1. Intro to devotion title.
Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” (KJV)
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death.” (KJV)
Hebrews 9:27 “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” (KJV)
James 1:15 “Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (KJV)
Luke 16:22-23 “And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.” (KJV)
2. What is it like to face death? We know some of what death means for Christians.
A. For Christians, Death means Victory.
Philippians 1:21 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (KJV)
B. Christians will be with and be like Jesus.
John 14: “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.” (KJV)
C. The Christians' bodies will be resurrected and glorified during the Rapture.
1 Corinthians 15:42-44 “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 51 ... We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (KJV)
D. Conditions as we know them will change.
1. No more death, tears sorrow, pain, crying.
Revelations 21:4 “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (KJV) (from Isaiah 25:8).
2. No more night.
Revelations 22:5 “And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.” (KJV) (from Isaiah Isaiah 60:19-20)
3. But concerning many details, death is quite a mystery.
1 Corinthians 13:9 “For we know in part 12 For now we see through a glass, darkly.” (KJV)
I John 3:2a “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be.” (KJV)
1 Corinthians 15:51a “Behold, I shew you a mystery.” (KJV)
Hebrews 2:15 “And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” (KJV)
4. Comparing death to the Christian walk.
1 Corinthians 15:31 “I die daily.” (KJV)
Romns 6:1-13 “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” (NIV)
(Continuing Romans 6:1-13) “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin -- because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.” Rom 8:1 (NIV), “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Luke 14:27 “And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. 33, So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” (KJV)
Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (KJV)
5.> So, the question I leave with you is this, “Have you died today?” To experience the power of Christ's control in our lives, each of us will need to die out to ourselves. Then we can really live.
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May God speak to your heart! Bob Conar