Whatever happened to Hannah Montana?

After Miley Cyrus' appauling "performance" on the MTV VMAs a few days ago the social media world has been overloaded with posts and comments.  Believe it or not there are a few who support her act, but for the most part her on stage behavior has parents and reasonable adults everywhere condemning her for such lewdness.

But I believe my friend Adam brought some much needed clarity to the whole subject when he simply commented, "Why are we surprised by this?".  A simple question.  Why are we surprised to see Miley doing a performance like this?

 I don't mean to imply that we shouldn't be shocked by the increasing social acceptance of public acts of immorality, but specifically Miley or any other darling "pure" child star gone south.

People are saying, "She's no longer family friendly!", "She's not the innocent little Miley we once knew!"  Well, I did not have children at the time of Hannah Montana's so I thankfully escaped that whole mess but I know enough about the show's content to say that we could have a discussion about just how family friendly it ever truly was.

While it did not promote overt immorality it did up play kissing, dating, popularity, wealth, deception... I mean the theme song alone let us know that she was getting the best of both worlds (average and superstar) simply by playing a little deception trick on even her closest friends.

That, however, is not the point of this post.  Let's address the "She's not the innocent Miley" any longer crowd.

It is my contention that the Miley we saw on the 2013 VMA Show is not who she has become, but who she has always been.

Yes, you read that correctly.  Little "innocent" Hannah Montana portrayed by wide eyed Miley was NOT the real Miley personality.

People have developed this idea in their head that she was once a little angel on earth simply because her television character was this so-called type of child.

The interviews for magazines, TV, behind the scenes sort of footage, all staged.  If you believe that there wasn't a publicist, manager, "parent" behind all of those things telling her what to do and what to say you are blindly mistaken.

What we saw portrayed was Miley the product.  Miley the apparition.  She was a smoke and mirrors figment of the imagination that was needed to sell Disney merchandise.  So they created the persona they needed and once she was no longer cute as Hannah she was set loose on her own.

Am I saying that even at a child's age she was engaged in gross and overt immorality similar to what was displayed on television?  No.  That's absurd and illegal.  What I am saying is that the warning signs of her being a lost sinner were rampant in her life then and have merely escalated as she has grown older.

She is the product of sinful flesh (which we are all born with) turned loose to feast on its own desires.  It isn't that Miley is "turning bad" or "becoming immoral", it is more likely that she always has been and it is now that it is reaching a level to even make some secular-moralists drop their jaws.  The Miley we all watched grow up on stage was a sanitized and controlled version of what many witnessed with disgust a few nights ago.

Miley, me, you... we are all born sinful.  It is only the grace of God through Jesus Christ that works in us to put our sinful desires to death.  Yes, Miley supposedly professed Christ as a child, but clearly she is showing now that she was never truly following Jesus Christ.  That's not judgment, that's an honest appraisal of a lack of fruit being born in her life (Matthew 7:16).

Additionally, this should be a wise lesson to Christian parents, and all parents really, of why we should never place any person as an idol in our child's lives.  It is a myth to say that a child needs a real world celebrity role model.

They don't.  They need moms and dads who commit to teach them God's Word and demonstrate the effects of that Word on their own lives.  They need moms and dads who take them to a church who is passionate about the proclamation of the full Gospel of Jesus Christ and come along side the family to disciple that child.

What Miley needs, what I need, what every child and adult needs is to have the Gospel applied to their life that we might see our need for Jesus Christ to forgive us of our sin and give us a regenerated heart with new desires.  What people need is Christ.  Applying the Gospel daily to yourself and your family will remind the believer of the Savior who died to save them.  That is the best and only sufficient reason to fight the desires of the flesh.  It is only because of receiving His Spirit in us that we even care to fight the desires of the flesh.

Applying the Gospel to a lost person is intended, by God's grace, to show them their need of Christ that they would forsake their sin and flee to Him for life!

