Monthly Archives: January 2023

THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM

Christian Life, ,

THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19

What I am writing is a simple, step-by-step explanation of our participation in God’s kingdom now. Then we will be ready to take our place and function in the role God has prepared for us in our life to come in His eternal kingdom.

Jesus promised His disciples that He would give them the keys of the kingdom and that He would send the Holy Spirit to them to give them understanding of the meaning of His life, death, and resurrection as the Old Testament foretold. THIS PROMISE WAS A MANDATE TO THE TWELVE, NOT TO PREACHERS AND TEACHERS OF THE WORD TODAY.

The Holy Spirit left man when Adam disobeyed God. He only appeared and worked sporadically in people in the Old Testament era. However, Jesus died to atone for all sin, giving God the freedom to send the Holy Spirit to earth on the day of Pentecost. He is present on the earth permanently and in the hearts of believers and will never again be removed.

Jesus came to earth as a human to deal with sin and to usher in God’s kingdom. Those who believe in Him are no longer under Satan’s control and influence but under God’s power and loving rule.

“For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son… ”

Colossians 1:13 NLT

Since keys open doors, the keys of the kingdom relate to what we do to access what God has done for us through Jesus and given us to make this life in the kingdom of God possible here and now,

For anyone to enter the spiritual realm of God’s kingdom, there are certain doors to go through for us to benefit fully from that rule now which prepares us for our place in His eternal kingdom then.

1. FAITH – THE KEY TO TRUTH

Faith in the gospel message.

Faith in what God has said is a necessary first key into God’s kingdom. Faith is kindled in our hearts when we hear or read the message about Jesus. Without faith, the Holy Spirit cannot work in us to bring about what the next key does in us.

“For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

Romans 1:17 NLT

“For this good news—that God has prepared this rest—has been announced to us just as it was to them (the Israelites). But it did them no good because they didn’t share the faith of those who listened to God. For only we who believe can enter his rest….”

Hebrews 4:2-3 NLT

2. NEW BIRTH – THE KEY TO ENTER THE KINGDOM

New birth into the kingdom through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said to Nicodemus that no one can see or enter the kingdom apart from the Holy Spirit.

“Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” … Jesus replied, “I assure you; no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.”

John 3:3, 5-6 NLT

New birth happens through saving faith in Jesus. By this I mean that faith in Jesus implies absolute commitment to Him as our supreme authority, based on our acceptance of the truth that God raised Him from the dead.

“And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved…. So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.’

Romans 10:8-10, 17 NLT

3. LIVING THE LIFE – THE KEY TO GROWTH

Working out what God is working in us.

“Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”

Philippians 2:12-13 NLT

“For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 14:17 NLT

Access into God’s kingdom is the first step into living our lives here and now under God’s rule. This means that we are to pursue righteousness and holiness in this life in response to the Holy Spirit’s work in us.

Paul made it clear that people who continue living their old sinful lives despite their confession of salvation, have not entered the kingdom of God. They will have no part in His kingdom in the life to come.

“When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarrelling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”

Galatians 5:19-21 NLT

To be continued…

THE FOUNTAIN OF GOD’S LOVE

Christian Life, ,

THE FOUNTAIN OF GOD’S LOVE

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” John 4:13-15

I have been circling around the story of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman once again. This story fascinates and inspires me because of the many layers it reveals of Jesus’ character and His way, as the Son of God, of dealing with an immoral woman.

Since this woman remains nameless, we can place ourselves in her shoes (sandals), and receive the same diagnosis and the same remedy today as Jesus gave her on that memorable morning.

Her body language spoke volumes of her demeanour, her defiant attitude, her seductive eyes, betraying the aura of a provocative and seductive temptress on the outside, but weeping inwardly of her loneliness and frustration.

She, of all people, should have been condemned and shunned by the Holy Son of God but, instead, Jesus peered deep into her soul, read her heart and gave her the perfect solution to her need.

“Woman, you are thirsty, but you are drinking polluted water at the wrong fountain.”

Thirsty for what? What was this “water” for which she was craving? It’s obvious that her longing was to be loved… loved for who she was, not for what she could do or give… loved despite her flaws and failures… loved unconditionally and unceasingly.

She longed for a love that was not fickle, would not grow tired of her or give up on her when her beauty faded and her body took on the condition and shape of increasing years.

She longed for the love that looked into her soul and recognised the growing beauty of wisdom and maturity, of inner peace and contentment, and faith in a love that would never fail her to the end of her days.

Five times she tried, but each time the fountain delivered only selfish, abusive or demanding water, only eventually to fail, leaving her thirstier and more desperate than ever.

Then Jesus came, a man who looked at her, not with lust but with compassion and kindness. There was warmth and understanding in His gaze. She was startled, repulsed because of her shame, yet drawn to Him at the same time by His genuine interest and His simple request.

