The Purpose of Resurrection

In my message last week I mentioned that Hosea was one of the prophets who foretold the suffering, death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

“After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight” (Hosea 6:2, NKJV).

The above verse indicates that we are included in the resurrection of Christ. God helping me, I try to answer the following questions:

What is the purpose of being included in the Resurrection of Christ? What are the conditions by which we have the assurance of resurrection? What are the blessings of the Resurrection of Christ?

Assurance of our Resurrection

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:4 – 6, emphasis added).

Notice the above verses are in the past-tense indicating what Christ had already done for us! All we need to do is to enter into the promised blessing of sitting “together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” by faith.

The Old Creation and the New Creation

The Resurrection of Christ separates the New and the Old creation.

“And so it is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being.’ The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven” (1 Cor. 15:45 – 47, emphasis added).

Paul contrasts the first man (Adam) and the second Man (Last Adam). Jesus Christ is the Last Adam or the second Man. He is the Lord from heaven.

As the Last Adam, Christ exhausted the entire evil inheritance that came upon the whole Adamic race, through the sin of rebellion of Adam and Eve. When Jesus Christ rose from the dead 3 days later as the second Man (Last Adam), he became the Head of the new race. This is the purpose of God – through the death and resurrection of Christ to put an end to the Adamic inheritance and sealed it off by His death. By the resurrection of Christ, God opened the way, for those who believed, into a new race which Jesus Christ is the Head.

The Emmanuel Race

The new race which Jesus Christ is the Head is the Emmanuel (Immanuel) Race – or “God with us” race. The way by which every human being enters into the new race in Christ, is by being begotten again (or born again) by the Spirit of God:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3, NKJV, emphasis added).

Jesus Christ becomes the source of life for everyone who believes because of the resurrection of Christ. No resurrection, no life; only the Emmanuel Race has life! Christ is our life!

“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:1 – 4, emphasis added).

Notice the wonderful assurance given to us, being the member of the Emmanuel Race – “Your life is hidden with Christ in God”!

Because the Emmanuel Race bears the image of the heavenly Man (Christ) (1 Cor. 15:49) we are being comforted:

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Cor. 4:16).

Resurrection and Justification

“And he (Abraham) believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6, emphasis added).

As believers in the New Covenant, if we believe with the same kind of faith that Abraham had, then it would be credited to us for righteousness just as it was to Abraham:

“He (Abraham) did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convince that what He had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore ‘it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification” (Romans 4:20 – 25, emphasis added).

Therefore through believing in Christ’s resurrection we are made righteous and received full justification.

There are two aspects of transaction of justification and righteousness:

1. By His death Christ paid the full and final penalty for our sins. So, God’s justice was satisfied by the death of Jesus on our behalf. Jesus became our legal representative!

2. By His resurrection Christ provided acquittal or justification for complete righteousness.

Therefore, we were acquitted of all guilt, justified and reckoned righteous by faith.

The Christian faith therefore depends entirely on the resurrection of Christ!

“And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:17)!

We are vindicated because Christ was vindicated

Two human courts had condemned Christ to death – The secular court of Rome and the religious court of the Jewish Sanhedrin.

By the resurrection of Christ God reversed those unjust verdicts and vindicated the righteousness of Christ. When Christ was vindicated we too are vindicated because we are identified with Him in resurrection.

Paul sums it up concerning our righteousness and vindication:

“For He (God) made Him (Christ) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21).

Entrance to Salvation

Read Romans 10:6 – 10. Paul is saying that the righteousness of faith does not come to us automatically just because of what Christ had already done on our behalf. We have to accept what Christ has done for us by faith! The acceptance of this truth is our salvation.

There are two simple logical practical requirements for entering into salvation:

1. Concerns our heart. Our heart must believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. In other words, we must believe in the resurrection of Christ. Those who do not believe in the resurrection do not enjoy acquittal and justification of God. They are still in their sins!

2. Concerns our mouth. Our mouth must confess and acknowledge Christ’s Lordship over all aspects of our own life. That is what we have done when we acknowledge “Jesus is Lord”. There is total surrendering of our will to His will. There is the total unreserved act of commitment to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Resurrection overcomes Death

Apostle John saw a vision of the resurrected and ascended Christ (Rev. 1:10 – 18).

Jesus Christ said to him, “I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death” (Rev. 1:18, emphasis added).

Notice that Death is not merely a physical condition. It is not merely the separation of life (spirit) from the body of a person when he dies. Both Death and Hades are evil angels, Satan’s representatives ruling over the kingdom of darkness. The true nature of Death and Hades is revealed in John’s vision concerning the forth horseman:

“So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him” (Rev. 6:8).

It is obvious that Death and Hades are persons. Only a person could sit on a horse, and only another person could follow along with the first one. Death claims a person’s body; Hades claims his soul when he dies.

But Jesus descended into the realm of these evil angels between His death and resurrection. He striped them of their authority and took the keys of Hades and Death from them!

We need to know that Death is already defeated but not yet destroyed:

“For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feat. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death” (1 Cor. 25, 26).

Ultimately, Death and Hades would be destroyed:

“Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:14).

Isaiah foretold Jesus’ victory over death:

“He will swallow up death forever and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces” (Isaiah 25:8).

Paul quoted the above:

“Death is swallowed up in victory, O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” (1 Cor. 15:54, 55).

Jesus’ victory over death casts light on the words of Jesus Himself:

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life” (John 5:24, emphasis added).

“Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death” (John 8:51, emphasis added).

Once again “death” must be a person - only a person can be seen! Death is a defeated foe to anyone who believes and keeps the Word (Commands) of Jesus Christ. To “keep His Word” means to “To obey His word without compromise”. I believe the converse is also true; a person who does not keep His Word will see death!

Conclusion

“Death” to the believer is merely a gateway to a new life because of Christ’s Resurrection!

The Heart Of The Gospel

The heart of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the Person of Christ Himself. You take away Christ you take away the Gospel. You take away the Gospel you take away Christianity. The Gospel message consists of three simple historical facts centered on Christ Himself. These are the death, burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

These facts are made known by Paul:

"Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you - unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:1 - 4, NKJV, emphasis added).

Take note of the following facts:

1. The Gospel is to be believed for salvation. A person's job is to receive the truth of the Gospel and not to question it.

2. A person who believed in vain is someone who denied the truth and considered the doctrine of the Gospel as false. Such person is not saved.

3. Paul himself received the message of the Gospel and was saved.

4. The three historical facts are: Christ died for our sins; He was buried; He rose again the third day.

5. The Gospel message is based on Scriptures. Paul emphasized it twice!

6. The Scriptures are the Old Testament Scriptures because the New Testament Scriptures have not been written yet in Pual's time. Therefore, the Gospel of Jesus Christ was fortold or predicted by the Old Testament prophets.

According to the Old Testament Scriptures

Peter wrote to the Jewish believers:

"Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven - things which angels desire to look into" (1 Peter 1:10 - 12, NKJV, emphasis added).

Take note of the following facts:

1. According to the above verses of Scripture, Jesus Christ who brought salvation to mankind had been foretold in the Old Testament by the prophetic utterance of the Old Testament prophets.

2. The most interesting fact revealved by Peter is the fact that the Spirit of Christ was with the Old Testament prophets ever before Christ was revealed.

3. The Spirit of Christ speaking through the Old Testament prophets testified two importnat facts concerning Jesus - The suffering of Christ and His Glory which would follow.

