Cling to Christ

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 

In this passage, Jesus tells us how he destroyed death and how we will survive it. Jesus is the antidote for death. Nevertheless, death and the law condemned Jesus so that he had to die and be buried. Yet Jesus rose again from the dead. 

But how do we approach our Redeemer and Savior? Do we approach him with personal sacrifice and religious rules? No! Just hold on to the Son in faith. He has overcome death and stabbed the devil’s stomach. Although he was crucified under Annas and Caiaphas, Jesus will rule and reign. So we must remain in him. Then we will be able to tear right through death and the devil, for the passage says, “Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Accept it as true. Accept this wonderful truth that God loved the world and say, “I believe in the Son of God, who was also the son of Mary, who was nailed to the cross and lifted up.” Then you will experience the new birth. 

Death and sin will no longer condemn you. They will no longer bring you harm, sorrow, or pain. Whoever believes in the Son will have eternal life. Cling to Christ’s neck, or hold on to his clothes. This means believing that Jesus became a man and suffered for you. Make the sign of the cross and say, “I am a Christian, and I will prevail.” Death won’t prevail. Death couldn’t hold on to Christ. 

“It was impossible for death to keep its hold on him” (Acts 2:24) because deity and humanity were united in one person, Jesus Christ. In the same way, we won’t remain dead. We will destroy death if we remain in the faith and cling to the destroyer of death, Jesus Christ.

Source: Quoted in Faith Alone: A Daily Devotional, p. 181.  James C. Galvin. Zondervan (2009).