The Living Among the Dead

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows that His ways truly lead to life:
13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.   In John 14, Jesus said that He is the way, the truth and the life - the true way to the Father, the route to peace with God.   As we apply ourselves to seeking God, we minimize the distractions that would get us off track in our pursuit of righteousness, a life of internal peace, and fellowship with God.   If we place a priority on thoughts and activities that don't contribute to our relationship with Christ, the way that leads to life, then we will miss God's best for us.
In Luke 24, we read the account of post-resurrection events, as the women came to the tomb that morning and found the stone rolled away and the body of Jesus missing:4...it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. 5 Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen!  I was reminded of that statement as I read the account of a living baby found in a morgue in Argentina.   The infant was originally declared stillborn, but 12 hours after her birth, when the parents pried open the wooden coffin inside the refrigerated morgue to see her one more time, they found that the child was breathing and yawning and stretching her arms.
The couple named her Luz Milagros - her middle name meaning miracles in Spanish - because of her unlikely start to life. She is still clinging to life, and was reported in critical condition late last week - she was extremely premature and recently had some lung issues.   Apparently, at birth, doctors were unable to detect vital signs, so they made the declaration that the little girl was not alive.

I thought of what those women were asked at the tomb of Jesus - "why do you seek the living among the dead?"   In application to our lives, we realize that there is one way that leads to true life - and it's a life of surrender to Christ and allowing Him to live through us.   We live in a fallen world, full of temptations and distractions, which would get us off course in our walk with God.  The Scriptures encourage us to put aside the "dead works" of the flesh that pull us away from God and focus on His life, which we encounter through prayer, careful study and meditation of the Word of God, and maintaining a sense of abiding in Him daily - seeking to walk in the Spirit so that we may fellowship with Him.   We cannot find "the living" - the life of Christ - if our attention is turned toward things that do not glorify Him.