The college faculty gathered for their weekly meeting. A professor of archeology brought with him a lamp recently unearthed in the Middle East . It was reported to contain a genie, who, when the lamp was rubbed would appear and grant one wish.

A professor of philosophy was particularly intrigued. He grabbed the lamp and rubbed it vigorously. Suddenly a genie appeared and made him an offer. He could choose one of three rewards: wealth, wisdom, or beauty. Without hesitating, the philosophy professor selected wisdom. “ Don e!” said the genie and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

All the other faculty members turned toward the professor, who sat surrounded by a halo of light. At length, one of his colleagues whispered, “Say something. What wise insight do you now have?”  The professor, much wiser now, sighs and says, “I should have chosen wealth.”

Our lesson today contains one of the best-known yet sadly misunderstood teachings of Jesus.  I especially like the King James translation, “I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.”

This is the favorite verse for many Christians today who read it as an endorsement of an extravagant lifestyle, equating an abundant life with luxurious living.  They listen enthusiastically to the TV evangelists who declare, “God wants His people to have nice things!”  

I’m not going to be hypocritical. I like nice things. My guess is that you like nice things.  But that does not mean that we can use today’s passage as justification for rampant materialism.  For too often we today are apt to confuse the “abundant life” that Jesus talked about with the “good life”, which more often than not consists of the accumulation of toys.

Did you know that there are more malls in American today than there are high schools? In a recent year, more people filed for bankruptcy than enrolled in college.  On average, Americans today spend six hours shopping each week and 40 minutes playing with their children. As one commentator put it, “We have defined ourselves by what we have and what we use, not by whom we are and the kind of people we might become."  1

There’s nothing wrong with having lots of stuff, but lots of stuff will not satisfy your deepest needs. Only the abundant life that Christ talks about can do that.

Both of our scripture passages this morning compare us to sheep. In Psalm 23, “The Lord is our shepherd . . .” In John’s gospel, we are sheep herded into a pen for the night. Being compared to sheep isn’t very complimentary, but it is probably a good description of the human condition.

The point is, of course, that we have a Shepherd--One who looks after us and protects us. And there are some powerful insights in these lessons about abundant living.

Let’s begin here: The person who has abundant life recognizes Jesus’ voice. John writes, “The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.”

The key to abundant life is not the accumulation of many things. The key to abundant life is to recognize the voice of Jesus in your life. It is to know you are walking in the light of his revelation. It is to live as Christ would have you live.

Let me give you an example of a man who has some understanding of the difference between the good life and the abundant life.  One of the most admired professional basketball players known, David Robinson is a former San Antonio Spur, the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1990, Defensive Player of the Year in 1992, and Most Valuable Player of the Year in 1995.  

As a professional athlete, Robinson enjoys the good life.  That’s easy to see.  But Robinson also lives the abundant life.  In 1991 Robinson visited the Gates Elementary School in San Antonio and challenged the kids to go to college, promising each one who did a $2000 scholarship.

Many of them took him up on his offer.  He and his wife then started the Carver Academy in San Antonio , donating $9 million to get the school started.   Carver Academy is dedicated to academic excellence--but because Robinson is a Christian the curriculum strives to help kids understand that spiritual values are as important as academics or athletics.  2

We hear so much about athletes who use drugs or live a decadent lifestyle. We need to know that there are athletes who listen to the voice of Jesus, who live their lives in accordance with his teachings. That’s where we begin, by listening to his voice.

The person who has abundant life also seeks to follow in Christ’s steps. The author of I Peter writes: “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”  And then the writer tells us what it means to follow in Christ’s steps, “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

That’s a pretty tall order, to commit no sin.  What does that mean?   Again we turn to the writer of 1 Peter who says “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.”

We think of sin as some personal transgression. However, it is clear that sin has a relational dimension as well.  We show love for Christ by how we treat each other. Not only by how we treat those closest to us, but by how we treat all people, those we like and those we don’t; those we approve of and those we don’t approve of. 

Living abundantly is to live a paradox.  The more selfishly we live our lives, the less satisfaction we feel about our lives. The more we are open to others, the better we feel about ourselves. 

So the person who lives life abundantly hears Christ’s voice and walks in Christ’s footsteps, performing acts of love as Christ performed acts of love.  But there’s one thing more to say about the abundant life.

The person who has abundant life gratefully accepts what Christ has done for them.  Abundant living is more than simply being a do-gooder. Abundant living is life lived out of gratitude for what Christ has done for us.

Abundant living is not something we’re able to do on our own. Abundant living is a gift of grace. Listen again to the words of 1 Peter: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” Then the writer of the epistle adds these words, “For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”

I hope God gives you and me new names--names such as “Someone Good,” “Kindhearted,” “Generous,” “Neighborly,” and even “Christ-like.” I hope we understand that there’s more than just the good life. There is the abundant life—where we hear Christ’s voice and we walk in Christ’s steps.