Give Your Life Like a Man

November 19, 2019

From today’s reading…

Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now,

I will prove myself worthy of my old age,

and I will leave to the young a noble example

of how to die willingly and generously

for the revered and holy laws.”

It’s been nearly two years to the day since we last read about…

Eleazar, one of the foremost scribes, a man of advanced age and noble appearance, was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork.”

Sometimes we don’t know our calling—our purpose—in life until the very end.

Eleazar spent 90 years preparing to die with dignity and his example guides us thousands of years later.

Psalms 3 today describes an attack by “many adversaries” who mock the faithful for their beliefs yet their faith in the Lord remained strong: 

I fear not the myriads of people arrayed against me on every side.”

1 John 4:10 today reminds us that God doesn’t ask us to do anything He’s not willing to do and the Gospel ties in nicely the actions of an older, formerly corrupt man—Zacchaeus—participating in his own salvation by proclaiming the Lord and repenting of his sins.

Just nine days ago we read about the faith of a woman—a mother—and her seven sons, who chose death over violating the beliefs of her faith.

Today we’re shown what it means to be a man of faith. Follow the examples of Eleazar and Zacchaeus and…

Stay the course.Keep the faith.Endure.