John 11: 25-26
Jesus said to her, I am the Resurrection and the Life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?
Today is Resurrection Day. Easter. The day we remember the very basis of our faith. If Jesus had not risen from the dead, there would be no Christianity at all.
Jesus was telling Martha Who He was and what He would accomplish on our behalf. Martha did believe, but her understanding was not complete. She knew that her brother Lazarus would be resurrected in that Day the prophets foretold; but, until it happened, she didn't know that Jesus would die and come back to life again in just a few days.
Today we have the advantage of looking back to know that this did actually happen, and our faith is more complete than hers was then.
Because Jesus conquered death by rising in victory over it with Resurrection Life, now we know that we, too, will rise with that same Resurrection Life that He gives all who have died with Him in allowing Him to die in our place, individually, on the Cross. That is what is meant when people say He is their "personal Savior."
He fulfilled that first sacrifice given at the beginning of the Book of Leviticus, the personal, individual offering. Just as that animal took the person's place in death on the altar, and its blood was splattered on the sides of the altar to cover his sins; so Jesus as the Lamb of God individually took each of our place in death, His Precious Blood splattering on the sides of His altar the Cross, to not just cover but wash away all the sin.
And to prove that God accepted His Sacrifice on our behalf, God raised Him from the dead. There is more historical evidence of His Resurrection than there is for the existence of Alexander the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte. It is a Truth we can confidently believe.
And if He had not risen from the dead, Peter would have gone back to fishing and there would have been no New Testament at all.
We would still be waiting for the Messiah, depending on animals' blood to gain forgiveness.
Thank God He sent His only Son to be our Savior! Thank God for His incredible Love for us, that He was willing to sacrifice Him in our place, so that He could give us His amazing Grace and Mercy. Thank God that Jesus was willing to go ahead and do it, and submit His will to the Father's.
O my Father, thank You so much! O my Lord Jesus, my King, my Bridegroom, thank You so much! O Holy Spirit, my Companion and Teacher and Strength, thank You!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Sunday, April 21, 2019
Saturday, April 20, 2019
The Epochal Saturday
Holy Saturday, the "forgotten day," the day of waiting between the completed work of Salvation, the Crucifixion, on Friday; and the Day of Resurrection, the Final Victory over Death and the Grave.
Will Jesus really return to this Earth to rule? He said He would. It's been over two thousand years since He ascended back to Heaven with the Promise to come back. So that Day is closer now than it ever has been before.
I am waiting, eagerly anticipating that Glorious Appearing that has been so long in coming.
I see God moving in hearts, moving in the decisions of kings and presidents, and in Nations. He is moving everyone and everything into perfect place for the events of the last of the Last Days of the End Times, to transpire exactly as He told us in Ezekiel and Daniel and the Revelation of Jesus Christ to John.
So just a few more days (years?) and Christ will return!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
(To see what Jesus was doing while His body lay buried, see my blog entry of April 15, 2017, "What Was Jesus Doing?")So this Age, the "Church Age," the gap in the Prophesies, the "Valley between the Mountaintops of Prophesy," is the epochal Saturday between Friday past and Sunday to come.
Will Jesus really return to this Earth to rule? He said He would. It's been over two thousand years since He ascended back to Heaven with the Promise to come back. So that Day is closer now than it ever has been before.
I am waiting, eagerly anticipating that Glorious Appearing that has been so long in coming.
I see God moving in hearts, moving in the decisions of kings and presidents, and in Nations. He is moving everyone and everything into perfect place for the events of the last of the Last Days of the End Times, to transpire exactly as He told us in Ezekiel and Daniel and the Revelation of Jesus Christ to John.
So just a few more days (years?) and Christ will return!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Friday, April 19, 2019
Good Friday
Luke 23: 46
And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit. And having said this, He breathed His last.
Jesus quoted Psalm 31:5, written by David so long ago.
To think that God planned all this in His Triune Councils before He even created, and He made us, anyway!
God's ways are so far above our ways. His Love for us, for me, is the reason Jesus agreed to this course, knowing how frail and sinful and rebellious we are.
Yet the Father still sent His Son; Jesus did come; He showed us what God is like, Who He is; then willingly laid down His life as the Sacrificial Lamb, to actually take away our sins!
