My husband Tony and I are processing the loss of another dear brother in the Lord. We lost Mark, a longtime friend from college days, last year and we just heard about the passing of Jerry, a friend we’ve known for over 20 years. I guess these losses will become more frequent as we get older, but that doesn’t diminish the pain of saying goodbye.

We were heartened, however, by what Jerry’s son shared in an email. He wrote that his dad was not terrified by the prospect of death. He made the choice to discontinue his cancer treatments because of painful side effects. And he was, according to his son, “spiritually and psychologically at peace with his impending exit.” According to Scripture, this is how it should be when a believer passes from this life. As the apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:8, “absent from the body … present with the Lord.”

In last month’s devotional I explored why identification with Christ is important and how it may seem costly to us in the short run. Often, we aren’t valued by the world for who we are and what we represent. We’re misunderstood and may even be maligned. But whatever the cost may be to our ego and personal comfort, the benefits of representing Jesus are far greater. Quoting Paul again, “Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”  (2 Corinthians 4:17)

The hope we have as followers of Jesus isn’t always evident in our everyday lives. We seem to share the same illnesses, troubles, discouragements, and challenges that our nonbelieving neighbors experience. But when the big crisis comes—the terminal diagnosis, the crushing defeat or loss, the impending death of a loved one—we’re carried through by resources the world knows nothing about. Through the atoning work of Jesus and our faith in Him, the Father has “qualified [us] to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.” (Colossians 1:12). I like how Aimee Jobe expressed it in her song “Come Home” …

You’re forgiven, you are cherished, you are clothed in perfect merit,

All I have you will inherit. I delight in you, my child.

In God’s family, there’s no sibling rivalry. Jesus is delighted to share His inheritance with us. He wants us to experience the love and unity He enjoyed with the Father while He walked on earth. The “family privileges” are ours by faith, but so often we fail to grasp the enormity of our spiritual resources. Jesus’ prayer for His disciples in John 17:22 reveals His desire to share His glory with us. “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one.”

In the midst of our sometimes chaotic and disappointing lives, it’s hard for us to remember we’re heading towards a glorious future. However, Ephesians 2:6-7 assures us that “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms … in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”

The incomparable riches of His grace isn’t something to be hoarded and protected; it’s meant to be shared with others. When Tony shared the Good News about Jesus with Mark and Jerry, he didn’t know how they would respond. He simply followed Jesus’ command in Matthew 10:8. “Freely you have received; freely give.” It was so exciting for us to see them trust Christ for themselves and follow after Him. Now we can look forward to being reunited with them when Jesus returns. What joy will be ours when we all see Jesus! As the old hymn said, “We’ll sing and shout the victory!”

This glorious inheritance isn’t just a blessed hope for the future. It’s something that enables us to live as heirs of God now—with His love, peace, and joy in our hearts, no matter what our circumstances and challenges may be.

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is … for you died, and your life is NOW hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory ” (Colossians 3:1-4). 

“Look up, believer, to Jesus now; let the eye of your faith behold Him with many crowns upon His head, and remember that you will one day be like Him … you shall not be so great as He is, you shall not be so divine, but still you shall, in a measure, share the same honors, and share the same happiness and the same dignity which He possesses. Be content to live unknown for a little while, and to walk your weary way through the fields of poverty, or up the hills of affliction; for by and by you shall reign with Christ. … Oh! Wonderful thought for the children of God! We have Christ for our glorious representative in heaven’s courts now, and soon He will come and receive us to Himself, to be with Him there, to behold His glory and to share His joy.” April 22, Morning and Evening by C.H. Spurgeon

A song recorded by Don Moen in 1986 is a beautiful reminder of this glorious reality. Let’s sing it often, with grateful hearts, to remember how blessed we are to be one with Christ!

“Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One, give thanks because He’s given Jesus Christ, His Son. And now, let the weak say, ‘I am strong’; let the poor say, ‘I am rich,’ because of what the Lord has done for us. Give thanks!” (Henry Smith, 1978)