For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. —Philippians 1:21

The first lesson the Bible teaches is that death is the punishment for sin. Death came into being only as the result of sin. If people had not sinned, they would have lived in their natural state forever. We have little idea what life would have been like, but what we do know is that when God created the world it was perfect: He created Adam and Eve perfect beings in His own image and likeness (Gen. 1:27). But once they sinned, things were never the same again, and death came into the world. Paul put it this way: ” … sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all men sinned” (Rom. 5:12). Then, in Romans 6:23, he added, “The wages of sin is death.”

The second important lesson is that death is not the end. Because God created us in His image, He gave us souls that are immortal.

The third lesson the Bible teaches about death is that God Himself became man to deliver you and me from its clutches. So not only did God become man, but also as man He died for us all!

Here we find what perhaps is one of the most stupendous claims about Jesus: He came to deliver us from the fear of death.

The fourth lesson we learn from Scripture is that Jesus, the God-man, rose from the dead so that we too may one day have a resurrection. Jesus offers eternal life to everybody. How, then, should you handle the prospect of your own death? My answer is, act now; do not wait until it is too late. It is so simple. Acknowledge before God that you are a sinner; thank Him for sending His Son into the world to taste death for you (Heb. 2:9), and receive Him as your Savior. You  may then face death without fear, for you will have eternal life.

Excerpted from A Vision of Jesus (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1999).

I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. —2 Corinthians 11:2

I do not make New Year’s resolutions as such, but every year the first thing I write in my diary, on January 1, will be something with reference to my prayer for the coming year.

When I was preparing to write the book Meekness and Majesty, these were my words: “A jealousy for God’s name.” Jealousy is the sin nobody talks about, and it is most certainly the sin to which nobody admits. Yet how it crops up!

Having a jealousy for God’s name, however, will change our perspective. If I revere the name of Jesus, I will prefer the honor of the one whose gift is exalted. What I will not do is to say, “I’ve got a gift that is better than his. I don’t know why they don’t use me.” If I honor His name, I will prefer the honor of the one whose gift is needed and whom God selects. God may select someone inferior to you, but if that is the way He chooses to honor His name, then you should honor it, because He must be doing it right; He has His reasons for it.

Maybe in your opinion that person does not deserve to be exalted, and maybe that is not whom you would have selected, but if that is what God has done, to show that you honor His name, you will make that subservient. You will make your name subservient to the honor of His name.

When we truly honor the name of Jesus, we will feel what God feels. We will hurt when He is hurt, and we will want only the honor of His name in the earth. We will say, “God, take me away, make me nothing, that Your name may be honored.”

When we have this, we will begin to restore the honor of Jesus’ name in the church and in the world.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit. —Luke 4:14

This is a very interesting verse because it shows us that it was the Spirit that enabled Jesus to do all that He did. Similarly Luke 5:17 says, “One day as he was teaching, the Pharisees and teachers of the law … were sitting there. And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal them.” It was the power of the Holy Spirit that enabled Him. This is a hint to all of us.

Our difficulty is that we want to hold on to our own gift. I have observed time and again some very talented people not being used because they wanted the praise of men. I have noticed ministers who had a marvelous gift but who were so afraid that it would not be recognized that their pride destroyed them. It could happen to any of us.

But with Jesus, He actually said, “The Son can do nothing by Himself.” That meant that the Holy Spirit vindicated Jesus. Do you want the Holy Spirit to use you? Then let the Spirit do it.

Jesus received His joy from the Holy Spirit. This is the reason He was able to handle rejection. This is why He could cope with the way people talked about Him. He did not take it personally; He knew it was their problem, because His joy was from the Spirit. Finally, on the Day of Pentecost, when the Spirit came down, Jesus was vindicated again.

This could happen because the essential function of the work of the Spirit is to point men to Christ. Therefore, after Peter said, “God has made this Jesus … both Lord and Christ,” great conviction swept over the crowd and they began to cry, “What shall we do?” Three thousand were converted, and all because of the Spirit’s power.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).

Love never fails. —1 Corinthians 13:8

The power of love is what it achieves. Stephen demonstrated the immense power of love when he prayed for the people stoning him: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). This is what God wanted—this display of love.

