THE GRACE OF JESUS CHRIST THROUGH DEATH . “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9) . The least angel is above death, because angels cannot die: Angels are above death in nature (Luke 20:36). For Jesus to be able to taste death, which He did, He had to be made lower than the angels: For He could not have died unless He descended below the status of angels down to mortals or human. He became man for the suffering of death or He was found in fashion as man (lower than angels) in order to be obedient to death on the cross. As it written, “Jesus Christ, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him, and given Him a name, which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:6-11). This was summarized in the opening scripture I cited above; that Jesus, who was made a little lower than angels for the sake of suffering death, is now crowned with glory and honour. . However, it is the second part of that opening scripture that has my emphasis more: The part that said, “That He (Jesus) by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” Let me recall the verse again down here: “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9) Why is grace of God connected with taste death in that verse? Is it really the grace of God that made Jesus to taste death for everyman? What kind of grace of God makes someone to die? What kind of death is classified among the grace of God? Can someone experience death while full of grace? . Jesus was full of grace and truth (John 1:14), yet Jesus died. No matter how full of grace a man may be, he is still lower than the angels for the sake of death. However, as angels cannot taste death, so also, angels cannot fully know the grace of God as man has known. We are custodian of His divine grace, and by His grace, we may pass through death and still come out alive for evermore. We men and women in Christ Jesus are full of grace, by which we shall also experience death, but by the grace of God. Do not be afraid of death, except the death without the grace of God. Those who die in Christ die by the grace of God; and any death that is by the grace of God must experience resurrection of life. Therefore it is written, “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints” (Psalms 116:15). Yes, we do not die our own death; for Jesus has died our death by the grace of God. However, we die His own death, which is the death of His grace. He took our death, but gave us His death in His grace: As it is also written, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like His!” (Numbers 23:10). . • Grace is not the absence of death, but the presence and perfection of resurrection and life even in death. • Grace is not the absence of weakness, but the presence and perfection of His strength in weakness. • Grace is not the absence of problems, but the presence and perfection of His Fellowship and divine Help in the midst of all problems. . Yes, there is grace that is connected with suffering, even the suffering of death. However, there is no grace of God connected with the second death. Infact, grace could be connected with anything or everything except with the second death. For true grace ends in resurrection and eternal life which is also known as salvation. Therefore, grace will risk everything just to keep a man from the second-death. A suffering is of the grace of God when it for the salvation or correction of others unto eternal life. The suffering of Jesus was of the grace of God because He tasted death for every man. . Understand these points carefully. 1. I cannot suffer for my own salvation because Jesus already suffered and paid the price for my salvation. However, I can suffer for my correction. There is difference between suffering for one’s own salvation and suffering for one’s own correction. The Lord chastises me and corrects me with sufferings that are parts of His grace towards me. Paul had thorn in his flesh or a messenger of Satan to buffet him and to keep him humble as an extension of the grace Christ to him (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). 2. Jesus already suffered for the salvation of everyman in the world, but I can also share in the sufferings of Christ for the salvation of His Church. There is difference between suffering for the world and suffering for the Church. Only Jesus Christ suffered for the world to be saved, but not only Jesus suffers for the Church to be saved: We all are called to suffer for one another unto salvation. 3. The Father and the heavens also suffer what is called ‘Longsuffering’; and by the longsuffering of God, we are saved. Yes, those in heaven now also suffer; but their suffering is known as longsuffering or patience, which results in salvation for us on earth. As it is written, “Account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given to him has written to you” (2 Peter 3:15) . The grace for salvation can come as humbling sickness or disease, which God may send to a man in order to help the man find Christ. A man prayed that the LORD would send such grace to some of his people, that is, to send such sickness and disease that would help them to be corrected and find Christ unto salvation. So grace is not just a comfortable gift, but whatever that will help to keep a man on the path of life. It is time to realize what the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ truly means in different calling and experiences. . Do not call that suffering, sickness or disease evil if it is to help keep you or the man on the path of life unto salvation. It could be the extension of the grace of God to you. We do not make room for the devil in the grace of God, but we sometimes handover a person to Satan for the destruction of the flesh so that the spirit of the person might be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 5:5). . The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 04:49:35 +0000
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