It would be nice to see, hear and even touch Jesus, but He's doing something even better for you right now. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 47 Q. But isn’t Christ with us until the end of the world as he promised us? A. Christ is truly human and truly God. In his human nature Christ is not now on earth; but in his divinity, majesty, grace, and Spirit he is not absent from us for a moment. Summary John's favorite term for the Christians he writes to - not just 2,000 years ago, but now - is children. Certainly John isn't referring to our age here, but as one Bible dictionary puts it, he means "a person of any age for whom there is a special relationship of endearment." But referring to us as children works on many levels. Not only are we often immature and prone to disobedience and rebellion, but just like little, dependant children, we hate the feeling of being abandoned or alone. And we often do feel that way, don't we, especially when the guilt sets in after we sin. Jesus seems so far away then. It's hard enough that we're asked to believe in a Savior we've never seen with our eyes or heard with our ears. It's easy to think that following Jesus would be so much easier if He would have just stayed right here with us instead of going back up into heaven. But John reminds us here that Jesus didn't just ascend into heaven to rule over all things (although He does), but He ascended to heaven so that He could advocate for you! Even - especially! - when you sin, Jesus stands between you and our Holy Father so that as God looks at you, He first sees Christ - the atoning sacrifice for your all of your sin. It's easy to think that this would all be so much easier to understand if we could just see Jesus, standing ahead of us with His nail scarred hands, defending His children before God the Father. But you can't see this, at least not yet. That day will come (John tells us about that in another book he wrote called Revelation). Yet you can know that this is true, and John tells you how in v5-6. If you want to "know that you are in Him," then you "must walk as Jesus walked (ESV)." But again, you're not called to walk alone. In drawing on other scripture passages, today's catechism reminds you that in His divinity, majesty, grace and Spirit, Jesus is never absent from you for even a moment. Dig Deeper Jesus doesn't just stand before the Father as some sort of idealized, theoretical concept of perfection. No, right now, at this very moment, Jesus stands in heaven in a human body. He experienced all this world could throw at Him - trials, temptations, sickness, grief, loss, abandonment, despair, and so much more - yet through it all never once took His eyes off of His Father. He is, as John describes in v1, the Righteous One. The fact that there's a human body in heaven advocating for us - not just on the outskirts, but sitting at God's right hand - is a guarantee that all those who've put their faith and trust in Christ will one day also fully realize with all five of our senses the love and perfections of our Father. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sits on the throne with our advocate at His right hand; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that your love for God will be made complete as you obey His Word. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 19

Ascension Day usually doesn't get the fanfare of Christmas or Easter, but it should! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 46 Q. What do you mean by saying, “He ascended to heaven”? A. That Christ, while his disciples watched, was lifted up from the earth to heaven and will be there for our good until he comes again to judge the living and the dead Summary The book of Acts is really a continuation of Luke's gospel, which is an investigative report Luke wrote for Theophilus. Since that Greek name literally means 'One who loves God,' it's hard to know if Theophilus was a real man or if Luke uses a pen name to reference all who love God and want to learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ. In any event, whereas Luke's first account covered Jesus' life, death and resurrection, this second report, inspired by the Holy Spirit, picks up at one of the most triumphant moments in history. Jesus is alive and reunited with His disciples (Luke notes in v3 that he gave 'many convincing proofs that he was alive'), and the disciples are likely eager to see Jesus establish the Kingdom of God. Sure enough, Jesus gathers them around and gives them instructions, but they're not what the disciples were expecting. Stay and wait, Jesus told them. Wait for how long, the disciples cried out. When, Jesus? When will you restore the kingdom to Israel? If ever Jesus displayed patience, it was here. After everything He had taught them, especially the last week of His life; after everything He demonstrated in His death, with the darkness for three hours in the afternoon and the torn curtain in the temple; after astounding all who saw Him alive after He was most certainly dead; after all that and more the disciples still think Jesus had done all of that just to make things the way they used to be in the good 'ol days when King David was on the throne. Don't worry about what, when and where, Jesus told them. You just witness to what you've seen and heard. And with that, almost anticlimactically, He was taken up and gone; hidden by a cloud. But Luke's new book is about the beginning of the Church, not the