Let me make 2 final disclaimers on this issue:

1.) Do not for one moment think that you or I are any better than she.  If it were not for the grace of God we would be capable of far worse an act than she has done.  (1 Corinthians 6:9-20)

2.) I did not watch the performance in its entirety, but have read an account of most of the acts performed.  I watched the opening moments and when she went to remove a portion of her costume I quickly exited the YouTube page having seen enough to make me sick already.

3.) While I am on board with condemning what Miley did on stage, let's be careful not to cross the line to condemn her soul.  Let's instead let this motivate us to weep and pray for her salvation that God in His mercy would save her soon!

Recommended Links:

Sorry, Miley
True and False Conversion by Ray Comfort

America's Problem...

Let me begin by saying that I am not in any way a supporter of Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson.  While I agree with their basic premise that all ethnic groups deserve equal protection and rights, I do not always agree with their tactics and statements.  But my fellow conservatives seem to be missing the point and so I decided to offer some thoughts to them.  Conservatives tend to think that only liberals are to blame... but just isn't true.

Disclaimer aside, they are not the problem.  Their tactics, misguided as they are, are not the problem.  I make this statement because in the fall out from the Zimmerman

Trial many people who were supporters of George Zimmerman are blaming Mr. Sharpton and Mr. Jackson for the riots and hype surrounding the trial and its verdict.

The worst part of this trial in the social media sphere is that these hateful comments on both sides are coming from those who call themselves Christians. 

While they are not helping the problem, they are NOT the problem.  To blame them is to ignore a much larger issue.

It is no secret that racial tensions are running high in this country.  I am an avid proponent of the benefits of social media outlets such as facebook,

twitter, etc, but for every "good" thing these outlets accomplish, an equal and sometimes greater evil is accomplished as well.

In the course of President Obama's two terms in office I have witnessed an alarming trend on social media outlets.  People (supporters and opponents) referring to the President as merely "Obama". 

Not "President Obama" or even "Mr. Obama" (if they desire a less respectful address).  Even resorting to nicknames such as "Obummer".  Again these things are seen coming from those who call themselves believers.

Whether you agree with the President or not does not give Christians (or even American citizens) the right to show disrespect to his office and authority.

Romans 13 tells us that all authority has been ordained by God for His purposes.  Sometimes those

leaders are Godly and lead the Nation towards Christ in their decisions, sometimes they don't.  Sometimes they are God's blessing on a Nation and sometimes they are God's judgment.

Regardless of which way you feel President Obama is for our Nation, he is for better or worse our President.  He has been given authority and we are to show the respect due to that office.

That does NOT mean that we must agree with all that he does or even be silent about our disagreement with his views.  It does not mean that we must comply if he tries to legislate something the Bible deems immoral.  It does, however,

mean that we must voice our disgruntlement in the proper way.  That begins by respecting the office and more importantly the God who has ordained that authority.

I do not agree with much of what our President does, but President Obama is not the problem with America.

The news media plays its part in all of this of course, but even THEY are not the problem with America.

So what is America's problem?  Are you ready?  The answer may surprise you...

The problem is sin.  Sin is the problem.  More specifically, people who act on sinful temptations and given in to the desires of their flesh.  Everyone, from President Obama, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, George Zimmerman, Republicans, Democrats, you, and me, everyone wakes up every morning and resumes a battle with our flesh.

Sin causes racism, race baiting, murder, lies, hatred, bigotry, blasphemy, and every other kind of evil you can think of.

In fact, it is a battle that we may set aside as we sleep but our enemy attacks even in our dreams.  Ever had a dream wherein you did something immoral?

The enemy I refer to is not Satan, it is you and me.  Satan may lay a snare before us and he is certainly crafty foe.  But it is us who give in to his temptations and willingly place ourselves into his snare.

So where do we go from here?  Let me make 2 suggestions.

What will fix the problem?

1.) The problem of sin will NOT be dealt with through political and social activism or well-stated arguments.   Refuting Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, or exposing the George Zimmerman's or even the Trayvon Martin's of the world will not fix this.

Attempting to deal with the problem of sin with clever argumentation will produce the same result as placing a band-aid on a crack in the Hoover Dam.  Eventually, probably sooner than later, it will burst through with a much larger problem.

