this satisfaction will flood our souls, mankind will be served and blessed, and most of all God will be glorified!

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1 John Piper – Keep Christ as the blazing center, and you will… (bibleportal.com)

2 Inspirational Quotes by John Piper – page 4 (bibleportal.com)

3 Quote by John Piper: “God is most glorified when you are most satisfi…” (goodreads.com)