4. By the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached to us.

Christ's Suffering, Death, Burial and Resurrection Foretold by the Prophets

The Psalmist David

David was a king and a prophet. Many of the psalms of David are prophetic utterance in the first person. In other words it was Christ Himself spoken through David:

1. Prophecy concerning Christ's suffering and crucifixion

"For dogs have surrounded Me; the congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lot" (Psalm 22:16 - 18).

"Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink" (Psalm 69:20, 21).

The gospel according to Matthew testifies that the above Scriptures were fulfilled:

".... They gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink. Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet ...." (Matthew 27:34, 35).

2. Prophecy concerning Christ's resurrection and ascension

"I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope. For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. You will show me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:8 - 11).

The above prophecy became a historical fact as confirmed by Luke as a witness:

"Therefore, being a prophet (David), and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up of which we are all witnesses" (Acts 2:30 - 32, emphasis added).

3. Prophecy concerning the resurrection and other experiences of Jesus

"You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, shall revive me again, and bring me up again from the depths of the earth. You shall increase my greatness, and comfort me on every side" (Psalm 71:20,21, emphasis added).

Notice the accurate description of the experiences of Jesus. He was physically resurrected from "the depths of the earth". God exalted Him (Phil. 2:9) and seated Him on the right hand of God. Jesus was entroned with God and experienced "comfort on every side".

Prophet Isaiah

Just like the psalmist David, Isaiah gave prophetic utterance in the first person concering Christ's suffering.

"The Lord God has opened My ear; and I was not rebellious, nor did I turn away. I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting" (Isaiah 50:5, 6).

Matthew testifies that the above prophecy was fulfilled:

"Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands" (Matthew 26:67).

Prophet Hosea

Hosea spoke of the experiences of Jesus and our identification with Him:

"Come, and let us return to the Lord; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight. Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth" (Hosea 6:1, 2, 3, NKJV, emphasis added).

Take note of the following:

1. All the experiences of Jesus relate to the restoration and revival of mankind. He suffered for our restoration.

2. The phrase "He has torn, but He will heal us" speaks of "by whose stripes you were healed" (1 Peter 2:24).

3. Believers are identified with Jesus in resurrection. This is the only Old Testament prophet who predicted Christ would be resurrected on the third day. Because of Christ's resurrection we would be resurrected - "He will raise us up".

4. Hosea's revelation is given to those who pursue the knowledge of God - those who believe in the resurrection of Christ.

5. Jesus's going forth from the tomb compares the morning sunrise with the resurrection.

6. After resurrection and glorification, Jesus would "come to us like the rain, like the later and former rain on the earth". This speaks of the coming of the Holy Spirit prophesied by Joel (Joel 2:23). This was culminated on the day of Pentecost.

The above prophecy of Hosea was filfilled according to the New Testament Scripture:

Paul in his epistle to the Ephesians said that believers will share with Jesus in His resurrection and other subsequent experiences:

"But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). And raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus ...." (Eph. 2:4 - 6, NKJV, emphasis added).

The three experiences that we share together with Jesus are:

1. We are made alive.

2. We are raised up or resurrected.

3. We are made to sit together with Jesus and enthroned with Him in heaven.

Notice that the outward act of the believer's identification with Jesus is Water Baptism:

"... buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead" (Col. 2:12).

The witnesses who saw Him alive after His Resurrection

Paul's epistle to the Corinthians reveals that Jesus was seen by many after His resurrection:

".... and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve, after that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time" (1 Cor. 15:5 - 8).

Luke recorded that Jesus was seen by many for forty days before He was ascended (taken up):

".... Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:1 - 3, emphasis added).

Conclusion

The single most important event that has ever taken place in human history is the Resurrection of Christ - for the salvation of mankind. This is the heart of the true Gospel Message. The full Gospel Message does not end in crucifixion of Christ as depicted by the film, "The Passion of The Christ". It ends in Resurrection!

Whatever You Fear Becomes Your God

Hanani the seer came to Asa, king of Judah, to rebuke him because he relied on the king of Syria and not on the Lord his God. He was defeated because He relied on a man and the strength of his army (2 Chronicles 16:7).

Hanani said, "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him" (2 Chron. 16:9, NKJV, emphasis added).

The phrase, "those whose heart is loyal to Him" means "those who fear Him and show reverence toward Him". The Lord is looking for those who fear Him and His strength will be made known to those who are loyal to Him. He will deliver them from their enemies.

Asa's failure to rely on God shows that he was a person who did not fear God. The fact that he relied on Syria instead of relying on God also indicates that he feared man and exalted man above his God. In the Lord's eyes man became Asa's god!

God rebuked Laban after Jacob had served him for twenty years. Jacob said:

"Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hand, and rebuked you last night" (Genesis 31:42, NKJV, emphasis added).

Isaac was the promised seed that was to bring forth the Messiah. Isaac had the fear of the Lord in him. In the above verse, the phrase "the Fear of Isaac" means "the God of Isaac". As far as God-fearing Jacob was concerned, God was Isaac's Fear and also his Fear. Isaac's Fear and his Fear was their God!

Religious fear and the fear of man

Religious fear is closely related to the fear of man. There is a man-made god in every religious practice. During the time of Isaiah, the people of Judah were religious. They feared and worshipped the gods made by their own hands.

The Lord rebuked them, "Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but have moved their hearts far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of man" (Isaiah 29:13, NKJV, emphasis added).

They kept up the forms of religion taught by man and from the doctrine of man; but they withheld their devotion to God.

Here is one of the wise sayings of Solomon:

"The fear of man brings a snare. But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe" (Proverbs 29:25, emphasis added).

The word "safe" means "secure". A person who is governed by the fear of man will want to please man and will not fear God.

Abraham, for the fear of man, denied his wife twice! If he had feared God he would have trusted the Lord to keep his wife safe in all circumstances. Similarly, Peter for the fear of man denied his Lord three times!

A person who puts his trust in the Lord for mercy and protection shall be set on high, above the power of man and above the fear of that power. A person who fears man has made man bigger than God. Man suddenly has greater influence and greater impact against him than God. And so, he lacks the fear of God.

The Sin of Fearing Man

Judah's sin was religious fear and the fear of man.

Thus said the Lord, "Cursed is the man who trust in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord" (Jeremiah 17:5).

A person who fears man is a man who makes flesh his strength. His heart departs from the Lord because he does not trust the Lord.

Notice a man cannot trust man and God at the same time. He either makes flesh (man) his strength or God his stregth; he either fear man or fear God.

The curse upon his life is:

"For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land which is not inhabited" (Jeremiah 17:6).

In other words, he is in the wilderness situation and his Christian walk is barren.

In my opinion, this is the description of a man who fears man and compromises the truth of God's Word in order to please man and to gain acceptance from man. His praise is from man but not from God. But the Lord is watching him and He says:

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings" (Jeremiah 17:9, emphasis added).

The Blessings of the God-fearing Man

The man who fears the Lord trusts in the Lord and honors the Lord.

Thus said the Lord:

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out the roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit" (Jeremiah 17:7,8, emphasis added).

Notice that a person who fears and trusts in the Lord will not fear any circumstances. Instead, he enjoys abundant life!

A God-fearing Lifestyle

The Lord desires fear, reverence and honor from His people. One way of preventing the snare of fearing man is to cultivate a God-fearing lifestye.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence" (Malachi 1:6)?

There is a Scriptural way to cultivate a God-fearing lifestyle:

1. Serve the Lord with fear

The psalmist said, "Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling" (Psalm 2:11).

In the spiritual realm there is a close relationship between fear of the Lord and rejoicing. Rejoicing is sandwiched in between fear and trembling. It is the fear of the Lord that releases the rejoicing. Without the fear of the Lord our rejoicing will be very shallow and incomplete.