Don't we see that trend in the escalation of the vigilante justice mindset that grips people on both sides of any hot issue.

2.) The problem of sin HAS been dealt with through the Person and work of Jesus Christ!  Amazing!  So what do we do now?  We, those who are in Christ, need to point people to the Savior!

Use God's Law, the great equalizer among all mankind, to bring the knowledge of sin (Romans 5:8; 6:23; 7:7, Exodus 20; Ephesians 2:1-10) and then point them to the kindness of God to have sent Christ.  Who came and took the wrath of God for our sin so that we could be forgiven (2 Corinthians 5:21).

The Gospel is the answer for racists, racism, greed, murder, drugs, public schools, gang violence, snobbery, lies, pornography, adultery, lusts, or any other problem that faces our society.

Jesus Christ is the only One who can truly chance hearts, minds, and desires.  Only through HIM will this world change.

Christians, let's be sure that we are passionate about the wrong and sinful things in this world.  Let's be passionate about social injustices, but let's never let those things elevate themselves above the saving message of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"A Love for the Law" by Chris Crane

One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Psalm 119, where King David celebrates the Law of God. For David, the Law was not something dreadful to him, but something delightful. He found joy in God’s commands. 

We see this kind of language just by a cursory overview of the chapter:

“In the way of your testimonies I delight, as much as in all riches.” (v. 14)

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” (v. 18)

“My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times.” (v. 20)

“Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.” (v. 35)

“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.” (v. 103)

I am drawn again and again to this text because, often times, when we think of the Law, we don’t use words like sweet, wondrous, or delight. More often than not, words we might deem more appropriate to use would be boring, legalistic, dry, or cold, yet these are the exact opposite of how David looked at the Law. 

He saw it as a gift from God to be savored. Unfortunately, this is not the consensus view among Christians.  In fact, many Christians are often guilty of what is called antinomianism, which is a belief that God has no moral law that he expects Christians to obey. 

Not only does this give us a misunderstanding of the Law, it gives us a false view of our present pursuit of holiness as followers of Christ. There are delightful demands that give evidence of persevering faith. As Jesus himself said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” So, how should we view the Law? What can we learn from David in Psalm 119?

1) The Law Should Be Received with Joy

First, we should recognize that we did not discover God. God chose to reveal himself to us. It would be perfectly just and good for God to not reveal himself to us. We do not deserve to know him, but instead deserve to be the recipients of his wrath because of our sin. This is sheer grace that he shows us. What we find in the Law is not only God’s requirements, but his character. We see his high standard of holiness and his hatred of sin (Hos. 1:1-9; Psalm 5:4-6). We see that his love is a holy love, not mere sentimentality. 

Furthermore, and of utmost importance, we see that because of his high standard of holiness in the Law and his demands of perfection, the Law points to our substitute, Jesus Christ the Messiah, who would fulfill the Law for his people, remove their guilt and set them free from the penalty that was on our heads as law-breakers (Matt. 5:17; Rom. 3:19-26; 8:2-4). We are free to receive the Law with joy because we are not trying to be justified by it and God’s people see no longer see his commandments as burdensome (see 1 John 5:3).  

Since Jesus has secured our adoption with our Father, we are free to delight in his commands as an expression of who our Father is. In other words, being free to enjoy the Law is another way we get to know our Father. It is this position we have been given through Christ that makes the Law joyful to the heart of the saint.

2) Delighting in the Law Gives Evidence We Love Jesus

As I mentioned briefly above, those who have been truly born again will give evidence that they love Jesus by keeping his commandments. Will they do this perfectly? Absolutely not. Will they do it at all? Yes. The regenerate heart has new desires and will live a life of repentance and confession, which will be a life marked by obedience. So even though they will not obey perfectly, they will no longer live in a lifestyle of slavery to sin because they have been “made alive in Christ” (Eph. 2:4). 

Notice that I am not saying we are justified, that we are made right with God, by our obedience to his commands. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone (Eph. 2:8-9). However, as Reformer Martin Luther once said, “We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.” Saving faith is evidenced by good works.

