Date: 06/19/2023

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and to Him be the Glory, Power, and Dominion forever and ever and to the Holy Ghost that is yet abiding in the body. This month’s key phrase is “How to Focus on Eternal Life”

John 3:16 is powerful. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. In it Jesus summarizes God’s saving action in this world. But if we read on to verses 17 through 20, we notice that Jesus does not specify which actions or opinions are in and which are out. He only speaks of God’s love for the world, a love that penetrates the whole world, a love that does not condemn, but rather saves. That verse is about more than the human fear of death! That is what we have reduced it to. Eternal life for some is about what you get when you die, either glory or punishment, rather than teaching people how to enter into the new mode of being right now.

My Brothers and Sisters eternal life exists in the Here and Now! And Eternal Death does too. You can be physically wasting away and dying physically and yet be very, very alive. And you can be healthy and successful and yet be dying. You, see the question is not: Is there life after death? The question this week is: Is there life before death? In any moment we can choose life or we can choose death. We choose death when we opt to hold a grudge, pass on gossip, or let that racist or sexist comment slip on by without saying anything. Or you can choose life by forgiving, opening yourself to others, releasing your grip on being right, choosing to be in relationship with others instead of closed off from them, and in choosing to stand up for the dignity of Jesus Christ.Apostle Paul understands this when he says, You were dead through trespasses and sins in which you once lived(a present, ongoing condition) but now you are made alive through Jesus Christ! And Apostle Paul goes on to say, we were created for life, for eternal life in the here and now. Jesus said: “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly”.

In closing, when we give, serve, love, and create, we participate in the eternal life of God. Because living is about our relationship with God. It’s about our true self, our identity as a child of God, our heart, soul, spirit; the depth of our being. It is independent from our possessions, accomplishments, where we live, who we’re friends with. It’s the deep place within us that speaks to us and tells us whether we’re living or whether we’re dying. Until next week, pay attention and remember, “… with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26).

In His Service,

Bishop Dr. Calvin Worthem

General Chief Overseer/Senior Bishop