Posted by Charlie on Dec 21, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: John 9, 10, 11
“For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
John 10:17-18
Observation
In Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis concluded that Jesus was either the genuine Son of God or he was a nut case, but could not be both. In today’s passage Jesus makes a bold claim that would fall into one of the two categories Lewis described.
Application
Anyone has the power to lay his or her life down, but I’ve yet to meet anyone who has the power to take it back up, which leads to the central question of Christianity: Did Jesus indeed rise from the dead? If not, then we poor Christ-followers are a pathetic, deceived lot. If he did rise from the tomb as the Bible claims, then it has far-reaching ramifications for every human being, and to shrug it off is done at one’s own peril.
For me as a believer it has serious ramifications as well. If Jesus is alive as Scripture proclaims, then his promised abiding presence should be making a marked difference in my daily life. Let’s see, he is everywhere-present, all-knowing, and all-powerful, having disarmed spiritual powers and authorities. That knowledge alone, if truly embraced, puts an entirely new spin on life.
Prayer
Jesus, thank you for your position of power, authority, and sovereignty over this universe. Please help me to live today with a greater awareness of your real presence, and the ability to respond to your promises with genuine faith. Amen!
Tags: authority, resurrection
Posted by Charlie on Oct 7, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: Ezra 7, 8; Luke 20
And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
Luke 20:34-36
Observation
Life is full of many mysteries, not the least of which is death and resurrection. This passage in Luke 20 is one of the strongest teachings on future resurrection in Scripture, and was a pointed refutation of the Sadducees’ errant doctrine which denied the existence of spirits, angels, and the resurrection of the dead.
Application
In a world subject to decay with a body that is moving that direction as well, this is a comforting passage. If we are to believe Jesus at all, eternal life is an undeniable reality. We do not yet see what we shall be, but it will be enduring, not subject to decay, and of different substance than what we are now.
Prayer
Thank you for the assurance that I belong to you, Lord Jesus, and that you have a hope and a future for me that include, but extend beyond this life. Please guide me in your ways, grant me wisdom, and hold me in your care today. In your holy name, amen.
Tags: angels, eternal life, resurrection
Posted by Charlie on Jul 16, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: Isaiah 25,26,27,28; Hebrews 13
Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.
You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!
For your dew is a dew of light,
and the earth will give birth to the dead.
Isaiah 26:19
Observation
This is one of those passages that carries both a metaphorical and literal sense. God is speaking hope to a nation that has gone astray by declaring that they will be restored, but he also is asserting the reality of a future physical resurrection for all human beings. Long before we reach the teachings of Jesus and Paul, Daniel 12:2 reinforces this truth: “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.
Yesterday my daughter, Allison, made an amazing observation. She said, “Many people think because they’ve lived a generally good life they will be going to heaven. But,” she observed, “that presupposes heaven is a place where basically good people go. But what is heaven? Heaven is where God is. If a person has spent his or her entire life avoiding relationship with God, what makes them think they will want to be in the place where God is after they die?”
Application
God wired me to be a relational being. First and foremost, I’m made for relationship with him. In fact, he’s so committed to relationship with me that he personally paid the entire penalty for my violations of his commandments through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross. Jesus came, died, rose again, and lives specifically so that I can live forever in a close love relationship with God. That’s the entire reason Jesus came.
The most important thing all human beings need from day to day is hope. Today I cling to the hope of the Gospel. Jesus is precisely who the Bible claims he is. He provides salvation from ultimate death, deliverance from the powers of darkness, strength for living, and hope for a glorious future.
He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
Isaiah 25:8
Prayer
Father, thank you that my hope is real. Today I place the full weight of my trust in you. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Tags: eternity, hope, resurrection
Posted by Charlie on May 15, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: 1 Chronicles 25, 26, 27; 1 Thessalonians 4
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.
1Th. 4:16–18
Observation
Death seems so final on the surface. I’ve done quite a few funerals over the years, and it is always a time of loss, letting go, and grieving.
