Christs life and ministry is well pleasing to God through our...

2 Corinthians 5, 1-4. Remember the last week where we traveled through 2 Corinthians 4, 17-18 and we'll revisit that just briefly this morning. Verse 1, For we know that if our earthly house, this tabernacle, were dissolved, with a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

For in this we groan earnestly, desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven. If so be that being clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened not that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon that mortality might be swallowed up of life. terminology here than maybe the New King James isn't the best version to read this from.

I think this whole issue of clothing and nakedness etc. is something that we're going to look at in more detail here. But this is a tremendously uplifting passage. There are multiple reasons for that and I hope as we go through this today we can all enjoy the truth and uplifting nature of this part of the text. How's that verse as a pillow for a tired head?

For we know that if our earthly house or tabernacle is or were destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. We don't need to look for a new house, do we? We've got one already built for us. We'll have to go on a house hunting tour once we get there. There's going to be no redesigning that once we're there. Fortunately or unfortunately, we don't have much detail about what this place looks like, but anyway, it's certainly not made with human hands, so put off your human mindset in terms of what this house made without hands looks like.

And this follows all the earthly trials described in chapter 4, and remember last week. For this light affliction is but for a moment, which worketh for us a far more eternal and exceeding way to glory, while we look not at the things that are seen, London, yesterday, or the things that are not seen. For the things that are seen are what? temporal and the things that are not seen are eternal. Such an important introduction into this house being made without hands in terms of this earthly experience versus what the promise is for life eternally with our Lord Jesus Christ.

For we know that if, and remember no can be translated factual, or it can be translated experiential or it can be an overzealous experiential kind of knowledge. And here, this is iaido, and what's that? That's factual knowledge. For we know, we know factually. Now you can't tell Sun this. She's had no interest in this, or if she's got interest in it, it's passing. But we as believers know factually that we have a place beyond this experience here on earth. Wow.

And I think it's kind of interesting to look at the use of the term if here. It's conditional. Why would that be conditional? But we know that if our earthly house is this tent we live in and we're destroyed or is destroyed, Well, this is assurance personified, but again, why might were destroyed be a better translation than is destroyed? What do you think? And again, it relates to the conditional aspects to some extent, but maybe doesn't explain it entirely. We don't know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future.

Well, that's partly true, Tom. That is true. In fact, it's not partly true. It's entirely true. But in terms of this issue of We know if our earthly house is destroyed. What's the conditional nature of that? It will be, definitely. It's future. Let's turn to 1 Corinthians 15 verses 51 and 52. Randy, if you could read that for us.

Maybe, Cheryl, for you to read 1 Thessalonians 4.17. Could you pull that one out? Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed. In a moment, the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

And 1 Thessalonians 4.17? For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and thus we shall always be with the Lord.

Alright, so the idea of destruction I would think would relate to human death, would it not? But if we're translated, I mean that's not death as we all know it. So I think that's kind of, if we were, and that's why it's conditional, because in fact some of us may leave as the church is raptured, right? Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but I think that conditional nature and were is a better translation than is because all of us, well, likely will die an earthly death, but maybe we won't.

And as Vern often says, he prays daily for the rapture that the Lord would come today. You know, I think, let's pause here just a second. Why would we want the Lord to come today versus, say, 15 years from now, 15 centuries from now? Well I'm sure we are in the same line as Paul looking at the scriptures because he said in a lot of ways the same thought in what he spoke. To be with Christ is to be at totally rest and he's looking forward to that rest. And I would contend that most people want to be taken out of here, raptured, because they want to get away from this sinful nature, this earthly system we live in. But no, it's just being with the Lord Jesus Christ. I must admit, I have to pause occasionally. Why would rapture be so wonderful? Well, anyway, and things are going reasonably well, praise the Lord. But the point is that I think being with him eternally, in person, is really the calling, is it not?

But I think this conditional nature may be related to the fact that some of us, perhaps, maybe all of us, maybe likely none of us who knows the timing, are going to be raptured rather than die physically. Everybody kind of okay with that? All right, let's go ahead then.

What do you think this phrase, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens, is all about? I always thought that that had to do with our body, that our building was our body. that we have a temporal body here. But we're going to have a new body when we get to heaven. We're going to have a new body.

