"DEATH in the Eyes of God"

“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.” -- Psalms 116:15

Many people today, Christians and non-Christians alike, are afraid of dying. In fact, a 2005 study at George Mason University indicated that “Humans clearly have trouble thinking about death” and that “…the problem of the fear of death muddling our thinking is so much worse than we imagined.”

There may be various reasons why one would fear death. Some of the things I could think of: people are afraid of leaving their material possessions, their families, and their loved ones. Others are afraid of dying because they are uncertain of their eternal destiny. Many are afraid of the lake of fire, called “Hell.” I believe that only very few people could face death any time, without any sort of fear – and they are those who have completely and genuinely given their life to Christ, without any reservation whatsoever and believing deep in their heart the true meaning of Salvation, that their death—regardless of any forms and shapes—would only mean “coming home” to the mansions that Christ has prepared in Heaven, according to John 14:1-3.

Just recently, I lost a very dear friend of mine: a young man, and a true Bible believing born-again Christian – a true saint. He was born and raised from a good family and had a great childhood, but like many others the influence of the dark world we are now living in had taken his adulthood life to a wrong direction – after he got saved. God, as faithful as He has been to His children, He did exactly to this young man what David wrote in Psalm 23:6, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” God’s goodness and mercy followed and pulled this young man out of the worldly trap, as he re-committed his life in serving Christ before he died. This young man could have been a future servant of God, but God has a much better plan for him…He took him from this world, instead. He is now dwelling in the house of the Lord.

As the Scripture tells us in Psalm 116:15: God rejoices when the saints die. Thus, God rejoices when my dear friend died. The life and the death of the believer are significant in the eyes of God.

How about you? Are you afraid of facing death? If you are a true Bible believing born-again Christian, then you are a true saint and you should not be afraid of dying. Your death brings glory to God, your Father. On the contrary, if you are not a Christian believer, your only hope of deliverance from the fear of death is to become a saint. John 3:3 says, “… Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 14:6 also says, “… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” You can be saved, be born again, be a saint, and be a child of God in the privacy of your own room, right now: whoever you are, and whatever you are. No religion can save you, but Jesus can. You can be saved only with your free will in coming to Christ. Like one of the two criminals next to Jesus when He was crucified – he came to Christ in his own free will. Luke 23:42 says: “And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” Then, Luke 23:43 says: “And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”

Without any fancy preparation of any kind -- All you have to do is come to Christ: confess your sins (by your mouth) and ask for forgiveness. Start a personal relationship with Jesus now, before it is too late.

Romans 10:9 says: "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

Romans 10:10 says: “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Romans 10:11 says: “For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”

Romans 10:12 says: “For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.”

Romans 10:13 says: “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

“The Battle is not Yours, but God’s”

Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you. -- 2Chronicle 20:17


Do you have a battle that you’re fighting in your life right now? I thought you do – just like me and everyone else in this world! Every human being alive on this earth—wealthy, poor, young, and old—faces all kinds of problems: some big, some small. Loss of loved ones; infirmities; adversities; loss of jobs; addictions; financial difficulties; marital challenges – these are just few examples, and many others. Children of divorced parents have problems, too. Even Presidents of all nations and Pastors of all churches have numerous problems, as well. No one is immune to trials and sufferings. Every one has his own battle.

Long time ago, one friend had told me: “People are like lizards. They run around dragging their bellies, some are heavier than others.” This is very true, if we pause and think about it: everyone has burdens, just different weights. We may look good on the outside, but we may be weeping deep inside.

Our Christian Bible is very clear: God promises our deliverance from any sort of battles. The Bible says in 2 Chronicle 20:15, “…Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed…for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” But one may ask, “This is too good to be true . . . but what is the catch?” Yes, there is a catch on this, and that is: God only fight battles of His own children, like the shepherd who protects his own sheep. In fact, the care of a shepherd for his flock is referred to as illustrating God’s care over his people (Psalms 23:1,2; 74:1; 77:20; Isaiah 40:11; 53:6; John 10:1-5; 7-16). God also made a promise to Israel in 2 Chronicle 7:12-22, that He will hear the prayers of Israel, but with a condition: only if they repent from their sins.

Salvation with the Lord is the key element that everyone must see, not only to the fact that Salvation through Christ is our only passport to Heaven (John 3:3), but this is also a command from God, assuring His promise of deliverance to His children, according to our text. When a person is saved and redeemed by the blood of Christ, it was by the grace of God through faith (Ephesians 2:8). It was only after Salvation, that one becomes a child of God (Galatians 3:26).
Therefore, if you know for sure that you are a child of God – your assurance to win the battle could only be achieved by turning over the fight to Him. Be still and fear not! The battle is God’s, not yours. You will never win, when you fight by your own.

Otherwise, it is not too late to repent your sins and be saved. Repentance of their sins was God’s condition to Israel before He hears their prayers, but Salvation of the Lord with you was what God wanted you to see before He fights your battle. Let Christ saves you from the wages of your sin, which is death and then ask the Lord to fight your battle—and He will be with you!

“Prayer Works, but not All the Time”

“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” -- Psalms 37:4:



It is very easy for us to say, “Please, pray for me!” or “Don’t worry, I will pray for you!” But many times, we only say the former as we seek pity from others, and we say the latter simply as a gesture of being nice and a consolatory act to our friends and relatives. Yes, of course, we want to be out of troubles, sickness, trials, or sufferings right away the reason why we ask for prayers – not realizing the fact that we always forget to pray, especially when we’re not in need of prayers. Now that we need prayers, we expect God to hear our prayers and that He gives us the desires of our hearts – ASAP! Pronto!

We need to remember that God has a high expectation of us that He commands us to delight ourselves in Him as a prerequisite to His giving (not as an aftermath of His giving). The word “shall” clearly denotes the certainty of His promises.

The Book of Psalms is crystal clear: we should continue to delight ourselves in the LORD – whether we need something from Him, or not. We should thank Him, for blessings and adversities. We should always strive to be righteous, godly, and humble to people around us, instead of flying higher than others. We are not eagles, we are only humans. We should watch our mouth. We should be careful of our actions. We should keep our focus to Christ, if we know Him, and if He knows us. We should be proud of our Salvation, if we know we are saved and have been born again. Otherwise, the first thing we should do is to seek Him. Matthew 6:33 is also clear, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Let us be sincere in our prayers, and let us examine our hearts and thoughts before we ask others for prayers and offer prayers to others. 1Chronicle 28:9 says, “…the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts,” and Psalms 44:21 says, “he knoweth the secrets of the heart.” Prayers will not work if our hearts and thoughts are in vain. Let us ask for forgiveness from people whom we had wronged first before we pray or ask for prayers; let us confess our sins; let us exercise humility; let us not forget that Jesus taught us how to pray in Matthew 6; let us pray to the Father and not to idols; when we pray, let us not use vain repetitions; and lastly, let us search our soul and ask ourselves the question: Do I delight myself in the LORD?

Only when we keep a positive answer to the question, that God will give us the desires of our heart. That is His promise to us! Calling God, “Lord, Lord!” has no merits in our prayers, especially when we do not the things (sic) which He says, according to Luke 6:46.