“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

— Philippians 1:21

If you knew that you were going to die today, how would you feel until the moment arrived? Death can be either the most frightening or the most delightful prospect to an individual. How a person feels about death depends totally on his or her relationship with the Lord. Consider how one man changed his perspective on facing “the king of terrors” as his relationship with Jesus Christ changed.

John Wesley was an unbeliever and a clergyman all at the same time, at least in the early part of his ministry. He knew all the facts about Christianity, but he hadn’t developed an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. During this time of unrecognized spiritual confusion, Wesley was sailing on a ship bound for England when a great storm overwhelmed the vessel, ripping its sails to shreds and threatening to destroy the masts. Wesley was terrified. As the wind howled in the darkness of that night, Wesley felt certain he’d soon face his Maker. He knew that he was getting ready to leap into the darkness of death, and he didn’t know where he would land.

Suddenly, over the howling of the winds, Wesley heard the sound of singing. He looked to see where it came from, and he saw three men holding onto the other side of the ship, singing praises to God. Wesley staggered over to these men and shouted against the wind, “How can you sing? You are going to die this very hour!” To his astonishment they replied, “If the ship goes down, then we go up to meet the Lord!”

“How can they know that?” thought Wesley. Only later, in London, would he discover their secret—the secret of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.

Dying means totally different things to the saved and the unsaved. At death, the unbeliever is ripped from the arms of the world and cast into the fires of Hell. But the Christian leaves this world to rest eternally in the everlasting arms of Jesus, who has made our entrance into Heaven possible by His death.

What’s your attitude toward death? If you feel fear, you needn’t. You can trust your life to Jesus Christ, accepting His free gift of grace, your passage to Heaven when this life ends. And as you receive that gift, you can experience the joyful anticipation of an even greater life to come when this life ceases.

“The best of all is, God is with us. Farewell! Farewell!”
John Wesley’s Dying Words

“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

— Mark 16:15

When we first come to the Savior, we come with empty hands, empty of anything that could commend us to His kingdom. With empty hands we embrace His Cross and trust in His redeeming work to save us. But when we meet Christ in Heaven, we hope our hands will be full to overflowing with the souls we’ve led into His everlasting kingdom.

If you were to meet Christ in Heaven today, what would you hold in your hands to offer Him?

Christ has commanded us to give witness of Him to the world. He said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” Our world is lost and dying, and we Christians have within our hands the only cure: the good news that Jesus Christ has saved us. We need to share that good news freely to bring hope and healing into the world.

As we share Christ with others, we’ll gain a real sense of significance and purpose for our lives. And as we walk in faith, giving away the abundant resource of God’s grace, we gain even more spiritual growth in return.

Not only is witnessing to people a command from Jesus Christ, it’s a tremendous privilege. Do you know someone who needs to hear the Good News today?

“Must I go, and empty handed, thus my dear Redeemer meet?
… Not one soul with which to greet Him: Must I empty handed go?”
Charles C. Luther

“Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.”

— Psalm 96:3

In your opinion, who is the most awe-inspiring person ever to have lived? What makes that person so incredible? Now think of God. Isn’t it amazing that no matter how awe-inspiring some people are, none can compare to the majesty of our great God?

Today let’s dwell on God’s awesomeness. First of all, God is a Spirit. While He is a personal Spirit who touches each individual life, He is also an infinite Spirit, inhabiting every place, filling Heaven and earth and reaching beyond the farthest star. Psalm 139:7–8 says, “Where can I go from Your Spirit? . . . If I ascend into Heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.” His Spirit is everywhere.

God is also eternal. He has existed forever. He is the great I Am, not the great I Was. Psalm 90:2 says, “Before the mountains were brought forth…You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.” He was here before time began and shall remain after time ends.

As well, God never changes. Malachi 3:6 says, “For I am the Lord, I do not change.” He doesn’t continually evolve or learn; He is complete and perfect already. Nor do His counsels change. Psalm 33:11 says, “The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.”

