Shared Fate

"One person dies in prosperity,

completely comfortable and secure,

the picture of good health, vigorous and fit.

Another person dies in bitter poverty,

never having tasted the good life.

But both are buried in the same dust,

both eaten by the same maggots."

Job 21:23-26 NLT

"Everybody dies.  

There's nothing you can do about it.  

Whether or not you eat six almonds a day.  

Whether or not you believe in God."  

Nora Ephron, I Remember Nothing: and Other Reflections

Job understood this truth thousands of years before screenwriter, director and journalist Nora Ephron penned these words.  As humans, we have a shared fate.  There is an end to our life here on earth; on that we can count!

It doesn't matter how rich or poor, educated or ignorant, how well-bred or common;  one day each of us will die.

How does knowing Jesus alter this fate?

Power Lost.  It looms like a dreaded, dark cloud over every moment of life.  It is inevitable, yet many spend thousands of dollars trying to prevent its arrival.  Many fear its pending appearance, living in anxiety and trepidation with the thought of the end.  There is no doubt that death has a certain power over humans.

Death, however, was never part of God's master plan for His creation.  It only entered the scene when Adam and Eve sinned, disobeying God's one command to avoid eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Once they crossed that line, partaking of what God forbade, His warning that disobedience would bring death came to fruition (Genesis 2:17).

And with death came dread.  With the end came fear.  With an expiration date came anxiety.  Death held mankind with an ugly grip, weighing us down with its inevitability and unpredictability.  

Then came Jesus who broke the bonds of death, freeing me from such dread (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).  In Christ, death no longer has a hold on me because the end of this life simply marks the beginning of my eternal life.  I have "victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 15:57 NLT)

The power of death is lost through Christ.

Transition.  Now that death no longer has a hold on me, I can look forward to the end of this life with great anticipation.  Through faith in Christ, my physical death results in a transition that takes me to my eternal life.  

Instead of staying with my flesh that will rot in the ground, I will be transformed into an immortal body.  My soul will be transferred from this broken, constantly-deteriorating flesh to a permanent, everlasting home more consistent with the magnificence and eternal nature of heaven (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).

Through Christ, death simply becomes a transition from this life to the next.

Hope.  Apart from Jesus, my life would consist of what I make it to be.  I would work hard to try to make a difference, to leave my mark, to have a legacy that would last beyond my own days.  I would want to know this fleeting life of mine had some kind of purpose.  

As my life entered into it's Autumn, I would wonder what is the meaning of it all.  It may seem a bit empty and worthless.  I would tire of doing the same chores, eating the same foods, seeing the same sights, talking to the same people.  What is the point if I only end up in some forgotten cemetery (Ecclesiastes 1:2)?  A hopeless thought indeed.

Yet in Christ, I have hope.  I have the assurance that there is something more beyond this life.  My belief assures me that there is a place being prepared by Jesus especially for me in my permanent and true home located in my Father's house (John 14:2).  Thinking about how much God loves me, all the big and little ways He cares for me while here on earth, I cannot fathom how He will demonstrate such extravagant love once I enter into my eternal dwelling place (Romans 5:8, 1 John 3:1).

Now that I have Jesus, I no longer dread death as the end, but look forward to it with great hope as the beginning of what is to come.

We all must face death.  It's our shared human experience.  I could even say it's our fate.  Yet Christ changes this for me when I enter into a personal relationship with Him by faith.  Jesus breaks the power of death, transforming the once ugly, feared word into a wonderful transition into my heavenly home.  This eternal destination bought for me by the blood of Jesus gives me hope that cannot be extinguished.  Our shared fate is now something to long for!

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can see death as the beginning of eternal life.

How do I take on the beliefs of this world, buying into hopelessness instead of letting the hope of what is to come propel me forward in joy?

When do I find myself in despair when I see how quickly the end approaches?   

Always Hope

Then Shekaniah son of Jehiel,

one of the descendants of Elam,

said to Ezra,

'We have been unfaithful to our God

by marrying foreign women from the peoples around us.

