Good-Life Devotional : OVERCOME THE FEAR OF DEATH

March 16, 2020

By Pst . Michael Benson Ajayi

John 1:48-49 NKJV Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?"Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"

Nathaniel was known for his credibility and criticism therefore, his brother Phillip was confident that he was best positioned to authenticate the validity of Jesus’ claim to divinity. Prior to his encounter with Jesus, he had been seating secretly under a tree. Jesus knew that in order to convince Nathaniel it has to be beyond reasonable doubt, this He did by revealing Nathaniel’s secrets.

The ‘presence’ of God (His essence or tangible manifestation) has often been viewed as a temporal phenomenon. The word ‘presence’ first occurred in Gen 3:8 KJV “And ... Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.” The word ‘presence’ is the Hebrew ‘paniym’ which means ‘the face, countenance, anger, heaviness, favour’. These words describe the tangible manifestation of God.

God created all things and is infinite in manifestation whereas man is finite. It is difficult for the finite mind to comprehend the infinite nature of God therefore, in order to communicate with man, He does so in progressive manifestations (Rom1:20,Isaiah28:10). To better understand this, imagine your physical size in comparison with that of planet earth. You cannot see the entire planet at once but in bits. The earth is measurable and according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, the earth is said to have a surface area of about 510 million square kilometers or 5.1×108 km2 . If the earth had a human- like face, say of the size of the African continent, we would still not be able to see it except through space technology and in comparison we would be like specks of dust on the surface of the earth. This should give us an idea of what it means to be in the presence of an immeasurable personality and the creator of the universe. We are literally ‘nothings’ in comparison, that’s why the angels declared in wonder “Lord, what is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man, that You are mindful of him?” Ps 144:3 NKJV

We are made in God's image and imbued with His creative ability . This is why none of God's creation dominates like the human species. We have placed our footprints on the earth and in space. It is this superior creative ability and the capacity to worship that makes us such valuable assets before God. He desires worship from us every moment of the day.

We are like fishes in a boundless ocean (God), we came from Him and will return to Him like the fishes in the ocean. We cannot hide from Him because He lives in us and we in Him. He knows whatever we say or do. He sees our thoughts ( 1Sam 16:7).He is omnipresent-all present, He is all around you and in you as you read this message now.. It is against this backdrop that the religious concept of ‘coming out’and ‘going into’ the presence of God is injurious to the soul. It is gives Satan room to manipulate our intellects and makes it easier to fall into temptation. That was how he deceived Eve. She did not know that God was present all the time in Eden- if she did, she would have verified Satan’s claims against God by asking Him directly. The tree of the knowledge of God and evil was the symbol of God's authority to judge humanity. She ate of it , became hypocritically judgmental and was condemned for it (Mat7:1.Rom2:1) .Divine judgment and the power of death belongs to God . She had no such ability and therefore died spiritually. The awareness of the eternal presence of God in the life of the believer gives freedom from the fear of death whose power lies in sin. We are one with Him through Christ and nothing can separate us from His love.

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive grace to overcome the fear of death in Jesus name.

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