Britt: I have been transformed over the last 4 to 5 years in my walk with Christ. I was not willing to let go of control and give it to the LORD. I was born again but their was a little corner of my heart which I didnt want to let go of and die to myself and let the LORD be my navigator of my life. As I started to see the holy spirit start to breakdown the strongholds I was hiding in that dark place we try to hide in. Its when I let go and was willing to be released from fear and except the LORDSHIP of CHRIST to pour his spirit over me in a new way that brought me in a true place of worship and adoration of the true one ,who took my sins upon himself for me to be free and have joy that this world can never give. I am so blessed to be part of this new direction of our church and GOD is my rock and JESUS is real and close, all you have to do is look up and ask him for repentence and you will be healed and become effective for his kingdom to come, may I be a vessel of love to give all for his soon appearence. your humble servant in CHRIST, Al Gonzalez

Thank you so much for sharing that Al. Glory to God. We do often overlook that Jesus is to be LORD of our lives, don't we. He is so good that we can trust Him to be a good Lord and King, but it requires our death. IN Matthew 16 Jesus said, "If anyone wishes to come after me let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me." I'm pretty sure that everyone in that culture understood that to take up a cross meant death. Good job Al.
Blessings to you brother!
britt

Al, just ran across this quote and thought of your post. Thanx again for posting.

God has one great purpose for His people above everything else: it is to destroy in us forever any possible confidence in the flesh; it is to bring us to the place where self-confidence has passed into history and has been exchanged for a confidence in God who raises the dead.

— Alan Redpath

Shortly after the birth of my daughter, I journalled some of my thoughts and insights regarding birth and death. I thought I would share that journal entry here in case you are interested. At first it may not seem relevant, but read on. The comparison is drawn with Christ's death :-)

In preparation for layla's birth, i did a lot of reading and here's some things i thought were interesting, especially as it pertains to the biblical understanding of birth. first of all, eve was never cursed. the snake is cursed and the ground is cursed but God never actualy curses adam or eve. which is interesting and seldom noted by christians unfortunately. birth pains are a consequence but not a curse.
secondly, the hebrew word used in the passage [estev] is the same for both the man and the woman's consequence. for the woman, english translators have termed it "pain" and for the man, they term it "toil". curious, isn't it? it's the same exact word used, and in fact throughout the bible when this word is used, it is translated "toil" in all circumstances except for regarding women and childbirth. not sure why translators have decided to do that--it's not exactly fair to the text or to women.

now having gone through labor and without any pain medication, i will say this: there is an element of pain to be sure but this pain is magnified when resisted and becomes bearable only when accepted and surrendered to. furthermore, it is the sort of experience or sensation (or toil, really) that involves a complete focus and total engagement with in order to endure and overcome it. and while it is excruciating and unbelievably intense, it is a beautiful thing when it has been accomplished and when it is finished. it is toil, it is labor, it is something that cannot be slept through or done half heartedly but must be met with total attention and will. It is definitely a very real "dying to oneself."

all that said without trying to show a parallel with Christ and his death, but when i reread it with that in mind, it is really quite amazing. because that is exactly what He did for us on the cross. He made it possible for us to be born again--through him! Christ births us. And so isn't that incredible? he labored on our behalf and we are born through him. but he is the one who had the complete focus and surrender and submission of his body to endure that process ordained by God in order that we might live. truly incredible.
going through labor and birth was an amazing experience for me. unlike any other, out of this world, opened my eyes to a new reality in many ways. and it truly is different from pain as we understand it and as it occurs in other contexts. it is something wholly other. not to say it doesn't hurt--oh to be sure it is overwhelming! but it is something amazing because it results in life.
Through submission of my will and my body, through accepting the pain and laboring in that process of birth, God brought forth the new life of my daughter. Through Christ’s submission of his will and his body, through accepting the pain and laboring in that process of death, God offers us new life spiritually. In an incredible way, Christ conquered the last enemy (which is death) and is able to offer us life! His death was the necessary process through which we can have life. Christ had to be fully engaged, fully focused on the goal ahead. And when he had accomplished all that needed to be accomplished, He declared "It is finished." And now he has the reward of having children, that joy of having accomplished what He set out to do.

Wow! Great analogy.

Hello, Britt.

This topic brings to mind Christ's admonishment that the servant is not greater than the master. I think the modern church ignores this, even though it's a theme that recurs as Christ was preparing the 12 to go on after He left them. "The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord." Matthew 10:24.

Christ put this in the context that we should serve, as He serves: "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet... Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord, neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him." John 13:14-15.

He also spoke of this in the context of persecution. "If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. John 15:18-20.

Paul understood this: "[B]ehold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem no knowing the things that shall befall me there: save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions [await] me." Acts 20:22-23. And in I Corinthians 4:9-14 Paul writes "For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake...we are despised...we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted... being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it; being defamed, we entreat; we are made as the filth of the world... I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you." Then 2 Corinthians 11:22-27 catalogues more trials involving beatings and imprisonment. (I must say, Britt, I don't know what version of the Bible the "Santa Klaus gospel" people actually read, but I think they ignore some pretty significant passages and take others WAY out of context.)

Nor is this just New Testament stuff. The OT is full of the trials; I shudder to think of the price God exacted from some of his prophets. Tradition says that Isaiah was sawn in two by Manasseh, the "bad" king who followed Hezekiah. Jeremiah prophesied the fall of Israel for her sins and was imprisoned for it; then he lived through the fall of Israel to Nebuchadnezzar. Ezekiel's entire ministry, I believe, took place in Babylon - and wasn't he made dumb? Which of the prophets had to lie on his side and was told to eat bread cooked over his own dung - Ezekiel, right? But God relented and let him cook the bread over cow's dung (and that he considered merciful). Hebrews has a summary of the OT trials of the faithful: mockings, scourgings, stonings, wanderings in sheepskins, being "destitute, afflicted, tormented." Hebrews 11:32-38.

This isn't to say there is no joy in Christ. Our joy is great in Him, and He is our exceeding great reward. And there is glory in Him - the crown of glory for the saints is certainly of biblical source, and we will live with Him in eternity. But that glory isn't free and it didn't come cheap. Christ, our Master, paid a huge price for our salvation, for His Glory. And if the servant is not greater than the Master, we must acknowledge that He may require us to suffer for His Sake. Is it not written, to whom much is given, much will be required? (Again - pet peeve - what is up with the "claim it" people? Have they not even READ the Bible?)

I have one last thought before I close. For the past couple of years it seems to me God has had me in a tornado of growth, learning and yes, turmoil. Once we start on the path of obedience to His Voice, we are in a never ending cycle: He gives, then requires. We obey; He gives more, and requires more. We obey even more; He gives more greatly; His requirements grow even greater. At some point we realize we are so far past our own sufficiency that we cannot stop obeying - we are caught in a cycle of obedience and grace that becomes terrifying. We can either stop asking for God to bless us further because we want off that radical roller coaster - or just keep praying for greater discernment, to hear His voice more clearly, to obey Him more completely and faithfully. I am choosing to keep praying for that discrenment, obedience, blessing, requirement. I pray that He will bind me to Him in spirit and in truth, for ALWAYS*; that He will continue to provide the Spirit, the strength and the means to continue in faithfulness to His commands. Because no one made it into the Hebrews Hall of Fame by stepping off this particular thrill ride - and I so want to get to the end and be worthy of a "Well done" or even a "By faith."

*I pray that, like Moses, my rebellion was in the middle of my life and that God will keep me faithfully bound to Him for the rest of my life, never again to rebel. I love the gentle way God tells Moses he won't be going into the promised land because of his rebellion, but instead will be "gathered to his fathers" in this place, in God's very presence, overlooking the promised land.

I realized after I completed the earlier post that I never finished the thought that got me started, which was your header: Christ died, and we are going to die.

Picking up on the above thought that the servant is not greater than the Master: Christ died and so will we die. All honor, glory, and power belongs to Christ not solely because He was the Son of God, but because He suffered and died, intervening in human history to wipe away our sins and redeem us to the Father. He was obedient from beginning to end and as a result, bought us each a new beginning with God.

Christ died, but He did not JUST die. He ravaged hell, spent three days away from the Father and was then resurrected (I have never been clear on whether He caused Himself to rise, or whether that was the Father's doing and would love your opinion on that.) We are going to have a physical death - thanks to Christ, we will not go to Hell, will not suffer a moment away from the Father, but will be transformed, sinless, to spend eternity with Father, Son & Holy Spirit. In this, the servant is spared what the Master suffered - and it is incredible, eternal proof that the Master is indeed greater than the servant.