end of the gospel. Just as they did when Jesus was born, albeit it a bit less gloriously, angels come down to fill in the details. Stop staring into the sky, they told the stunned disciples. Just as you Jesus just was lifted up into heaven, He's going to come back. Dig Deeper As Reformed Christians, we don't pay as much attention to the Christian calendar the way our Anglican and Lutheran brothers and sisters do, although we gladly participate in Christmas festivities, as well as having a somber holy week service leading up to a joyous Resurrection Day celebration. But most Christians aren't even aware of a third observance that is nearly just as theologically important as what Jesus' birth and resurrection were: Ascension Day. As we continue our year long tour of the reasons for our only comfort, we'll spend this week understanding how amazing it is that at this very moment, there's a human body sitting at God's right hand, working out all things for God's covenant people. Ascension Day is coming on May 18. If your own congregation isn't able to have a special worship service to celebrate that, be sure to join up for the night with one that does! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who welcomed His triumphant Son, the God-Man, back into heaven to sit at His right hand; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask God to empower you with the Holy Spirit to witness to all you've seen and heard regarding Jesus Christ. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 18

Jesus' sheep listen to His voice, so make sure your ears are directed to Him! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45 Q. How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us? A. First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he might make us share in the righteousness he won for us by his death. Second, by his power we too are already now resurrected to a new life. Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. Summary The 'Feast of Dedication' is better known to us as Hanukkah, and Jerusalem would have been decked out for this winter festival in the same way our communities are for Christmas. But not everyone was in a festive mood; Jesus had shown up, and the Jewish establishment had had just about enough from Him. Their request sounds so pure and noble: tell us plainly if you're the Messiah, Jesus! But it's really a trap, and in their eyes Jesus falls right into it. But Jesus is much more coy than they think He is. He knows right off that He's dealing with wolves, not sheep. He knows the wolves will never listen to Him. Jesus' concern is only for His sheep. Jesus knows His sheep, which have been given to Him by His Father, and His sheep have two primary characteristics that can be easily seen: They listen to Jesus' voice; They follow Him. But the big idea we want to focus on today are the massive guarantees Jesus gives His sheep: He gives them eternal life; They shall never perish / be destroyed; No one will ever snatch them, because they are held forever not just in Jesus' hands, but in His Father's as well. Since Jesus is talking with wolves, they don't listen to His voice, rather they hear only what they want to hear, and all they hear is Jesus claim that God is His Father, so once again, they pick up stones and are ready to kill Him. Dig Deeper This week we've been focused on the benefits we gain because of Jesus' resurrection. Since He has overcome death, you have overcome death. Since accomplished perfect righteousness, you have perfect righteousness. Since He is already resurrected, so you too already are resurrected to a new life. All of these resurrection benefits are guaranteed for Jesus' sheep. Your only comfort in life and in death is knowing that you're a sheep belonging to Jesus. Consequently, make every effort to know for sure that you belong to Him! Do you hear His voice? To hear it, you must be listening. You're listening to God's Word right now, so that's a great start. Plan on joining the flock as they gather on the Lord's Day to listen to Him as His Word is proclaimed. Surround yourself with good Christian teaching all week long (our Christian podcast site, Drive.Faith, is a great place to start). Then follow the commands you hear from Him. Repent & believe. Know the Father's expectations and do all that you can to meet them. Live with the peace of comfort of the resurrection that's been guaranteed to you. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who has you securely grasped in His hand; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will take comfort in the guarantees of new life you've been given as you listen to Jesus and follow Him. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 15

