Precious in the Eyes of the Lord...

As my aunt passed away last night,
I felt it appropriate to re-read this post,
to remind and encourage myself...
and felt compelled to share it, again (re-posting it),
praying it will, perhaps,
enlightened and encourage someone else.
What a blessing it is that HE is our Comforter
and that we can find comfort in HIS Word!

(** very long post, but worth the read**)

{originally posted February 8, 2008}

This month has held three deaths for us.
The passing of my grandfather, my dad's wife,
and a beloved senior saint from our church family.
One of our church brethren gave a message recently
that blessed and encouraged my heart
and I am compelled to share it.
I pray the Lord uses His Truths
to bless, comfort, and encourage
your hearts, as well.


Precious in the Eyes of the Lord

"Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of his saints."
~ Psalm 116:15

Death is somthing we all have to deal with,
either in the past or the future.
This verse talks about death
from the eyes of the Lord.
Many times we don't look at things that way
(because we're not God)
and we see things very temporal.
In this world, death has been painted to us
as a horrible thing
but the truth is that it's not...
And how could it be
if God Himself calls it precious?
(something sweet, lovely, tender, treasureable)

Many times faith, for us, is not only
believing what God has taught us (written for us),
but it's, also, seeing how God sees things
(because God can see the future, knows it, controls it).
This is one thing we cannot see or know (death)
so we have to accept what God is telling us.
He is telling us that
the death of His saints is precious.


It's precious because...
we're looking at it through the eyes of God.

In the eyes of God, life is an eternal thing.
In the eyes of God, we have no death...
"Verily, verily, I say unto you,
He that heareth my word,
and believeth on him that sent me,
hath everlasting life,
and shall not come into condemnation;
but is passed from death unto life."
~ John 5:24
...living physically now, passes over death,
and into eternal life.
Most look at death as bad
but it is a haven to us... a place of rest.
When God looks at His saints,
there is no death - just passing over to rest.

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me:
And I give unto them eternal life;
and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them
out of my hand.
My Father, which gave them me,
is greater than all;
and no man is able to pluck them
out of my Father's hand."
~ John 10:27-29
Christ is always with us, even in death.
This is, likely, the time He will be closest to us.
He is still our Shepherd
and He is still leading us.
Where is the Shepherd taking His sheep?
He's taking them out to pasture.
In death, He's still leading all the way...
to a greener Pasture.
A Pasture so much better than
they've ever had before.
That's why it is precious to the Lord.

"Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of his saints."
~ Psalm 116:15

Why is the death of his saints
precious to the Lord?
Because we never perish.

"And I give unto them eternal life;
and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man
pluck them out of my hand."
~ John 10:28

"The thief cometh not,
but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:
I am come that they might have life,
and that they might have it more abundantly."
~ John 10:10
We aren't living yet!
In our death is when we'll really start living.

"My Father, which gave them me,
is greater than all;
and no man is able to pluck
them out of my Father's hand."
~ John 10:29
We, as God's sheep, have been given
Christ, our Shepherd.
God gave Jesus to us.
I am His and He is mine
because God gave Him to me.
He is my life.
We are safe and secure
in our Shepherd's hand.


Why is the death of His saints precious?
Because we're in His hands
through the whole thing
and we're only going to be drawn
closer to Him.

"Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of his saints."
~ Psalm 116:15

Notice the relationship...
they're His saints.
They are His ones that are called out.
They are His that are precious to Him.
Sometimes the world may
make something big of a man's death.
For instance, if a president dies,
the whole nation goes into mourning,
our flag is half-staff, etc...
The truth is that most of us are unknown
(except to family and friends, etc...)
but we are not unknown to God.

"Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?
and one of them shall not fall
on the ground without your Father.
But the very hairs of your head
are all numbered.
Fear ye not therefore
ye are of more value than many sparrows."
~ Matthew 10:29-31
A farthing was the smallest amount of money.
Here is the most insignificant animal
that He was using at this time
and He said TWO of them are not even equal
to the smallest amount of coin.
Our society would say that two of them
aren't even worth a penny.
Even if just ONE of those
(they're in such an abundance) fell,
God not only will know about it...
He'll be there when it happens.

"But the very hairs
of your head are all numbered."
(v.30)
He's talking of the sufficiency
of God's care for His children.
You are so much upon God's heart
that He knows every hair on your head.
Every one is numbered.
What we would consider insignificant
about ourselves
(how many of us have numbered our hairs?),
God takes it in great concern
and He does it for everybody!

"Fear ye not therefore, ye are
of more value than many sparrows."
(v. 31)
If God is there when just ONE falls,
how much more will He be there
when His saints fall.

"Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of his saints."
~ Psalm 116:15

That part in our lives (in death),
God is so abundantly going to be there.
His grace will be all-sufficient
and when that happens to someone
that we know/someone we love,
we can grasp ahold of God's Word,
cleave to it by faith, and say, "God IS there
and greatly concerned at this time."
Why?
Because it's precious to Him.

Why is the death of His saints precious to Him?
In it, He is magnified...

