Trumpets, Please

"For the trumpet will sound,
and the dead will be raised imperishable,
and this mortal body
     must put on the imperishable,
and this mortal body
     must put on immortality.
(1Corinthians 15:52b-52

Big words contain BIG things.

Imperishable: Not subject to decay, 
indestructible, enduring permanently.

Immortal: Unlimited existence, exempt
from death and annihilation. Having
life or being that will never end.

Here on earth the seed becomes a flower,
but it may be gone by evening. The
caterpillar becomes a butterfly that will
die four days later. But, when Jesus
comes into our lives eternal life comes
with Him. At just the right moment we
will rise to become what we truly are:
An imperishable, immortal, eternal being!

Show us Papa! Awaken our hearts to
embrace your plan for us. I don't want
to live in the dust when I have the
ability to fly!

Thankfulness Corner
Flowers dipping heads over newly planted pots

It Could Happen Tomorrow!

The pause ends. The organist begins to pull out
all the stops. Sound builds...Suddenly, I hear a
trumpet...

"Behold, I tell you a mystery.
We shall not all sleep,
but, we shall all be changed,
in a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trumpet..."
(1Corinthians 15:51

What a verse!!!! When the Bible speaks of
a mystery, it refers to something hidden. Paul
says that something is coming this way. In a
split second we will all be changed at the
sound of the trumpet. God does not work
out of an evolutionary process.

There will be a generation that will hear the
sound of a trumpet.

It could happen tomorrow!

Thanksgiving Corner:
A glorious day!

A Pregnant Pause

Paul is going great guns and then it seems he changes the
subject. It seems out of place but it is not:

"I tell you this, brothers; flesh and blood cannot inherit
the Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit
the imperishable. (1Corinthians 15:50)

Ah, there is a catch is there not? We must be born from
above in order to get into this Kingdom.

"Jesus answered him (Nicodemus), 'Truly, truly I say
unto you, unless one is born again he cannot see the
Kingdom of God.'" (John 3:3)

Jesus entered into death for us; we must enter into
His death in order to live. We lose in order to gain.
What a messy, unyielding, unpopular message!

Search all the religions of the world and you will not
find a single one that teaches that death and surrender
is the only way to have Eternal Life. Christianity is
not for the fainthearted. Even many who call
themselves Christians expect that doing good works
will get them into heaven.

Dearest reader, I pray that you may be able to grasp the
truth of what the scripture has said today. Your life
depends on it. The hope presented in the 15th
chapter of First Corinthians rests on the verses above.

Thankfulness Corner:
Constantly changing shadows over face of mountains

Every Stock of Corn

We are in a stunning passage. Paul lays the foundation
for the most incredible news. Go slowly through the
following verses:

"Thus it is written, "The first man Adam became a 
living being; the last Adam became a life giving spirit."

"First the natural, and then the spiritual."

"The first man was from the earth a man of dust;
the second man is from heaven..."

Drum Roll!

"Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust,
we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven."

Paul gives us a clear picture of what we can expect
because of what we see in visible pictures everyday.
Do you not get it? Every stalk of corn is a visible
picture of our coming transformation! And, I have
hundreds of them to watch...

Thanksgiving Corner
The sound of the wind rushing, rushing

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Raised to New Life

Yesterday we saw how a bare seed becomes a life
giving plant. In verse 42, Paul says it will happen to
us also:

"...So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is:

Sown perishable         is raised imperishable
Sown in dishonor       is raised in glory
Sown in weakness      is raised in power
Sown a natural body   is raised in a spiritual body"

My body sags, wrinkles and runs down, but one day I
will have an imperishable, glorious, powerful, spiritual
body! It will not wear out or get tired. Death at the end
of this life is not the end, but the beginning.
Hallelujah!

Thankfulness corner:
Ugly seeds ready for the soil, sun

Death BEFORE Life

I left you Friday with a question: Life and then
death; or death before life?

Paul puts it this way:

"You fool! What you sow does not come to life
unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body
that is to be, but a bare kernel." 
(1Corinthians 15:36,37)

Wow, strong language! He calls them fools as
if it should be obvious. Well, it is obvious every
spring when crops are planted. Several weeks
ago a farmer took kernels of corn and planted
them. Bare things. Dead looking. But, today I
see rows of green leaves. If I were to dig one up
I would not be abel to find the seed. The seed died
and gave itself up for the life of the plant.

Dear reader, this grabs me today. Over and over
scripture teaches us that death leads to life, not
the other way around. It begins with the death
and then the resurrection of Jesus. When we die
to our plans, purposes, strength and resources,
God raises us up in a new way. The dying part, the
surrender is so difficult for me. I want a break, yes,
I do! God and I are having quite a conversation
right now. You may not need to be in this scripture,
but I certainly do!

It gets better. I promise you it does!

Thankfulness Corner:
The song of a single robin.

Big Question

"How are the dead raised?
With what kind of body do they come?"

Paul's response: "You foolish person!
What you sow does not come to life
unless it dies."

Do you get this? Death comes before life!
We say life comes before death!

So, which is it? Good question.

Until next time...

Thanksgiving Corner:
Crisp clear days

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