From Death to Life

Jim:

Jeremiah 33:1-13
How quickly God moves from judgment to forgiveness. The transition between verses 5 and 6 is almost jarring. I had to read it three times to make sure I hadn’t missed something. “The Chaldeans are coming in to fight and to fill (the houses) with the dead bodies of those whom I shall strike down in my anger and my wrath, for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their wickedness. I am going to bring it recovery and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security.” The dead bodies have scarcely been placed in the houses before God is talking about recovery and restoration. Grace abounds even in the midst of disaster. Forgiveness follows close on the heels of judgment and reproof. Even when God is consumed with anger over the sins of the people, God’s inclination is to love and care for them.

Romans 4:1-12
Verses 7 and 8 are among the most meaningful in Romans to me: “We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” The fullness of our experience is in the hands of God who claims us throughout our living and even in our death. There is no time that we are not God’s people. What we need to do is to live like God’s people, to remember who we belong to and act accordingly.

Luke 8:26-39
Verses 38 and 39 are especially poignant to me. “The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’” The man who had been healed probably doubted whether there was any purpose for him in his own country. People would see him and always associate him with his past, how he had been plagued with demons, how he had gone about unclothed and living in the open. His past would always be a factor in his relationships. But Jesus gives him a new purpose and a new way of relating to people. Yes, he would always be the man who had been possessed by demons. But he would also be the man whom God had healed and it was that transformation from sickness to health that would allow him to testify to the glory of God. Surely the transition of this man from possession to health was no more jarring than the words of Jeremiah. Surely whether we live or whether we die we really are the Lord’s.