ODB: worth dying for
October 5, 2009
READ: Philippians 1:19-26
For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. —Philippians 1:21
Sophie Scholl was a young German woman during the 1940s. She saw the deterioration of her country under the iron rule of the Nazi regime, and she determined to make a difference. She and her brother, with a small group of friends, began to peacefully protest not only the actions but the values that the Nazis had forced upon the nation.
Sophie and others were arrested and executed for speaking out against the evil in their land. Although she wasn’t anxious to die, she saw that the conditions in her country had to be addressed—even if it meant her death.
Sophie’s story raises a critical question for us as well. What would we be willing to die for? Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Pete Fleming, Roger Youderian, and Ed McCully gave their lives in the jungles of South America because they were committed to spreading the gospel. Elliot revealed the heart that drove such sacrifice when he wrote, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” The apostle Paul put it this way: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21).
Some things really are worth dying for—and in them we gain the reward of the One who declares, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21,23) — Bill Crowder
Those who faithfully bear the cross in this life will wear the crown in the life to come.
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Loading ...ODJ: never alone
I will never abandon you (v.5).
READ: Hebrews 13:1-6
Brianne Leckness sat on the steps of a church, abandoned by her mom and step-dad. Brianne was 3 years old. Her parents had pinned a note on her shirt: “Please take care of her. We can’t any longer.” Passed from foster home to foster home, Brianne grew up the best she could. Brianne remembers how, on her 18th birthday, her mother “blew into town [and] wanted us to go on The Montel Williams Show and say how she really never wanted to give me up.” But Brianne knew the obvious truth: Her mother hadn’t wanted her.
Such a story rips into our heart. It’s impossible to imagine such callous desertion. Thankfully, few of us have faced this kind of abusive abandonment. We have all, however, felt the sting of rejection. We have all, in our own way, been left alone. A divorce leaves us without a parent. A misunderstanding leaves us without a friend. An economic downturn leaves us without a job. Whatever the trouble, the result is the same: We feel alone.
When we’re in this place, God’s bold words echo with hope and perfect clarity: “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you” (v.5). This straightforward assertion does not mean that our human pain immediately dissolves or that we downplay the seriousness of others’ neglect. What it does mean, however, is that God’s presence can heal our most lonely places (v.6). God’s love is the love we are most desperate for, and God’s love will never wane. It will never run thin. God’s love will always—always—be with us.
When God says He will not “fail” us, He promises that He will never abandon or neglect those He loves. God’s love will never let us go, never leave us to ourselves. —Winn Collier
When have you felt most abandoned? What does it mean for you to know that God promises never to fail or abandon you?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Call To Commitment: Wise vs Foolish Man
By Joyce Peh
In Singapore, students have many privileges: concessionary bus passes and special prices for movies, food etc.. As I’ve learnt, you might even get discounts at shops located near your schools. One day I was at the spectacles shop to make a new pair of glasses. I was choosing the frame and found one that I really liked. It was very costly and I was hesitant if I should get it. As I was deliberating, the salesperson asked if I was a student because students could get a discount. I quickly replied, “Yes!” despite the fact that I graduated half a year ago.
I felt very good then that I had saved so much money. But on my way back and throughout the entire night, I couldn’t help but think of what had happened. I felt the Lord’s chastisement and the Holy Spirit’s prompting that I had done something wrong. How could I be a follower of the God of truth and yet spoke lies? I knew I had to do something about it yet I was worried that the salesman would scold me for my dishonesty if he were to find out what I had done. Finally after two sleepless nights, I decided I had to go back to the man and apologise for what I had done.
I was very scared and after pacing up and down in front of the shop for at least one and a half hours, I saw the man standing at the shop. My friends who were with me nudged me to do the right thing and I finally went up to him. I admitted that I lied to him and told him that I would pay the full price for my glasses. I was very relieved he forgave me and more than that, I felt the joy of obeying the Lord and having His forgiveness!
(This article is first published in Power Up With The King,
a Bible-study material printed and produced by Singapore Youth For Christ)
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