To Die Is To Live

Scripture:
John 12:23-26 (NIV)

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

Devotional:

At various times I had considered using synthetic oil in one of our vehicles.  When it was time to change the oil I finely decided to try it.  I bought the expensive oil with a new filter and changed my oil.  Afterwards I started the van up ran it a minute or two and was done.  I decided to do a little more research to find out if it really was worth the extra cost.  The results I found were varied and mixed.  One person swears by it.  Another person firmly believes with oil today it really doesn’t matter, one is just as good as the other.  Looking online I found similar results.  What makes one better than the other?  Why use one over the other?  Supposedly the synthetic oil reduces the effects of friction in your car’s engine.  It is suppose to help your engine last longer and run better.

No one wants to die.  We find ways to extend our lives, make our bodies last longer and give us better lives.  We try different medicines, vitamins, herbs, exercise, and when necessary even surgery.  In fact we have surgeries to improve how we look, to breathe better, to be able to walk around with little or no pain.  Within the last year or two my wife and I discovered the wonders of chiropractic care.  All of this is so that we can look and feel better; so that we can live longer more productive lives.  However, Jesus states that in order to live we must first die.  He uses the example of a simple little seed.  A plant grows and produces a seed.  The seed in turn will grow a new plant producing more seeds.  In order for the plant to grow it springs forth from a dead seed.  Just as Christ died on the cross to give new life, we must also die.  When we accept Christ in our hearts we live a new life.  We die to our old selves and old way of life.  We become a new creation made righteous through Christ.  Romans 6:3-10 (NIV):

Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin — because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. 

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

For the Christian there should be no fear in death.  For when we die we gain new life.  After our lives here on earth we will live for eternity in Heaven…