Here’s a thought on John 17, you know, as far as the preciousness of the scripture. I was just incredibly comforted one night, I couldn’t sleep, with those words in John 17. “Father I desire that those whom thou has given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory.” And, I mean… that that would be the Lord’s desire. Why would He desire that? How is it that He desires us!? To be with Him! How is it that He desires us!? To be with Him! The likes of us, but that is His desire, He desires that.
When we think about any hesitation or any reluctance about the hereafter or any prayer against it, or something like that, we may be praying against the Lord’s prayer. That’s ultimate, He’s praying His people into heaven. And that He wants us to be with Him, it’s just incredible… That He wants us to be were He is.
I remember one time we were staying with my parents they said “Why don’t we keep the children and you and Terri go to the motel.” And it was enjoyable to get alone, but in another way, you know, we missed the children. We wanted them to be with us where we were. And that must be infinitely more with the Lord. And then that He said that He wants us to be where he is. Why? That we may behold His glory. I mean… what, what is it going to be? This display of God’s glory must be, it must be way beyond our imagination, and it’s going to be so great. That is going to be part of the penalty for the wicked, they shall be banished from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. (1 Thes 1:9) Shall I say, they’re going to miss the show. That is going to be part of their regrets. But we will see Him, like He is, and see His glory. And be forever with Him. I think it’s just some of the most precious words in scripture.
I can say since I’ve learned about this cancer, I’ve come to appreciate more of what the Lord did on the Cross. I mean, when He accomplished redemption, when He put away our sins. When He secured immortality for us. It’s just shouting ground. That in the end the Lord has done, He’s done it so well that He is going to make, in the end, everything well. Everythings going to be ok. All things for us. Like it says of David. “David recovered all.” And here we are, we will recover all. And the Lord has so abolished death, that He’s just made for us, death is just called sleep. I said to Terri, “You know we’ve said goodnight many times to one another.” “And then we go to sleep.” We’ve done it many times. And the Lord calls it sleep. Nothing to bad about sleep. A complete salvation, a full salvation, even the bodies included. I can remember as a new Christian when it dawned on me, when I saw that the Lord is going to raise our body up, going to glorify our body too. That seemed like… It’s seems so kind of the Lord, to be that thorough, that complete. Salvation that full. “To the uttermost.”
Ya. The thing’s, you’ve asked me these questions, I give these responses you know. In a way it’s nothing new, we all know these things, every Christian, it’s nothing new. I don’t have, I don’t have any special insight.
When you know, whether the Lord gives you the twelve years or He doesn’t. That days going to come when your family and your friends, the ones that survive you, are going to gather together. Or even in years to come, this is a reality for each one of us. Our family that goes on beyond us, our children and their children. Their going to gather together and they’re going to remember dad. Their going to remember grandpa, they’re going to remember their pastor, their friend. Husband. What I’m wondering in this question, what rushes into your mind when I ask you the question. “How do you want to be remembered?”
I think every Christian would like to be remembered… as a lover of Christ. You know seven of eight years ago we started this farming, this produce farming. You know, here’s some pictures of me standing behind the tractor or something like that. You don’t want to be remembered for that. You don’t want to be remembered for that kind of… that’s just nothing. You want to be remembered as a follower of the Lamb. You want to be remembered that your life was all about Him.
The different descriptions, you know, in the bible Barnabas was a good man full of faith and the Holy Spirit All those things could be said. “A friend of God a man after God’s own heart, what titles.
There you are. Yep. It’s something isn’t it. Really that’s all we have, all we have is the Lord. I mean when were in a world where sin and death are reigning Its just gonna peal, strip away from us are most intimate, are most intimate relationships, I mean are wife, are children. Everythings gonna be striped and that’s really all we have is Christ Colossians 3:11 Christ is all.
But you want to be able to say goodbye to your loved ones with everything clean everything clear and no regrets. You know no bad feelings no bitterness. That’s gotta be big. It’s not hard at all thinking about going to heaven Philippians 1, that’s gain. What’s hard is the thought of saying goodbye to earth. Paul said that too “I have a desire to stay for fruitful ministry.” It is a strange reality admittedly in the last 3 months that no more Like the old puritains said on the gallows fairwell sun fair well moon fair well stars of light Fairwell to this and that and everything It’s just you cannot describe it you cant sum it up life is so precious, and your relationships and friendships are so precious. There is no way you can sum it up. But all you can do is is just fall in the arms of Christ and say Lord your will be done. He’s destined us not for wrath but for glory. I said to Terri “Will you promise me that if I die before you, to not weep, to not weep too much, cause we sorrow not like those who have no hope.” I told her I want you to go on rejoicing in Christ that’s what I want.
And you think of Paul he says “That I might finish my course with joy.” That’s amazing he could have said other things with peace or love probably theres verses in the bible that would bring that out too that stands out in Acts 20: “That I may finish my course with joy.” It’s a pretty good test, apparently, as to how we could finish our course. He didn’t talk about dying with remorse and griefs and regrets and all of that, but finish my course with joy
You know one other thing that has occurred to me too is, like in 2 Samuel 7, the Lord tells David when your life is completed you’ll lie down, I’ll raise up another. It just, it just amazes me that… all the more thinking about… God being so powerful that it doesn’t bother Him to take one away, perhaps in the prime of life, and raise up another. I mean it’s like the Lord isn’t wearied in building men, He delights in building men.
You think of somebody, some great man of God. You know here’s a John Calvin, why at age 58, or whatever he was. Look at of the flow of life and truth that was coming out of him. And the Lord could of healed him, but he didn’t. And especially with the Lord Jesus, who was, the perfect servant. And yet He was cut off at an early age out of the land of the living. But the greatness of God in just… easily, raising up other men. Building other men.