“Why are you talking to me?” she burst out. She was anticipating yet another outburst of loathing and contempt from yet another Jewish man. Jesus ignored her outburst…He had a much more important issue to deal with.

He came straight to the point. “I can give you the love you crave, not the love of a man for a woman but the love of your Creator God for His beloved fallen daughter. This love will lift you up, wash you clean and recreate you in His own image, the image of pure love. This love will never give up on you, never fail you and never run dry.”

She was intrigued. “Where will I find this love? Is it possible that I can be loved like that?“

“I am this love,” He replied. “To receive this love, you must turn your back on all other loves. You must run from the polluted fountain which has never satisfied your thirst, and drink only at the fountain of my love for you.”

In that encounter with Jesus, she lost her guilt, her shame, her fear. She ran back to her village, her load gone, to share with the very people from whom she shrank, the wonder of a new love. She saw, beyond the human Jesus, the Messiah of God’s promise, the One who could satisfy her longing heart forever. Human love, feeble, frail, fickle, and failing, may come and go but divine love endures forever.

Every human heart, no matter what colour the skin that covers the outside, craves a love that is…

“… patient and kind… not jealous or boastful or proud or rude…does not demand its own way… is not irritable, and… keeps no record of being wronged…does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out…never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT

Jesus called this love “a fountain”, refreshing and quenching the thirst of everyone who drinks of it.

“On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!  Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”

John 7:37-38 NLT

Why is Jesus the fountain from which we must drink? He is God, and God is love. It is God’s love alone that can satisfy the longing of our hearts.

Why?

Life is uncertain. We live in a fallen world, full of evil people and the uncertainties and insecurities of an unknown future. How can we live in peace, without fear, and secure in a love that will never fail us and will carry us through every test and trial to the end of our days? How can we endure the hardships, trials and tragedies that hit us out of the blue?

God’s love is our only guarantee. If God loves us, with a love that is utterly trustworthy, nothing can overtake us that is bigger than this love.

How do we know that God truly loves us?

“God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.”

1 John 4:9-10 NLT

“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

John 15:13 NLT

How do we respond to this great love of God?

Jude said: “But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love.”

Jude 1:20-21 NLT

Keep yourselves safe in God’s love!  When tragedy strikes, drink of that love. “In all things God works for our good…” When resources run out, drink at the fountain. When relationships fail, believe in the love of God. When children disappoint, take courage and hope in Jesus’ love.

When you wake in the morning, take a deep draught of God’s love before you drink your first cup of coffee.  Fall asleep at night secure in the arms of that great love. Navigate your day, whatever it brings, in that secure and unfailing love. Never allow a single thought to cross your mind that doubts that God is in charge.

God will never permit anything in your life that does not come through the filter of His love.

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:38-39 NLT

SOME THOUGHTS ON SUFFERING

Christian Life, ,

SOME THOUGHTS ON SUFFERING

Suffering of every kind is woven into the tapestry of our lives here on earth. Suffering comes to us in many disguises, physical, mental, emotional, psychological…Suffering is the lot of every human being on earth no matter what language or culture.

Human suffering seems to fly in the face of who God is. “Why does God allow suffering?” Some even blame God for self-inflicted suffering like the pregnant young teenager who recklessly slept with her boyfriend.

Suffering makes no sense until we take the long look.

1. Jesus suffered physically and spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically.

“He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care.”

Isaiah 53:3 NLT

The highest purpose of Jesus’s suffering was to absorb the sin of the world into Himself without resistance so that all the suffering that sin produced and sin itself, would be neutralised forever.

2. For believers in Jesus, if we understand our suffering from God’s perspective, suffering is a golden thread that connects us to the glorious purpose of God, to recreate us in the image of His Son.

Peter has some marvellous insights into suffering, both Jesus’s suffering and ours, that clarify this amazing truth.

“For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment… For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered.  He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.”

1 Peter 2:19, 21-24 NLT

This is God’s way for us to endure and overcome suffering.

“So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin.  You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.”

1 Peter 4:1-2 NLT

Suffering for and with Jesus neutralises our sinful appetites and helps us to face real life on a corrupted planet with the power of God’s grace.

What was Jesus attitude in all His suffering?

“He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly…. ‘

Paul adds to our understanding of our suffering.

“I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church.”

Colossians 1:24 NLT

Paul did not mean that Jesus’s suffering was either incomplete or ineffective. His suffering was a perfect sacrifice of atonement for our sin.

However, His suffering would be of no benefit to us if we do not appropriate God’s grace to suffer as Jesus did. By steadfastly trusting God in our suffering of whatever kind, we demonstrate God’s power in our lives to overcome the sins of our old nature. We add to Christ’s suffering only by living as He did in submission to and trust in the love of God.

