Dead in Our Trespasses and Sins: An Unexpected Object Lesson in My Flower Bed

 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) . . .”

Ephesians 2:4-5

Dear Friends,

God gives us many examples of His grace through His creation. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the rest of creation also provides object lessons to His reality and His truth. This weekend our family experienced two striking object lessons – one picturing life in Christ and one illustrating death without Him. 

A Celebration of New Life

The day began with a celebration of Emily’s baptism. During the 9:00 AM church service, she shared her testimony of God’s saving grace in her life and publicly responded to that gift through baptism.

That evening we gathered for a family party. The air was warm and balmy, so the grandchildren played outside, running and laughing together. Inside, the adults sat around the kitchen table chatting.

Suddenly the herd of children burst through the door in a noisy commotion, excited about something they had discovered.

An Unexpected Object Lesson

I hurried outside with them to investigate. They led me to the front flower bed.

There, among the newly sprouting crocuses, lay a dead cat.

Apparently it had been there for some time, or perhaps something had dragged it up near the house. But one thing was certain— to borrow Charles Dickens’ famous phrase, it was “dead as a doornail.”

No amount of noise, encouragement, prodding, or effort could bring that old tabby back to life.

Life had departed from her, and nothing short of a miracle could restore it.

Dead in Our Trespasses and Sins

The apostle Paul uses this same picture in Ephesians to explain humanity’s spiritual condition. Apart from Christ, we are dead in our trespasses and sins.

“The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

And just like that lifeless animal in our flower bed, there is nothing we can do to reverse this condition on our own.

Why Good Works Cannot Bring Life

Yet many people believe they can somehow overcome spiritual death through their own efforts.

They try to live good lives.
They seek influence and success.
They give money to worthy causes.
They work hard to balance the scales of good and bad.

But none of these efforts can produce spiritual life.

Scripture reminds us that salvation is not by works of righteousness, but according to God’s mercy.

Made Alive with Christ

The only way the rigor-mortised body in our flower bed could move again would be if life returned to it.

For the cat, that was impossible.

But for humanity, God made the impossible possible.

Because of His great love and mercy, He made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in our transgressions.

Jesus came into the world to bear the punishment for our sin. He died and rose again, defeating death itself so that we could have life.

When we place our faith in Him, His Spirit enters us, and His life becomes ours.

A Picture of Two Destinies

As the kids and I stood staring at the morbid object lesson on the repercussions of sin, Uncle Luke arrived with a shovel. Scooping up the body, he took the dead cat out into the field and disposed of it, hopefully never to be seen again. But the cat’s destiny does not have to be ours.

Emily’s baptism earlier that day was another of God’s powerful object lessons – one that testified to the miracle of new life in Christ.

Life in Christ Is Available Today

So how do we receive this gift? 

The Bible tells us that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).

If you are reading this today, God may be using His Word to prompt your heart.

Instead of striving to accomplish the impossible on your own, you can receive His gracious gift of salvation.

Through faith in Christ, those who were once dead in sin can be made alive forever.

Love,

Mama

If you have never trusted Christ, today can be the day your spiritual life begins.
Stop striving to earn what God freely offers.
Turn to Him in faith and receive His gift of salvation.

Have you experienced the life that Christ gives?
I’d love to hear your story in the comments, or share this post with someone who needs the hope of new life in Him.