To free us from the bondage of sinful addictions and bad habits; to cleanse us and mold and shape us into the very image of His Son, as He originally intended at our Creation.
And the worst thing that ever happened in the whole history of Time--the killing of God by His creature--God intended for the greatest good we could ever imagine, to the glory of His Name!
And His Resurrection is our proof of the Truth and efficacy of His death accepted by the Father.
O my Father, Thank You!
It's Friday, but Sunday's coming!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit. And having said this, He breathed His last.
Jesus quoted Psalm 31:5, written by David so long ago.
To think that God planned all this in His Triune Councils before He even created, and He made us, anyway!
God's ways are so far above our ways. His Love for us, for me, is the reason Jesus agreed to this course, knowing how frail and sinful and rebellious we are.
Yet the Father still sent His Son; Jesus did come; He showed us what God is like, Who He is; then willingly laid down His life as the Sacrificial Lamb, to actually take away our sins!
To free us from the bondage of sinful addictions and bad habits; to cleanse us and mold and shape us into the very image of His Son, as He originally intended at our Creation.
And the worst thing that ever happened in the whole history of Time--the killing of God by His creature--God intended for the greatest good we could ever imagine, to the glory of His Name!
And His Resurrection is our proof of the Truth and efficacy of His death accepted by the Father.
O my Father, Thank You!
It's Friday, but Sunday's coming!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Thursday, April 18, 2019
Humility And Boldness
Matthew 26: 59-64
At Jesus' trials.
Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death.
They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward, and said, This man stated, I am able to destroy the Temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.
The High Priest stood up and said to Him, Do you not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?
But Jesus kept silent.
And the High Priest said to Him, I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God!
Jesus said to him, You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of Heaven.
27: 1-2, 11-14
Now when morning came, ... they delivered Him to Pilate the governor.
Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, Are You the King of the Jews?
And Jesus said to Him, It is as you say.
And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer.
Then Pilate said to Him, Do you not hear how many things they testify against You?
And He did not answer him with regard to a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.
Jesus never said one word in His own defense. He remained silent through all the accusations. They were not worth comment. As Isaiah 53:7 says, As a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.
But when asked directly of His identity, He did testify to the Truth. When the High Priest asked Him if He really was God's Son, the Messiah, He answered with Psalm 101:1.
And when Pilate asked Him if He was a King, He admits it, and John gives us more of Jesus' answer to him. In John 18:36-37 He says,
Jesus had no need to argue with His accusers, so He just kept quiet. This infuriated them, so when He admitted to them who He is, they lost it and dragged Him over to the Roman authority who could authorize His death.
Then even Pilate was amazed that He wouldn't even try to defend Himself.
I need to remember this when I get defensive; to just keep my mouth shut, like He did. It never improves the situation to argue.
But when Pilate asked of His identity, He also admitted to him the reality of His Kingdom not being a part of this World system at all.
The god of this World is our enemy, who has blinded the minds of the lost so that they cannot perceive the Light of the Gospel of Christ (II Corinthians 4:3-4). So the Kingdom of God can have nothing to do with the kingdom of Satan. That's why Jesus answered Pilate the way He did.
When He returns to this Earth, He will completely destroy everything pertaining to this demonic kingdom of the World, and establish His Kingdom in righteousness and judgment.
Before He does that, He had to do the work of making us fit to take part in it. He first had to suffer and die. There's no other way to make us perfect and able to live with Him where He lives.
Next week we will remember His Passion, the passionate Love He showed us. And then we will celebrate Easter, the Resurrection Day! After the sorrow, we will rejoice.
After all the sorrow of this World, we will rejoice in the marvelous Kingdom of our Savior and Redeemer and King and Lord, and our Bridegroom.
He really does Love us passionately, as a newlywed groom is enamoured with his new bride, as He has called us His Bride. And the newness of the Honeymoon Period will last forever!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
At Jesus' trials.
Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death.
They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward, and said, This man stated, I am able to destroy the Temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.
The High Priest stood up and said to Him, Do you not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?
But Jesus kept silent.
And the High Priest said to Him, I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God!
Jesus said to him, You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of Heaven.
