GOD CONSCIOUS!

John 3:16-17
"16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."


Most Christians have spent some time wondering what happens to us after we die. Scriptures gives us glimpses into the afterlife as very few concrete details about heaven are revealed to us. The prophet Jeremiah talks extensively about the rewards and various crowns we will receive in heaven as we await those precious words from our Lord – “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matt. 25:21) - Shortly before we begin living our promised eternal life.

As we trod through the here and now I believe we occasionally wish that the Lord would come today so we can begin this new eternal life with Him in heaven. Whether our present day worry is steering our children into adulthood, hoping they will make good and prayerful decisions or whether it’s the subtle changes in our bodies as we get older or the horrid state of the economy and its effect on our retirement plans, we sometimes dream of hearing the trumpet sound and moving up and in with our Lord.

But as I read John 3:16 -17 and other related scriptures, I’m beginning to view eternal life in a different manner. Jesus taught that those who come to Him “have eternal life”. Right now, we have eternal life in our spirits. It is possible, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to change our thinking and live eternally now if we become “God conscious” instead of “time conscious”.

As we begin to live eternally or “God consciously” we view our children not as mini projects, but as a blessing from God and during difficult times be reminded of Proverbs 20:7 – “The righteous man leads blameless life; blessed are his children after him” or Psalms 115:14 - “May the LORD cause you to flourish, both you and your children”. As we content with getting older, eternal living will remind us of Proverbs 16:31 – “Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness”. Finally, “God consciously”, we should realized that if we are already living eternally retirement is somewhat moot. Further the Lord instructs us in Matthew 6 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ….. “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you……? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ……..
your heavenly Father knows that you need them”. Wow! Enough said, huh?

As we open our many gifts this Christmas let us be reminded that God has given the greatest gift to the world—eternal life—and that life is in his Son, Jesus Christ. We should start living that eternal life now!