295. Live with Him
2 Timothy 2:11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him.
What a joy! What a privilege! What a blessing! We get to live with Jesus. Yes, it is God and I living together in unity and harmony, enjoying each other and blessing each other. Of course, Jesus and I are In no way equal, yet He treats me as an equal. I am a brother in the family, and a son of the Eternal Father. The promise of “living with” includes both living now with Jesus during this earthly life but also living with Him in the Eternal State world without end. And this is a faithful saying. Count on it.
But there is a condition to the promise: if you are dead with Him, then you will live with Him. Dying is the condition for living. We do not live until we die. Death comes first, and only then the living. This promise must be considered in two ways: now on earth and later in heaven.
First, living with Christ now during this life on earth is experienced and enjoyed to the degree that we consider ourselves dead to self. The more we die to self the more we live with God. But this is extremely hard; in fact, dying to self is impossible. We humans cannot do it, no matter how hard we try. The survival instinct is so strong in us that we are incurably selfish. Just look around you at every person you know and you will see selfish self-centeredness, maybe in varying degrees, but it will always be there in everyone. And sometimes it looks ugly. How do you die? Repent and believe the Gospel. Repentance is an attitude of humbling self and glorifying Christ all day long. Repentance and dying to self begins by recognizing that I cannot do it by myself. I need God to do it for me, and thank God, He does. The Spirit uses the Word to convince us of the sin of self. Then the Spirit uses the Word to convince us of new life in Christ. We die daily and Christ lives daily. And the more we reckon ourselves dead to sin and alive to God, the more we are. I do not die to self, I do not crucify the flesh, I do not resolve to be less selfish. I believe, by the power of Word and Spirit, that I already am. I say to my soul: “You are already dead; Christ is alive.” God says it is true; and I believe it. I am willing to believe it because I strongly desire to “live with him.” The promise motivates me. I don’t need more faith; I just need to use the little faith I have already been given.
Second, living with Christ in eternity after I leave this earth is the hope that keeps me going strong. This hope provides strength for the day and eager anticipation for the future. I believe in Jesus; that makes me dead. I am dead; that makes me live with Him. And no matter what, I will live with Him forever. And no one can touch that hope or take it away. No one wants to die, not really; however, the believer is torn between the two, for he yearns to die because that will mean an absolutely beautiful and wonderful life without the encumbrance of Sin and Self. By faith we die with Christ and by faith we live with Christ. We can embrace death because it means life. We embrace death to self for it means life with Christ. Choose Life! But realize that this choice implies death, death to self. Then: Live!