27: 1-2, 11-14
Now when morning came, ... they delivered Him to Pilate the governor.
Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, Are You the King of the Jews?
And Jesus said to Him, It is as you say.
And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer.
Then Pilate said to Him, Do you not hear how many things they testify against You?
And He did not answer him with regard to a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.
Jesus never said one word in His own defense. He remained silent through all the accusations. They were not worth comment. As Isaiah 53:7 says, As a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.
But when asked directly of His identity, He did testify to the Truth. When the High Priest asked Him if He really was God's Son, the Messiah, He answered with Psalm 101:1.
And when Pilate asked Him if He was a King, He admits it, and John gives us more of Jesus' answer to him. In John 18:36-37 He says,
My Kingdom is not of this World. If My Kingdom were of this World, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jewish leaders. But now is My Kingdom not from here.
Therefore Pilate said to him, So You are a King? Jesus answered, You say correctly that I am a King. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the World, to testify to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth hears my voice.Here's where Pilate asks rhetorically, "What is Truth?" because he didn't expect any answer.
Jesus had no need to argue with His accusers, so He just kept quiet. This infuriated them, so when He admitted to them who He is, they lost it and dragged Him over to the Roman authority who could authorize His death.
Then even Pilate was amazed that He wouldn't even try to defend Himself.
I need to remember this when I get defensive; to just keep my mouth shut, like He did. It never improves the situation to argue.
But when Pilate asked of His identity, He also admitted to him the reality of His Kingdom not being a part of this World system at all.
The god of this World is our enemy, who has blinded the minds of the lost so that they cannot perceive the Light of the Gospel of Christ (II Corinthians 4:3-4). So the Kingdom of God can have nothing to do with the kingdom of Satan. That's why Jesus answered Pilate the way He did.
When He returns to this Earth, He will completely destroy everything pertaining to this demonic kingdom of the World, and establish His Kingdom in righteousness and judgment.
Before He does that, He had to do the work of making us fit to take part in it. He first had to suffer and die. There's no other way to make us perfect and able to live with Him where He lives.
Next week we will remember His Passion, the passionate Love He showed us. And then we will celebrate Easter, the Resurrection Day! After the sorrow, we will rejoice.
After all the sorrow of this World, we will rejoice in the marvelous Kingdom of our Savior and Redeemer and King and Lord, and our Bridegroom.
He really does Love us passionately, as a newlywed groom is enamoured with his new bride, as He has called us His Bride. And the newness of the Honeymoon Period will last forever!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
The Betrayal
Luke 22: 1-6
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called The Passover, was approaching.
The Chief Priests and the Scribes were looking for ways they might put Him to death, because they were aftraid of the people.
And Satan entered into Judas, who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the Twelve.
And he went away and discussed with the Chief Priests and officers how he might betray Him to them.
They were glad and agreed to give him money.
So he consented, and began to seek a good opportunity to betray Him away from the crowd.
The Jewish leaders were really fuming at how Jesus was becoming more popular with His miracles and teaching the people, and doing all the things the Messiah, the King of Israel would be doing. They envied Him and hated Him so much that they wanted to murder Him, but were afraid that the people would riot if they tried anything.
Then when Judas approached them, this was their opportunity. He was an insider, who could turn Him over to them secretly, away from the crowds. So they negotiated and agreed to pay him the price of a slave, thirty pieces of silver (Exodus 21:32).
That's when Judas started to look for the right time and place to give Him up to the Jewish leaders.
The other disciples didn't know what He was telling him to do, but he left them then, and wasn't with them when He made the appointment to meet with them in Galilee after He was risen (Matthew 26:32 and Mark 14:28), and for all the teaching He would give them on their way to the Garden (John 13:31-16:33), and His High Priestly Prayer (chapter 17).
Then He went into the Garden, and was arrested there. In that private, protected space where He liked to go to pray. That only an insider would know about.
O my Father, Jesus must have suffered so greatly with His betrayal by His friend, and the prospect of having to carry sin that was so repulsive to Him, and be separated from You, Father, for the first and only time in all Time, from Eternity Past though to Eternity Future. That must have wrenched His tender heart!
O Father, break our hearts for what breaks Yours! Draw us close into Your embrace; and strengthen us for the extreme hatred of the enemy against us because we are Yours.
