Life without Jesus? How awful would that be?!
David is a young man who is living without Jesus. His grandparents have shared his story with me and given me permission to share his story with you. Without Jesus in his life, David has become addicted to drugs, which has led him to being in and out of prison at least four times. He’s out now, but after trying for several months to remain clean, he is back to doing drugs.
On top of that, he now has a daughter with his girlfriend. When the girlfriend goes to work, David’s family has to sit with him while he watches his daughter because they can’t trust him to be alone with her.
That story is heartbreaking. It is especially heartbreaking to David’s grandparents. Every time I visit them, they tell me what’s going on in David’s life and ask me to pray with them for their grandson … and now their new great granddaughter.
Life without Jesus is awful! That’s why we plead with our Savior in the Hymn of the Day for this week, “Ne’er from me depart!”
Verse one: Lord, thee I love with all my heart; I pray thee, ne’er from me depart, with tender mercy cheer me. Earth has no pleasure I would share; yea, heav’n itself were void and bare if thou, Lord, wert not near me. And should my heart for sorrow break, my trust in thee can nothing shake. Thou art the portion I have sought; thy precious blood my soul has bought. Lord Jesus Christ, my God and Lord, my God and Lord, forsake me not! I trust thy Word.
Without Jesus, life on this earth would be without hope and would hold no pleasure for us. We try to fill the hole in our lives where Jesus belongs with whatever our mind wants and our flesh desires. The hymn writer points out that even if we were in heaven, but Jesus wasn’t there, it wouldn’t be all that heavenly. With Jesus we learn to be grateful that God the Father had forsaken his only begotten Son so that he does not forsake us. Our souls have been bought by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. We belong to God. God does not want to be without us. We do not want to be without God.
Verse two: Yea, Lord, ’twas thy rich bounty gave my body, soul, and all I have in this poor life of labor. Lord, grant that I in ev’ry place may glorify thy lavish grace and help and serve my neighbor. Let no false doctrine me beguile; let Satan not my soul defile. Give strength and patience unto me to bear my cross and follow thee. Lord Jesus Christ, my God and Lord, my God and Lord, in death thy comfort still afford.
Without Jesus, there is no rhyme or reason, no purpose or point to life. But with Jesus, the hymn writer expounds upon the determination and direction our lives as Christians now have. The Lord’s riches of forgiveness, life, and salvation give bounty to our bodies, souls, and labors. Everything we do, we do to glorify God for the grace he has lavishly poured upon us. We understand and accept the crosses we are called to carry as Jesus’ followers. We accept these crosses with grace and patience. We even accept that death will come for us. But we prepare for death with the comfort of the resurrection Jesus Christ gives us.
The hymnwriter then moves onto death with verse three: Lord, let at last thine angels come, to Abr’ham’s bosom bear me home that I may die unfearing; and in its narrow chamber keep my body safe in peaceful sleep until thy reappearing. And then from death awaken me that these mine eyes with joy may see, O Son of God, thy glorious face, my Savior and my fount of grace. Lord Jesus Christ, my prayer attend, my prayer attend, and I will praise thee without end.
The hymnwriter is alluding to the Gospel lesson for this Sunday from Luke 16:19-31. Jesus tells a story: “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day. A beggar named Lazarus had been laid at his gate. Lazarus was covered with sores and longed to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Besides this, the dogs also came and licked his sores. Eventually the beggar died, and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus at his side. He called out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me! Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in misery in this flame.’
“But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus received bad things. But now he is comforted here, and you are in misery. Besides all this, a great chasm has been set in place between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’”
Without Jesus, we are like the rich man in life, and we will be with that rich man in death. With Jesus, we are like Lazarus here on earth – poor, humble, unassuming, suffering. Yet, through faith in Jesus, when we die, we will be carried by Christ’s angels to Abraham’s bosom. We may fall asleep each night here on earth with pain and anxiety, suffering and worry. But through faith in Jesus, when we fall asleep in death, we will awaken in heaven to see Jesus’ glorious face.
Today, pray for David and others like him who are living without Jesus. Pray that they may come to faith so they can pray the same petition we sing this Sunday, “Lord, thee I love with all my heart; I pray thee, ne’er from me depart.”