WHAT BOTHERS YOU THE MOST?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
(1 Corinthians 15:55)

MEDITATION:
All of us have likes and dislikes, don’t we? We can see the differences
in our preferences whenever there is an election. Some are almost
vehement about the candidate they like, and they are adamant about
why they would never consider voting for his or her opponent.

We see differences in our ‘likes’ regarding food, clothes styles, colors,
teams, treatment of illnesses, and a myriad of other areas. However,
there is a universal experience we will all have and our opinions or
likes can’t change it – death is something we can’t alter.

Many consider death as something that only happens to other people.
However, the scriptures give us the truth – it will happen to ALL people.
    Just as people are destined to die once, and after that
    to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take
    away the sins of many; and He will appear a second time,
    not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are
    waiting for Him.
    (Hebrews 9:27-28)

No person likes to grow old and think about the certainty of death,
(which is the enemy of man and God). However, the scriptures teach
us that death will ultimately be destroyed forever. In fact, it has already
been defeated at the cross and through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

When we die as a member of God’s family, we will experience a permanent
freedom from evil. Believers will also be like Jesus after death. So much of
what we do while living on earth involves too much of self. We want what we
want and when we want it. But when we become more like Jesus, we will
develop a perfect love which has no room for selfishness.

One of the reasons some cannot enjoy overcoming the fear of death is a
fear of the judgment.
    For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household;
    and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those
    who do not obey the gospel of God?
    (1 Peter 4:17)
This verse tells us that believers and non-believers will all be judged.
Believers will be judged by what they have done for the Lord, but
non-believers will be judged about where they will spend eternity.

Eternity is a time frame that’s hard to wrap our mind around, but we
know with certainty that it will be much longer than the time we have
lived on earth. Jesus died to destroy the fear of death for those who are
His. That is (or should be) why death has lost its sting and its victory.
But those who don’t belong to Him, will continue to have a fear of death.

ACTION:
Question to consider:
    – Has my fear of death been reduced significantly, or eliminated altogether?
       If not, then perhaps Jesus is still waiting to be invited into my life.

Believers will face a different judgment than non-believers, so we should
start assessing our lives and determining how much we are doing for the
Lord.
    For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
    so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things
    done while in the body, whether good or bad.
    (2 Corinthians 5:10)

Since we know we will experience the love of Jesus when we step into
eternity, then why not start preparing now, by allowing His love to flow
through us? Those who belong to the Lord and are following Jesus,
should have a desire to eliminate selfishness and replace it with love
(which is characterized by unselfishness).

If people are honest with themselves, being loved is one of our greatest
desires. Everyone wants to feel loved, but few consider ‘going the extra
mile’ to show love to others. As followers of Jesus, we should develop
and nourish the characteristics of the Lord in our own lives.

Jesus wasn’t known by His selfishness, but by His love which was broad
enough to reach everyone; it had no boundaries or restrictions to those
closest to Him. The scriptures give us a stern warning about the absence
of love in our lives.
    Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
    (1 John 4:8)

We might hear someone say they love others, but love is an active word.
It means that when we love others, we can cite instances when we have
encouraged and shown love to people. As we mature spiritually, we will
see an increase in our desire to express love; it is a good measurement
of how we are becoming more like Jesus, the One we are following.

If we still have selfishness in our hearts, we will make excuses and/or
justify our reasons for not openly showing love for others. When we
have a type of love that’s like the love of Jesus, we are sensitive to the
needs of others, and we look for opportunities to encourage and show
love to those who are hurting.

When we see or know of someone who is hurting, instead of judging
whether they are worthy of being love, we see one of God’s creations
in distress and needs encouragement and to feel loved, so we go into
action and love them as Jesus would; we find a way to show love to
them, even if it means we will need to leave our comfort zone.

There might be times when God expects us to make a phone call or stop
by for a visit, but let’s be honest, how much effort does it take for us to
send a text or card to someone to let them know they are being thought
about, prayed for, and loved?

There was a time when people wore bracelets that had an inscription,
WWJD. It represented the phrase, “What Would Jesus Do?” It’s a good
question for followers of Jesus to ask themselves when we see a need  
in someone else’s life.

We live in a world that wants us to believe that we should be focused
on ourselves and be strong individuals. But what it fails to teach us
is, it takes a strong person of God to be unselfish and willing to show
love and encouragement to others. As we mimic the actions of Jesus,
we will discover a lessening of our fear of death. Why? Because we
are becoming more like our Savior (the One who defeated death).

Look at what the scriptures tell us about love:
    If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love,
    I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift
    of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if
    I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am
    nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to
    hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
    Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it
    is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is
    not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not
    delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always
    trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where
    there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they
    will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we
    know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes,
    what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I
    thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I
    put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection
    as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then
    I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain:
    faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
    (1 Corinthians 13:1-13)

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your assurance that those
who belong to You will not be sentenced to an eternity of
torment. Thank You, Jesus, for destroying the sting of death
and ceasing its victory for those who belong to You. Develop
in me a newfound peace about death so I can become better
focused on serving You. Create in me a new heart full of love
and help me to eliminate any selfishness that still exists in me.
Teach me how to encourage and lift the spirits of others I know
(and even strangers). Show me how to love others as Jesus loves
me.”

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