Pain is one of those things we prefer not to think about, let alone experience. Unfortunately, it eventually will show itself in our lives either through physical suffering or emotional anguish. Actually, both often arrive together, especially if the physical pain is severe.

I am reminded of a favorite idiom (proverb, saying, expression) used by many dedicated sports enthusiasts … “no pain, no gain.”

Wikipedia had this to say about “no pain, no gain.” No pain, no gain (or “No gain without pain”) is a proverb, used since the 1980s as an exercise motto that promises greater value rewards for the price of hard and even painful work. Under this conception, competitive professionals such as athletes and artists are required to endure pain (physical suffering) and stress (mental/emotional suffering) to achieve professional excellence. Medical experts agree that the proverb is wrong for exercise.

Another Internet search came up with: What did Benjamin Franklin say about no pain, no gain? Benjamin Franklin Coined the Phrase “No Pain, No Gain.” It is of the greatest importance to prevent diseases. Exercise is a vitally important part of achieving optimum health and happiness. Franklin found that moderate exercise before meals improved his digestion, promoted sound sleep, and put him in a cheerful mood.

And still another Internet search stated the following: What is the origin of the expression “no pain, no gain? The origin of the expression “no pain, no gain” comes from the 2nd century. The first known version of the saying comes from a Rabbi’s writings in “The Ethics of the Fathers,” where it appears like the following. “According to the pain is the gain.”

Wherever the “no pain, no gain” saying originated is anyone’s guess, I suppose, but I tend to agree with the statement from Wikipedia that it is wrong for exercise. Pain can be a message from our body that something is wrong, and we need to stop before something worse happens. If you’ll think about it, sometimes pain is actually a blessing from God, with respect to providing us a means of telling us we have a problem and it needs to be corrected.

Physical Pain is an attack upon our body. Those in the hospitals or recouping at home on medication can certainly attest to the devastating effects pain can have on their lives. Talk to a person with back problems or another with an arthritic body. Speak to those in the burn units or those with broken ribs or limbs. Yet another villain that has attacked the bodies of millions is called cancer.

There are endless means of our experiencing bodily pains, and none are welcome. They hurt, and no one in their right mind would welcome any kind of onslaught causing us pain.

Then there are emotional pains that can be just as devastating, sometimes even more so than physical pains. The loss of a loved one. The agony of addiction. The helpless suffering of one you love destroying their life. The heart-wrenching helplessness of watching someone you love suffer. Rejection, mockery by one’s peers, and hundreds of other means can cause emotional pain to a broken heart.

There are so many ways in this cruel world we live in that can beat a person right down into the proverbial dust. I often wonder how those who do not know Jesus make it through this world without going mad.

The sad thing is most people blame the wrong one for all their misery. God gets the blame while Satan cackles in the background.

Satan brought sin into this world and all the miseries that accompany it, pain being one of them. God, in the person of Jesus, gave His life that we might have a new life in Him, but only a few actually come to Him. In this world, there will always be pain of one kind or another, but in our Heavenly home, pain will not exist. There will be no sin, and obviously nothing that comes from sins’ consequences.

The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

For those who don’t know Jesus as their personal Savior and Lord, regardless of what you’re going through, you can come to Jesus in faith, and by His grace, you will be adopted into God’s family and given a home with Him in Heaven. And in Heaven, there is no pain of any kind … only love and happiness coming from the throne of God.

If you are already a child of God, just remember, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

This world really doesn’t have much to offer. It’s a shame that the Lord gave us a perfect world in the book of Genesis, and in the same book, we threw it all away by listening to Satan’s lies. You may be thinking that it was Adam and Eve’s fault, but would we have done differently? I seriously doubt it. Regardless, it is what it is, and God has provided us the only way to be saved from it and have eternal life with Him. That way is through His Son Jesus. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me'” (John 14:6).

When Jesus left this world from the Mount of Olives, He promised He would return for His own first and then pronounce judgment upon the world. He will first remove His bride, the Church, and then a period of seven years called the Tribulation will begin. At the end of that seven-year period, He will return, and everyone will see Him. Some will be thrilled, but many will be terrified, because He will return as Judge. All who have rejected Him will be assigned to the Lake of Fire for eternity, and what pain could be worse than that?

The emotional and mental anguish will be off the charts for those condemned, because they will know they could have put their faith in Jesus and could have been saved, but at that moment, it is too late. They will have all of eternity regretting their decision.

Time is quickly running out. Keeping in mind that the true Church will be removed first, the storm clouds of the Tribulation are forming, and then a time so terrible there would be no one left living if Jesus doesn’t cut it short.

“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened” (Matthew 24:21-22).

Consider what the apostle Paul says through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).

Now consider what the Lord Jesus says in the last book of the Bible.

