Saddest Days/Gladdest Days

I had a God visit this morning as I was reading the account of man's fall in Genesis 3:1-13.   There are two passages of the Bible that break my heart every time I read them.  One is in Genesis 3:20-24 and the other is Ezekiel 10:18-19.  In the first, man is sent away from the Presence of God.  In the second, God leaves the presence of man.  Both times we painfully witness the separation of God and man brought about by man's rebellion and sin. 

Genesis 3:20-24 20 Then the man—Adam—named his wife Eve, because she would be the mother of all who live. 21 And the Lord God made clothing from animal skins for Adam and his wife.  22 Then the Lord God said, “Look, the human beings have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!” 23 So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made. 24 After sending them out, the Lord God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Ezekiel 10:18-19 18 Then the glory of the Lord moved out from the entrance of the Temple and hovered above the cherubim. 19 And as I watched, the cherubim flew with their wheels to the east gate of the Lord’s Temple. And the glory of the God of Israel hovered above them.

But then Jesus!  Again God reaches out in love and tender mercy to His creation with the solution to that sad division.  In Matthew we are told there is a voice shouting in the wilderness.  A voice calling out for the preparation for the Lord's coming.  "Prepare the way for the Lord's coming!  Clear the road for Him! (Matthew 3:3b) 

Oh glorious day!  Our Savior had arrived.  God's plan for redemption has come.  And we know how the story went from there.  But here is the second part to that story....now, God was not leaving.  Yes, Jesus was taken up into heaven in physical form, but He left His Spirit here with us and in us.  Hallelujah!  God would remain with His people, live in them and lead them through life.  We can walk with Him and talk with Him every moment, every day.  

John 14:18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. 

Acts 2:1-4 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

But there's more.  There is another day coming.  The eternal life where we live in God's Presence forever.  A time where He makes all things new and once again come down to earth with a magnificent city designed just for His children.  He will make His home with us once again and we will have full access to His Presence, we will see Him as He is.  Hallelujah a million times over!  

Revelation 21:1-7 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”  5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

Glorious!  Awesome!  Wonderful!  All the sorrow of sin, rebellion, and separation will be wiped away.  We will once again, and for always, be united with our Lord and Father, our beautiful Creator.  All of this hardship and heartache will fade away like a bad dream and we will spend our eternity in purposeful, joy filled worship and activity that brings both us and the Lord joy.  I can't even imagine how amazing this will be.  But it fills me with hope!  It gives us all something to look forward to.  

Lord, hallelujah and amen!  Glory.  You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy,  (Psalm 30:11)  There will come a day where the sadness of this world and our sinful rebellion and its consequences will be no more.  Let us prepare our hearts for that day, and live and serve with hope, faith and joy.  We love You Lord.  Thank You for making this happen. Thank You our Savior, Jesus, for making this possible.  Hold us in Your loving arms until the day of Your plan's completion.  Guide us and lead us by Your Holy Spirit each day.  It is in the mighty and precious Name of Jesus I ask this.  Amen.  

Next Year?

There is a Jewish saying, a hope really, spoken every year after Seder dinner. "Next year in Jerusalem."  L'Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalayim.  For so long there was no Jewish homeland.  So those Jews scattered around the world would say this to express their hope an desire for God to bring them home to Israel once again, creating again their nation and giving them a true home.    

This year, I was reminded that we, as Christians have hope for the New Jerusalem.   As we have been studying the last chapters in Revelation lately, this has been more and more clear in my mind.  We too, can say, "Next year in Jerusalem."  Will this be the year Christ returns?  Will the new Jerusalem be coming soon?  Like our Jewish brethren, the nation with whom we've been grafted into...we too long for our homeland.  We are not citizens of this world, but citizens of Heaven, a people of God's kingdom.  We have such a hope and a promise!  

Today is Good Friday.  The day that Jesus bought our freedom, paid the price for our sins, so we could look forward to His return.  His death guarantees that we can look forward with hope and assurance to being a part in this new Jerusalem that will come.  It was with surety that we can know there is a place being prepared for us...an eternal place with no more sorrow or pain.  

2 Timothy 4:8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

What a beautiful thought!  We can look forward to something so much better than our wandering and nomadic existence on this planet.  We look with hope at the new, eternal life promised us by Jesus, paid for with His blood and guaranteed by His resurrection.  

I will leave you with the the passages in Revelation to meditate on...passages that reveal the beauty and glory of our true home, and the hope that we have to hold onto as we navigate the turbulent seas of life in this fallen world.  

Revelation 21 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”  5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.”  6 And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”  9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. 12 Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 13 three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.  14 Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And he who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16 The city is laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed: twelve thousand [k]furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height are equal. 17 Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. 18 The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.  22 But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. 24 And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. 25 Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). 26 And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into  but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Revelation 22 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. 4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. 5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.  6 Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.  7 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”  8 Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things.  9 Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. 11 He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.”  12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.”  14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. 15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.  16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”  17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. 18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.  20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.”    Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!  21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

Have a blessed and joyful Resurrection Day.  And remember to keep focusing on His return!!  Even so, come, Lord Jesus!!  

Blinded

 A new Bible study is starting for our ladies group.  We are reading "Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free" by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth.   I started the first chapter and I already saw a truth that I had never seen before.

2 Corinthians 4:4 Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

Notice something here:  We are susceptible to being blinded by Satan when we don't believe.  Like Eve in the Garden of Eden, when we stop believing what God says and Who He is, we open the door to being lied to, blinded and taken captive by Satan.  

We all know how important it is to truly believe God, His Word and trust in His character.  It brings us peace, joy and victory over sin.  But do we truly see the danger of not believing?  We can be captured by Satan, become a prisoner of his lies and sin.  

1 Peter 5:8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  It's so important to stay alert.  It's easy to fall into disbelief when we are physically tired, or when we are spiritually lazy.  

We have a weapon!  God, Himself provides us with a defense against Satan's lies and attacks. Ephesians 6:16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.

Belief in Who God is, what He says and the love in His heart for us is paramount to staying out of Satan's clutches. James tells us without faith we become like an unstable wave.  James 1:6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. Also, when we live in unbelief we are not pleasing God.  Almost like we besmirch His character...I've done that way, way too often in my heart and mind.  Hebrews 1: 6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. 

I love the way God brings a verse to life!  

Genesis 3:1-13  The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”  2 “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. 3 “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”  4 “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. 5 “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”  6 The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. 7 At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.  8 When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man[a] and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”  10 He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.”  11 “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?”  12 The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”  13 Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?”  “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.”