Paul is probably responding to a report that one of the Thessalonians has died since Paul was in Thessalonica, and the fledgling believers are shocked and confused about the loss. He responds with an encouragement that death is not the finale. We will, in fact, be together again with the Lord someday.
This is not a minor debatable doctrine, by the way. Christianity, according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, rises or falls on the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead. Jesus put an end to the question with his own resurrection, which is the first fruits of our own future hope.
Application
Yesterday evening I visited my mother, who has Alzheimer’s. Dad passed away last June in her presence, and yesterday she had no recollection of his passing. “Have you heard from your father lately?” she is prone to ask. Last night she said, “Someone just told me that he may not be living any more,” and her face clouded.
“No Mom, we lost him last June. You were here with him when he died. You’ve just forgotten,” I replied.
She’ll probably ask again where he is, and again I’ll probably tell her he’s having a reunion with his brother and parents. Paul says that we don’t grieve like those who have no hope. We have a hope that is real. I’ll get to be with my dad again someday, together with the Lord.
Prayer
Father, thank you for giving me such a strong assurance that I matter to you and that this world isn’t the end of the story. Thank you that my departed loved ones are safe in your care. Please be near to my mother, in whatever way she can know your presence. Please comfort her heart in her loss, and keep her in your loving arms. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Tags: death, hope, loss, resurrection, sorrow
Posted by Charlie on May 11, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: 2 Samuel 19, 20; Psalm 55; Matthew 28
But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”
Matthew 28:5–6
Observation
Without doubt, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the most amazing events in history (possibly eclipsed only by the creation of the universe). Jesus did many astounding things during the course of his ministry, including the raising of the dead, but his own powerful resurrection demonstrates that he has life in himself, something no one else on earth can claim.
Application
This was a confusing time for the disciples. I appreciate the frankness of verse 17: “When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.” Jesus stretches the limits of my understanding and life experience too. Like his disciples, sometimes my head swims at wonder at the Gospel.
The proof of the pudding, though, is in the eating. His disciples soon discovered that the resurrection of Jesus Christ has the power to change lives forever, and that has been borne out in my life as well. When you have experienced the power of Jesus’ resurrection in a way that alters your life forever, the reasonableness of the resurrection increases exponentially.
Prayer
Thank you Jesus, that by your mighty power you have made my broken life whole in ways that astound and amaze me. Thank you for delivering my life from demonic garbage that was too strong for me, but wasn’t for you. Please grant that the power of your resurrection will continue to shape and change me. Please be with me and my loved ones today, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Tags: change, doubt, power, resurrection
Posted by Charlie on Mar 5, 2009 in
Devotions Scripture: Deuteronomy 1, 2; Mark 12
“But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ ? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken.”
Mark 12:26–27
Observation
The Sadducees were a small but influential sect who were rivals to the Pharisees on a variety of doctrinal and practical issues, which included a denial of angels, the soul, and resurrection of the dead to an afterlife.
In Mark 12 some Sadducees pose a purely theoretical question to Jesus in an attempt to mire him in a doctrinal quagmire. Jesus doesn’t take the bait, and fires back a blunt response: “Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?” Jesus then gives one of the clearest statements in scripture regarding the future resurrection of the dead, and seals it with a quote from Exodus that proves his point.
Application
Yesterday I served as a military chaplain for a committal service at Willamette National Cemetery. Committing a dead body to the ground has to be one of the most seemingly final acts possible on this planet. The thought of a reunion or a future life can seem a bit pie in the sky at a moment like this. Yet Jesus is clear in his assertion that I need to understand the power of God and the Scriptures.
Jesus, the Risen One, says, “Oh yes there is life to come. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” Therefore we don’t grieve like others who have no hope. Christianity rises and falls on the issue of the resurrection. Jesus is risen, and is our assurance that we are to follow.
Prayer
Thank you for the assurance of life to come. I trust you that you are able to keep that which I entrust to you. Thank you that I will see loved ones again, and that I have hope of eternity with you. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Tags: hope, resurrection
