Romans 8:1-17
If you are reading this, then you have been granted physical life. You are a living, breathing, walking, and talking human being with a complex thought process. You are able to experience the world around you through touch, sight, smell, and taste. Each organ that is strategically placed within you never operates solely on its own. Instead, each individual part is uniquely designed to unite with all parts. They work together as a whole and rarely will the entire body function as it is created to be without all parts in good working order. You are a human being with certain characteristics that belong only to you; separate from others in design, but fully capable of performing ordinary, and often extraordinary, things.
There is a flaw, however, with which every man, woman, and child is born. It is a birth defect unlike the obvious physical or mental ones we often see occur and that can be devastating and cause us emotional grief. The flaw is an inherent one, buried deep within us and one that can not be surgically removed or repaired without Divine help. It made its entry into humankind through the first man and woman and has been passed on to all mankind (Gen. 3:1-24). As we gaze with wonder and awe upon a newborn child in its seeming perfection, our eyes are blinded and we do not see the defect. But it is there. It will only be a matter of time for it to manifest itself in one way or another.
When we only have a basic understanding of our existence and its purpose, we celebrate a new life that has entered the world, and we mourn its passing. But I think we misapply the application of the two terms “life” and “death”. We give precedence over the term “life” because we see life beginning at birth and death occurring when we take our last breath. If our understanding was greater, we would do just the opposite. We would mourn over the fact that a child is born spiritually dead, and we would invest more time raising the child to a full understanding of God and His purpose and will for creating him. As he matured, he would seek the things that would guarantee him life in the truest sense of the word. The physical death that is inevitable with every human being would have no "sting", because it would be then that life would actually begin (1Cor 15:54-56).
The universal laws of death and life affect each one of us. We can not escape them or try to excuse them away. However, it is how we choose to face and deal with each law that will determine which one we will receive for all of eternity.
I prefer to think that I was born in a miserable state of death, desperately in need of healing and salvation. But what I know and believe with all conviction of heart and soul is that, when I depart from this world, the life that was celebrated when I was born, and the life I thought I had made for myself while I lived upon this earth, will be nothing compared to the life that awaits me.
There is a flaw, however, with which every man, woman, and child is born. It is a birth defect unlike the obvious physical or mental ones we often see occur and that can be devastating and cause us emotional grief. The flaw is an inherent one, buried deep within us and one that can not be surgically removed or repaired without Divine help. It made its entry into humankind through the first man and woman and has been passed on to all mankind (Gen. 3:1-24). As we gaze with wonder and awe upon a newborn child in its seeming perfection, our eyes are blinded and we do not see the defect. But it is there. It will only be a matter of time for it to manifest itself in one way or another.
When we only have a basic understanding of our existence and its purpose, we celebrate a new life that has entered the world, and we mourn its passing. But I think we misapply the application of the two terms “life” and “death”. We give precedence over the term “life” because we see life beginning at birth and death occurring when we take our last breath. If our understanding was greater, we would do just the opposite. We would mourn over the fact that a child is born spiritually dead, and we would invest more time raising the child to a full understanding of God and His purpose and will for creating him. As he matured, he would seek the things that would guarantee him life in the truest sense of the word. The physical death that is inevitable with every human being would have no "sting", because it would be then that life would actually begin (1Cor 15:54-56).
The universal laws of death and life affect each one of us. We can not escape them or try to excuse them away. However, it is how we choose to face and deal with each law that will determine which one we will receive for all of eternity.
I prefer to think that I was born in a miserable state of death, desperately in need of healing and salvation. But what I know and believe with all conviction of heart and soul is that, when I depart from this world, the life that was celebrated when I was born, and the life I thought I had made for myself while I lived upon this earth, will be nothing compared to the life that awaits me.
No comments:
Post a Comment