Dying to be blessed

Romans 7:15–25 NASB 2020

15 For I do not understand what I am doing; for I am not practicing what I want to do, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 However, if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, that the Law is good. 17 But now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. 19 For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. 20 But if I do the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. 21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully agree with the law of God in the inner person, 23 but I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my body’s parts. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.

Timothy the Diamond

Consider how a diamond is formed; it starts as a rough stone buried deep within the earth. Through immense pressure and time, it transforms into something beautiful. Our struggle to do right often feels like that pressure; we face trials and temptations that shape our character. Ultimately, if we endure and seek God through our difficulties, we emerge refined, just like the diamond, reflecting His glory and beauty to the world around us.

(Revelation 14:13

Revelation 14:13 NASB 2020

13 And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!’ ” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.”

  “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth; Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them” (Revelation 14:13).  

Moses said that life is like a vapor—here today and gone tomorrow. he emphasized how life's unpredictability urges us to love deeply and prioritize what truly matters. Too often, we take time for granted, forgetting that our days are numbered. This sobering truth should cause us to have deeper relationship with God, reminding us all to live life intentionally and purposefully.

People don’t like to talk about death,

The natural fact of the matter is that everyone is going to die.

Job said Job 5:7

Job 5:7 NASB 2020

7 For man is born for trouble, As sparks fly upward.

Hebrews 9:27 NASB 2020

27 And just as it is destined for people to die once, and after this comes judgment,

but this text speaks about the subject of death of the godly.

Faith in Jesus Christ who has the keys of death, and defeated death, will change our perspective or understanding of death.

This text is a great encouragement to God’s people.

The text speaks of the blessings that come to the godly when they die.

Death is not a great mystery, nor should we fear death.

IF you are born again.

Consider the story of King David mourning the loss of his son Absalom. Amid his grief, David’s broken heart exposed the reality that even the young die, and often in ways we can't understand. This story reminds us that loss is a part of life, transcending age, yet God comforts those who mourn (Matthew 5:4). It encourages us to look to Him for strength and to recognize the profound love and hope that exists even amid suffering.

FIRST — THE CHARACTER FOR THE BLESSINGS

“Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.”

There is a qualification in this promise.

It is those who are “in the Lord.”

we are talking about the redeemed, not the general population.

death will be a great blessing to some,

If you want to “die in the Lord,” you must live “in the Lord.”

Few people are interested in living “in the Lord.”

So the blessedness is going to be only for a few.

SECOND — THE COMFORT IN THE BLESSING

“They may rest from their labors.”

The word translated “labors” has a wide meaning.

It involves misery as well as hard labor in work.

Eternity will be restful, comfortable for the redeemed.

Death for the redeemed not only alleviates backaches, but also heartaches.

THIRD — THE COMPENSATION IN THE BLESSING

“Their works do follow them”

This speaks of rewards.

The godly will be rewarded for their righteous works.

This is not talking about salvation, but about the service for the Lord that the godly have done in their redeemed state.

It pay to serve God.

When you die you will come into rewards that could not be given to you here on earth,

for earth has no way to pay heaven’s greatest rewards.

When the righteous die, they will learn as never before that it does pay to do right. This world may not applaud, but heaven.

What must I do to go to heaven