3) Loving the Law as a Weapon in Fighting Sin

In Psalm 119:9, David writes, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.” In David’s time, “your word” is a reference to the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament, which contain the Law. A couple of verses later, he writes, “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (v. 11). Putting his faith in a future Messiah (who would be Jesus of Nazareth), David was given eyes to see that God’s people are set apart unto holiness and if he was going to fight for his joy in the Lord, he could not ignore God’s will found in his revealed Word.

Like David, we must take sin seriously. The pervasiveness of sin affects all areas of our lives. Sin leaves no stone unturned in its curse upon creation, including the lives of men and women everywhere. From our friendships to how we drive, our slavery to sin taints what God originally created good. Even worse, sin is rebellion against a holy God. 

The depth of the effects sin has between us and God is profound, as Pastor John Piper once said,

“What makes sin sin is not first that it hurts people, but that it blasphemes God. This is the ultimate evil and the ultimate outrage in the universe. The glory of God is not honored. The holiness of God is not reverenced. The greatness of God is not admired. The power of God is not praised. The truth of God is not sought. The wisdom of God is not esteemed. The beauty of God is not treasured. The goodness of God is not savored. The faithfulness of God is not trusted. The promises of God are not relied upon. The commandments of God are not obeyed. The justice of God is not respected. The wrath of God is not feared. The grace of God is not cherished. The presence of God is not prized. The person of God is not loved.”[1]

Fighting sin is a declaration that we desire our joy to be in Christ above anything else. It’s warfare against lesser pleasures. It is seeing holiness as beautiful, reflecting the beauty and majesty of Jesus, who is to be valued above all else. While the Law reveals our sin and points us to our need for a Substitute to save us and stand in our place, it also is a means for the Holy Spirit to strip away disordered affections as we long for Jesus. It declares along with David, “Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways” (Ps. 119:37).

The Law is good because it comes from God. He established it and, in his infinite wisdom, only makes good laws. In sending his Son to fulfill the Law, he didn’t give us a reason to toss the Law out the window. That was not his intention. He is preparing his people to be a pure Bride, adorned in the clothes of the gospel, namely, the righteousness of the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. 

I wonder, could it be that we are not living in the joy of the gospel like we desire because our view of the Law keeps us from seeing the delight of holiness? Do we really see the Law as a means to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord as we are in awe of his holiness? Or have we fallen into the error of antinomianism and think that God’s people have no moral commands to concern themselves with? As we wait upon the return of Jesus, let us have full hearts for the joy found in the Law, knowing that “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).

---

[1] John Piper, “The Greatest Thing in the World: An Overview of Romans 1-7,” Desiring God, http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-greatest-thing-in-the-world-an-overview-of-romans-1-7 (accessed July 30, 2013).

Jesus loves the little Children!

Just a short 27 verses into the book of Genesis we learn that God not only made man.  More specifically Moses is careful to tell us that God made man “in His image”.  That caring act of creation set man apart from all of the rest of God’s creation.

In Psalm 139 we learn that God has continued His loving act of creating man by uniquely creating each individual person.

Psalm 139:13-14 - For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

We were formed by God’s own hand.  Knit together.  And the Psalmist says that our having been created by God in such a way that we were created to praise Him.  He says, I praise you BECAUSE I am wonderfully made.

Made in God’s image, we were created to praise God.  That is man’s chief purpose.  God created us so that we would freely praise His Name!  Yet, the Bible tells us in Genesis 3 that man has a dire problem.

Romans 3:23 says that we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.  In other words, because we have all sinned, we have all failed to meet God’s standard of perfection.  And we are not just a little below the mark; we are woefully short of giving God the glory He deserves.

Our job as Christian parents is to teach our children what they were created for.  They need to understand that they were created to worship God. But our job is not a simple one.  We compete with their attention against TVs, iPods, video games, and a culture that increasingly pushes them to grow up quickly and grow up focused only on themselves.

