"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." John 12:24
This is the time of year when I think of the verse above. It's autumn, and after the blaze of foliage that colored our world for a few weeks, the leaves have mostly faded. Trees are being stripped of their covering, of the life that had once run through their limbs. They are dying. Seeds and bulbs are being planted in preparation for the Spring season. But first, they have to die. As much as we shy away from the topic of death, there is a certain beauty in dying. In fact, dying is necessary. If it weren't for death, we wouldn't witness the miracle of resurrection, of new life. In the same way, our salvation in Christ was only made possible by His death. He had to die, in order to redeem us. He had to die in order to restore our relationship with God. He had to die to satisfy the demands of Divine Justice and God's wrath. And yet, He lives! He rose with resurrection power and LIFE. His resurrection secured salvation for us, and also secured every promise found in scripture. In other words, He brought forth a harvest that was so abundant. A harvest of believers He is in the process of nurturing and preparing for that great Harvest Day at the end of time. Matthew Henry's commentary on this verse stood out, and I thought I'd share it with you: "This immortal seed submitted to the laws of mortality, he lay in the grave like seed under the clods but as the seed comes up again green, and fresh, and flourishing, and with a great increase, so one dying Christ gathered to himself thousands of living Christians, and he became their root. The salvation of souls hitherto, and henceforward to the end of time, is all owing to the dying of this corn of wheat." What an amazing Savior we serve!
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AuthorHi! I'm Carolyn, a writer seeking to glorify God with my words. Archives
February 2024
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