John 12:24-26  Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. ²⁵ He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶ If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor. 

My friends are you willing to accept the word of God and allow Him to sow His seeds of love, grace and truth into your hearts?  Do you believe in the good news and truth of the Gospel?  Are you a true follower of Christ and do you understand the meaning of what Jesus Christ is telling us in the verses above? 

For many of us there are verses throughout scripture that are confusing at times and hard to understand.  We need help with the Holy Spirit in opening our hearts and minds to give us spiritual understanding and wisdom.  Only when the truth and love of God are planted in your heart can you begin to grow stronger in your faith and reach levels of peace and joy you have never known.

In the natural world a single seed contains the germ of life and must die in the ground before it brings new life and produces many seeds for the harvest. If that seed is not planted, it will remain alone in the bag and produce nothing.  So must we die to ourselves to obtain the spiritual fruit necessary to produce a harvest for the Kingdom of God.  So many lost souls in need of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  The fruit of the spirit is found in Galations 5:22-23. 

 Jesus then explains in John 12:25 that those who love their physical life in this world will lose it, while those living in the spirit will reap eternal life.  When we die in the natural world our souls do not. In 1 John 2:15-16 the Apostle John tells us if we love what this world has to offer, the love of the Father is not in us. He clearly explains that the desires of the eyes, the desires of the flesh, and the pride of life are of this world and not from the Father. God greatest desire is to have us in a personal relationship with Him and allow Him to speak to us through the power of His words.

The Apostle Paul helps clarify what this all means to live in the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 15:36-50 ^“Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. ³⁷ And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain. ³⁸ But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body. ³⁹ All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds.

⁴² So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. ⁴³ It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. ⁴⁴ It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. ⁴⁵ And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam [Jesus Christ] became a life-giving spirit.  (emphasis mine)

⁴⁶ However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. ⁴⁷ The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven ⁴⁸ As was   the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. ⁴⁹ And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.  ⁵⁰ Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption."

Only by Christ dying on the cross can we have new life through Him in Spirit and in Truth. Jesus knew he had to become like a human in the flesh and die a death we deserved to have. He was the perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty of sinning which is death. If God’s love has not been planted in our hearts we will die alone and be eternally separated from God in all eternity. 

Jesus Christ’s obedience and death on the cross obtained for us freedom and new life in the Holy Spirit.  Let the power of truth in these words spoken by the Apostle Paul take root into your heart.  Romans 8:2 “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

Several verses will help define this new life in Christ as found in John 1:12-13 ^“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."

And the second verses explain what it means to be re-born again into new life as found in John 3:3-8  Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” ^“4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”

⁵ Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

This is the essence of what Jesus is telling us to enter the kingdom of God which is to live through and for Him in Spirit and in Truth.  Death leads to life. When We die to ourselves, we rise to a new life in Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

 Several more verses to ponder and think about are found John 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

Galatians 6:8-9 “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. ⁹ And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” 

Also read the parable of the Sower found in Matthew 13:18-23 to gain additional insight and understanding.

Start today don’t delay let the power of God speak to you through His word and be filled with a joy, love and peace beyond measure.

 Find additional inspiration and encouragement found in the books “Finding Calm in the Storm of Everyday Living” or “Heart and Soul” either going to Amazon directly or hitting home at the top of this blog and scrolling down to the books.