2022 Lent Devotional – Day 37
A CONFIDENT DEATH: INTO THE FATHER’S HANDS!
Luke 23:46 “Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.”
What is Death? We think that Death is to go from the land of the living into the land of the dying. Not so! Rather it’s the opposite. Let me tell you that “Death is not the Cessation of Life”; because: (a) Every Man Possesses a Spirit, (b) And the ‘Truth’ is that Every Man’s Spirit Will Consciously Exist after the Body is Dead, (c) Therefore, Every Man must Prepare and Know the Destination of His Spirit after Death.
Let me, therefore, share with you from these Words of Jesus, THREE IMPORTANT WAYS to PREPARE for our DESTINY Right NOW, so that we may be prepared for death with full CONFIDENCE, ASSURANCE, and GLADNESS.
Firstly, we can die confidently when our Creator becomes our Father. God is the Creator of the entire human race. He is the Creator of the World, but He is not the Father of every human being. (John 1: 12-13). We need to develop a relationship with Him. Jesus’ Prayer was addressed to the Father (Pater). It talks about the Relationship. This basic word, “FATHER” tells us that God is not a distant Ruler in transcendence but One who is intimately close.
Secondly, we can die confidently when we have the experience and the assurance of our Father’s unchangeable love. Have you experienced the Father’s Love? If you have not experienced it till now, I must encourage you to fall in Love with the Father. “Having a LOVE AFFAIR with the Father is the best way to a Happy Christian Life.”
When all the disciples deserted Jesus, He was not yet alone. He had the assurance of His Father’s Love. The Worldly standard of love is very fickle and untrustworthy but God’s Love is Trustworthy & Reliable. Jesus said in John 10:17-18 “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again.” Thus, those who know Jesus as their Saviour may die with the same confidence and assurance (2 Cor. 5:1–8).
Thirdly, we can die confidently when we entrust our eternity in the secure hands of our Father. Jesus entrusts himself to his Father. “Commit” (NIV) or “commend” (KJV) is the Greek verb meaning, “to Deposit, to entrust for Safekeeping.” Here it is used in the sense of “entrust someone (something) to the care or protection of someone.” Satan was successful in deceiving Adam and Eve because they did not entrust their Soul to their Creator. But Jesus deposited His soul in the safe hands of the Father. We must do the same, then no one can snatch it away from Him. The Human Soul is the Most Valuable part of human life. That’s why Jesus asked, “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet loses his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” Therefore, the question is where do we deposit or rather to whom should we deposit our most valuable thing?
When we establish a love relationship with the Father, have assurance of His unchangeable love and deposit our life in His secure hands, we can confidently live on earth and be prepared to face death when the time comes for us to leave this world.
Rev. Vidush Bhandari