Gains and Losses

By Jesse LeMay

When it comes to finances, companies and individuals alike concern themselves with gains and losses. Naturally, the desire is to have more gains at the end than losses. When it comes to the passing of a loved one and our own inevitable transition, it is understandable how we can sometimes dwell on the loss and forget about the gain. Without question, a loss is present when someone we love goes to be with God. A common thought is that it is our loss, but heaven’s gain. While that is true, there is also incomparable gain received by the one who has passed. In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, he writes about the wonderful gains of the Christian who has fallen asleep.

                There is the gain of SALVATION – because of God’s eternal choice (2:13). He who holds time in His hand and is not bound by time, has eternally chosen the Christian for this salvation. This comes by God’s Spirit sanctifying us because of our faith in the truth.

                There is the gain of the outcome of our GOOD HOPE (2:16). That confident expectation we live our lives with as Christians will be fulfilled.

                There is the gain of ETERNAL COMFORT (2:16). Such comfort from God can apply to both while we are in the realm of time and of course when we leave for eternity. At a time of loss, the gain of God’s eternal comfort is what is needed most.

                There is the gain of the GLORY of our Lord Jesus Christ (2:14). This is perhaps the most magnificent gain of all! We get to see the amazing glory of God. This comes from being called through the gospel.

When either we or a loved one passes there will always be a great loss felt. At the same time, there is also tremendous gain on behalf of the one who passes. We can take solace in knowing the gain which our loved ones have received, and which also awaits all of us who “stand firm and hold” to God’s word. “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.”

“It is Done”

By Jesse LeMay

                Some things in life make us long for them to be over. This is especially true when it comes to the hard, the painful, the sad, and the suffering. Nobody enjoys experiencing such hardships, especially for prolonged periods of time. However, no one is exempt from the trials of life, which when endured and overcome can bring positive results (James 1:2-4). We are subject to such things because we are human and because of the fallen world in which we live. Despite the growth that can come from persevering through life’s adversity, we do look forward to them coming to an end. Thanks be to God that there will be a day when every form of suffering will be done away with.

                In the revelation that Christ gave John, He spoke of such a time. That time will be when God brings about the new heaven, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem, which He Himself will dwell in with His people. Not only will God live among those who have overcome sin, but He also said He will “wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore…” (21:4). Oh how wonderful that will be! The Lord is going to abolish all the suffering and sorrow and make a new world where none of those things will exist. We won’t have to wait anymore for the day when either we, or our loved ones no longer have to endure such anguish. For on that day our Creator will say, “It is done!” (21:6).

Even though we may struggle in the here and now, we can take comfort in the fact that God has promised such a day. A day when there will be no more pain, or sickness, or death. We can live in confidence knowing that those who have overcome through Christ will inherit this wonderful world. May we all keep pressing on until that day when we hear our Lord and Savior say, “It is done!”    

Godly Giving

By Jesse LeMay

                From the very beginning (Cain and Able) God has expected His creation to give to Him its very best. God is the giver of all things. Therefore, by sacrificing something and returning back what has been given to the giver, we are expressing not only our gratitude and our understanding of where all things come from, but also our faith. Godly giving has always been about giving our best, about making a sacrifice. This was true with Cain and Able, with Abraham offering Isaac, with the Israelites making a holy and unblemished offering, and it is also true with the Christian under the new covenant. Godly giving is about the heart. A terrific example of this can be seen in the sacrifice of a woman who probably thought (along with others) her contribution was insignificant.

                Not long before Jesus would be crucified, He was teaching and answering questions in the Temple (Mark 11:27ff.). At one point He began watching people put their offering into the treasury, and He saw that “many rich people were putting in large sums,” followed by a “poor widow” who only put in “two small copper coins” (12:41-42). It is easy to think that those who make the bigger contributions are somehow doing more for God. However, Jesus said that this poor woman gave “more than all the contributors,” because they had given “out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on” (12:43-44).

                What a great lesson on godly giving! Yes, the rich were putting in a lot of money, but it would make no impact on their lives, it was no sacrifice. Conversely, that woman put in mere pennies, yet to God it was worth more than all the other contributions combined. Why? It was costing her something. She was showing her faith in God by giving all she had. If we fix our budgets and just give to God what we have left over (our surplus), are we truly trusting Him, are we giving our best? Godly giving is more about the amount of our heart than the amount of the contribution. Let each of us give to God from our hearts, “not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians. 9:7).