Stephen, who almost certainly was Paul’s role model, is one of the most outstanding people in the Bible. I cannot express how much I admire him. And then I examine his mastery of the Old Testament (Acts 7) and observe how he put his opponents in the succession of the disobedient in ancient history: “You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!” (v. 51). Although no one was immediately converted, never had one spoken with such power.

The whole time he spoke, the pure love of God flowed through him and from him. The proof of this was his concern for them, not himself, when they were stoning him. He, therefore, fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” It was a virtual reenactment of Jesus’ prayer on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

The love of Christ that resided in Stephen got to Paul. Paul wasn’t able to shake off the power of love that Stephen showed, which led to the conversion of the greatest of the apostles.

Again, when Paul and Silas were in prison, they sang praises to God, and love took over in extraordinary power. God affirmed them with such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. Even the jailer was suddenly converted!

The one who is filled with love allows the omnipotent God to move in. It becomes vulnerable, that is, the one governed by love is losing the battle to win the war. That’s power.

Excerpted from Just Love (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1997).

No one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. —1 Corinthians 12:3

Paul tells us that when the Father welcomed Jesus home, the same God who said that He would not give His glory to another has either changed His mind or has recognized Jesus to be very God of very God when He bestowed on Jesus the name that is above every name.

It is therefore a direct reference to the honor that Jesus deserved; it is a direct reference to the character of Jesus, as it was to the character of God. It is a direct reference to the reputation that Jesus deserved and to the worship that He deserved.

He, who stooped so low, now took upon Himself, from the Father, the honor above all others. He was given the name that was above every name. He who emptied Himself is now lifted up to the glorious ranks of equality with God and enjoyment of that dignity, which was ever His by right, but to which He never clung. Now it is given to Him as His personal possession. Meekness—majesty!

Paul puts it very carefully, showing that God gave the name for one reason only.

God has given this name to Jesus so that at the very name of Jesus, every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

The Holy Spirit confesses that Jesus is Lord. This is the very foundation of the Christian faith; it is the lowest common denominator. By this you may know whether or not you are a Christian. If you believe this, not in your head, but in your heart, you are a Christian, and if you do not, you are not. And if you do, it is not because you have done anything spectacular. As the psalmist put it in Psalm 115:1, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory.” It is all because the Holy Spirit has enabled us to see the truth that Jesus is Lord.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. —Matthew 6:33

There is nothing wrong with being middle class as long as the Christian who is middle class is not a snob and doesn’t make somebody else feel second class. That was the danger in Corinth; there were middle-class people who treated the poor as second class, and that’s why God dealt with them severely (1 Cor. 11:17-32).This warning came not because they were wealthy, but because they mistreated people. If a money problem is not your thorn in the flesh today, remember that it could be tomorrow. God can take it all away from you, just like that!

Are you greedy? Do you want to get rich? God in heaven may be folding His arms and saying, “Really?” Some Christians cannot get ahead financially. I am going to tell you why. God won’t let them. He is doing them an enormous favor, because it could destroy them. They already have trouble handling money, and they think, Well, if I had a little more. Almost certainly, if they had a little more they would be deeper in debt. This is the way most of us are. We are, by nature, greedy. Very few people, truly, can handle money.

Matthew 6:33 was my father’s favorite verse. He never became wealthy, but he was never really poor. Perhaps you reach out for those things that are to be added, but you have it all wrong. You may say, “If I had a little bit more, I will give more time to God. If I get this much money, then I am going to start going to church more and reading my Bible more.” Wrong! You will never do it! Pursue righteousness and godliness first. Take time to be alone with Him, and then all these other things will just be there!

Excerpted from The Thorn in the Flesh (Charisma House, 2004).

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life. —James 1:12

How you react to the trial you now have will determine whether you pass the test or not and hear God say, “Well done.” Jesus passed many tests in His earthly life before He came to the final one, but along the way as He would pass tests, He would get the word from the Father, “You are my Son whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

That is what kept the Lord Jesus going. He actually had joy all along. Did you know that? It was not just the joy that was set before Him. He said in John 15:11, “I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and that your joy may be complete.” All of us who have sat through exams of any sort know that sometimes you have to retake an exam or its equivalent. That is the way it is in this world. Only the very clever avoid this.

But in the kingdom of God it is not that way. Intellectual aptitude has nothing to do with it. Neither has social standing or class or any other worldly consideration. All Christians can go to the university of the Holy Spirit. The difficulty is that some have not even passed grammar school. They come up to a certain level and they blow it. Why?