Okay. Clothed, right? Clothed upon. What strikes me, and I actually have a little note I made in the past. Good, let's hear the note, Roger. What we have is the present tense. It is. So it's interesting to think, to kind of ponder this. So I would venture to say, we have it right now. It's waiting for us, in a sense. Isn't that kind of neat? That's kind of mind boggling.

What's a spiritual body like? What do you envision this thing to be like? Like Christ is. And describe what we know about his spiritual body. We shall be like him. We shall see him as he is. Okay. And what was he like when he came back in the resurrected body? people recognize him, he can just appear anywhere.

Are we going to be recognized based on our earthly existence, do you think, in the spiritual bodies? No, but we all have the mind of Christ though. We have the mind of Christ. Don't you think? I don't know. I have mixed feelings about whether we're even going to care whether we run into people we knew. Our focus is going to be on Christ. We'll let the mind of Christ be a totally different mind than what we have today. Will that mind of Christ see earthly things as they currently are or historically are? We have the mind of Christ. Are we going to see sin?

I mean, I'm taking this out in left field someplace, but I mean, we all think about these things because our heavenly existence is poorly described in scripture. We have very little detail what this eternal existence is going to be like, right? But we all ponder it. We think about it.

We'll be without sin. Absolutely. Gotta be. I often wonder if we're going to have name tags. How about this? We'll know everyone. That's what I mean. Let me challenge you even further. Everybody talks about being with their mother. you know, former spouse, are we going to, I mean, that's an earthly kind of thing, isn't it? We return with Christ to render them on the earth, we're going to have exposure to sin. We're exposed to it, but we're holy and righteous as we are now, right? I mean, that never changes. Right. Yeah, Gary. Christ's glorified body, he was recognized. He was. And he's walking through building walls, right?

Things like this. But that's not to be with him. It is. But I think, again, as I mentioned, maybe it's just me, but I think being with him is sometimes not why I want to be raptured. Right. As we think of the trials and afflictions we have here on earth. I mean, not that we don't have a privilege of living in a fairly well-to-do society and have some comfort zones here. Anyway. All right, good. Good input from the class here today. And anyway, as we think about this further, compare this with the tent or tabernacle we currently inhabit.

Remember the story of Lazarus and the rich man? What stands out with that story? He suffered greatly in his human tent, but the roles were reversed in the heavenly scene. And it suggests that there's some kind of communication system, isn't there, between the dead in Christ and the dead outside the Lord. I think the Lord Jesus gave us that example for a reason. People who die without faith reflect back, wishing they had listened like soon to the gospel.

So anyway, this tabernacle we're in now, what's different what we're inhabiting now versus what we're fully righteous, right? Accepted and beloved. Positioned, you know, with the right hand. But what's different between now and then? Tom? No, it wasn't signaling. Because there's sin here, there's sin. Okay, absolutely. We still have a sin nature, right?

We have illness and we have, you know, Bob and I were talking on the way down here how, you know, Bob's going to be 70 and I'm close to 70. And so now we're looking at people that we know. But we're looking at people that we know and people we know of who are dying or who are so sick they're going to die soon. And so we're at that age now where people This is a sinful world and guess what? It's full of disease and bad things happen to people and this is what sin is about.

I think the reminder here is that what's different is not different spiritually. We are fully accepted in the beloved here and now and forever more. The difference is we still have an old nature. and we can whip it all we want, but the cross has already whipped it and taken care of it, but we don't live in that truth or in that space. I think that's really something we have to think. We are in an earthly tent, but yet we are still holy and righteous. He hath made him who knew no sin to be made the righteousness of us in him.

2 Corinthians 5.21. It's part of this chapter. I'm not sure who's going to be teaching that verse, but it's one of the great scriptural verses. He hath made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of him. Wow, how's that for identification?

Even though the tabernacles in which we live will be physically different, our spiritual position is equally as identical then as it is today. OK, so this idea of these tabernacles or tents is a use of the term of the earthly body. We're not going to turn to these texts, but Peter describes this, and Job does too, actually. Job describes his human body as a tent. So this is both scripturally sound in the New Testament and the Old Testament.

