Safe At Last

"For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:3)

How can we be safe? An important issue in most, if not all workplaces, is safety. How can employees work at optimum speed, with the utmost efficiency, without experiencing injury in the process? And that's true in our 21st century PERSONAL lives as well.

How can we experience the greatest quality of life in the most efficient manner (addressing ethical considerations as well) and be SAFE in what we do? Some don't seem concerned about safety at all, flinging their bodies off cliffs, on snowboards, or toward the beach on a wave, or jumping motorcycles 60-feet through the air.

But the "dare-devil" thoughts of comparative youth, become tempered by life. An illness, the loss of a loved one, the needs of our children - the realities of life enter in. We become concerned: How can I protect them? What if this happened? Or that? And we build "walls" of protection in our lives to deal with losses that eventually DO occur.

The problem is, our safeguards are not permanent. Insurance is nice, but all the money in the world does not replace the one I love. Billionaire Howard Hughes recognized the problem and gradually became a hermit, a wealthy recluse, who was so afraid of germs, he never left his room again!

In a study in Matthew 9, we were discussing physical healing - why is there so little of that today? As we listened and talked about recent experiences, it was apparent that wonders DO occur. We found that we are actually surrounded by MANY miracles - it's just that we don't always recognize them for what they are. And, of course, we often value the wrong things. A "LOSS" can be a miracle, if it brings us to faith in Him.

We also discussed the aftermath of the healing - the person restored gets sick again and eventually dies. The healings of the world are temporary in nature, without exception. Lazarus who was raised from the dead - died again! (Though he's ALIVE and with the Lord right now).

The "bad" news is that death gets us all. The good news is that if they (we) die in Christ, we're Alive! Forever! And we are HEALED, beyond our ability to conceive of just how WELL someone can be.

I want safety (and so do you). Oh, we might differ on some things. For instance, our responses to a ride on a roller coaster will be different: "Let's do that AGAIN," shouts one, and the other replies with tight lips, "No, I don't think so."

But each of us wants safety and people don't usually want to be unnecessarily injured. It's just that the one has confidence (faith) in what the equipment (or they) can do, whereas the other is focused on what might go wrong. Both want safety & both want fun, but they disagree on how to best accomplish those goals.

We can only be safe in this world in one way, and that is: In Christ. There is an excellent Scripture verse which was a subject in one of my college classes. We all turned to Colossians 3:3, where it says "For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God." The very thing we fear most, by the way, HAPPENS when we come to Him: We die (to this world). But there's more.

The professor read the verse out loud, and then took a quarter out of his pocket. He placed the quarter deep into one of his hands, and gently closed his fist over it. He said, "the quarter represents you, and the hand around it represents Christ." He then closed his other hand over the first, and continued, "The other hand stands for the Father". He concluded - "Your life is hidden WITH Christ IN God."

I never felt quite as safe as at that moment, when I considered the example of his hands around that quarter. Anything or anyone who would want to hurt you, has to go through the Father and through the Son. And, of course, God is ABLE to keep you safe. Indeed, you are "dead" when you receive Christ, but He brings LIFE to the dead, and you become more alive than you ever thought possible. You are SAFE in Him.

Death is merely a doorway, and our life here is like a pair of shoes, which are removed on this side and then made perfect for eternity. Jesus is "the Door" (John 10:7,9), and all encounter Him in death. One enters to death, but the other to eternal life. It's a wonder that any are saved, but those who are, enter LIFE through Him. And that LIFE starts now, for those who trust in our Lord.

The whole of His Word shouts that God brings LIFE out of death through Jesus Christ. And just like that quarter, we are SAFE in Him. Paul knew that, when he said, "I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing can take you from Him.

Again, EVERYBODY has an underlying need to be SAFE, in some manner or another. Even the suicide is crying out for a safe place in a troubled world. All of us look over our shoulders, see the troubles of life, and hunger for a "hiding place" (Psalm 32:7), safe from harm's way. Jesus Christ is the "way" to the Father (John 14:6) and you are safe in Him.

Father, we repent of our sins and we are sorry for our fear and our unbelief. We accept You, and we trust in You. Hide us and protect us. Receive us, Lord, that we may be SAFE in You - forever. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Ron Beckham
Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
www.fridaystudy.org
Ron@fridaystudy.org