2. Submitting to one another

Paul wrote to the Church in Ephesus regarding maintaining Spirit filled lifestyle:

"And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God" (Ephesians 5:18 - 21, emphasis added).

The phrase "be filled with the Spirit" means "continuously filled with the Holy Spirit". A congregation of believers continuously filled with the Holy Spirit will be be guided to submit one to another in the fear of God.

Notice that Paul said to submit one to another. But, many Church-goers only submit themselves to the Pastors and Elders of the Church.

3. Holy in conduct

Peter worte to the Jewish believers, "He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.' And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear, ...." (1 Peter 1:15 - 17, emphasis added).

How to Understand the Fear of the Lord

Solomon gave a Scriptural way to understand the fear of the Lord:

"My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; you, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God" (Proverbs 2:1 - 5, NKJV, emphasis added).

The conditions for understanding the fear of the Lord are:

1. Receive the words of wisdom.

2. Treasure and obey His Commands.

3. Seek discernment and understanding.

A person who fulfills the above conditions given by Solomon will understand the fear of the Lord. Furthermore, he will find the knowledge of God!

On the other hand, a person who does not seek wisdom, discernment and understanding and fail to obey God, does not know God. If he does not know God there is no way he understands the fear of the Lord.

A person who fears man does not know God. He lacks wisdom, discernment and understanding. He disobeys God by making man his god!

Fear God And Keep His Commandments

Solomon looked at life from the human perspective and declared that "under the sun" everything is empty. Power, prestige, popularity, wealth and pleasure - nothing can fill the void in man's life but God Himself!

Solomon came to the conclusion that the real foundation of human life is:

"Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden things, whether it is good or evil" (Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14, NIV, emphasis added).

In the context, the phrase "His commandments" does not mean only the Ten Commandments. God's commandments include the whole laws (not the whole of Moses Law) and commands of God pertaining to the New Testament, commands of Christ, full counsel and truth of God's Word. To keep His commandments means to obey Him wholeheartedly and be doers of His Word in our Christian walk.

The prase "whole duty of man" speaks of the "whole man, his whole being in heart attitude, conduct, thoughts and deeds in life". Man's heart attitude is as important as his deeds in God's sight.

In other words, the whole purpose of the existence of man is to fear God (to show reverence, great respect and honor toward Him) and to keep His commandments. Man's life is in Him and He will judge every man's work and his secret thoughts.

He who fears God keeps His Commandments

The fear of the Lord expresses the keeping of God's Commandments. It is not possible to fear God without keeping His commandments. Similarly, it is not possible to keep His commandments without fearing God at the same time.

Let us look at the First of the Ten Commandments:

"You shall have no other gods before Me" (Exodus 20:3, NKJV).

We are commanded to give God our pre-eminence. That is to give God His rightful place in every area of our life. Nothing should come before God. We shall let nothing else be in the same level with God in our Christian walk.

Notice that another god is not necessarily a false god. It can be any other object of our worship that takes the place of our worship toward God. It can be a man, a pet, a career, a home, a car, money and wealth.

Jesus said to the Pharisees concerning the First Commandment, "You shall love the Lord you God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment" (Matthew 22:37).

The man who wholeheartedly obeys the First Commandment is a man who fears the Lord.

Jesus and the Fear of the Lord

Isaiah gave a prophetic preview of Jesus:

"There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jess, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. His delight is in the fear of the Lord, ...." (Isaiah 11:1 - 3, NKJV, emphasis added).

Notice that Jesus was filled with the seven-fold Spirit of God. The anointing of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus that set Him apart as the Messiah culminated in the fear of the Lord. Notice that the fear of the Lord pairs with the Spirit of knowledge:

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, ...." (Proverbs 1:7).

The writer of Hebrews described Jesus as the High Priest:

"Who, in the days of His flesh, when He Had offered up prayers and supplication, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear" (Hebrews 5:7, emphasis added).

The fear of Lord gave Jesus unhindered access to the Father. It delivered Jesus from the hour of temptation. If Jesus needed the fear of the Lord before his prayer was heard, how much more we need to fear God in order to have our prayers heard and answered!

The Early New Testament Church and the Fear of the Lord

"Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied" (Acts 9:31, emphasis added).

The above verse describes the condition of the Churches in Judea, Galilee, and Samaria in the beginning of Paul's ministry immediately after his conversion.

As a result of the believers' "walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit" two things happened in the early Church:

1. They experienced peace and were edified. They enjoyed the presence of the Holy Spirit who gave them rest.

2. The number of believers multiplied. In other words, the Church grew.

It is interesting to compare the early Church to our present day Local Churches. The early Church experienced peace and was edified because in the Spirit realm they walked in the fear of God and the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Can we say the same with our Local Churches today?

Without exception, all Elders and Pastors desire revival and growth in the local congregation. Christians pray for revival in their prayer meeting. But, the Scripture says that unless we choose to fear the Lord He would not answer our prayer. To fear God is an act of will; we need to choose to fear Him or not to fear Him.

"Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, ..." (Proverbs 1:28, 29, NKJV, emphasis added).

"He will fulfill the desires of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them" (Psalm 145:19, emphasis added).

Church growth is directly linked to the fear of the Lord.

Prayer and the Fear of the Lord

The above verses of Scripture show that the key to effective praying is to fear God.

Furthermore, Daniel discovered that when a God-fearing person prays, the Lord confides with him and He reveals His secret to him.

"Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, and kight dwells with Him" (Daniel 2:20 - 22, emphasis added).

Daniel said the above because he realized that the key to tapping spiritual secret and to answered prayers is by fearing God!

The Bible says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdow (Proverbs 9:10) and the beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7). These are given to those who have understanding.

The Psalmist relates the fear of the Lord and obeying His commandments with understanding:

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments" (Psalm 111:10).

Therefore, anyone who fears the Lord will have wisdom, knowledg and good understanding. This makes his prayer effective.

The Promise of God for those who fear Him

The promises and benefits for those who fear the Lord are many. Most of these promises can be found in the Books of Proverbs and psalm. It is beyond the scope of this message to mention all of them. But, here are some very interesting ones:

1. The Lord promises to prosper those who fear Him

"Who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses. He himself shall dwell in prosperity, and his descendants shall inherit the earth. The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant" (Psalm 25:12 - 14).

Notice the five promises:

a. The Lord will teach him the way He chooses. This also speaks of the wisdom of God.

b. He shall dwell in prosperity. This also speaks of the peace of God.

c. His descendants shall inherit the earth. This also speaks of the blessings of God for future generations.

d. The Lord reveals His secret to Him. Notice that, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, ...." (Deut. 29:29).

e. The Lord shows him His covenant. He will impart to him who fears Him the true knowledge and understanding of His covenant.

In my opinion, the first three promises - The widsom of God, the peace of God and the blessings of God for future generations are what we are praying for most of the time! The wonderful thing is, by just fearing God we have the answers to most of our prayers without actually praying specifically for them!

2. The Lord is merciful to those who fear Him

"Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy" (Psalm 33:18).

"For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him" (Psalm 103:11).

"The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy" (Psalm 147:11).

The above Scripture verses need no further explanation.

3. The Lord promises abundant blessings to those who fear Him

"Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments" (Psalm 112:1).

Once again the fear of the Lord is closely associated with obeying in His commandments.

In fact the entire Psalm 112 is a list of promises and blessings for the man who fears the Lord:

• Wealth and riches will be in his house (V. 3).
• He will never be shaken (V. 6).
• He will not be afraid of evil tidings (V. 7).
• His horn will be exalted with honor (V. 9).