This season of Covid-19 has brought untold suffering to everyone on earth, from the loss of simple pleasures like visiting friends, walking the dog, or just freedom of movement, to the ultimate suffering of grief for the loss of family and friends.

How do we react in these circumstances that is different from the world?

Watch “COVID-19 Health Update From Joni Eareckson Tada” on YouTube https://youtu.be/squAX6lV2Aw

This video from Joni Eareckson Tada, recovering from Covid-19, is a beautiful testimony to the way she responded to her suffering.

In the midst of her darkness, the Lord asked her, “Joni, do you trust me?” She responded, “Yes, Lord, I believe.” In the days following this encounter, she developed a strange calmness, “almost an indifference” she said, to what it would feel like and how it would end.

She felt Him drawing her into His shelter and resting under the shadow of the Almighty.

Quoting the writings of another sufferer (I could not identify the name on the video), she said, “When the suffering soul reaches a place of calm, sweet carelessness, when he can inwardly smile at his (own) suffering and not even ask to be delivered, then it begins to work its blessed ministry. Then the cross we are carry begins to weave itself into a crown.”

In conclusion, said Joni,

“When we give our suffering over to God, and sink ourselves into His will, He will make every pain work its divine purpose in our lives.”

“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

James 1:2-4 NLT

Christian Life, ,

SHOULD WE PRAY FOR REVIVAL?

“The word “revival” is from the Hebrew word chayah and means “to bring back to life,” to “restore to consciousness,” or to “restore to a previous condition.” As stated in the Bible, it means a restoration, rejuvenation, or renewal of interest after spiritual neglect, oblivion, or obscurity.” 09 Jan 2018

There are many references to and prayers for revival in the Psalms and Prophets, eg,

“Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you?”

Psalms 85:6 NLT

‘Zion will be restored by justice; those who repent will be revived by righteousness.”

Isaiah 1:27 NLT

but we must remember 2 things:

1. The Israelites in the Old Testament were still dead in their sins and under the Law. Revival relates particularly to what is dead or dying. The Israelites, in the main, were still spiritually dead and it was then, therefore, legitimate to pray that God would revive them.

However, Isaiah’s prophecy quoted, above relates to new birth in the New Covenant.

We live under the New Covenant and must therefore be guided by the writings in the New Testament Scriptures.

2. God’s people are spiritually alive if they have been born again by God’s Spirit. We cannot ask God to make them alive if they are already alive.

“But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.”

Ephesians 2:4-6 NLT

Let’s look at the writings of the Apostles in the New Testament. How did they pray for the church?

Paul based his prayers for the churches on who God is and what He has done for us in Jesus.

1. There is not a single prayer for revival in the New Testament.

The Apostle Paul in particular, ofter wrote about his  prayers for the churches.

2. Paul prayed for God’s people, that they would have spiritual wisdom and insight, enlightenment and understanding about what God had done for them in Jesus.

“Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him… “

Ephesians 1:15-19a NLT

3. Paul prayed that God’s people would know God’s love in all its dimensions.

“When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,  the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.  I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

Ephesians 3:14-19 NLT.

3.Paul prayed and encouraged God’s people to grow in love for one another.

“We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 NLT

4. Paul exhorted the people to continue to grow in their walk with the Lord.

“And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”

Colossians 2:6-7 NLT

5. Paul encouraged the people to move on to maturity through the gifts and ministries of teaching, training and equipping.

“Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.”

Ephesians 4:11-13 NLT

A mature church is a group of people who are

A. Secure in the knowledge and understanding of who Jesus is and who they are in Him so that they can fully trust Him in every circumstance no matter what life throws at them.

B. Doing life together, caring for and serving one another out of, and expressing their love for Jesus by being givers and not takers.

We are mature, then, to the extent that we know God through Jesus and live out in our everyday lives the love and trust that we have in Him.

We express that love and trust by the way that we relate to one another through humility and mutual submission, honouring one another and meeting each other’s needs at our own expense.

Therefore, we all need teaching, correction, encouragement and fellowship to become a fully mature body in the body of Christ. According to Jesus, this is the greatest demonstration to the world of His life in us.” (Taken from my notes on   “Fully Mature”)

7. The Book of Hebrews is full of warnings about turning back to Jewish legalism or falling away through neglect or unbelief.

“So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished. So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak?”

Hebrews 2:1-3 NLT

“Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.”

Hebrews 3:12-14 NLT

“For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come— and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame.”

Hebrews 6:4-6 NLT

7. Jesus (and Jude, His brother) taught His disciples how to live our Christian lives so that we never fall away.

“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me… When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.”