All people will rise from the grave... the question is what will you rise to? Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45 Q. How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us? A. First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he might make us share in the righteousness he won for us by his death. Second, by his power we too are already now resurrected to a new life. Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. Summary Be thankful for the Jewish establishment that constantly pestered Jesus. We're going to be reading about confrontations Jesus had with them both today and tomorrow. I imagine there was an element of anger and frustration in Jesus' voice as He responded to them, but yet it's these sort of impassioned explanations Jesus gives that form the basis for the doctrines that comfort us the most. In today's passage, Jesus is being hassled because the establishment has concluded that Jesus was breaking Sabbath law by healing people, and even worse, that He was making Himself equal to God by calling God His own Father (v18). In setting them straight, Jesus makes some stunning claims. Jesus here says that "all who are in their graves will hear God's voice and come out (v28-29)." According to Jesus Himself, all of the dead will hear the voice of God and will live (v25)! Eternal life is not just for Christians! But this isn't necessarily good news, for the first thing people will face after coming out from their graves will be a sorting, in which those who've done good will rise to life, while the evil doers will rise to be condemned (v29). Were it not for what Jesus had just said prior to this, even Christians would be tossed about by doubt, constantly wondering what they'll wake up too when God calls all people out of the grave. Will they way they lived be considered 'good enough' to pass God's sorting, or not? That's why you need to know v24 well: Whoever hears my voice and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged, but has crossed over from death to life. Dig Deeper You have a ton of things you're worried about today, ranging from a never ending to-do list to wondering if your relationship with so and so will ever be restored. Certainly all of these sorts of things are important, and you are not only welcomed, but invited to bring them to the Lord in prayer. But knowing what you've been reminded of in these words of Jesus today - that life is really short compared to the eternity you will face when you step out of the grave, and that most of the things you're worried about right now will soon pass away - will help keep you grounded and aligned with these truths that so many people are completely distracted from. If you hear Christ's voice and believe Him, know that not only are you guaranteed that you will be physically resurrected on that final day, and that you already have eternal life and will not be judged. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who raises all to eternal life and who has given Jesus the authority to judge; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will be reminded often that salvation is not just a future benefit, so that you will keep your heart and mind set on things above already now. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 15

You're already fully saved even though you do not yet fully realize all the benefits of it. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45 Q. How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us? A. First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he might make us share in the righteousness he won for us by his death. Second, by his power we too are already now resurrected to a new life. Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. Summary The NIV has an excellent translation of the opening words of Colossians 3. Whereas other translations render it "if you have been raised with Christ...," the NIV brings out the emphatic and forceful nature of the Greek grammar that Paul uses with the words "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ." In other words, if you confess and believe that Jesus Christ is Lord, you don't need to wonder if the victory He won applies to you. Since you believe, you have been raised with Christ. Paul draws out the logical ramifications of your salvation. Since you've been raised with Christ, your life is different from non believers. Physically everything stays the same for now (which is why it's often so easy to forget you're different), but mentally and spiritually, you're living in an entirely different world than other people, so it only makes sense that your heart and mind be focused on things above, not on earthly things. Notice the timeline that's set out in v3-4: PAST You died (in that you were included in Christ when He died) PRESENT Your life is now hidden with Christ in God FUTURE When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Dig Deeper How much needless worry, stress, and anxiety are you experiencing because it's so easy to forget this gospel timeline? So many people reduce their salvation to something that will happen in the future, after they die. They just see God standing there at the finish line, cheering you on the way parents encourage a young child in a race, but yet either unable or unwilling to interfere with the problems you are facing right now. But today be reminded that "you too are already now resurrected to a new life." Yet you live in tension: we often say that we are already fully resurrected, but we do not yet fully realize all of the benefits that come from our salvation. What that means is that even though your life is most certainly hidden in Christ at this very moment, you are still subject to the temptations and consequences of sin, both the sins you commit yourself and those others around you commit. So you're not exempt from the the problems of this world, but you can begin to see them in the light of Christ. This is the key to peace in this life: set your heart and mind on things above, not on earthly things. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Father God, who has our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ sitting at His right hand. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will be reminded often that salvation is not just a future benefit, so that you will keep your heart and mind set on things above already now. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 14

