Let’s keep our hearts in God’s heart,
Today a friend asked me a good question. “Gene, do you believe that humans that do not have Jesus as Lord will suffer eternally in flames?” That is a common belief among some Christians.
The grave below,
And timeless, breathless,
There we sleep,
Not ‘wake or restless
In the deep.
Though worm decay
All back to dust,
There is a day
That all can trust.
We sorrow not
At death’s great loss
As others caught
Who feel the cost.
For we have hope
In Christ’s return,
An anchor rope
We hold and yearn.
In twinkling eye
And trumpet blast
Up in the sky
At one at last
Our Lord will come
And raise us all
To take us home
At his clear call.
Death now sets free
Its stinging pain,
The grave–
no victory remains.
For we’re steadfast
In our Lord’s words,
Knowing at last
We’ve great rewards!
Psalms 118:24:
The context of this verse is the coming Messiah, who would be Jesus Christ, our Lord. We rejoice this day because God sent His Son to save us! The two Hebrew words, rejoice [gheel] and be glad [saw-makh’], are used together 25 times in the Old Testament. The word gheel means to “spin around with emotion” and the word saw-makh’ means to “brighten up or shine.” Today we can spin joyfully and shine forth with the good news of Christ our Lord.
Here are some places where God puts these two ideas together.
1 Chronicles 16:31:
Let the heavens BE GLAD, and let the earth REJOICE: and let men say among the nations, The LORD reigneth.
All the heavens and earth are glad and rejoice because the Lord will help mankind.
Psalms 16:9-11:
Therefore my heart IS GLAD, and my glory REJOICETH: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
This is quoted on Pentecost about Jesus Christ. Hebrews 12:2,3 says it was the hope of being raised that gave him the endurance to overcome the cross. Jesus now enjoys the “fulness of joy” at the Father’s right hand. And we will join him in new spiritual bodies someday.
Psalms 31:7:
I will BE GLAD and REJOICE in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities.
Even though we mess up and get ourselves into trouble [or feel the brunt of Satan’s attacks in this fallen world], God always “considers” our trouble and listens to our soul’s heart cry when we are in adversity. His mercy and forgiveness are something to rejoice and be glad about!
Psalms 149:2:
Let Israel REJOICE [BE GLAD] in him that made him: let the children of Zion BE JOYFUL [REJOICE] in their King.
This is near the close of Psalms and reminds us that God made us to fellowship with Him. AND we are joyful in the “King,” the promised Messiah who saved us.
Isaiah 25:8,9:
He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.
And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will BE GLAD and REJOICE in his salvation.
Amazing! This is quoted in I Corinthians 15 about the return of Christ. Like the people Isaiah spoke to, we too “have waited for him” knowing that Jesus HAS saved us and WILL return to complete our salvation in him. We are truly glad and rejoice in our salvation now, and in the great hope of future joy together with him throughout eternity.
Our Father will continue to do GREAT THINGS FOR US!
Joel 2:21:
Fear not, O land; BE GLAD and REJOICE: for the LORD will do great things.
Amen. I love you.
God wants us to finish strong in this race of life. During the nearly 20 full marathons I’ve done, I often remember getting past the 20-mile mark and growing tired. It would be easy to stop and say I’d done enough. But with God’s help, I summoned the resolve to pick up the pace and run strong across the finish line. The same is true as we live each day, knowing Christ could return for us at any moment. The finish line could be now or years later.
I lost a friend this morning. I knew him briefly at a local church. He was vibrant, loving, and kind. I will miss him. I do believe that prayer is vital while we are on earth. I continue to pray for his wife and family. This morning I was comforted by my Father’s love and truth. I’ve been reading five psalms each day—here is what I read this morning.
Have you ever read a book or watched a movie—and you skipped to the last chapter or watched the last five minutes? It just seems to take all of the tension and worry out of the adventure. Sometimes, that’s a good thing.
I remember some pretty cold mornings getting up for school in the middle of a Missouri winter. My Mom’s loving voice let us know it was “time to get up.” After being asleep, it was worth the effort to “rise and shine” and get into the day. When Christ comes back, the “asleep” in Christ are going to get up. And believers who are alive will also get up with new spiritual bodies.
I went for a run yesterday to the top of our hill. Which is like a small mountain. It was a sunny day with ocean views and beautiful flowering plants and even some nice people to meet.
I was feeling pretty good at about the 20-mile mark of the Columbus Marathon. It was invigorating to have just run through a part of the “shoe,” The Ohio State football stadium which is shaped like a horseshoe. As I continued on the course, I saw a man sitting beside the road who seemed to be “out of it.” When I stopped to help him, I noticed a scripture reference on his headband: Hebrews 12:1,2.