Who are you willing to die for? Have you spent any time thinking about that question? Have you walked through a scenario in which you would need to make a life and death decision? Have you mentally prepared yourself for it? Does it cause you pause?
Most people don’t want to think about it. They don’t want to think about putting themselves in danger to save someone else. Oh, they may talk big, but they don’t really want to think about it and may not have ever spent time thinking about it, meaning they don’t really know what they would do.
The Apostle Paul tells the church in Rome that it is rare for anyone to die for a righteous person, but they might die for a good person. Does that make sense? Absolutely! Why? Because most people will not die for someone who is truly committed to God. However, because the world decides who they think is good, they may be willing to die for them.
The good news is, God sent Jesus to die for us. Not because we deserved it. Not because we are good. After all, even Jesus said no one is good except God (Mark 10:18). No, Christ died for us because of the love God has for us. Nothing more. Nothing less. It is because of God’s love for us that we live in his grace and by his mercy. It is because of his love for us that we can look forward to eternity with him.
I pray we all think about what it means to die for someone else. I pray we contemplate Jesus dying for us. I pray each one of us knows that Jesus died for us because God loves us. Spend time contemplating dying for someone else. Understand what that means. Know that Jesus died for you. Know that God loves us.
Romans 5:6-8 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.
Marty Pressey 