4. The Lord promises strong confidence to those who fear Him

"In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death" (Proverbs 14:26, 27).

God's children who fear the Lord will have strong confidence that they have a place of refuge and the Lord will turn them away from the snares of death.

5. The Lord promises life to those who fear Him

"The fear of the Lord leads to life, and he who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil" (Proverbs 19:23).

"By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches and honor and life" (Proverbs 22:4).

Conclusion

We can sum up all these promises and benefits of God for those who walk in the fear of the Lord with one word - LIFE!

The Purpose of Parables

A parable is a simple story, drawn from everyday experience, to communicate a spiritual truth. Jesus used parables to illustrate the Truth about the Kingdom of Heaven.

The purpose of the parables of Jesus is both to reveal and to conceal the truth of the Kingdom of Heaven. To the disciples truth is revealed, but to the underserving and unbelieving Jews like the Scribes, Pharisees and Sudducees, truth is concealed.

The purpose of Jesus' Parables fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the people of Judah:

God said to Isaiah, "Go, and tell this people: keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive. Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed" (Isaiah 6:9, 10, NKJV).

Jesus explained to his disciples why He spoke to them in parables:

"Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear" (Matt. 13:11 - 13, 16, NKJV, emphasis added).

Take note of the following:

1. The phrase "to them it has been given" refers to the undeserving and unbelieving Jews.

2. To these people whatever light given to them in the beginning, because they failed to learn the truth, whatever light they had would be taken away from them.

3. On the other hand, those who are teachable (the disciples) after light has been given to them, more light will be given to them.

4. Jesus used the understanding of His parables to separate His disciples from the undeserving Jews - those who "do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand".

5. His disciples recieved more and more light. Jesus said, "Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear"!

Therefore, according to Jesus, only His disciples are given understanding of the Parables.

Christians, Disciples and the Parables

I believe Jesus is speaking the same thing to Christians. Genuine Christians are true disciples of Jesus Christ, and therefore they are expected to understand the Parables.

Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31, 32).

Christians who abide in the Word of God are genuine disciples and they shall understand the parables because parables speak of the truth of God's Word. If they fail to understand some of the parables they need to abide in His Word in a greater degree.

It is interesting to note that Jesus' disciples failed to understand even the simplest of all the parables:

Jesus said to His disciples, "Do you not understand this parable? how then will you understand of all the parables" (Mark 4:13, emphasis added).

In the context "this parable" means the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:4 - 9). Jesus put forth this parable to the multitude and the 12 disciples. Jesus then explained this parable to His disciples (Matt. 13:18 - 23) when they were alone with Him (Mark 4:10).

Matthew also recorded that Jesus also explained the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares to them. Other than these two parables it is not known what other parables the disciples asked for explanation.

Two Examples of the Parables of Jesus

It is beyond the scope of this message tointerpret all the Parables of Jesus. here are two Parables which could be confusing to many Christians and Bible teachers.

1. The Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15:11 - 32)

Some Bible teachers call this parable as "the Parable of two sons" or "the Parable of the prodigal son" or the Parable of the loving father". The correct interpretation of this parable will enable us to answer these questions - Were both sons lost? Or, only one of the sons was lost? If so, which of the sons was lost?

This parable is related to a parable mentioned earlier - The Parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:4 - 7).

The younger of the two sons took his share of possessions and "journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living". But after he had spent all, he came to his senses. Then he repented of his sins and returned to his father. He was a type of lost sheep and then later was found. The father was a type of Christ. This prodigal son was received back by his father. He was a type of text collector or a prostitute who repented of his sins.

One the other hand, the older son did not waste his father's possessions, but he was self-righteous. He remained living with his father, but was a stranger to his father's heart. He was a type of scribe or Pharisee who needed no repentance in his own eyes.

Hear what Jesus said, "I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance"

Therefore, there was more joy in heaven when the repentant younger son was received back by the loving father!

Therefore, the lost son was the elder son and not the younger!

The lesson learned is , a self-righteous person who needs no repentance is lost!

2. The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1 - 16)

Jesus Himself said this is a parable to illustrate the truth about the Kingdom of Heaven (Verse 1). The story given by Jesus is in "spiritual terms" to describe the salvation process by which a lost person enters the Kingdom of Heaven (or God) and the gifts he receives to fulfill his calling by God.

Seen in this light a Christian is someone who is called by God to be a worker in His Vineyard.

Please take note of the following:

1. Our salvation is a calling (1 Cor. 1:24 -31). According to Paul it is God "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, ..." (2 Tim. 1:9, emphasis added).

Salvation and calling cannot be separated. If we are saved, we are also called. Furthermore, we are called and saved by grance "before time began". Our calling is holy.

The best example to illustrate this truth is the salvation and calling of the apostle Paul.

2. In the Parable, the Landowner is a type of Jesus Christ. The laborers speak of unsaved souls. The hiring of the laborers speaks of their calling to salvation. The denarius speeks of the gift of God.

3. The denarius mentioned in this Parable is not a reward for the work done. It is neither a wage nor salary. It is given by "grace" of the landowner who gives according to his will whether the laborer's work is one hour or one day!

4. This Parable shows that our calling (salvation) and gifts are entirely dependent on the grace and sovereign will of God.

Someone might say that our salvation also depends on our freewill. The truth is we cannot excercise our freewill unless God calls us first. Similarly, the landowner calls the laborers to work in his vineyard; but they are given a choice to work in his vineyard or reject the calling.

5. Jesus said, "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen".

This means - It does not matter we are saved early or later. The important thing is our attitude toward God and toward our calling. With the wrong attitude we might be saved (called) but it does not necessarily mean that we are fit to be worker in His Vinyard!

The laborers with the wrong attitude are obviously the first batch of laborers!

Male-Female Role Relatioships in the Church

The Scripture reveals that there are separate roles, functions and callings for male and female Christians in the Local Church. Paul's epistles to the Corinthians and to Timothy addressed this issue clearly.

Unfortunately, many theologians, renowned Bible teachers, Pastors and preachers believe there is no difference between the role of men and women in the Church. Consequently, whenever this "controversial" issue arises they are very likely to cite what the apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians to support their unbiblical view:

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28, NKJV, emphasis added).

If we look at the above verse in the context we will not fail to realize that the apostle Paul was not talking about role relationships. He was talking about sons and heirs through faith in Christ Jesus. He was explaining the nature of the Abrahamic Covenanat whereby the blessing of salvation came to mankind. When we are saved we are all "one in Christ Jesus". We are the children of God; we become members of the Body of Christ. Both men and women are children of God - whether one is a Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female makes no difference. The union into which the sinner enters by faith, in Christ, is one and the same with all people, no matter what their circumstances, national origin, social status, or gender.

I urge my readers to heed Paul's advice, "Test all things; hold fast what is good" (1 Thess 5:21). It is very easy to be deceived by wrong teaching even though some teachers of the Word might have erred unintentionally.

Galatians 3:28 does not speak to role relationships; this verse is not intended to address the respective functional distinctions between men and women in the body of Christ or in the Local Church. Such a careless and unscriptural interpretation is entirely foreign to the context.

The principle is, never take Bible verses out of their proper context. If we do we can easily make the Bible says whatever we want it to say! Bible teachers should be reminded that they "shall receive a striter judgment" (James 3:1, NKJV).

Paul's teaching on male-female role relationships

The best source of Biblical material for this topic of discussion comes from Paul's epistles. On no occasion was Paul questioning the ability of woman taking the role of man in the Church.

The questions we need to ask are:

1. "Should a woman take the role of man in the Church?"