God is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable not only in His being, but also in His power. Jeremiah 32:17 says, “There is nothing too hard for You.” To grasp even the smallest inkling of God’s immenseness, think of our entire universe as a tiny grain of sugar on God’s finger. While this picture doesn’t accurately depict God because it implies that He is finite, it does give us an idea of His magnitude.

When we catch even a glimpse of God’s Majesty, we can do nothing but respond in continual praise. Today, take some time to dwell on the awesomeness of our God, and offer Him praise for His majesty.

“Atheism is so senseless. When I look at the solar system, I see
the earth at the right distance from the sun to receive the proper
amounts of heat and light. This did not happen by chance.”
Isaac Newton

“But one testified in a certain place, saying: ‘What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You take care of him? You have made him a little lower than the angels; You crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of Your hands.’”

— Hebrews 2:6-7

How you view humanity has a great impact on how you treat people. So what do we make of the fact that humans have killed more of their own in the twentieth century than in any of the previous centuries? What does this tell us about the way we view ourselves?

I believe we can attribute the rise in the rate at which humankind kills its own to the rise in the number of people who believe in evolution. People no longer believe that humans are just a little lower than the angels; instead, we’re just a little more advanced than the apes. Bertrand Russell, an evolutionist and author of the book Why I Am Not a Christian, said, “We started somewhere, we don’t know where; we are here, we don’t know why; we are going to some great oblivion, we know not whither.” The evolutionary view of humans, taught in so many of our schools today, has led many young people into hopelessness.

By contrast, we Christians have a high view of humankind because the Bible has definite answers to life’s basic questions, answers that give us hope. Where did I come from? I came from the heart and mind of the Omnipotent and omniscient God, who made me in His image. Who am I? I am a child of the King, a prince/princess of the royal realm. Why am I here? I am here to serve and glorify the Almighty and to enjoy Him forever. How should I live? I should live according to the commandments which He has given me in His Word, commandments designed for my good and advancement. Where am I going? I am going to a Paradise far beyond my comprehension: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

Today thank God for your divine origin and for the hope it gives. Treat those around you as the divinely created beings they are. Remember, each one (including you) is a little lower than angels.

“For the Christian, for the creationist, man has a noble origin
and a noble destiny. And in between, his life is crammed full
of meaning, value, significance, and purpose.”

“… Jesus Christ is Lord …”

— Philippians 2:11

Is Jesus the Lord and master of your life, or is He but a genie in a bottle, there to answer your every beck and call? In some quarters of today’s Church we find a sort of theology that says one may accept Jesus as Savior and reject Him as Lord. This is heresy. People who believe this come into “faith” still hanging onto their plans, their goals, their agenda. They receive Christ as a genie in a “theological bottle” that they call forth through prayer.

People like this miss the full meaning of Christianity. To believe in Christ means to accept Him as Lord and master of our lives. Napoleon in his latter days at St. Helena said, “Across a chasm of eighteen hundred years, Christ makes a demand which is above all others difficult to satisfy. He asks for that which a philosopher may often seek at the hands of his friends, or a father of his children, or a bride of her spouse. He asks for the human heart, for his very own, exclusively his. Wonderful! In defiance of time and space, the soul of man with all its powers becomes an annexation to the Empire of Christ.”

George Matheson describes the human personality as a palace of many chambers. In this palace is the room of memory where Calvary may have the central place. There’s a sunny chamber of affections where we may love Christ fondly. There’s a lofty chamber of imagination where we plan the great things we’ll someday do for God. But above all, there’s the throne room of the human will. When we invite Christ into our hearts, we must allow Him to reign on the throne of our will. And as we do, suddenly a corridor opens and connects all the other chambers, for when Christ controls our will, He controls all else.

Have you surrendered the throne of your will to the King? If you haven’t, do so today. Allow Christ to reign in your heart, guiding every decision you make. Then watch as He opens to you a life beyond your wildest dreams.

