Wedding or Funeral?

"Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them?" - Jesus (Matthew 9:15)

Jesus said living with him was like being in a wedding - a celebration.

The short absence between the cross and Easter is past; Jesus offers to be with everyone who will allow.

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." - Jesus (Revelation 3:20)

So...is your life more like a wedding or a funeral?  The difference between the two is the presence of the one for whom the event is given.

-fritz

Resurrection of the Body

"Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." - Jesus after his resurrection (Luke 24:39)

Jesus' resurrection was not "spiritual" as we, today, define the term. He didn't become a ghost and he doesn't live in our hearts and minds like our departed loved ones; he was bodily raised from the dead.

That has always been a part of the faith. When the Bible says in Psalms 16:10, "neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption", it's declaring Christ's body would not decay like the rest of humanity; impostors can't make it past the grave¹.

Certainly the resurrected body is different from the body that died; it could materialize anywhere², was not always recognized³, is no longer subject to illness or death⁴, and is "spiritual" in the sense that it is not limited to this earth's physics⁵. But it is a new dimension of physical that can still eat⁶, be touched⁷, and interacted with like any other physical object⁸.

The resurrection of Christ defeated our last enemy, Death⁹, and when Jesus returns our mortal bodies shall change to be like his.¹⁰

That is the classic "hope" of the resurrection, not to be some disembodied ghost somewhere but to be wholy redeemed individuals in the place Jesus went to prepare for us.

- fritz

^{1 - Romans 1:3-4
2 - John 20:19
3 - John 21:4
4 - Romans 6:9
5 - 1 Corin. 15:44 Not "a spirit" but "spiritual body"
6 - Luke 24:41-42
7 - Luke 24:39
8 - Acts 1:3
9 - 1st Corinthians 15:26
10 - Philippians 3:21}

Lord or lunatic

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ... Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord ... then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart" - Matthew 7:22

Some teach Jesus thought of himself only as a good man trying to do the right thing and hoping in the future; that it was, really, his disciples who came to the conclusion Jesus was the divine Son of God.

But Jesus firmly believed in his own Lordship and proclaimed it would be He who decides at the end of the age those entering God's Kingdom. What kind of a man proclaims that? Either the Lord or a lunatic. The "just a good man" theory isn't even on the table.

Paul writes

He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself. - 2nd Timothy 2:13b (amplified)

- fritz

Divine Opportunities - Taken or Not

"Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted" - Isaiah 7:4

Ahaz went down in history as a wicked and faithless king, but it didn't have to be that way. Second Kings and Second Chronicles both record his rule¹, but Isaiah tells us an additional detail.

Ahaz's kingdom was under attack and God sent the prophet, Isaiah, to extend an offer - trust in God and be faithful. It was a divine opportunity but it also came with a warning

"If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established"²

Sadly, Ahaz didn't take his opportunity choosing instead to go to surrounding kings for assistance, begging their help. They helped themselves to his wealth and left him in shambles.

We, too, are extended divine opportunities to turn our lives over to Christ and follow Him.

"I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness." - Jesus (John 12:46)

Our choices make a difference.

-fritz

^{1 - 2nd Kings 16 and 2nd Chronicles 28
2 - Isaiah 7:9}

Living up to our beliefs

"[T]he kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field." - Jesus ¹

The cost of the kingdom of Heaven is the cost to the man in this parable - all that he had. But the man jumped at the chance; why? Because he was convinced of the value of that treasure and his opportunity.

Faith is not a leap in the dark, it action based on what we are convinced. Action based on what we hope is not faith, it's hope.

The man in this parable acted according to his faith, we all do whether we realize it or not.

"We often speak of people not living up to their faith. But ... genuine beliefs are made obvious by what people do. We always live up to our beliefs--or down to them, as the case may be..."

Want to know what you really believe? Look at what you are doing.

Having trouble giving your all? Ask Jesus to give you a better look at his treasure; to touch it, feel it, and bury it in your heart. Giving all you have will seem like a bargain!

Jim Elliott put it this way, "He is no fool who gives what he can not keep to gain what he can not lose."

- fritz

^{1 - Matthew 13:44
2 - The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard published by HarperCollins, copyright 1998
Related Post:Hidden Treasure (12/31/09)}

Following Christ in the "Real" World

The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!"

He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!" - Matthew 8:25-27

Jesus spent much of his time getting his own disciples to believe. They had left all to follow but they still had a disconnect between what they considered religious faith and the "real" world.

If they were like me they were thinking, "Sure Jesus is the Messiah, but we're in a real storm, here! Jesus, wake up and start bailing! That's just the lesson they learned, he doesn't need to bail and we don't either - at least not in a panic!

He was, and is, active in the "real" world of storms and layoffs, bills and breakdowns, saving us from what we can't handle, living through us, with his grace, in what we can.

-fritz


1 - Matthew 16:15-17

Discovering what means the most

"Take a piece of paper and write what you value the most", said the preacher. We all dutifully put things like God, family, others, prayer, bible reading, making sure we got the order just right; this was not our first rodeo, so to speak.

Then we were told to turn that paper over and write where we spent most of our time - work, TV watching, playing games, sleeping, etc.

Afterwards he said to draw a big "X" over side one; where we spend most of our time is what we, really, value the most.

- fritz