2. "Should a woman exercise authority over men in the Church?"

The real Biblical issue is not about ability, education or even Biblical knowledge but about the separate callings for man and woman to fulfill God's divine purpose and design in the Church. Both man and woman have different roles to play in the Local Church. If we follow Paul's teaching and place men and women in their proper roles then we are obedient to God; if we do not, then we are counted as disobedient to God. It is as simple as this! Furthermore, Paul's teaching is very clear and there is no "grey area".

Paul addressed this issue clearly in his first epistle to Timothy (1 Timothy 2:8 - 15).

But, in order to understand the full meaning and implication of role relationships for both sexes, we need, first of all, study 1 Corinthians 11:3 - 12 where Paul teaches man's headship in Christ and the authority of a man over a woman.

Paul's teaching on God-ordained divine Headship

"But I want you to know that the head of every man in Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God" (1 Cor. 11:3, NKJV, emphasis added).

Therefore the divine order of headship in the Church is - God > Christ > man > woman. Divine authority follows the same order.

Paul also gave the reason why it is the will of God for a man to exercise authority over a woman:
"For man is not from woman, but woman from man, nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man" (1 Cor. 11:8,9)

Therefore, this divine headship and authority of man over a woman has been ordained by God as far back as at the Creation of man. This Spiritual Law like many others is unchanging throughout the Church Age. There is no question that it applies to the present day Local Churches as well.

Notice that Paul said nothing about following Jewish laws or early Church customs.

Beware of compromising and man-pleasing Bible teachers who are in the habit of adding their opinions to make their teaching more acceptable and less offensive.

Paul's instructions to Timothy

Paul instructed Timothy to take heed of the regulations concerning how a woman should conduct herself in the Church:

"Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. Nevertherless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control" (1 Tim. 2:11 - 15, NKJV).

1. "Let a woman learn in silence with all submission"

The focus is upon a woman's attitude and behavior in the local congregation. When the Church gathers, the submissive Christian woman is to receive instructions willingly, but she does not give it.

2. "And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence"

This verse expands upon the role of women. According to Paul women are to occupy a chaste and submissive place in the Church. This precludes the activities involving teaching men and having authority over men pertaining to the Scripture. But, Paul said nothing about women exercising authority and teaching children in the Local Church.

3. "For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression"

Paul gave the reasons for the previous statements he made. He referred to the divine headship again. The fact that Adam was created before Eve means that men are not to be subjected to the authority of women. Applying this principle to the Local Church, the Creation hierarchy is violated should a woman assume or hold a position in which she rules over a man.

The word "deceived" is a translation from the Greek word "exapatao" meaning "seduced completely" or "enticed to sin". When Satan tempted Eve, she disregarded the implications of the order in which she and Adam were created. Eve by making her own decision removed herself from the safeguarding environment that God designed. She, consequently, fell into transgression.

4. "Nevertheless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control"

A part of a woman's obligation in the marriage relationship (covenant) is the bearing of children who would be the means by which men would rule over God's creation. By fulfilling their roles, men and women could preserve the order that God created and expect God's blessings.

The phrase "saved in childbearing" has been a source of confusion to many Bible teachers and writers of Bible Commentaries. The explanation can be found if we refer to Genesis when God passed a sentence to Eve because of her transgression:

God said, "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you" (Gen. 3:16, NKJV, emphasis added).

In spite of the above difficulties, if a woman honors her unique God given role which belongs to her only - the ability to bear children, she would be blessed and be delivered from God's sentence upon Eve. However, it does not mean that a woman should do nothing but bear childred, nor that she is regenerated (saved) by giving birth. It means that a woman should not seek to do what God intends man to do. Instead she should continue in her God given role in the Church, in faith, love, and holiness with self-control.

Must women keep silent and forbidden to speak in the Church?

"Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. and if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church" (1 Cor. 14:34, 35).

If we take these verses of Scripture out of context a likely answer would be:

"In the early Church most Christian women were not well educated. So it was shameful for them to ask silly questions in Church meetings. Now, the situation is different and most women are well educated. Some of them even have better knowledge of the Scripture than men. Therefore, they are not only qualified to speak but to preach as well".

Notice that this type of answer sounds convincing and fully pleasing to the women in the Local Church. But it ignores totally God's ordained role of women in the Church.

The right answer comes naturally if we put these two verses of Scripture in the context. As we have considered so far, it is not the role of women to teach and to have authority over men in the Local Church. But, Paul was not talking about that when he wrote to the Corinthians. Instead, he was talking about the lack of orderliness in Church meetings. The Church in Corinth was a good example where the exercising of Spiritual gifts was without control. Everyone, both men and women, prophesied and spoke in tongues at the same time without interpretation, and without waiting for their turn to speak.

Paul said, "For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints" (1 Cor. 14:33, emphasis added).

Notice that this applies to all Church meetings including our Church meetings. Because of the problem of unruliness and discorderliness women are not allowed to prophesy and speak in tonques during Church meetings. Therefore, Paul gave instruction that, if they want to learn something from such unruly Church meetings, it is far better for them to ask their husband privately at home.

Paul did not forbid women to go to Church to worship God, to learn and to listen to sermons. In fact Jesus Himself wants women to listen and learn!

Mary sat at the feet of Jesus to hear His Word (Luke 10:39).

Jesus said to Martha who was busy preparing food to serve Him:

"Martha, Martha, you are warried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:42, NKJV).

It is in the heart of Jesus to have women to hear His Words in Church meetings in all submission!

Gods Specific Calling for Individual Believers

God has a specific calling for each individual believer. The “calling” of God is a ministry appointed by God for every individual believer as part of his salvation and sanctification process. It is important for a believer to stay in his God given calling if he wants to do the will of God. If he stays out of the calling God, then not every thing the believer does is according to the will of God for his life.

Paul said to Timothy, “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, …” (2 Tim. 1:8, 9, NKJV, emphasis added).

The above verses say:

1. If you are saved, then you are also called. Being called is part of your salvation process. This means every believer has a unique calling.

2. Your calling is holy. This means you are set apart to do God’s will. God sets limits and boundaries around your life; you cannot do as you please. God says: “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16).

3. Your calling does not depend on your works. This means it has nothing to do with your talent, your effort or you ability. God will enable and equip you to fulfill your calling.

4. God has a special distinctive purpose when by grace He calls you. This means your calling is God’s specific gift to you and you cannot earn it. Neither can you bargain with God.

5. Your calling is God’s choice and God has worked out His calling for you before time began.

Paul’s Unique Calling

God’s unique calling for the apostle Paul is seen in 2 Timothy 1:11, 12:

“…. I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (NKJV, emphasis added).

Paul’s calling was to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. He had committed his calling to God even if it meant suffering! He knew God would enable him to complete his work. Paul kept his calling of God until he died!

Paul’s Divine Calling was fulfilled

The account of Paul’s journey to Rome given in Acts 27 and 28 is a miraculous act of God to enable Paul to fulfill his calling.

God had committed to Paul the responsibility of bringing the Gospel to the Gentile world (Galatians 2:7). The key to this would be to establish a centre in the city of Rome. From there, many different channels would automatically carry the Gospel to the whole ancient world – channels of commerce, education, finance, governmental administration and natural social intercourse. Because of Paul’s unique calling, he was the person best qualified to establish such a centre in Rome.

Because of the significance of Paul’s move to Rome, satanic forces did everything in their power to destroy him before he could reach his destination. Paul was traveling on a freight ship as a prisoner in chains. Furthermore, the ship was caught up in a storm so horrific that for two full weeks the people on board never caught a glimpse of the sun by day or of the moon and the stars by night.