“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

“And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’

“Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ And He said to me, ‘Write, for these words are true and faithful.’ And He said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.

“But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” (Revelation 21:1-8).

Yes, it is a painful world we live in. There is so much pain and suffering, but in Jesus Christ is joy and peace. Turn to Him today.

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html

 

Someone once said that there are two dates on every tombstone; i.e., the date of our birth and the date of our death. So, generally speaking, there are two dates guaranteed in every person’s life. We are guaranteed our date of birth unless we die within the womb of our mother. We are guaranteed our date of death unless we are raptured from the earth by the Lord Jesus.

DATE OF OUR BIRTH

None of us has any control over when we will be born, where we will be born, which family we will be born into, and many other factors. Barring a tragedy in the womb, whether by nature or by human means (abortion), we will all have a date of birth. We may not know the date when we were born, but God knows, and He has assigned that special date for each of us.

It is unfortunate, if I may use such a mild word, that literally millions of human beings have had that date snatched from them by the selfish cruelness of mankind.

Just in our lifetime alone, a medical procedure we call “abortion” has taken center stage and deemed a right to be had by those who just don’t want the child to be born. They don’t want the responsibility. They say, “It’s my body,” with no thought of the child’s body.

Have we ever considered that the next Alexander Fleming or Jonas Salk or Charles Spurgeon or Billy Sunday may have fallen to the butcher’s scalpel? More importantly, even if they had lived a life of poverty and been of little to no benefit to mankind, they had a God-given right to live. I just thank our gracious God that they are now with Him and always will be.

DATE OF OUR DEATH

Until Jesus comes and finalizes world history, there will always be death waiting for each and every one of us.

My dad died in 2003. He was 83 years old at the time of his death. My mother died in 2008. She was 84 years old at the time of her death. I realized at that time that they were gone and now it was my turn and my brother and sisters’ turn to be the oldest members of the family.

I remember my last great-grandparent before he died. Then each of my grandparents passed away, and then my parents. Unless the Lord returns in the Rapture while I’m living, I’m next; then, my children will assume the position I will vacate.

NOTE: There is another occasion that is guaranteed to all mankind that Jesus mentioned through the writer of Hebrews, “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

All who are Christ’s will stand before Him at the Judgment Seat of Christ (Bema), not to determine salvation, which is secure, but to determine our rewards (2 Corinthians 5:10; 1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

All others, who are not of Christ, will face Him at the Great White Throne Judgment to be assigned their place in the Lake of Fire.

Advancing age is a reminder that our time on earth is quickly running out. The older we get, the more our body rebels at things we used to effortlessly accomplish. In other words, it gets harder and harder to do things we used to do when we were young.

Our energy level starts receding, along with our hairline. Our skin begins sagging, and our muscles get weaker. Our eyes grow dim, and it becomes harder to hear. And then there is that culprit hanging on the wall above the bathroom sink … the mirror.

If you would like to read what Solomon had to say about this part of life, you will find Ecclesiastes 12:1-12 very informative. The young probably won’t believe it, but they will come around in due time.

BETWEEN OUR TWO GUARANTEED DATES

The Lord has blessed me with 75 years so far. I say blessed because I know that there are others who leave this earth much sooner. There are friends of mine that I grew up with who passed away several years ago. Some knew the Lord, and others did not.

Why are some folks allotted by God to live many years while others do not? I don’t know, but I do know that whatever time we have, we need to spend it well. Solomon also had this to say in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”

Regardless of the number of years we live on this earth, even if we live to be one hundred, it isn’t even an infinitesimal flicker compared to eternity. This life on earth quickly ends. Don’t think so? How many times have you heard someone say, or maybe you said, “Where did the time go?” Eternity never ends.

When we leave this life on earth, we will live in new bodies, either in Heaven or hell, that will never die … never, never, never. The first trillion years of eternity won’t even be the first step of our walk in eternity.

All of us who are living need to make every second count with Solomon’s advice, “Fear God and keep His commandments.” Notice that he goes on to say, “this is the duty of all mankind.”

Are you in your seventies, eighties, or nineties and feeling like you squandered your years on frivolous issues? If you are living, it is never too late with God. We all matter to Him, and He wants us to come to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.

None of us is righteous without Jesus in our lives (Romans 3:10).
All of us have sinned (Romans 3:23).
Because of our sins, we have earned death (Romans 6:23a).
But through Christ Jesus, God will give us the gift of eternal life (Romans 6:23b).

No one should face death alone. Jesus will walk with us throughout our life if we believe in Him, and He will take our hand and guide us home through death’s door.

Two dates … the important one is the date of our death. If we listen to Solomon, we will be overjoyed when meeting Jesus on the other side.

Yes, we are guaranteed two dates. The question, however, is, “How are we going to spend the time in between?”

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1).

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html