Every human being was created to worship, and every human being worships something.  Our job is to point our children towards the only One who is worthy of our worship; urging them to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The question then becomes one of how?  How do I lead them towards Christ?  How do I show them their need for and the value of a life lived for the glory of God?

Well, the key is to teach them God’s Word.  Use the principles from God’s Word to train them.  For example, the 10 Commandments.

It is so important that you teach your children the 10 Commandments.  God’s Law, the 10 commandments, is there for a myriad of purposes.  Chiefly, it shows that which God requires in order to be properly worshipped.

However, as we examine our hearts in light of each commandment we quickly realize that we have not perfectly met any of God’s requirements.  But in doing this the Law shows us WHO we are.

We are a people prone to give room in our hearts to other masters besides Christ.  But the Bible says in Luke 16:13 that our hearts can only have one master. 

The second thing God’s Law does is show us WHAT we need.  The Law commands us to do good, and then proves that we cannot and have not.  To do what the Law requires we need righteousness.  A righteousness that we obviously do not possess given our frequent transgression of it.

Next, the Law reveals WHO God is.  He is our Lord and our Savior!  His giving of the Law was intended to point us towards our need for CHRIST because HE and HE alone is the perfect fulfillment of all of those Laws that we could not keep.

Being perfectly righteous Jesus kept every Law perfectly on our behalf!  As we teach our children God’s Law they should see that they need Christ!  That God sent Christ to lovingly rescue them from their sin!

As we teach our children the 10 Commandments God will show them that their every violation of it or any one that they will ever commit has been absorbed by Christ on the cross!

The world tells our children that people should accept them just as they are, but the reality is that the world creates systems that force them to earn any acceptance that they may want. 

But teaching our children God’s Word teaches them that God will truly accept them just as they are.  Not because they are good, not expecting them to be perfect. 

No, the Bible teaches that God will accept them because He is satisfied by His Son’s sacrifice that was made on their behalf.

Not only that, but God’s Word teaches that God will put His very Spirit within them and that Spirit will begin to work in them so that sin’s reign in their life is broken as He begins to transform their lives! 

He transforms them and frees them from the burden of their guilt and sin and it frees them to be the worshipper that God has created them to be!

Remember our text in Psalm 139, I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made!  We have to teach them the beauty in having been created by a good and holy God.

But it will not do to simply teach these things to them.  That is the quickest way to produce self-righteousness in them.  We must not only teach them God’s Word, we must also model it for them.

Our kids have to see that we too love Christ and His law.  They need to see in us a wholehearted response to God and His Word to us.   Our lives must not only demonstrate the pursuit of obedience to God but they must also demonstrate the response we should have to disobedience.  Our children need to see us striving to obey Christ, and when we sin and fall short they need to see us repent. 

When your children observe your sin.  Maybe you blow your top and scream at them.  Maybe you speak harshly to your spouse in front of them.  Maybe you get cut off in traffic and they witness you saying terrible things about the person who has offended you. 

When those things inevitably come up, be transparent with them about what you’ve done, why you know it was sinful, and why you need to repent of that sin.  Make it your goal to not only tell them about the importance of trusting Christ but show them how that looks in your own life.

Psalm 1:1-2 - Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.

When you pass one day, and your children inherit your possessions… what will you pass on to them that is of lasting value?  What will they remember about you?  The greatest legacy you can leave your children is one that teaches them to flee from their sin and trust in the sufficient grace of Jesus Christ.  They need to see and know that your delight is in the Lord alone!

Pondering the Death of Christians...

For about the last six months our church has been going through a season filled with many tears.  Over the last six months we have had to say 'goodbye for now' to dear and beloved people from amongst our membership.

All of this has of course placed the topic of death and final moments freshly on my mind. 

With each death I have sought to provide some comfort from Scripture for the grieving family and church family members.

All of that has led me to a few glimmers of hope extended to those mourning the death of a Christian.

 

Death for a believer is NECESSARY

That seems a bit obvious to say since we know that every living person one day experiences a physical death.  However death must come for a believer so that they may begin to enjoy that which has been promised to them. 