I believe the storm of such intensity was generated by supernatural forces – similar to the type Satan sent to destroy Job’s sons and daughter (Job 1:19).

Paul knew that even in the midst of the storm there would be no loss of life. He said to the men:

“Now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you’” (Acts 27:22, 23, 24, emphasis added).

Paul used two phrases here to describe his relationship to God: “to whom I belong” and “whom I serve”. I believe these two phrases can never be separated. If we do not belong to God, we have no right to serve Him. On the other hand, we cannot claim to be belong to God, if we are not available to Him for His service.

After the shipwreck Satan had one more challenge. The people who had escaped safely to land began to collect fuel for a fire. Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire. Satan used this as an opportunity to make one final attempt to destroy Paul – “A viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand” (Acts 28:3). This could not be a coincidence. At least Paul himself did not believe in coincidence. But, if this was not the work of Satan, out of so many people, why did the viper choose Paul as its victim?

But Paul was full of the Holy Spirit. He did not feel the need to pray or to speak in tongues. To the amazement of the local islanders who knew how deadly a viper’s bite was, Paul simply “shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm” (Acts 28:5)!

The success of Paul’s mission to Rome is summed up:

“Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him” (Acts 28:30, 31).

The Gospel for the Gentiles had been established in Rome, and from there to the whole of the Gentile world. This was Paul’s accomplishment of God’s specific calling for him (2 Tim. 11).

What was the secret of Paul’s victorious life? He himself explained in 2 Timothy 1:12:

“For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (emphasis added).

The secret of Paul’s victorious living is summed up in the phrase – “Committed to Him until that Day”. In other words, he was totally at God’s disposal until the Day when Jesus comes again to take him to His Father’s House!

Whatever trial he went through; whatever tribulation and suffering he went through Paul himself confirmed what he said to the Roman Christians:

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who are love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28, emphasis added).

All things work together for good

Christians must be very careful in interpreting the above verse of Scripture. I have heard many Bible teachers said, “Because all believers received the call of God for salvation; therefore all things work together for good to him from now on”.

It is true that all Christians have responded and received the calling to be saved. This is the general calling for all believers. But, Romans 8:28 speaks of the specific calling of God for individual believers.

As I mentioned from the beginning, all saved persons also receives from God a specific calling to accomplish God’s will for him (2 Tim. 1:9). In other words, the calling of God for salvation and the calling of God for the individual believer to accomplish His will are two entirely different things.

“All things work together for good” is applicable only for the believer's specific calling. It is attached with the following conditions:

1. The Christian must love God.

2. He must faithfully works out his calling given by God according to His purpose.

In other words, a believer who loves God and follows his God given calling faithfully, whatever happens to him and in whatever circumstances, God will be with him and protects him and all things will work out just the way God wants to accomplish His purpose.

This interesting spiritual law has been proven in Paul’s ministry. The same law applies to all true Christians who answer the call of God faithfully!

Biblical way of discerning and doing the will of God

There are three things a believer needs to do as soon as he is born again:

1. To discover his calling

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1, 2).

Paul says the believer needs to present his body to the Altar of God as a living sacrifice so that it could be made holy and acceptable to God. In Old Testament time animal sacrificed to God was made holy at the Altar. God then takes control of the believer’s body, which has been made holy, to do His will. God tells the believer what to do. The believer cannot do whatever he wishes independent of God. He must not conform to the way of the world. By the renewal of his mind the believer has been transformed by God so that he understands the will and the calling of God.
2. To cultivate his calling

The believer must grow and be fruitful in his calling.

“Do you not know that those who run in a race in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it (1 Cor. 9:24).

The believer needs to cultivate his calling in such a way that in the end he receives an imperishable crown (Verse 25).

Paul cultivated his calling and he was able to say, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7)

3. To stay in his calling

When God calls the believer to do His will, He also sets limits for his calling. The believer needs to stay in the sphere of his calling:

Paul said, “We, however, will not boast beyond measure, but within the limits of the sphere which God appointed us – a sphere which especially includes you” (2 Cor. 10:13).

An example of a person who failed to stay in his calling was king Saul. Saul was God’s choice (1 Samuel 9:16, 17). He started out fine, but later disobeyed Samuel and God. He presumptuously offered burn offering and peace offering at Gilgal. It was Samuel’s duty to offer burn offering and peace offering. Saul acted beyond his calling (1 Samuel 13:5 – 14). God later rejected him from being king over Israel.

This serves as a solemn warning to all servants of God. If we fail to stay in the sphere of our calling God might also reject us.

Surely, not “all things work together for good” for those who fail to stay in the sphere of their calling!

Understanding Humanism and the Man of Sin

This message, like most other messages I have posted so far, is the outcome of some serious Bible reseach. I do not claim to have a prophetic ministry but I depend upon the prophetic words revealed in the Scripture.

The purpose of this message is to show my readers that the "man of sin" is the Antichrist and the false gospel that he preaches is "humanism"

The name “Antichrist” is only used by the apostle John (1 John 2:18 – 23; 2 John 1:7). According to the apostle Paul this Antichrist is called the Man of Sin or the son of perdition (2 Thess. 2:3, NKJV) or the “man of lawlessness” (NIV).

“Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as god in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:3, 4, NKJV, emphasis added).

Paul said:

1. The Antichrist has not been revealed yet. Therefore at this time we still don’t know who he is and when he would reveal himself. Therefore Christian should be on their guard from being deceived by anyone who says he knows who the Antichrist is.

2. Before the Antichrist is revealed there will be false doctrines and great apostasy in the Christian Church.

3. The Day of the Lord (Christ Second Coming) will not come until the Antichrist manifests himself as God, claims to be God and sits at the temple of God (Church or any place of worship) and claims the honors due to God.

The Antichrist

Careful study of the Scripture enables us to know a great deal about the Antichrist, his attributes, his doctrine and the timing of his coming to the temple of God.

The antichrist is a false Christ

The Antichrist’s name gives the indication he is anti-Christ. He has the ability to work miracles, signs and wonders to deceive Christians:

Jesus said, “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:24, NKJV, emphasis added).

The antichrist is opposition to Christ

The Antichrist is opposition to Christ personally; he is against the Church of Jesus Christ; he is against Christ’s Word – the Holy Scripture.

Christ’s mission is to reveal God the Father to men whom God has chosen:

Jesus said, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world” (John 17:6).

On the other hand, the Antichrist’s mission is to deceive God’s people and take them from God’s Kingdom back to the kingdom of the world where Satan is god. The Antichrist opposes God Himself and says blasphemous things against God:

John said, “Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacles, and those who dwell in heaven” (Rev. 13:6).

The one motivating force in his life is opposition the Jesus Christ, opposition to all that He stands for, and to all that stand for Him.

The antichrist takes the place of Christ

The name Antichrist also indicates substitution. The Antichrist opposes Jesus in order to supplant Him, to take His place as Christ.

2 Thessalonians 2 points out how the Antichrist comes as an impostor of Christ. Christ has the Kingdom of God; the Antichrist has the kingdom of Satan. Christ comes by the power of the Holy Spirit; the Antichrist will come by the power of a spirit, who is the Devil himself. The Antichrist is Satan’s counterpart to Christ. Jesus is the Son of God sent by God the Father to establish His Kingdom, redeem His people and renew His creation; the Antichrist is Satan’s choice to establish his kingdom, gather in as many people as he can, and subject all to him. Ultimately God will cast everyone in the Antichrist’s kingdom together with the Antichrist himself to the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10). God’s total plan hinges on the works of Jesus, the Christ; Satan’s plans hinge on the works and success of the Antichrist.

