Sweet Sounds From Heaven

Lately, we’ve been hearing a lot of messages on faith. Reminds me of the 70’s and 80’s. We were all just learning about faith and how to use it. Seems we’ve leaked rather badly and God is giving us a refresher course that we didn‘t even know we needed. There still seems to be so much to learn about faith and with things changing so rapidly in our world, faith in God is the only way to live, and certainly the only way to die.

Hebrews 11 is the renowned chapter about faith. These saints shine as our sterling examples of people who were committed and had settled the question to the point of death. In reading along and watching God move mountains in their lives because they were fully persuaded and expected things to change in their favor, fills me with glee. If God will do it for them, He will do it for me. God is no respecter of persons, He is a respecter of Faith.

Abraham obeyed and left, without a GPS system. Enoch was translated. Noah built an ark and had never seen rain. Sarah gave birth to the promise child in her old age. Moses left the castle to be with his own people (slaves). Joseph held on to his dreams for a very long time. Rahab, the prostitute was saved alive with her household. There’s also Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, Daniel. and the list goes on. Just faith in God and hope of a better homeland, these people all died controlled and sustained by their faith, but not of God’s promises, (the Bible had not yet been written). They had only seen it and greeted it from a great distance by faith, and all the while acknowledged and confessed that they were exiles upon the earth. They were in search of a fatherland, their own country.

We are closer now then when we first believed, and yes ~ the circle will be unbroken. What a day that will be! We live by faith and have the Bible to feed our faith, but we must also be ready to die by faith. Heaven is a real place and is our final destination. We should believe for a long, strong, productive, glorifying God life on the earth and glorify God when He calls us home. This will be the final test of our faith. Heaven is a place we have never seen before, except by faith. It is unfamiliar territory.

Jesus is a prime example of suffering through death, keeping His eyes on the “far better.” Paul also kept his focus through much tribulations. Both were consecrated in life and death, with the utmost confidence in God that they would be upheld by grace in all their trials. When a Christian dies, it is far better, it is gain ~ not just getting out of Dodge. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. It is contrary to our natural thinking, but the Bible says death is far better, it’s gain~ so it is.

Philippians 1: 20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. I Corinthians 15: 51-55 Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

It’s like saying to the devil, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah. Jesus always causes us to triumph. Glory to God!!!

Filed under: Spiritual Insights