And help us to remember that Sunday is coming!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called The Passover, was approaching.
The Chief Priests and the Scribes were looking for ways they might put Him to death, because they were aftraid of the people.
And Satan entered into Judas, who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the Twelve.
And he went away and discussed with the Chief Priests and officers how he might betray Him to them.
They were glad and agreed to give him money.
So he consented, and began to seek a good opportunity to betray Him away from the crowd.
The Jewish leaders were really fuming at how Jesus was becoming more popular with His miracles and teaching the people, and doing all the things the Messiah, the King of Israel would be doing. They envied Him and hated Him so much that they wanted to murder Him, but were afraid that the people would riot if they tried anything.
Then when Judas approached them, this was their opportunity. He was an insider, who could turn Him over to them secretly, away from the crowds. So they negotiated and agreed to pay him the price of a slave, thirty pieces of silver (Exodus 21:32).
That's when Judas started to look for the right time and place to give Him up to the Jewish leaders.
(For a summary of the events of His last week, look at my blog entry, "From Supper To The Garden" on October 9, 2016.)Jesus knew that Judas was planning to betray Him, and He even told Him the right time to do it, during the Supper when He told him, What you are doing, do it now, quickly (John 13:27), as soon as He gave him the morsel of food.
The other disciples didn't know what He was telling him to do, but he left them then, and wasn't with them when He made the appointment to meet with them in Galilee after He was risen (Matthew 26:32 and Mark 14:28), and for all the teaching He would give them on their way to the Garden (John 13:31-16:33), and His High Priestly Prayer (chapter 17).
Then He went into the Garden, and was arrested there. In that private, protected space where He liked to go to pray. That only an insider would know about.
O my Father, Jesus must have suffered so greatly with His betrayal by His friend, and the prospect of having to carry sin that was so repulsive to Him, and be separated from You, Father, for the first and only time in all Time, from Eternity Past though to Eternity Future. That must have wrenched His tender heart!
O Father, break our hearts for what breaks Yours! Draw us close into Your embrace; and strengthen us for the extreme hatred of the enemy against us because we are Yours.
And help us to remember that Sunday is coming!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, April 16, 2019
Just Know
Luke 20: 9- 21: 38
Jesus is spending this last week teaching the people in the Temple.
Chapter 20 has Him sparring with the Chief Priests and Scribes and Saducees, and Chapter 21 is on Last Things we are to expect before the Kingdom comes.
21: 10-15
We need to prepare ourselves now for what He says is coming, and is here already, so we'll not need to be concerned about the speeches we'll be compelled to give when we're called before kings and presidents to testify. The Truth is all we'll need.
So we need to be solidly grounded in the Truth before we're dragged away. And we don't know when that will be, it will be before all the signs given: any time!
If you have been following along with me on this blog, and taking to heart what I've been sharing, then you will have a firm grasp of God's character, His authority, and His Plan. And you will be able to trust His Holy Spirit in you to give you the words you'll need when you are the one they're hauling into court for what you believe.
O my Father, Thank You for Your written Word, and for Your Spirit in us to give us understanding of what You are telling us, and to apply Your lessons to our lives every day. Father, draw us ever closer to Yourself, building into each of us Your sterling character, as demonstrated by Your Son Jesus.
Thank You so much, Father, for showing me how to connect so many dots, to understand how this whole library of 66 books all tell one story: of all You have done to show us Yourself and who we are, and what You have done for us; how much You have loved us; and You made us to live with You, as Your favorites!
O Father, You will receive all the glory, all the honor, all the credit and blessing and riches; because You alone deserve it all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Jesus is spending this last week teaching the people in the Temple.
Chapter 20 has Him sparring with the Chief Priests and Scribes and Saducees, and Chapter 21 is on Last Things we are to expect before the Kingdom comes.
21: 10-15
Then He said to them, Nation shall rise up against Nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And great earthquakes shall be in diverse places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall be in the Heavens.
But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for My Name's sake.
And it will give you opportunity for your testimony. Settle it, therefore, in your hearts not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.So before the wars and skirmishes, before the great earthquakes and plagues and famines, before the terrors and great signs in the Heavens; we should expect persecution.