They complained all the way through. They could not resist murmuring; they could not resist judging somebody, or gossiping, or holding a grudge. God gives them a trial on a silver platter, yet when it ends, they are still the same. But Jesus went straight through to the finals, because He never sinned along the way. He did it all in thirty-three years. God gives most of us more time than that. Three score and ten is the average: time enough for us to pass the tests that He sets before us.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. —Matthew 28:17

It is very easy for us to think that if only we could see Jesus we would believe and worship. Yet when we look at Jesus’ resurrection appearances, this verse says that “some doubted.” How could this have happened? How could anybody doubt when they are seeing? “Seeing is believing,” it is often said, but here were some who saw but still doubted.

It is the Spirit of God who reveals Jesus and gives us the eyes to see as those first believers saw with their physical eyes. The more we have of the Spirit, the more we will see and feel what they felt.

C. H. Spurgeon used to say that the less we have of the Spirit, the more we will need to see physical things to inspire us. On the other hand, when we truly worship by the impulse of the Spirit, there is little need to have a lot of visual aids.

Even when Moses saw the burning bush, he was not allowed to get close or look for very long (Exod. 3:4-5). The Holy Spirit gave Peter the vision on the roof in Caesarea, but again, what was seen was upstaged by what was heard: “What God has cleansed, that call not thou common” (Acts 10:15, KJV). Therefore, even a vision, if one be so blessed by God, is not an end in itself, but the means by which the Word of God is magnified.

The ability to see with our spirit what God is doing and to hear with our inward ear what God is saying is God’s gift to us. Some people can see more quickly than others what God is up to. It’s not necessarily that the others are being rebellious or digging in their heels; they are just sincerely not sure. Does Jesus slap their wrist? No. He calls attention to what He is in Himself: “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” He just continues to speak. All we must do is continue to give all our attention to Jesus.

Excerpted from Worshipping God (Hodder & Stoughton, 2004).

Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” —Mark 6:4

You have been misunderstood, and it hurts. You feel in your heart that you are right, but no one else thinks so. It is a very painful thing. In fact, I do not know that there is anything more painful, and if you want vindication, it is a very real desire. I suspect that there is no one who does not have something in their background, some area of his life where he has been misunderstood or hurt. He just wants to have his name cleared in the eyes of maybe one or two.

Here is the good news: God wants to vindicate us. Here is the bad news: it has to be done His way and in His time. A verse that confirms this is found in 1 Peter 5:6: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”

There is no guarantee that vindication will come in this life. I personally have searched the Bible for an absolute promise that vindication will come earlier, and I think if there were one, I would have found it. God may do it: sometimes God will clear a man’s name in advance of the judgment seat of Christ. That is His sovereign prerogative.

But He may want to continue using you while still letting some people question your service. You may have to live with that. Remember that Joseph was falsely accused of sexual advances to Potiphar’s wife. Are you aware that Joseph’s name never was cleared? The Bible does not say that his name was ever cleared, but God still went ahead and used him. No doubt Joseph would have wanted his name cleared. You may have a similar experience. But God might just want to use you and let this aspect be left as a sore spot in your life to keep you humble.

Our mind-set has to be that there is no promise of vindication in this life.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).

At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. —Philippians 2:10-11

The only solid vindication is what God does, and He will give it at the judgment seat of Christ. Judge nothing before that time. Lower your voices; keep all vindication in suspension and suspicion. One day, everybody will see the truth. Expect to be surprised how God does it and what the truth turns out to be.

But Jesus’ vindication is the supreme vindication; He was given the highest place, and our worship throughout eternity will be, “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain.” That is what will give us our joy then. Do you think that you are going to get your joy by getting your name cleared? I do not say that there is not going to be some joy there, for the Lord promised it, but that will seem as nothing compared to the joy we are all going to have in worshiping Him, who came to this earth, who lived among men. He died on the cross, and nobody understood it. He was raised from the dead and still to this moment awaits the vindication He will have in the last day when every knee shall bow before Him.

We shall also bow, and whatever vindication we may have, whatever reward, whatever crown, we shall cast our crowns before Him. If that will be what will give us joy, then may it give us joy now, for this is our Lord’s day of vindication. What the world will eventually see, we see now. We must worship Him—worship Him with all our hearts and know that this is His day.

Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).