18 February
Blessing 2: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord
Revelation 14:13 (ESV) And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
Every person who has ever lived eventually dies in one of two ways:
John 8:24 (MSG) I told you that you were missing God in all this. You’re at a dead end. If you won’t believe I am who I say I am, you’re at the dead end of sins. You’re missing God in your lives.”
When you leave this world, either you will die in your sins, or you will die in the Lord. Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord . . . Christ took our sins into His death so that if you are in Him, you will not take them into yours. To die in the Lord, separated from your sins, because He carried them for you—can anything be more glorious?
What does it mean to die in the Lord? To be free from this world, 2 Corinthians 5:8 (NLT) Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.
Philippians 1:23 (NLT) I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me.
The way to die in the Lord… is to live in the Lord.
Luke 9:23 (NKJV) Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”
Living the Christian life involves a kind of daily dying—I must die to myself in order to live for Christ. It’s about saying ‘No’ to self and ‘Yes’ to God. Every day you’re dying to yourself to live for Christ.
Revelation 14:13 (MSG) “I heard a voice out of Heaven, “Write this: Blessed are those who die in the Master from now on; how blessed to die that way!” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “and blessed rest from their hard, hard work. None of what they’ve done is wasted; God blesses them for it all in the end.”
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NLT) And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.
Finally, death is very painful for those who lose loved ones. The Bible refers to this pain as the sting of death. And that sting is deep and painful and can last the rest of one’s life. However, the Bible declares that this sting is different for believers than for non-believers. Why? One word—HOPE! Believers have hope because God has given us eternal life and promised a great reunion one day with loved ones who died in Christ.