John 15:4, 10 NLT

“But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit,  and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. Jude 1:20-21 NLT

This short note should help you to understand that God’s people who have been made alive by the Holy Spirit when they believed in Jesus, do not need revival. We need to grow in faith and obedience through prayer, exhortation, encouragement, warning, teaching, training and equipping.

We are in a partnership with the Holy Spirit who teaches us about Jesus, leads us into all truth, enlightens us through the Word, strengthens us to obey and matures us in our faith and love.

Therefore, true prayer in the New Covenant is not about praying for revival but praying that God’s people will grow in their understanding of who the Father is, what He has done for us through the Son, who the Holy Spirit is and what He does in us through our faith in Jesus so that, we can become mature in faith and love.

NAOS – THAT PART OF THE TEMPLE WHERE GOD HIMSELF RESIDES

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NAOS – THAT PART OF THE TEMPLE WHERE GOD HIMSELF RESIDES

Right from the beginning of His public ministry, Jesus made His mission known. To the religious leaders, who challenged Him, He responded….

… “Destroy this temple (naos), and in three days I will raise it up.”

John 2:18-19 NLT

Jesus specifically used the Greek word, “naos” for “temple” which John interpreted to mean His body as the “naos” which, according to Strong’s concordance, means ‘the shrine… that part of the temple where God Himself resides.’

What an awesome thought! From the moment of His conception, Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, took on a body which became the temple in which God resided. He took on a human name, Jesus, as well. Now both His body and His name are part of His human identity forever.

When Jesus ascended into heaven in His resurrected body, He did not shed that body and become pure spirit again. Paul tells us that it is “the man, Christ (His official title and office) Jesus (His human name which means  ‘Saviour’),” who is the Mediator between God and man.

His full name is “the Lord Jesus Christ”, signifying everything that He is now, in His glorified person – the Lord (Supreme Authority), Jesus (the Man) Christ (Messiah, the Anointed One).

Who Jesus is now, the God/man in a resurrection body, acting for us as mediator and high priest, has huge implications for us as believers.

Firstly, according to Paul, we are now the “naos” in which God resides in the person of the Holy Spirit. Just as the Holy Spirit lived in Jesus here in earth, so now He lives in us.

“19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple (naos) of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So, you must honour God with your body.”

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT

Secondly, Paul made it clear {to the Corinthian Church} that Jesus rose from the dead as the first fruits of the resurrection, guaranteeing the full harvest of all who believe in Him when He returns. His resurrection is the victory over the last enemy, death, and spells the final judgment and punishment of Satan and his demons in the lake of fire.

Not only does Jesus’ resurrection guarantee ours but His resurrection body is also the blueprint for our resurrection bodies. John tells us…

“Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.”

1 John 3:2 NLT

How do we know that our resurrection bodies will be exactly like Jesus’ body?

“35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” … 49 Just as we are now like the earthly man (Adam) , we will someday be like the heavenly man, (Jesus) …

51 But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! 52 It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. 53 For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.”

1 Corinthians 15:35, 49, 51-53 NLT

The writer to the Hebrews assures us that God’s plan is to restore the family likeness to Jesus, the Son in all God’s children…

“10 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. 11 Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.”

Heb. 2:10-11 NIV

During  the time of the Old Covenant, no one was able to see God’s face and live. God shielded Moses from the sight of His glory by hiding him in the cleft of a rock.

“20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”

Exodus 33:20 NIV

However, in the New Covenant, we shall see Jesus face to face, we shall see and hear with heightened awareness all the sights and sounds of God’s realm. It will be quite a noisy place according to John’s visions in Revelation!!

Look at what Paul has to say about “now” and “then”.

“12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”

1 Cor. 13:12 NIV

There are also implications for us in this life because we have this hope of resurrection bodies and perfected minds and senses and the likeness to Jesus as perfect sons. Our time on earth and the lives we live now are an  “apprenticeship” for the life to come.

1. We are to honour God with our bodies.

… “God bought you with a high price. So you must honour God with your body.”

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT

2. We are to purify ourselves

“2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.”

1 John 3:2-3 NIV

“Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”

2 Cor. 7:1 NIV

3. We are to persevere…

“23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful…”

4. And we are to encourage and build one another up…

“… 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Heb. 10:23-25 NIV

Not even our wildest imagination will be able to conjures up what God has in store for us.

“9 However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him— 10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.”

1 Cor. 2:9-10 NIV

In response to all the glorious promises God has given us and the changes that await us, through Jesus’ death and resurrection, Paul burst out…

“33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counsellor?” 35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”

36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Romans 11:33-36 NIV

And with David, we respond…

“17 How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! 18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand— when I awake, I am still with you.”

Psalm 139:17-18 NIV

“20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”

Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV