No Fear of Death
The #1 fear in people is death. We do everything in our power to feel comfortable and avoid persecution and death for the sake of Christ. Jesus surely wasn’t comfortable being nailed to the cross but it was the life God had planned. Planned for the redemption of sinful mankind. Jesus wanted to spare Himself from the cross, but only if that was the Father’s will for His life.
But God had other plans.
God sent His son to be persecuted so He could rescue us from our sins. I am not saying we should all be looking for ways to die or be persecuted. But it should come as no shock to Christians that fellow brothers and sisters around the world are being persecuted for their faith. In America, death is not a common result when we stand up for our faith. However, one day we may be faced with a decision to defend our faith. In many other countries, persecutions are common as a result of believing in Christ.
Related Post: When God Interrupts Your Plans
“Small is the road and narrow is the gate that leads to life.” If we were faced with our lives being radically altered and had to stand for our faith, are we going to stand on our Rock or are we going to preserve our life? Paul stated in Philippians, “To live is Christ, but to die is gain.” The Scriptures are littered with the joy that we should have in suffering and persecution. We should long for the eternal heaven that awaits us.The power of God in our lives far outweighs any fear that man can put in us. God states it in His Word that we will come into the presence of our Savior and that “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”
Do we preserve our comfort too often for our faith?
Are we too afraid to speak out about Christ in fear of rejection and possibly persecution? After all, the one whom we follow was nailed to a cross to die for leading a righteous life. A life that consisted of sacrifice and love for others.2 Corinthians 5:1-2 KJV – “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven”