LifeLink Devotional

Monday, November 9, 2020

I seem to have a developing habit. I wake early in the morning with a song on my mind. Today these words and melody were ringing loudly at 4:00 AM.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace.”

Over and over they ran, as the Holy Spirit calmed my soul and revealed the truth of those words for me. The more I gaze into the face of Jesus the less significant the things of earth become. The more I intently look into the light of His glory and grace the less bothered I am by human circumstance. The more I turn my eyes from the fading beauty of the world to the unchanging beauty of Jesus the more my priorities change to align with the eternal will of God.

As I processed all of that in my mind, I rose to open my Bible to John chapter 8 and read these words of Jesus.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” (verse 51)

Yesterday my wife and I were notified that a lifelong friend went to be with Jesus. Our relationship with her started back in 1979 when our kids were little. She was one of my wife’s most cherished friends. She was a keeper of the words of Jesus. She has not tasted death. She is completely at peace. Her loving and caring soul is at rest in the presence of the Lord.

What an incredible promise from Jesus. If anyone, regardless of the depth of past sin, will listen to His words and obey them, they will be saved from the condemnation of death and be given eternal life. They will never see death. Oh, the physical function of this human body may cease, but the soul that dwelt in the vessel will never cease to live if that soul is saved by grace through faith in Jesus.

As I reflected on that incredible promise, I just had to sing the rest of the song.

Oh soul are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior
And life more abundant and free

Through death into life everlasting
He passed and we follow Him there
O’er us sin no more hath dominion
For more than conquerors we are

His word shall not fail you, He promised
Believe Him and all will be well
Then go to a world that is dying
His perfect salvation to tell

The more I turn my eyes upon Jesus, the more focused I become on the things that are significant to God. I have one desire: to go to a world that is dying, and tell them of the perfect salvation found in Jesus.

Pastor John