“Gimme this. Gimme that. Bless me, Lord, I pray.
Grant me what I think I need to make it through the day.”
Christian Song

“A man who has friends must himself be friendly …”

— Proverbs 18:24

Think for a moment of the best friend you’ve ever had. What made that person such a great friend? What was it about that person that made you want to reciprocate friendship?

Good friends are hard to come by in our mobile, “rootless” society. With so much to do and so little time, many of us don’t invest what it takes to develop true friendships, instead settling for temporary “acquaintanceships.” But in doing so, we miss out on the richness that deep, abiding, and significant friendships bring to our lives.

Do you wish for more from your present relationships? To foster devotion, we must give of ourselves. This isn’t easy for most of us, but if we do it, we experience tremendous rewards. Every person who has ever engaged in a truly selfless friendship has found that in giving, personal horizons expand. These people discover that true happiness is found, not in comfort, but in sacrifice.

We in America balk at any type of sacrifice, avoiding anything that might result in the slightest discomfort. But the Bible says of Jesus that “for the joy that was set before Him He endured the cross despising the shame.” Because of Christ’s love for us, He endured the ultimate sacrifice. And when someone acts as a true friend in that way, we want to respond in kind, and we don’t experience it as a burden but as a joy.

A little girl walked down the street carrying a boy much too big for her to bear. An old man stopped and asked the little girl if the boy was too heavy for her, and she replied, “He’s not heavy; he’s my brother!” Is there a friend or a potentially new friend whom you can carry today? How can you give of yourself to someone who really needs you, someone you can care for with great joy in your heart? For as you give of yourself out of love—without complaint or irritation—you’ll discover genuine friendship.

“Life begins when you begin to serve.”
Anonymous

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.”

— Deuteronomy 6:6–7

Who has the primary responsibility for the education of our young? The state? Local schools? Principals and administrators? Teachers? The Bible tells us that parents have the primary responsibility for teaching their children how to survive and succeed in life. Unfortunately, in today’s anti-family milieu, a growing number of the social elite think that the state should regulate what children learn.

It wasn’t always this way. When the Pilgrims and Puritans came to America, they placed a high priority on education. In 1647, not long after their arrival, the Puritans passed the “Old Deluder Satan Act,” the first law in the English colonies to require education. The law’s title refers to the Devil, who gets his foothold into people’s lives by distracting them from learning Scripture.

But in the early nineteenth century, Horace Mann, who did not believe in Christ’s deity, established the modern public education system in order to take control from the Church, where virtually all the education had taken place, and put it into the hands of the state. Eventually, the schools became almost entirely secularized, and real learning has plummeted as revealed again and again in countless standardized tests.

Often what public schools teach contradicts what parents want their children to learn. This is tragic because in the long run, God holds parents responsible for their children’s education. We as a Church need to support the young families in our midst to provide and support educational alternatives for them such as Christian schools or home schools. We need to lobby and vote for ballot measures that support parents’ rights to determine what their children will learn in school. We must do all we can to help parents rear their children in the knowledge of God.

“Christianity is par excellence a teaching religion.”
J. D. Douglas

“But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’”

— Matthew 14:30, niv

Have you ever faced a storm in your life, one so big that you thought you’d never see the light of day again? Maybe you face one even now, and you feel threatened and dismayed by the waves crashing around you.

Peter knew exactly how you feel. After a long, hard day of ministry, Christ had sent his disciples to sail across the Sea of Galilee while He climbed a mountain alone to commune with His Father. The disciples’ crossing was anything but smooth. The winds had whipped the sea into a frenzy, and the disciples struggled to control their boat. Unable to make headway, the disciples feared for their lives.