But always be reminded, 1 Corinthians 3.16, do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? And I think that righteousness in which we're positioned becomes conditional by the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

And when we dismiss that and live to improve the old man, we fail. Because the sin nature can't be improved for what it is. It's still that. And what happens when we fall short? We confess, get back in fellowship, and move on. We don't dwell on those shortcomings. And we all have them. both that's observable by others or observable within ourselves. Confess and move on. We're fully righteous in the beloved. Importantly, we have as present indicative, as Roger has said, he was looking ahead in the notes. Anyway, so this is factual. We have as present indicative, fact and hope.

John 3.36, he who believes in the Son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides in him. Lazarus and the rich man is a good example of this situation, scripturally.

2 Corinthians 4.14, knowing this, that he who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus and will present with you. Kind of maybe a relationship to the rapture, but whether we're dead in our physical bodies, as history of the church has been up until this point, or whether we're raptured. Either way, we're in fact lifted up and present with Him. Not made with hands. I thought this was an interesting parallel verse.

Colossians 2.11. Kind of tangential, but I thought it was good. In Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands.

Isn't that interesting? If you think of the Jewish tradition of circumcision, and in a sense that's what circumcision represented in the Old Testament, didn't it? It was a spiritual circumcision, although it only was temporizing, wasn't it? Randy has some other thoughts about that, but I mean the idea of the circumcision made without hands by putting off the body of sins of the flesh by the circumcision of the Lord Jesus Christ. Fits, doesn't that fit? made without hands. So the Jewish community that was circumcised, that was an act of faith by the Jewish believer. There was something about circumcision that had value spiritually. But now, and that was done without hands, with us. Circumcision obviously is a physical act, but here it's made without hands.

Neat, I think. Alright, let's turn to verse 2 then. Any other thoughts about verse 1? Again, a pillow for a tired head. Alright. For in this we groan earnestly, desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven. Groaning. Well, are you groaning? Well, according to this we should be, right? Well, I think J. Bernard McGee says it's okay to groan. So we can groan. We can groan. I'll come back to J. Bernard in a few minutes.

But don't you think this is part of, you know, why people complain about, I mean, some people just don't want to be here because of the physical body, the sin. I mean, some people, they've just had it. Is that a good thing? Is that what you're saying or is that not a good thing? No, it's not a good thing. It's not a good thing, but I think people do, they're groaning. That is their groaning. We're sort of subjected to this sin world. But you know what that is, Marta?

I think that's bad theology. I don't disagree with that. It's terrible theology. In fact, if people were just focusing on their sins and their sin nature, there's never any victory there. And people would criticize the theology we teach here, and I think the Bible clearly teaches, is that let go, let God. What's wrong with let go, let God?

You have to be a participant of faith. It's all our faith. Do we believe what God has revealed about who we are in Christ? That's what's different. It's not let go, let God. It's let go and let God live in your life by faith. It's all an act of faith.

Romans 8.23, not only that, but we also who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. So this verse kind of relates to this groaning, what we should be groaning about, is ultimately because it's the first fruits of the Spirit that would have us groan, so that ultimately our physical presence will be with the Lord Jesus Christ. earnestly designed to be clothed with our habitation.

James 4.5, or do you think that the scripture says in vain the spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously? No, it's kind of a verse of redundancy. No, that's the exact opposite. The spirit does yearn. zealously within us, that our habitation would be with the Lord.

And Macaulay brings this out, it's literally to be clothed over, it's not to have in fact a new paraclete, it's a new paraclete but we're being clothed over, our existence doesn't change. in our eternal and spiritual body. It's being clothed over with a new set of clothes. For this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortality. It's kind of being put on to us.

This is not just having us totally wiped out and created anew. It's our same creation but yet clothed now in a new form. And where is our habitation? in the heavenlies. Remember heavens in scripture can be interpreted as the sky, the astronomic features of this great universe in which we live in, but here we're talking about the heavenlies where our Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ exist.

Verse 3, if indeed having been clothed, okay this is being clothed over, we shall not be found naked. That's kind of interesting. If indeed here means since and is not conditional. Let's go back and look at that verse. If indeed having been clothed we shall not be found naked. If here is since, better translated since. So this isn't what if, it's since we will have been clothed, we shall not be found naked.