Antichrist’s method of deception

The primary work of the Antichrist is deception, which also characterizes Satan in his attempts to undermine the work of God in the world.

Paul said, “… Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great things if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works (2 Cor. 11:14, 15, emphasis added).

Satan transforms himself “into an angel of light” and inspires his ministers to masquerade as “ministers of righteousness”. The serpent who deceived Eve was a minister of Satan. The Antichrist who is deceiving God’s people is also a minister of Satan. Both these evil ministers used the same method.

The serpent did not urge Eve to shake her fist at God and denounce Him, nor did he inspire her to practice overly evil acts. On the contrary, he enticed her with promises of a better “self-image”, of being a wiser and better person – of even becoming “like God”. What could be wrong with that high ambition? Evil is far more seductive and effective when it is packaged as good. If he can encourage expressions of “man’s basic goodness” that are high-minded and spiritual, but without Christ, Satan is achieving his purpose.

After the Fall Satan became the “god of this age” who has blinded the minds of the natural men (2 Cor. 4:4). The natural man is basically a rebel and this makes the Antichrist’s job of deception easier. Furthermore, even so-called Christians who are not continuously filled with the Spirit and walking in the Spirit are easy targets for the Antichrist.

Humanism

The Antichrist makes use of the sinful nature of the natural man (or weak Christian) to exalt self and promote the cause of man without God. The natural man’s sinful nature of rebellion causes him to go his own ways, exercises his own wisdom, own will, and using his own strength for his own purpose. In other words, he does everything independent from God. He is “soulish” and his spirit is dead and cannot understand God who is Spirit (Please refer to my previous postings). Therefore he will not seek God but seek after the benefits of God. He worships God’s creation rather than the Creator (Romans 1:18 – 22). He is self centered and man-centered. In contrast, a true Christian is Christ-centered, God fearing and therefore believes in Bible based doctrine.

The Antichrist’s doctrine is humanism. He teaches men, especially careless and immature Christians, to follow humanistic values to achieve humanistic goals. The humanist’s god is self. He exalts resourcefulness, human wisdom and courage instead of faith and trust in God. Humanism places trust in human intelligence rather than divine guidance.

There is no such thing as “Christian Humanism” because true Bible believing and Christ-centered Christians will not follow the doctrine of humanism. The so-called Christian humanism is actually Christianized secular humanism. It is secular humanism dressed up in Christianity to seduce Christians. The aim of the humanist is to deceive people to make them his disciples.

It is interesting to note that The Webster’s Third New International Dictionary defines “Christian Humanism” as “A philosophy advocating the self-fulfillment of man within the framework of Christian principles”. Someone has said, “The word ‘humanism’ emphasized the importance of man, not to the exclusion of God, but simple with little emphasis of God”. This is perfectly true because any humanistic teaching with complete exclusion of God will not appeal to Christian believers!

An Application of Humanism Paradigm

The most well know paradigm shift in teaching and training method is the so called "Coaching Paradigm". Coaching experts believe that people who are basically good, can solve their own problems. Someone had said, “Coaches are change experts who help leaders take responsibility and act to maximize their own potential”. Someone defined coaching as “A method of unlocking a person’s potential to maximize growth”.

The philosophy behind the coaching paradigm is entirely “Humanism” based. It is a perfect example of humanistic teaching. Through psychological study of human behavior it is easy for the humanist to discover that, in general, people are easily offended when they are told what to do. They do not trust people who ask too many questions. But, people are willing to tell the Coach expert their problems if he is kind to them, willing to listen them and takes the initiative to maintain a good relationship with them. So, the key to successful coaching is “Ask, don’t tell”. Let the client (or coachee) do the telling. The coach is to ask indirect and inoffensive non-confrontational and open-ended questions. In this way a person who is under a Coaching expert is able to discover or rediscover his self-worth and hidden potential. The coaching expert allows the client to set his own agenda and goal, but he is not accountable or responsible to the success of the client. Instead he makes the client to be a accoutable to himselve.

How the Coaching Method is Christianized

Some coaching experts claim that Jesus was using the same coaching method when He was with his apostles and disciples. In other words, they claim Jesus asked powerful questions but never tell them what to do. They take Scripture verses out of context to substantiate their claim.

Jesus asks powerful questions, but He also commands and instructs

A powerful question - "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy" (Luke 6:9)?

But, Jesus never compromises. He tells (not ask) His disciple what to do as part of the Sermon on the Mount:

"Let your 'Yes' be 'Yes', and your 'No', 'No'. For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" (Matt. 5:37).

There should not be any doubt that Jesus uses three ways to influence His people and to maintain a close relationship with them - Coaching, mentoring and consulting (counseling).

Paul asks direct questions, but he also instructs

An example of a direct question is - "Do you not know?" (NKJV). Paul uses this phrase 4 times in Romans; 10 times in 1 Corinthians and once in 2 Corintians.

"Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ" (1 Cor. 6:15)?

Just like Jesus, Paul never compromises. He gave many instructions to Timothy and Titus. He urged the Christians in the Church in Corinth to imitate him:

"Therefore I urge you, imitate me" (1 Cor. 4:16).

"Imitate me, just as I also imtitate Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1).

Paul, like Jesus also uses three ways to influence Chriatians and to maintain a close relationship with them - Coaching, mentoring and consulting (counseling).

An important point to note is that the coaching expert asks his clients "intuitive" questions; whereas Jesus and Paul asked their disciples "Spirit-led" questions. The main difference is that "intuitive" questions come from the un-regenerated spirit of man; but "Spirit-led" questions come from the regenerated spirit of man led by the Spirit of God.

Therefore, in the Kingdom of God true Christians must emulate Jesus and Paul.

My Opinion

I am not out to discredit the Coaching paradigm; but I am following Paul's instruction:

"Test all things; hold fast what is good" (1 Thess. 5:21, NKJV).

It is best to look at it objectively. The coaching paradigm is based on the study of human psychology and philosophy. It is neither Christ-centered nor Bible based; but it is practical and effective in the real world system. It works well in the present World Order whose 'god' is Satan. But, Christians must be reminded that not everything that works is Biblical. On the other hand, not every thing unbiblical is not good and will not work!

My contention is that we must not Christianize the Coaching paradigm. We are working and living in the secular world and the Coaching paradigm fits in perfectly well in our relationship with our peers and subordinates, Christians or non-Christians. Even in the Local Church not everyone is a mature Christian and therefore, the Coaching paradigm has a place there too. The Coaching paradigm helps mature believers to understand fellow Church members by learning how to listen to weaker Christians in order to discern their problems. It is also helpful in evangelical and mission work where Spirit-led (not intuitive) listening is important. The Coaching paradigm is effective and beneficial in many other ways. We need not Christianized it. It can stand on its own in the secular world - till He comes.

The Antichrist and Humanism

The last thing the antichrist chooses to do is to confront and offend religious people. He knows fully well that religions will never unite the people of the world. Wars are being fought because of differences in religious beliefs. Therefore, in order to promote the New World order effectively and to set up a one-world government and one-world money system he must be a humanist. The Antichrist is a type of coaching expert who lets you make your own choices and solve your own problems, but he is not responsible or accountable for the outcome. He uses only the coaching paradigm to win people.

Unfortunately, Humanism will culminate in the worship of Antichrist. This is exactly what he wants. The Antichrist will succeed in deceiving many. But his destiny is revealed by Paul:

“The lawless one (the Antichrist) will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming” (2 Thess. 2:8, NKJV, emphasis added).

