The Death of The Saints

    

    King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes, "To everything there is a season....a time to be born, a time to die...". We celebrate the births and mourn the deaths. Yet when a saint dies, we should celebrate that death, for they have been called home. Coming home after a long journey is always cause for happy times.

~It is a time of rest; of laying aside the cares of our days.

~It is a time of peace, never to know pain, sorrow, anxiety again.

~It is a time of joy; of being received into the everlasting arms of Jesus and God.

~The death of the saints is a time of temporary sorrow, grief and mourning on our part (though it may feel as if it will last forever), for we will miss them during our lifetime here, but it is with great joy that we know that we will see them again in heaven.

~Psalm 116:15 "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints."

    The births that get celebrated in the kingdom of God are the new births in Christ: the adoptee into God's family through the blood of His only begotten Son, Who died on the cross to pay for our sins. For it is only through the blood that the adoption process can begin.

1. We need to believe that Jesus Christ died for us. That He conquered/overcame, death, hell and the grave when He walked out of the tomb in which He was buried.

2. We need to acknowledge our sins to God, repenting of them (turn away from them and never do them again). It's not enough to have a changed life, we need a changed heart, as well.

3. We need to ask for God's Holy Spirit to come into our lives, to make us the holy people God commands us to be. For we cannot be made holy by doing anything mere man tells us to do: it's all God.

4. We need to be baptized publicly: making a bold statement to the world that we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord of all and now He is Lord of the one who has been baptized.

5. We need to follow the lead of The Holy Spirit of God: not just reading our Bibles every day, but studying The Word, as well. Knowing that when we understand what we have been studying, we can then apply it to our lives. Without The Holy Spirit it is impossible to live a God-filled life, a changed life. A life that is lived for Jesus must have Jesus in it.

    This is how we come into God's family. This is our adoption process. We are the lineage of Abraham: children of righteousness, people of faith and trust in God. Not only are we grafted into The Vine, but we are now in God's family tree. We are the planting of The Lord, trees of righteousness.

Believe it. Receive it. Live it.

I WILL RAISE IN LIFE TRIUMPHANT

by Mary Barker Spencer

1. The tree of life’s still standing and all who will may eat.

Come and dine is still the call. The place is Jesus' feet.

The crimson cleansing fountain yet is flowing from His side.

His holiness still beckons us to heed His humble cry.

-chorus-

I will raise in life triumphant!

I will let hosannas roll!

I will drink that Living Water that shall ever flood my soul!

I will worship crying, "Holy"!

For worthy is The Lamb

Slain from the foundation of the world

Just so I can. 2. Oh grave, where is your victory? Oh death, where is your sting?

For the God of all creation has swallowed you to bring

My life to me immortal back with Him from Calvary.

In the valley of the shadow there’s a brilliant light for me!

-chorus-

I will raise in life triumphant!

I will let hosannas roll!

I will drink that Living Water that shall ever flood my soul!

I will worship crying, "Holy"!

For worthy is The Lamb

Slain from the foundation of the world

Just so I can.

The Blessed Event

      There are no Christian holidays. There are two days we as Christians should celebrate: the day we are born-again into the kingdom of God and the day we die. Both are celebrations of Life Eternal, a truly blessed event. 

     That being said, tradition has ingrained in me the desire to celebrate stolen holidays, like Christmas and Easter, though I no longer call it Easter (to me and many like me Easter is now Resurrection Sunday). And while our children are grown and our nest is empty, Christmas is the one holiday I do really get into. I love finding just the right gift for a person. I love the way faces light up, if I get to see them open their presents. I love the, "Wow! Thanks" I get when an unexpected guest or two show up and are handed a gift. I love giving, for that is how I express my love for my family and my friends at Christmastime.

     Christmas is a shortened word meaning "Christ's Mass" the term a Catholic priest gave it when the church was empty during the winter solstice. (see Britannica: Christmas origins for more).

     I made the mistake with my first born son of leading him to believe Santa was a real person, because that's how I grew up. Big Mistake. Because when he was old enough to go school he was informed Santa was not real. And I had to explain the symbolism behind it. I did not make that mistake with the next two. I raised them on practicality and Jesus' birth. 

     But if you look at the setting of the story of the nativity, the Word was not born in the wintertime. It rains in Israel during the winter months, most of the time. Mary being nine months pregnant would not have ridden any animal on the journey. I imagine Joseph being a carpenter would have handy a small cart of some type and size. There Mary would be able to travel better. 

     On the night of Christ's birth, it wasn't raining. We know this because a star like no other shone in the night sky, big and bright and unusual enough to draw people to the stable, a dark cave-like place where the animals were penned in. 

     Angels suddenly appeared in a clear night sky where shepherds were out in the fields guarding their sheep. In the wintertime these same shepherds would have been closer to home and the sheep would have wintered safely in stables or larger buildings. But on this night they were out in the fields. 

     We don't need to know the date of Christ's birth. It is enough that we know He died on the cross, that His blood washes away our sins when we repent, that God forgives us when we seek His forgiveness, that Jesus rose from the dead and walked out of the grave into eternity. It is enough to know that Jesus Christ stands at the right hand of His Father interceding on our behalf. It is enough that the precious gift of God, the Holy Spirit, fills us with power to preach the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. It is enough that this same Holy Spirit leads us and guides us through a life lived according to God's Word. 

     That's my Christmas. That's my Jesus. That's what I celebrate. Every day of my life. 

     Do I wish you a Merry Christmas? Do I say Happy Holidays? How am I to greet people now? What should I say? 

Happy Joy of The Lord to you. And what response might expect? The same back to me with joyful exultation. Happy Joy of the Lord to you!!

Luke 15:10

Ecclesiastes 7:1

Luke 2:1-20

Matthew 1:18-25, 2:1-11

John 3:16-17

Acts 2:1-41

Galatians 5