There's only two types of people: those condemned in Adam & those saved in Christ. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45 Q. How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us? A. First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he might make us share in the righteousness he won for us by his death. Second, by his power we too are already now resurrected to a new life. Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. Summary The first chapter of the Bible presents a play by play account of God speaking the world into existence, with each completed day punctuated by God concluding "it is good!" This second chapter adds more detail to the story, especially regarding the pinnacle of God's creation: man. God created man differently than the rest of the cosmos; whereas He had simply spoke everything else into creation, He formed the man from the dust and put His own breath into him. God had a job for His new image bearer: to work His beautiful garden and take care of it. In other words, Adam's purpose - and your purpose - is to ensure that all of creation continues to reflect the holiness of the one who created it. But Adam's existence was far from being all work and no play. God had already set a pattern of rest into His creation, and Adam was free to eat and enjoy the abundance of the garden and God Himself would come and enjoy the 'cool of the day' with Adam (Gen 3:8). Adam had but one rule to follow: he must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for he would die if he did so. Dig Deeper All through scripture, God refers to His chosen people as being His covenant people. A covenant is a solemn arrangement in which two parties contract with one another in a contingent format. For example, a covenant could be as simple as one person saying to another, "I will do this if you will do that." The simple covenantal formula that God enters into with His people in every generation is best expressed in Jeremiah 7:23: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. So it should come as no surprise that God immediately enters into the covenant relationship with His new image bearer, Adam that we read about in today's passage. God gave Adam life, and in return Adam must give God obedience. As long as Adam obeyed, God would give life, but if the covenant was broken, Adam would die. In theology we call this arrangement the Covenant of Works. The New Testament makes clear (Rom. 5 & 1 Cor. 15) that Adam wasn't just an independent contractor, but that he represent all of humanity. Even though Adam defaulted on his half of the covenant, God has not dropped His righteous requirement of perfect obedience. The implication is clear. If you want everlasting life & enjoyment, you must give God everlasting, perfect obedience. But you can't. That's why we celebrate a new representative. One who went all the way to death in order to pay Adam's penalty, and one who provided the perfect everlasting obedience that God requires so as to earn everlasting life. God made it immediately clear that Christ's obedience was sufficient to fulfill man's covenantal obligations in that He restored Jesus' dead and buried body to everlasting life. And since you share in Christ's righteousness, you can be confident that you to will live forever in peace with God. "In Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22)." Praise God that in Christ you have fulfilled the Covenant of Works and will enjoy life with Him forever! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our covenant God, the creator of all that is who has called us to a life of righteousness. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that through Christ you've earned everlasting life, and pray for wisdom to fulfill your purpose of ensuring God's creation reflects His holiness. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 14

The most powerful act in history is proclaimed by the most powerful form of communication. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45 Q. How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us? A. First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he might make us share in the righteousness he won for us by his death. Second, by his power we too are already now resurrected to a new life. Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. Summary What a sermon Peter preaches on the first Pentecost! There's no kitchy introduction or humorous anecdotes for illustrations. Instead, Peter just unloads pure gospel truth. Notice the sermon begins with an accusation! God, "by His deliberate plan and foreknowledge (v23)" handed Jesus over, but it was the actions of the people Peter is speaking to that put Jesus to death and nailed him to the cross (and far be it from us living 2,000 years later to just blame the Jews for this, because we know we're just as guilty). But that final nail pounded into Jesus was not the end of the story. Peter next lines up one of the central truth claims of the Bible in v24: It was impossible for death to keep its hold on Jesus. Even King David had predicted this in Psalm 16 when he wrote "you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead or let your holy one see decay (v27)." If David was referring to himself