The Blessed Hope

It is rather unfortunate that the majority of Christians are confused regarding the events leading to the End of Time (or the End of the Age). Most Bible-believing Christians have read Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 and understand the signs being described by Jesus Himself through the Gospel writers. It is true that we are living in the time when all those things must be fulfilled and the Second coming of Jesus is “near – at the doors” (Matt. 24:33, NKJV)!

In my opinion many Bible Scholars and preachers are confused and therefore have presented a wrong picture of the Second Coming of Jesus. Notice that Mark 13 and Luke 21 describe only the signs leading to the to the Second Coming of Jesus to rescue Isreal from the enemies of God. The Rapture is not mentioned. Matthew 24 gives a picture of the signs leading to the Rapture of the Church (Bride of Christ) and the Second Coming; but is no less confusing. Both the Rapture and the Second Coming are being described as "the coming of the Son of Man" (Matt. 24:30 and 37).

Read carefully you will notice that Matt. 24:29 - 35 describe the Second Coming. But, Verses 36 to 44 describe the Rapture. Because of this confusion, Christians are divided among those who believe in pre-tribulation rapture, mid-tribulation rapture and post-tribulation rapture. The truth is the eminent rapture of the true Church of Jesus Christ and the Second coming are two entirely separate events. The Rapture is the “Blessed Hope” for true Christians.

Let us look somewhere else in the Bible for the Blessed Hope and the related events leading to the Second Coming of Jesus.

The Blessed Hope

Paul wrote to Titus, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works” (Titus 2:11 – 14, emphasis added).

Please take note of the following:

1. The Blessed Hope and the glorious appearing of Jesus are promises of God for the true Church – a group or congregation of true believers. This is the Rapture when Jesus will come to take His Bride to heaven.

2. Believers qualified for the Blessed Hope are those who deny ungodliness, worldly lusts, live righteously, and godly in the present age (the Church age). In other words, the Blessed Hope is for all true Christians.

3. The true Church is “His own special people, zealous for good works”. This the Bride of Christ that Paul wrote about in Ephesians 5:27:

“He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish”.

The Rapture

I believe in the rapture because the Scripture says so.

Paul said, “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven …. 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 Thess. 4:16, 17, NKJV, emphasis added).

The word “Rapture” is not a Biblical word. It is an English word comes from the Latin translation of the above verses. The Latin word for “rapture” is “rapturos”. The New Testament Greek translation is “harpazo” literally mean “pluck up, or catch away by force”. It describes how God’s people “shall be caught up” to meet the Lord in the clouds.

Notice that after the rapture the true Church shall always be with the Lord. In fact all true believers with the above qualification for the Blessed Hope shall be with the Lord when He comes again (the Second Coming) to rescue Israel and execute judgment upon the Antichrist and his followers. I’ll explain as we go on. I do not claim to exercise any prophetic gift. This message is the outcome of Bible research and the application of common sense logically.

The Promise of His coming again for the Church

Jesus said to His disciples, “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2, 3, emphasis added).

Notice the assurance given by Jesus. He will come again for you and me. After He has taken us to Himself we shall always be with Him – Just as Paul said in Thess. 4:17!

Christians are instructed by Paul to partake of the Holy Communion until Jesus comes again:

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26, emphasis added).

We proclaim the Lord’s death at the Communion Table until He comes again to receive us to Himself. Jesus wants all Christians to remember the Blessed Hope as often as we partake of the Lord’s Table.

Rapture and the Second coming are two distinct events

In rapture, Jesus comes to rescue His true Church from His enemies. In the Second coming, Jesus comes to rescue Israel from His enemise. Christians must not be confused concerning theses two distinct events. The Church is a type of Israel; similarly the rapture is a type of Second Coming!

It is beyond the scope of this message to explain Daniel’s prophecies in Daniel 9. But it is good for my readers to seek understanding that the Church age of Grace is between the 69 weeks of years and the remaining 1 week of years (seven years). The length of the Church Age is in God’s hand and no one knows how long we have to wait before He takes us to the Father’s House – the Rapture. After the rapture God’s clock for the remaining 1 week (of years) will start to tick!

The Rapture and the Second Coming are two distinct events, one occurring at the beginning and the other at the end of Daniel’s seventieth week. Christ must first of all come for His saints (true believers) to rapture them to heaven, or He could never come with His saints from heaven to rescue Israel at Armageddon. This is confirmed by verses of Scripture in both Old and New Testaments:

1. Zechariah prophesied, “Thus the Lord my God will come, and all the saints with You” (Zech. 14:5, emphasis added).

2. “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him” (Jude 14, 15, emphasis added).
Notice that the “ungodly sinners” with their ungodly ways and deeds, who have spoken against Christ, are the enemies of God.

3. John said in Revelation that these saints are the Bride of Christ:

“And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, follow Him on white horses” (Rev. 19:14, emphasis added).

The wedding garment for the Bride of Christ is clean, white and fine linen.

These are the saints that Paul spoke about in 1 Thess. 4:16, 17 are the “dead in Christ” and “those who are alive in Christ” when He comes. Old Testament saints (not the Bride) who died before the first coming of Christ are also part of the armies in heaven.

Compelling reasons for the two distinct events

1. It is logical to give inference that the Bride and other saints cannot be part of the armies in heaven had they never been to heaven first. Nor could they accompany Christ from heaven had they not been taken up there previously. It is therefore reasonable to infer that the Rapture must come before the Second Coming of Christ.

2. The Rapture will occur when least expected; the Second Coming takes place only after all the signs (listed in Matthew 24) have been given and everyone should know that Christ is about to return in “power and great glory” (Matt. 24:30) even though on one knows the exact date or time.

3. The Rapture comes in the midst of peace.

Paul said, “For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, …” (1 Thess. 5:3).

Jesus Himself said when the “Son of Man” is revealed to rapture the true Church will be at a time similar to the days Noah and Lot (Luke 17:26 – 36). These were the days when the people are preoccupied with enjoying their wealth – eating, drinking, marrying wives, buying and selling properties. They were also leading careless and wicked lives and indulging in homosexual activities. The people in the days of Noah and Lot were in slumber and the judgment from God was furthest from their mind. In this respect our generation is quite similar. Notice that Rapture will not come in the days of hardship and tribulation as most Bible scholars claimed.

4. The Second Coming occurs in the midst of war, destruction, suffering and tribulation which are described in Revelation 19, Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. People will not be able to lead a normal life let alone enjoying their wealth, buying, selling, planting and building. There will be catastrophic upheavals of nature which will leave the earth pulverized and her inhabitants in desperate straits! The conditions on earth at the time of the Second Coming are exactly the opposite of those to which Christ referred – days of Noah and Lot.

A Likely Scenario

I believe the first event in heaven after the Rapture of the true Church will be the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Cor. 3:12 – 15 and 2 Cor. 5:10). This is not a judgment for condemnation but a judgment for reward (Please refer to my previous postings). After this the Groom will want to spend some time with His Bride, the now glorified Church in the Father’s House.

In Christ’s days the Jewish bride was taken to her father’s house where the two were in seclusion for seven days (one week). Christ must have had the Jewish custom in mind when He promised to take His Bride to His Father’s House for “one week of year”. During these seven years (the 70th week of years in Daniel’s prophecy – Daniel 9:24 – 27) the earth is going through the great tribulation under the reign of the Antichrist! But, at precisely the same time in heaven the marriage supper of the Lamb is being prepared (Rev. 19:7, 8)! The bride of Christ escapes the wrath of the Antichrist. That is the way God protects His true Church, fulfilling what Jesus said to Peter:

“The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).

Christ brings His Church to Himself! This is the Blessed Hope!