It is written in 1 Peter chapter 1 - [3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, [4] to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, [5] who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [6] In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, [7] so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. [8] Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, [9] obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

As hard as this is to hear in a moment like this, we ought to seek to rejoice through our tears when a believer passes because they have now begun truly living.  The departed Christian now experiences true life.  Eternal life!  That which they had become truly persuaded of; that their sins had been forgiven by Christ.

Having entrusted their soul to a Savior who had caused them to be born again not to a vain or dead thing, but a Living Hope! 

We can rejoice in the face of the loss of a loved one who knew Christ because we know that they now experience a life that is unlike anything we can possibly know while in this body of flesh.

Believers live with an expectancy and trust that they will see Christ.  Christ so conquered death that He not only rescues those who trust Him from their sins but He also guarantees them life in Him.

Job 19:25-27 - [25] For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. [26] And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, [27] whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another.

Death, for a believer, is also TIMELY

While we cannot prepare for it no matter how much we are aware that it is coming, no one dies before the time that God has appointed for them to.

Hebrews 9:27 - [27a] And just as it is appointed for man to die once,

The time of all our deaths has been set by God Himself.  We can take comfort in knowing that God brings His children home to Him at the proper time.

Although we would seek to keep our loved ones near us for our whole lives, we rest in knowing that no one dies too soon or by accident.

Further, the believer never dies too late.  Rather they depart this world for their home in Heaven has been prepared and is ready for them to dwell in.

John 14:1-3 - [14:1] “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. [2] In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? [3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Death for a believer brings time in the house of mourning

 Now you may be wondering how this could possibly be a good thing? 

Ecclesiastes 7:2-4 -  [2] It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. [3] Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad. [4] The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

I have learned far more from seasons of great sorrow than many seasons of mirth put together.  It is in the times of sorrow that we most learn to grow in grace.   Death brings a sharpness of mind that presses believer's to think about their own coming departure.  

It forces us to ask the hard questions like, 'Am I loving my family well and do they know how much I love them?', 'Am I leaving a legacy of Christlike faith for my loved ones to remember me by?', 'Am I making the most of every moment of this life God has given me?'

Those are not questions that we tend to ask in times of joy because we assume, in those times, that all of those answers are 'yes'.  But when we are walking through the death of a loved one, through the tears, our minds sober up and think on those things which actually matter.

Believers can find it better to  be in the house of mourning because of what it reminds us of:

Lastly, the death of a believer is a SOUND REMINDER for us all.

For Christians:

For those of you who are believers, you have every reason to rejoice that you too will one day not only be reunited with your loved one but even more amazing that that, you will also one day see Christ face to face!

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 - [13] But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. [14] For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. [15] For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. [16] For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. [17] Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. [18] Therefore encourage one another with these words.

We are to encourage one another.  Be assured that as we hurt through the deaths of believers we can also be reminded that God’s promise to bring us home to eternity is coming to pass!  

The death of a Christian is another reminder that God is faithful.  He has said that those who are in Christ will one day leave this world and go to be with Him and as Believers die, we can see that this is true!

We do not hope in vain, rather we have become persuaded from the heart that God is true and that Christ has paid our sin debt so that we can be fully pardoned and reconciled to God!

For Unbelievers:

If you have never come to Christ having turned from your sin having sought His forgiveness. 

May I say to you that are in great peril!  You have every reason to fear your appointed death for just as it has been appointed that you too will die, you will face God’s judgment.  Judgment for your manifold transgressions.

Hebrews 9:27 - [27] And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.

The Bible says that we have all fallen short of God’s glory.  All of us have broken God’s law and become like one who is unclean.  Your sins are not just your mistakes nor are they merely mistakes. 

They are all your lies, lusts, envies, jealousies, blasphemes, hatred and they are all acts of treason against a Holy and Just God.  All of them justly condemning you before a Him. 

But God in His mercy has extended to you His grace that if you will confess your sins and turn to the goodness of Jesus Christ, who has died to pay your sin debt, God will forgive you because of Christ’s merits and grant you forgiveness, eternal life, and the peace which passes all understanding.