Then, in the last watch of the night, Jesus came to them—walking on the water. When the disciples saw Jesus coming toward them, they were terrified. They thought they had seen a ghost, and they cried aloud. But Jesus said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Peter responded, “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water.” Jesus replied, “Come.” As Peter began to walk on the surface of the water, he focused his sights on Jesus. Step after step, he walked on top of the water. But, as the sea continued to churn around him, Peter looked at the water and began to sink. He cried out in terror, “Lord, save me!” So Jesus reached out His hand and rescued him, saying, “You of little faith.” As long as Peter kept his eyes trained on his Lord, he had safe passage in the midst of a raging storm. But when he focused on the churning waters, he lost sight of Jesus and lost his footing, too.

As you face storms in your life, don’t look at the waves crashing around you. Instead, keep your eyes focused on Jesus. He can steady and sustain you through any storm. Look at Him and walk toward Him—He’ll give you safe passage through the raging seas.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His
wonderful face. And the things of the earth will grow
strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”
Helen Lemmel

“So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many …”

— Hebrews 9:28

Have you ever experienced the joy of giving someone a gift with no strings attached, no expectation of thanks, no anticipation of reciprocation? Then you have a small taste of Christ’s joy in providing salvation for us. And yet we find it so hard to accept this gift at face value. We seem to want to add to it just for good measure. But we have nothing to add. Jesus’ sacrifice was perfect, atoning for all sins forever. He has paid our debt in full.

I recall once reading of a master wood craftsman who spent months constructing a beautiful coffee table for his friend. He carved all manner of intricate designs around the side of the table and applied seventeen coats to the surface, a Parisian finish, until it glistened. You could see your face in it as if it were a mirror. The craftsman brought the table wrapped in a soft cloth to his friend, unveiled it, and said, “Voilà. There it is—the long-anticipated gift.”

Though the table was indeed a thing of consummate beauty, the craftsman’s friend said, “Oh, I…I think it is just magnificent, but I couldn’t simply accept it as a gift. You have done all the work. Surely I must do my part.” With that the friend picked up a piece of sandpaper and started to sand the top of the table. The master craftsman grabbed his friend’s wrist and said, “Stop that. You’ll ruin it all. It is finished.”

So it is with the great redemption wrought by Christ. Just before He gave up His spirit, Christ said, “It is finished.” Done. Complete. We can add nothing; indeed, we in our sinfulness have nothing to offer. But nothing is needed. Christ’s sacrifice is perfect. Christ suffered infinitely upon the cross and paid an infinite price—in full.

The only “sacrifice” we can now give to the Lord is a sacrifice of praise for what He has done. So, if you haven’t already, accept the gift. Stop trying to earn it; just take it from Christ with a heart full of gratitude.

“Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe.
Sin had left a crimson stain;
He washed it white as snow.”
Elvina M. Hall

“But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.”

— Matthew 5:37

A little boy was once asked in Sunday school to define the noun “lie.” In response, the boy said, “A lie is an abomination to the Lord and a very present help in time of trouble.” We may laugh at this child’s perspective, and yet doesn’t it hit a little close to home? Have you found yourself justifying a lie here and there? Many of us do. But we need to avoid compromising the truth.

We need to cultivate truthfulness in our lives for several reasons. First, as Charles Hodges says, truthfulness is the very substratum of deity. By that definition, a being who would lie couldn’t be God but merely a false god or lying idols of the heathen. Truthfulness is the very essence of God’s character. If God lied, we could have no confidence in Him whatsoever.

Second, truthfulness is essential to God’s purpose for humankind. We can never reach God’s full potential for us if we lie. The Scripture tells us that our goal is to become like God and Jesus Christ. Therefore, we must become like Him who cannot lie under any circumstances.

Third, lying destroys the fabric of society. Social harmony depends on a certain amount of trust based on truthfulness. How can there be any trust among us when we justify telling lies?

Can you truthfully say that honesty and integrity are qualities in your life? We need to remember that we will stand before God and be held accountable for every idle word. Therefore, in the words of the psalmist, “Keep your tongue from evil.” Let’s pray that our truthfulness as Christians will shine like a beacon in a world steeped in darkness and lies.

“White lies are but the ushers to black ones.”
Eleanor Doan