"I'm not scared of death!"

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. -2 Corinthians 5:10

A lot of people who have trusted in Jesus to save them from their sin and eternal torment often say they are not scared of death. I think they should re-think that and maybe rephrase it and say they are not scared of hell. Myself, I used to say I wasn't scared until I studied what the Bible says about when we die. The above verse (2 Cor. 5:10) is what will happen to all Christians when they die, a separate judgment will happen to non-believers (Matthew 25:31-46).

When we die we will stand before the Creator himself and give account for what we did. He will ask why we did not share the greatest news of all time (Jesus' life, death, and resurrection), why we purposely treated someone bad when we knew it was wrong, why we spent so much money on ourselves when 97% of the world does not have clean water? I am terrified of this moment. Can you image the tears and sadness you will feel standing before the one who bore the sins of the world so you did not have to eternally suffer?

If we live with this moment in mind, stop judging unbelievers by their external and start judging eternally, and start picturing our unsaved family, friends, and others in eternal torment (Revelation 20:15), we might share this glorious news that we have been commanded to share (Mark 16:15, Matt. 28:18-19, Luke 24:45-47, John 20:21, Acts 1:8).

Either way, those who have trusted in Jesus will spend eternity with Him, but how marvelous it would be stand before our Savior and be confident when He says, "Well done, good and faithful servant (Matt. 25:21)."

He always shows up

There are many unexpected times when Jesus shows up and gives us a glimpse of what his love looks like. If we are on the constant lookout for this love, we would experience it more often. Today is one of those days where I feel filled with the Holy Spirit and am seeing things in the right state of mind. However, today was a hard day...a real hard day!

I do not know if it was because of the emotional rollercoaster I have gone through today, but at the right moment (God's timing) Jesus showed Himself to me and I could not hold back the tears. 

I was watching the AFC Championship game and Baltimore Ravens running back, Willis McGahee, was laid out by one of the Steelers. As McGahee laid there very hurt, I saw many of the players, both Ravens and Steelers, flood the field with concern. Many of the players, including Ray Lewis (a tough guy), went into prayer. This is where I started getting a little emotional, but then Jesus kicked me in the heart when one of McGahee's teammates approached the stretcher he was on. His buddy came and they squeezed hands with such immense caring, such concern, that I lost it! The teammate who seemed so concerned, had tears in his eyes and it just helped me see Jesus and his love in this nasty world we live in.

In John 11:35, perhaps the shortest yet most powerful verse in the Bible, John writes, "Jesus wept." In the verses leading up to verse 35, Jesus is coming to raise his friend Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus' sisters, Martha and Mary, are there and deeply saddened by their brother's death. Not because of Lazarus' death, but because of the deep sadness and loss that the sisters are feeling, Jesus wept. God clearly shows He is fully human here and weeps with the women. I love Jesus!!

McGahee's teammate was weeping at the fact of his hurt friend. I loved this, needed this, and then did my duty and prayed for McGahee. Jesus loves us and understands every single thing we struggle with. Pain, hurt, confusion, embarrassment, etc. Give yourself to Him!

The Tongue

I often have trouble holding back what I say. Below is a blog from a pastor named Mark Driscoll, who is very solid in his biblical teaching and many other aspects of his walk with Jesus. He has struggled with his mouth as well and I figured that this blog might be helpful to you, as it is to me. Peace and grace!!

Speaking

 

Mark Driscoll

It is said that the average woman speaks around 5,000 words per day whereas the average male speaks around 2,000. For men who work full time outside of the home, the number increases to as many as 3,000 words a day, and 10,000 to 20,000 words a day for the average woman working full time outside of her home. Furthermore, we send innumerable emails in addition to spending countless hours on the telephone. In short, we communicate a lot, in both spoken and printed words.

The Tongue

Proverbs has a great deal to say about what we say; it likely addresses the subject of our speech more than any other book of the Bible. It is a good place to start for those wanting to spend considerable time in Scripture examining the subject. According to James, Jesus’ brother, our tongue is often the last part of our body to get sanctified (James 3). He compares the power of our tongue to the bit in a horse’s mouth, the rudder on a ship, a wild beast, and a small spark that could set a fire of destruction as big as hell itself. In Ephesians 4:29 we are told to speak only “what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Jesus said that “men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:36–37). In meditating on this verse, it occurred to me how much I will have to answer for, considering that I speak roughly 60,000 words each Sunday, or what the average man speaks in a month!

Condemnable Speech

The Bible is filled with examples of condemnable speech, including cursing God, blasphemy, making false accusations, perversity, rashness, harshness, wickedness, boasting, lying, flattering, bitterness, nitpicking, adulterous flirtation, busy-bodying, gossip, nagging, whining, complaining, needless quarreling, and plain old foolish stupidity in its innumerable forms. On the other hand, the Bible also describes speech as an opportunity for worship, prayer, grace, teaching, counsel, preaching, kindness, truth, comfort, love, healing, sweetness, encouragement, mercy, hope, gentleness, conviction, and faith. AsProverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue has the power of life and death.”

An Indicator of the Heart

In many ways, the tongue is an indicator of the heart because, as Jesus said in Matthew 12:34, “out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” The disciple of Jesus learns to speak under the discipline of the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enables Christians to speak truthfully in love – not too much or too little – in a manner that is appropriate for both the hearer and Jesus, who is listening in on our words. Sometimes, the key is to get our time to listen silently to God through His Word so that when we do speak, we echo Jesus.