But in spite of this,

there is still hope for Israel.'"

Ezra 10:2

They messed up royally.  They fell far.  They blew it.  In spite of their unfaithfulness to God and their disregard for His commands, the people of Israel still had hope.

Through Jesus, I also have hope.  No matter how low I sink, God's grace offered by means of the blood shed by Jesus Christ is even greater.  Or, in the words of Holocaust survivor Corrie Ten Boom, "There is no pit so deep, that God's love is not deeper still."  

Since I'm not a lost cause, what must I do?

Repent.  I'm in too deep.  I've fallen too far.  I've invested too much time to change.  After all, a leopard can't change her spots.  These are negative messages I can tell myself, discouraging repentance.  If I think there's no hope for me, I've got a pride problem.

When Jesus suffered on the cross, He concluded His life with three little words.  "It. . .is. . .finished (John 19:30)."  In so declaring, He confirmed the covering of all sin, the fulfillment of prophecy, and God's judgement satisfied.  When He proclaimed that truth, my sins and that of all mankind were declared forgiven.  It was a done deal, sealed and delivered.

Therefore, there is no sin so grievous that the blood of Jesus has not been offered as an atoning sacrifice.  God's perfect requirement was met.  Period.  There is no man whose transgressions are greater than the sacrifice of the Perfect Lamb of God!  So, there is hope.  For you.  For me.  For all mankind.  All it takes is a willingness to leave the old behind and step into the new that has been prepared for me (2 Corinthians 5:17).  Repentance is simply a matter of my will.  Do I want to be changed?

No matter how grievous my sin, the blood of Jesus delivers hope for me to turn away from my old identity.

New Attitude.  Before Christ, I didn't know any better.  I couldn't understand why my behavior mattered.  Holiness didn't make sense to me.  Now that I enjoy the benefit of God's indwelling Spirit, I know.  I realize when I dishonor God.  I understand what He wants from me, even if I don't always heed.  I don't feel comfortable letting my flesh rule (1 Peter 1:14-16).

Now that I'm living as a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ, my mind is being transformed to see more from His perspective (Romans 12:2).  His ways are treasured instead of despised as foolish.  His law becomes more than a bunch of rules setting me up for guilt and failure, but a picture of God's holy nature and a reminder of my need for Jesus.  Instead of looking at my life as mine to live as I please, I can offer myself to Him so He can do as He pleases (Romans 6:13).

Through faith in Jesus I have the hope of purpose, so that I can treasure His ways more than my own.

Do it.  I get so aggravated with my dog.  When I take him for a walk, he often signals his need to relieve himself.  When I stop to let him squat, he sniffs around looking for just the right spot to dump his load.  It almost seems like the planets must align and the temperature perfect before he will do what should come so naturally.

Even though Strider, our canine friend, frustrates me to no end with his delay tactics, I'm not much different.  I often think everything must be just so before I can start living right.  I need to feel motivated, or my heart must be in it, or I have to reach a certain point in life before I can obey God.  

Instead, God is saying to me what Shekaniah said to Ezra, "Rise up; this matter is in your hands.  (I) will support you, so take courage and do it."  There's no time like the present to start living for God.  I will never feel more motivated than I do right now so why wait?  It's a matter of my willingness to trust God to empower me in this thing more than in my fitness to accomplish what He is calling me to do.  The ball is in my court, what will I do with it?

Through faith in Jesus I have the hope of salvation so that I can hit the ground running, competing in the race He marked out for me instead of standing on the sidelines (Hebrews 12:1).

I am a sinner.  As such, I fall far short of God's expectation for me (Romans 3:23).  Thankfully, Jesus took my punishment in dying on the cross, offering me hope where there seems to be none.  Through Christ, then, I can repent of my old ways, adopting a new attitude that loves God and His Word while realizing the urgency of His imperatives.  In spite of my sin, there is always hope!

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can trust in Jesus as my Savior and even further, as my Lord, letting Him take the lead.

When do I insist on keeping old habits and behaviors even though I know they dishonor God?

How am I procrastinating when it comes to God's calling on my life?