here, he was wrong, because as Peter points out, David had been dead for a thousand years already! David was of course referring to his greater descendent: Jesus Christ. Peter's powerful sermon comes to a powerful conclusion in v36: God has made this Jesus, who you crucified, both Lord and Christ. Dig Deeper There's a reason that the churches represented in this Bible reading plan all make preaching their top priority: because this powerful communication format is the primary way God has ordained sinners to come to salvation. But not all preaching is powerful. In fact, much of it in many churches is a mushy mess that fails in its feeble attempts to make people feel better about themselves while at the same time prodding them to try harder to please God. Good sermons will always revolve around the elements Peter uses here in Acts 2. They: Open and explain God's Word (Peter uses Psalm 16); Demonstrate God's sovereignty over all things; Convict people of their indwelling sin; Point people to the guaranteed hope for everlasting life that comes from Jesus Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; Call people to repent and believe. Not every good sermon will result in 3,000 converts. But understand that good sermons are not just meant to produce converts, but also to feed the converted and preserve you in your salvation, so that you'll always cling to the life that Christ offers. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Father God, whose deliberate plan and foreknowledge raised Jesus from the dead. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for speaking to you through the preached Word, and pray that you will faithfully listen to Godly preaching. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 13

The word 'hell' gets used flippantly, but be reminded what it means to be forsaken by God. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 44 Q. Why does the creed add, “He descended to hell”? A. To assure me in times of personal crisis and temptation that Christ my Lord, by suffering unspeakable anguish, pain, and terror of soul, especially on the cross but also earlier, has delivered me from the anguish and torment of hell. Summary It was around three in the afternoon when the depth of Jesus’ suffering was displayed as he cried out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus’ cry is a fulfillment of Psalm 22, which begins with the very same words written by David hundreds of years earlier, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” By the time of Jesus’ distress-filled cry, he had already suffered greatly. In addition to the physical pain, being crucified was physically exhausting. Hanging from nail pierced wrists severely restricts one’s breathing and circulation. Those hung on a cross would use their feet to push up slightly, allowing them the ability to take a breath. Often the cause of death of one crucified was either from exhaustion itself or suffocating because the condemned no longer held the strength necessary to push himself up to draw the next breath. It was Jesus in this tired and weary state who cried out to God. The words he spoke were misunderstood by some as him calling out to Elijah, since the words sound similar (Eli... Eli...). However, Jesus’ cry was not for Elijah, but for God the Father, to whom Jesus cried out in his distress, only to receive no answer. Dig Deeper It was not until later that the disciples understood that at the point of Jesus’ suffering when he cried out, that Christ was enduring the wrath of God’s judgment on sin. Dying by crucifixion was a painful and humiliating way to die, strung out for all to see in your suffering. However, the true suffering of the cross was not the physical toll on Jesus’ body. Far greater than the agony of the nails was Jesus taking upon himself the full wrath of God towards unrighteousness. In taking upon himself the consequences of sin, Jesus saves you and all who believe from having to face the same type of hellish anguish and torment. Truly there is nothing that we could offer that would come close to repaying Jesus for the cost he paid on our behalf. What we can do is live for Him, taking upon ourselves the same attitude that Paul expressed to the Philippians in our devotion on Wednesday, “for me to live is Christ.” AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Father God, who will never forsake His children who come to Him through Christ; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that Jesus went through hell for you and pray that you will now live for Him. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 12

Sin no longer rules you, so you must rule it out. