In Anticipation of Death

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work." (John 9:4)

"Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; ...But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table. And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!" (Luke 22:15,21-22)

"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing." (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

"Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you , knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease." (2 Peter 1:13-15)

Death is the inevitable leveller in that all men and women will experience it as long as Jesus tarries. People from all walks of life - young, old, rich, poor, educated, uneducated, from all nations, will experience death. The Bible says: "And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgement,.." (Hebrews 9:27). Of course, we don't like talking about it but it is a fact of life. When we will die, we do not know. We may wish to ignore it, disregard it, hate the fact that it will happen one way or another but 'it is appointed for men to die once'. 

Jesus was prepared for His death even though He experienced excruciating pain. The prophet Isaiah wrote about His death - "He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:3-5)

Jesus pursued His mission here on earth with urgency during the 'day'. He knew the 'night' was coming when no one could work. He was determined to accomplish the task for which He incarnated. He spoke about His betrayal by Judas Iscariot and He was aware that He was fulfilling Scripture. Everything about Jesus including His death was meaningful, powerful and life-changing.

Apostle Paul knew when his time to depart this earth had become. He testified that he had fought the good fight of faith and that there was laid out for him a crown of righteousness. He was not afraid of death. In fact, it would appear he embraced it with great expectation. He had spent his Christian life poured out as a drink offering. What a remarkable testimony! Quite extraordinary!

Apostle Peter spoke about putting off his tent - a euphemism for dying. He claimed that our Lord Jesus had shown him that he was going to depart from this earth shortly. There was no fear in his reference to death. He was prepared for it. Are you prepared for that inevitable day? Are you anticipating that day? Anticipation does not necessarily mean a foreboding - it really implies that there is a realisation that one day, life on earth will come to an end and that we should do all we can in the time we have, to do what God placed us on this earth for. 

For the Christian, death is not the end but the doorway to eternity with Jesus in Heaven. The Bible describes it vividly:

"For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 15:53-57)

When a believer departs from this earth, the corruptible body takes on incorruption; mortality puts on immortality and death is swallowed up in victory. Death loses its sting and the believer is liberated from his or her limited physical body to be adorned with a glorious body eventually. 

Death for the unbeliever who rejects Jesus is the gateway to eternal condemnation. Judgement is the consequence for a rebellious life with the sad reality of eternal separation from God in hell. Jesus said, "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:18-19)

Yes, there is condemnation for the one who rejects Jesus and there is no respite in hell. It is a place of everlasting torment, originally prepared for Satan and his demons. The person who rejects Jesus demonstrates an affiliation with the devil and therefore deserves to be in hell after physical death. The unbeliever dies not only physically but spiritually too. Unbelievers will experience the second death.

"And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." (Revelation 21:6-8)

In conclusion, the believer should have a healthy anticipation of death whilst the unbeliever will have a fearful expectation of death. What will you experience when that day comes? Joyous anticipation or Fear? The choice is yours. To be prepared for that day, come to Jesus, surrender to Him, receive Him as your personal Lord and Saviour, live for Him and you will be able to say like Apostle Paul, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness,..."

I hope you will be encouraged by these words if you are a believer. If you are not a believer, I pray that you will seek the Lord while He may be found. Jesus is calling you today. He says, "Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:28-29)

Jesus is the only One who can give you rest for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). 

"...that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Romans 10:9-10)

Have a blessed day.

Saved For What?

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10, NKJV)

Salvation is a free gift from God, a gift that comes with requirements. No one is forced to ask for it or receive it for that matter. The consequences of rejecting it are usually made known to individuals (hell) but unfortunately the implications of receiving it are not usually made known to recipients. And that is sad. The Bible says,

"Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) 

Every born-again believer was bought with a very costly price. Our redemption cost Jesus the most excruciatingly painful and horrific death - death of the cross of Calvary. But He chose the pain, torture, humiliation, separation from God, mockery and ridicule for us. We do not belong to ourselves; our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are saved to serve our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Are you serving Him?

We are called to a life of sacrifice (Romans 12:1-2); a life of putting God first in all situations (Matthew 6:33); a life of godliness and contentment (1 Timothy 6:6). In Colossians 3: 1-3, the Bible says,

"If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." 