We need to prepare ourselves now for what He says is coming, and is here already, so we'll not need to be concerned about the speeches we'll be compelled to give when we're called before kings and presidents to testify. The Truth is all we'll need.
So we need to be solidly grounded in the Truth before we're dragged away. And we don't know when that will be, it will be before all the signs given: any time!
If you have been following along with me on this blog, and taking to heart what I've been sharing, then you will have a firm grasp of God's character, His authority, and His Plan. And you will be able to trust His Holy Spirit in you to give you the words you'll need when you are the one they're hauling into court for what you believe.
O my Father, Thank You for Your written Word, and for Your Spirit in us to give us understanding of what You are telling us, and to apply Your lessons to our lives every day. Father, draw us ever closer to Yourself, building into each of us Your sterling character, as demonstrated by Your Son Jesus.
Thank You so much, Father, for showing me how to connect so many dots, to understand how this whole library of 66 books all tell one story: of all You have done to show us Yourself and who we are, and what You have done for us; how much You have loved us; and You made us to live with You, as Your favorites!
O Father, You will receive all the glory, all the honor, all the credit and blessing and riches; because You alone deserve it all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Monday, April 15, 2019
Sparring With Adversaries
Luke 19: 45-48
And He entered the Temple and began to drive out those who were selling, saying to them, It is written, My House shall be a House of Prayer (Isaiah 56:7), but you have made it a robbers' den.
And He was teaching every day in the Temple; but the chief priests and the scribes and the Jewish leaders were trying to destroy Him,
But they could not find anything that they could do against Him, for all the people were hanging on to every word He said.
This is the second time Jesus threw out all the dishonest businessmen from the Temple. And with having raised Lazarus from the dead and then His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders were doing their best to try to take Him down any way they could, but they had to be careful, because all the common people were believing in Him; and they wanted to maintain their control.
So one day (Luke 20:1-8) when He was teaching in the Temple, the Jewish leaders, confronted Him, and they asked Him where did He get the authority to teach and do all these things--who gave Him all this ability?
And Jesus answered them with a question: Was the baptism of John from Heaven or from men?
He knew they couldn't answer that, because they didn't believe him, but the people did.
So they said, they didn't know!
Because they refused to answer, He did, too; He knew they wouldn't believe Him, anyway.
This was His last week to teach and share God's ways with the people He loved, and He wasn't going to take any guff from them. But He maintained courtesy and wouldn't put them down; He let them do it to themselves.
O my Father, please help me remember Jesus' perfect gentlemanliness in sparring with His adversaries. Keep me aware of Your presence and power to control my own tone of voice and words when adversaries confront me. Help me to always be Your lady with respect for myself and others, and let the base abase themselves.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
And He entered the Temple and began to drive out those who were selling, saying to them, It is written, My House shall be a House of Prayer (Isaiah 56:7), but you have made it a robbers' den.
And He was teaching every day in the Temple; but the chief priests and the scribes and the Jewish leaders were trying to destroy Him,
But they could not find anything that they could do against Him, for all the people were hanging on to every word He said.
This is the second time Jesus threw out all the dishonest businessmen from the Temple. And with having raised Lazarus from the dead and then His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders were doing their best to try to take Him down any way they could, but they had to be careful, because all the common people were believing in Him; and they wanted to maintain their control.
So one day (Luke 20:1-8) when He was teaching in the Temple, the Jewish leaders, confronted Him, and they asked Him where did He get the authority to teach and do all these things--who gave Him all this ability?
And Jesus answered them with a question: Was the baptism of John from Heaven or from men?
He knew they couldn't answer that, because they didn't believe him, but the people did.
So they said, they didn't know!
Because they refused to answer, He did, too; He knew they wouldn't believe Him, anyway.
This was His last week to teach and share God's ways with the people He loved, and He wasn't going to take any guff from them. But He maintained courtesy and wouldn't put them down; He let them do it to themselves.
O my Father, please help me remember Jesus' perfect gentlemanliness in sparring with His adversaries. Keep me aware of Your presence and power to control my own tone of voice and words when adversaries confront me. Help me to always be Your lady with respect for myself and others, and let the base abase themselves.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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