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 43 Q. What further advantage do we receive from Christ’s sacrifice and death on the cross? A. Through Christ’s death our old selves are crucified, put to death, and buried with him, so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer rule us, but that instead we may dedicate ourselves as an offering of gratitude to him. Summary The resurrection of Jesus is something believers teach our little ones from a young age. While we celebrate the resurrection every time we gather for worship, we especially do so on Easter Sunday. The resurrection receives this well-deserved attention because it is fundamental to our faith. It is because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ that we hope, both for this life and the life to come. As Paul wrote to the Romans, if we have been united with Christ in a death like his, we shall also be united to Him with a resurrection like his. This is the promise we celebrate on Easter, that just as Jesus was raised from the dead, so too shall those who belong to Him. This is the promise we often focus on with resurrection, however you do not need to wait for this life to pass you by to experience the benefits of the resurrection. Jesus’ death and resurrection has set you free from your enslavement to sin. When Jesus was nailed to the cross, so was your old self. There are multiple things that are considered part of this “old self,” including the sinful life before coming to faith in Christ and your past state of sin through your union with Adam, the first man through whom sin entered the world. This is not a promise of relief from sin that occurs in the future, that once you die then you will be set free from sin. Instead, Paul wrote, “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” This freedom from sin is already at work in the life of believers. The old self has already passed away, and the evil desires of the flesh no longer reign in you. Dig Deeper The freedom from your enslavement to sin that Christ has won for you does not mean that you no longer sin. Even the most devout of believers is unable to live a life void of sin. While sin is still a reality we all face, a shift does occur in the life of the believer because of the freedom from sin given through Jesus. The old self which was dominated by desires to sin has passed away, and the new self in Christ, which is dominated by a desire for righteousness and holiness, has taken hold. The benefits you receive from the death and resurrection of Jesus are already here. Because you have freedom from your enslavement to sin, you also have an obligation to live into this new life in Christ. Today's passage concludes with these commands in v12-13: 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Father God, who has called you to new life in Jesus; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask for the strength to be increasingly disgusted with sin as you seek to offer yourself to God. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 11

When your focus is Christ, life is a gift, but so is death. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 42 Q. Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die? A. Our death does not pay the debt of our sins. Rather, it puts an end to our sinning and is our entrance into eternal life. Summary Paul’s words for the Philippians express how Christ is his reason for being. For as long as Paul is breathing, he will live in service to Christ’s message, values, and mission. The words that tend to raise eyebrows are what follows: “to die is gain”. To die is to lose one’s life, so how can that be to gain? The gain to which Paul is speaking is not the loss of life, but what comes after this life: to be with Christ. Paul is wrestling with these two realities. On one hand, Paul desires to be with Christ, yet he recognizes what is left to be done on earth. Remaining in the flesh, in his physical body, Paul can continue his ministry, sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ so that more might hear and believe. Although his desire was to be with Christ, Paul recognized what still lay before him. Paul believed that his work was not complete, that his remaining in the flesh was necessary for the sake of the church in Philippi. However, Paul was not in control of his fate. Paul was writing during his time of imprisonment for Christ. While he expected to be released, this outcome was not a certainty. Regardless of what Paul’s individual fate may be, his desire was to see Christ honored. Being convinced that God had more for him to do in the Philippian church, Paul believed he would be freed. However, if the outcome of the trial turned out to be unfavorable, Paul was not in fear of death. For while there was more to do in his body, Paul was confident that even if his life was taken from him, he would not be worse off, since dying meant to be with Christ. Dig Deeper One of the most common fears is the fear of death. Arguably even more prevalent is the fear of a loved one dying. I have lost track of how many movie villains are the product of a misguided effort to thwart death. Perhaps this villain backstory is reused so often because it makes the “bad guy” relatable. The fear of death, or at least the desire to save others from it is understandable. Yet I can’t help but be reminded of the words of a fellow minister, who stated that “sometimes death comes as a friend in the night." If you have ever seen a loved one suffer in the last days of life, these are words you understand well. As much as we cling to this life, there is something greater in store in the life to come. This life, marred by suffering and sin, cannot compare to the eternal life that awaits. This life is precious, each breath a gift from God. Like Paul, find God’s purpose for your time on earth. And when the day comes where Jesus calls you home, fear not, because to die is gain for on that day you go to be with Christ. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who in His perfect will determines how long we live and when to call us home; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you live in such a way that confirms the words that to live is Christ and to die is gain. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 10