Are you seeking those things which are above? Where is your mind set on - things above or things on the earth? Many people are consumed by the things of this earth that the Holy Spirit warns them about:

• Money - "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." (1 Timothy 6:10). Many people get upset when this verse is quoted. I wonder why. Could it they are caught up in the rat race of this carnal world? It is the Word of God. Please don't argue with God. We need money for necessities but it is very easy to be drawn into a money-focused existence. Then it becomes the end not a means to the end of glorifying God. It becomes an idol; idolatry is an abomination before God.
• Sexual Immorality - "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body." (I Corinthians 6:18)
• Lukewarmness - "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth". (Revelation 3:15-16)

These are just a few things that we are warned to stay away from. What are we saved for? To be instruments in God's hands to engage in good works which He prepared beforehand - before the foundation of the world. There are souls perishing, people lost, individuals in bondage, marriages under attack, sexual immorality on the increase, etc. People are calling good evil and evil good. Do you know what you are on earth for? Do you know your purpose or are drifting along aimlessly? Are you deceived by the applause of men and disregarding the approval of God?

My dear brethren, you are saved for a purpose. You are saved to minister to the unsaved, to comfort others with the comfort that God has comforted you with, to minister to the poor, needy and widows, to declare the unadulterated Word of the Lord, to lift up Jesus higher wherever you go and to tell people that Jesus is Lord. (Matthew 25:31-46)

Your occupation is not necessarily your vocation. Your vocation (what God has called you to) is what you shall be accountable for. Seek the face of the LORD and find out what you have been called to for God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33). 

If by chance, you have not surrendered your life to Jesus, you can do that today. The Bible says:

"...if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Romans 10:9-10)

May you hear the voice of the Lord God Almighty directing you where to go, what to say, what to do, and how to do it everyday of your life, in Jesus' Name. Amen.

 

Are You Bearing Your Cross?

"He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me." (Matthew 10:37-38, NKJV) 

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." (Matthew 16:24-25, NKJV)

"When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it." (Mark 8:34-35, NKJV)

"Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?" (Luke 9:23-25 , NKJV)

"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." (Luke 14:26-27, NKJV)

In each of the Bible passages above, Jesus spoke about the importance and necessity of taking up our individual crosses and bearing them. The fact that we have to bear our crosses suggests that this requirement is not a momentary or temporary one - it is a life-long requirement. This raises the question - What is my cross for today? What is your cross for today? 

Many will say this is a gloom and doom message but with all due respect, they are wrong. This is not my message; it is our Lord's (Jesus Christ) message. My flesh does not want to bear a cross; my flesh does not want discomfort, pain, suffering, ridicule, etc. but Jesus says that I must take up my cross and bear it daily. Wow!

The cross is a symbol of death. Does that mean that we might be killed for our faith. That is a possibility. Can we rule that out? NO, NOT REALLY. Does that mean we may be falsely accused, bear a thorn in the flesh, be ostracised by society, be ridiculed and/or betrayed? That's right, all these are possible. Not everyone will be crucified like Apostle Peter or beheaded like Apostle Paul or persecuted in the same way as Christians in North Korea, China, Iran, Somalia and other countries. However, refusal to face this simple truth is equivalent to dwelling in fantasy land.  It is not a very palatable message but it is the truth of God's Word. The early Christians embraced it to the extent that Apostle Paul and the brethren said, "We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22)

Furthermore, we must crucify the flesh and die to self. Given that the flesh is so attuned to carnality, putting it under requires 

Jesus said something about the difficulty we must all experience if we are going to make Heaven. In Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Matthew 7:13-14)

The path to eternal life is narrow and difficult. It is rough and tasking but it produces joy and rewards. There is no other way. It is tempting to announce to my fellow Christians that the way of the Lord is rosy and a walk in the park. But the truth must be preached without fear or favour. 

I do not know what your cross is and you probably do not know what mine is but God will give us the grace to bear our crosses. We can demonstrate to the world that in spite of the challenges of life, there is a WAY. His name is Jesus. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). You can ask God each day what your cross is and also for empowerment and wisdom to bear it. 

Finally, the words of Jesus should be taken seriously. He says whosoever does not bear his cross and come after Him cannot be His disciple. Question: Is it possible to make Heaven without being a disciple of Jesus? NO. Remember a disciple of Jesus is a 100% follower of Jesus. It follows that one must be a disciple to make Heaven and therefore bearing one's cross is a prerequisite for Heaven. This is because Jesus said that anyone who does not take up his or her cross and follow Him, is not worthy of Him (Matthew 10:38). One who is not worthy of Jesus cannot make Heaven. Let us be clear. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE A NO-COST DISCIPLESHIP. Refusal to be a disciple is disobedience. Refusal to take up ones's cross is refusal. Refusal to follow Christ (go after Him) is disobedience and disobedience is SIN. May God help us to receive His Word and obey 100%.