The Return of Christ Part 2

“So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 1 Corinthians 15: 54

Freud was wrong when he said: “And finally there is the painful riddle of death, for which no remedy at all has yet been found, nor probably ever will be.” Compare that with Paul’s triumphant declaration, Death is swallowed up in victory! David Guzik

For everyone who has been forgiven by God, physical death is but a beautiful door to the bliss of being with our incredible Savior forever in absolute perfection and joy. Death is truly “swallowed up in victory.” We lose sight of this reality when we in our short-sightedness focus on the temporary rather than the eternal. “…For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18 Whether we leave this life by Christ coming to take us to Heaven, or by way of the death of this body, our ability to embrace “death is swallowed up in victory” will be determined by whether we spend our days pursuing the “transient,” or if we delight in the “eternal.” What does your day look like?

This Thursday morning we will be wrapping up our look at the return of Christ. I’m looking forward to next Thursday morning when we have the blessing of hearing from Ernie Zarra as he helps us understand current trends in our society from a Biblical perspective (like eternal perspective :)). Feel free to invite your friends for this special time of teaching on April 7th.

For our dear ladies online. We THINK we have the issues resolved with Livestream. However, if we cannot get the Live video to work, we will be recording it and our tech guy will post it later. I’m sorry that the live recordings we have done for the past 3 weeks have disappeared into the atmosphere. Thank you for your patience.

The Return of Christ Part 1

“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.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

The following quote from John MacArthur says well the trap we can easily fall into in the study of the return of Christ, as well as, all other future events.

“The study of the end times is the consuming passion of many in the church today. Sensational best-selling authors argue that current events fulfill their often dubious interpretations of biblical prophecy. Tragically, some people get so caught up in the study of eschatology that they neglect the basic principles of spiritual growth and evangelism that the Second Coming is designed to motivate.” Have you found yourself in this mindset?

Thursday morning we will be encouraging one another concerning this subject. For those of you who watch online, we have had a problem the past two weeks that we are still working on resolving.

Sanctified Living Part 2

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31

While recently studying and meditating on the bottom line of what a life set apart (sanctified) for God practically looks like, I have settled on this verse in 1 Corinthians as being a great, concise and direct picture of such a soul. The self-focused and independent nature that we naturally possess continually functions contrary to the ways of God. Maybe that does not seem like such a big offense, but, when we realize God always has plans to prosper our souls, then choosing any other way diminishes the flourishing of our lives while it also dishonors the God who loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die for our wrong choices of thought and deed. Ultimately, can we say that everything about our lives has to do with God, whether we are aware of that fact, or not? “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

I want to discuss these thoughts with you Thursday morning during our Ladies Bible Study at 9:30. Study 1 Thessalonians 4 and come prepared to contribute to a time of discussion and encouragement to live wholeheartedly for God.

We will be live on Livestream (discoverybaptist.org) and also our study is archived there if you are unable to be with us in person.