The End is Near!
What a headline! What a title for a sermon! Doom and gloom? No way. Not in Christ. [@more@]Eph.1:3 says “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.” Doesn’t sound like death and devastation for those who are in Christ.
Paul said it this way in Romans 2: 9-11, “There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also to the Greek, but glory and honor, and peace to every man who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Knowing that we are saved by grace through faith and not of our own works; that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. The paycheck for sin is death but God gives the free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus. Our life in Christ goes on.
In 1 Corinthians 15:51-55, Paul begins to prophecy most beautifully, “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, for the trumpet will sound , and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable and mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying, that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory. Oh death, where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting?”
The devil thought it was the end when Jesus took His last breath on the cross. The disciples had fled and those at the foot of the cross, heard Jesus say “It is finished.” The sky turned black as midnight and the earth shook. But we know it wasn’t over. It was only the beginning of a new life in Christ Jesus. The Bible tells us that we are new creatures in Christ, old things have passed away and all things have become new!
……to be continued.
Rev. Tura Zapata, Texas, USA