To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
—Philippians 1:21
Thoughts on Today’s Verse…
The truth is often as simple as it is sweet – if Jesus is our life, then our lives have no end. In faith, we shared with Jesus in his saving death, burial, and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3-7) through our baptism as we called on the name of the LORD to save us (Colossians 2:12). Our lives – our eternal essence and identity – are hidden with Christ and will be fully revealed when we share with Jesus in his eternal glory (Colossians 3:3-4). Death does not strip life from us, but ushers us into life in Jesus’ very presence, where no power or event, not even death, can steal us from his grasp (Romans 8:38-39).
My Prayer…
O Eternal God, thank you for sending Jesus to show us your love, and thank you for sending him again in the future. Jesus is our anchor in the storms of life and our light in our darkest nights, reminding us that you love us with an undying love. In the name of Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, and the one in whom we find life that never ends,* we pray. Amen.
* This is based on John 10:25-26 when Jesus said to Martha about her brother Lazarus:
“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