"According to my earnest expectation
and my hope,
that in nothing I shall be ashamed,
but that with all boldness, as always,
so now also Christ shall be
magnified in my body,
whether it be by life, or by death.
For to me to live is Christ,
and to die is gain.
But if I live in the flesh,
this is the fruit of my labour:
yet what I shall choose I wot not.
For I am in a strait betwixt two,
having a desire to depart,
and to be with Christ;
which is far better:"
~ Philippians 1:20-23

"...Christ shall be magnified in my body,
whether it be by life, or by death." (v.20)
Christ is magnified by our lives
as we are faithful to the end.
But have you ever realized/considered
the death of His saints?...
How much IT IS going to glorify God!

What was Christ's greatest act
in showing His power?
The resurrection

What is going to demonstrate
the power of God over our greatest enemy,
which is death?
The resurrection

For us to get to the resurrection,
we have to die.
It is His last and greatest opportunity
for Him, in our lives, to demonstrate His power...
over our death...
when He raises us up!
A glorious thing about it, as Paul said...
"...rather to be absent from the body,
and to be present with the Lord."
2 Corinthians 5:8b
My soul isn't going to be there
in the grave with the body!
It's going to be with Christ!
And then we'll come back with Him
and in that resurrection day (the rapture),
our body shall rise in glory
to go and be with Christ (1 Thess. 4:13-18)!

It is an opportunity for us to glorify God
when we exhibit our faith...
When Lazarus died and they came to Jesus
and sent message for Him to come
because he was sick,
He said the sickness is for God's glory.
"...This sickness is not unto death,
but for the glory of God,
that the Son of God might be glorified thereby."
~John 11:4
They didn't understand Christ was going
to raise him from the dead
but God got the glory from it.
And we have that opportunity...
We know what He will (ultimately) do,
although it is hard for us
and there is sorrow.

"Then when Mary was come
where Jesus was, and saw him,
she fell down at his feet,
saying unto him,
Lord, if thou hadst been here,
my brother had not died.
When Jesus therefore saw her weeping,
and the Jews also weeping
which came with her,
he groaned in the spirit,
and was troubled,
And said, Where have ye laid him?
They said unto him, Lord, come and see.
Jesus wept."
~ John 11:32-35
Do you think He wept over the death of Lazarus,
knowing what was going to happen?
From the context, it appears,
He was weeping because Mary was weeping
and the Jews were weeping.
They believed in the resurrection.
They believed He was Christ
but they still hurt.
There will be hurt
but that weeping should be for others
that have to bare that sorrow.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18,

it speaks of the death (sleeping) of the saints,

the resurrection (the rapture), and then says,

"Wherefore comfort one another with these words."

(1 Thessalonians 4:18)

Why?

Because it does hurt.

Christ hurt because the people were hurting

(John 11:32-35, seen above),

it wasn't because of the condition of Lazarus was in,

because that death was precious in His sight.

He knew it was for God's glory.

One more aspect that the death of His saints

is an opportunity to glorify God...

Just before His betrayal and crucifixion, He said,

"A little while, and ye shall not see me:

and again, a little while, and ye shall see me,

because I go to the Father.

Then said some of his disciples among themselves,

What is this that he saith unto us,

A little while, and ye shall not see me:

and again, a little while, and ye shall see me:

and, Because I go to the Father?

They said therefore,

What is this that he saith, A little while?

we cannot tell what he saith.

Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him,

and said unto them,

Do ye enquire among yourselves of that I said,

A little while, and ye shall not see me:

and again, a little while, and ye shall see me?

Verily, verily, I say unto you,

That ye shall weep and lament,

but the world shall rejoice:

and ye shall be sorrowful,

but your sorrow shall be turned into joy."

~ John 16:16-20

Why would their sorrow be turned to joy?

Because it'll just be a little while.

When we were young and looked forward to things,

how long did things take?

When you were 9, could you wait to be 13?

It seemed to take FOREVER to get there!

13 to 16... seemed to take forever!

16 to 20... seemed to take forever!

But when you get up there, you turn around

and then look back...

Like when you hit 40 something and look back

to when you were 13,

then, all of a sudden, it's like

13 to 40 (27 years) took just a little while.

How is Jesus looking at this?

He's God and He is looking back.

They were the disciples and they were

looking at it from the future perspective.

"How long is it gonna be?"

Ever see a baby when a mama gets up

and leaves the room?

It's panic time... "Whaah! Where'd she go?

She's not coming baaaack!"

But the truth is, she'll be back in a minute or so,

the baby just doesn't realize it

and to them it can be a long time.

But on the mom's side,

she wasn't gone that long.

And that is what Christ is telling us.

Can you imagine what it's going to be like

when we get to Heaven, with our loved ones,

and we're facing ETERNITY

and we turn around and look back

and see that it was just a little while

and those 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 years are NOTHING

compared to eternity.

When we look at it through the eyes of God,

it is precious.

Not that it isn't sorrowful...

He even said it was,

but it's precious.

The foundation is that it's precious

when we can see death through the eyes of God

for His saints.

"Precious in the sight of the LORD

is the death of his saints."

~ Psalm 116:15