Living Together

"He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him."
1 Thessalonians 5:10

     A lot went on at that cross on Calvary. Others were crucified during the Roman Empire, but they did not willingly give up their lives for me. Christ died for me- a girl born in 1961 in a country that was not even founded at the time of His sacrifice. Why would he do that? It is because he wants to live with me and me with him.

     Ideally, people who dwell with one another take care of each other's needs, laugh and converse, hug and console one another. This is what the Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer desires to have with each and every one of us. It says in Revelation 3:20 that Jesus stands at the door, knocking. Whoever opens it invites him in for dinner.

     The terms in the above verse, "awake or asleep," are not literal, but they refer to being dead or alive. As Jesus told the grieving sisters of Lazarus, "whosoever believes in me shall live, even though he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me shall never die."

     What wonderful news this is! No matter what my personal familial circumstances are, I can rest assured that I will never live alone.

     My mother, a recent widow after 62 years of marriage, takes great comfort in this as she talks to her Savior all the time. She runs things by him, asks for help and strength, thanks him for his care and places her trust in him. She knows, in her heart, that she lives together with him in this world and the next, always and forever.