It's important because remember if for the most part is conditional. If this happens then that or if this then whatever. But here if is better translated since because it's something that's expected. Having been clothed in our spiritual bodies the alternative would be to be naked and we're not naked. We're in fact going to be clothed with something.

Revelation 16.15, Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame. So anyway, naked we think of being unclothed, but in fact we are never as believers put in a position of being naked. In our spiritual bodies we are being clothed with a new set of clothing, a new wardrobe if you will. So what does not being found naked mean?

Here not without clothes but without a body. And Wyss describes it as a disembodied spirit. And Plummer, I like this a lot, like the souls in Sheol, without form and void of all power and activity. So this is kind of, it's not without clothes but without a body, a disembodied spirit. So it's kind of hard to comprehend this, but the idea here is that not being found naked means that this is a like a soul that's in hell without form and void of all power and activity. Those people will be naked and they will have no form or they will have no power and activity.

So it's a difficult concept but I think we're being clothed anew, we're being covered over with something new. Our spirit is no different than it is now. But for those without clothing they are found kind of naked in terms of their body but their souls are really what exists with that form and all power and activity.

Other thoughts about this? It kind of brings to my mind the thought of being clothed in Christ's righteousness. Is there a physical nature? I think that probably fits better here in terms of the nature of the soul and the spirit being clothed with his righteousness. Anyway, let's go back and remind ourselves of the nakedness of Adam and Eve and what that represents.

Let's read Genesis 3, 7 through 11. Is that right? Is that Genesis 7, 3 through 11? I think I may have put that down incorrectly. Somebody please read that. 3, 7. 3, 7 through 11, I think. from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being.

In the eyes of both of them? Yes, that's where we're at. And they knew they were naked and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. Oh, I'm sorry, I'm into it. Can everybody hear Cheryl? Not so well. Winnie, I mean. Can everybody hear her? Go ahead, Frances has it now, I think. Do you have it now, Frances? You were reading it. Just speak up, Winnie, if you could.

They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. And the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? And he said, I heard the sound of you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid myself.

And he said, who told you you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat? So they read the rest of it. Yes, go ahead. The man said, the woman whom you gave to me, we did it. She gave me from the tree and I ate. Then the Lord God said to the woman, what is this you have done? And the woman said, the serpent deceived me and I were still passing it on. That was not the reason for reading this one. Well you get the picture.

So nakedness here really represented what? The unclothed nature. Keep in mind they were naked presumably which is a term we probably interpreted incorrectly in terms of the way that God viewed them before the first sin. So what did nakedness imply? Lack of fellowship with the Lord. Lack of faith and ultimately falling short of God's purpose for their lives. So I think as we think about the garden in terms of nakedness and being unclothed, and we think of where this whole process began, it relates to the sin nature. And so this spirit without a body and shield and place is not in a heavenly domain, really represents the sin nature being played out eternally.

They are again naked and without clothing. So the idea of the concept here is that we in fact are viewed entirely differently. We're in a different company here and not in the company of those who fall short by faith. OK with that. So that nakedness was really not a thing that they really...

Actually, the Lord is the one who clothed them, right? Well, I think it's a comfort, really, to say, I'm not going to leave you naked. There's never going to be a time period. You have your heavenly set of new clothes, so to speak, already waiting for you there, and there's not going to be an instant when you're not going to be clothed. That's good. Which is pretty cool, I think. It's kind of reassurance. for the believer that yes, God understands the importance of being clothed and that's an important concept.

And we saw the negative part of that in Genesis. And if you think about it, we're clothed here because we're earthly beings and we live in a world that's tempted by sin. And the sin nature is still here. So as a body of Christ, we're still clothed. We're not walking around naked because we're righteously clothed in His righteousness. No. But when we leave here, we're clothed in His righteousness. Remember clothed over, or newly clothed, our spirit is still the same, but yet the clothing we wear is spiritual and heavenly clothing. I think Tom had a question. You can explain to Peter it's in my raised hand. So was that a raised hand? And I said what you were going to say? Okay, this is good. Osmosis, we're close enough to have that.

Any other thoughts about this? Verse 4, for we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Why do we groan and are burdened in this earthly clothing, or do we and are we? Because we keep looking forward to when we will be complete in Christ, the ultimate completion outside this domain.

OK. Other ideas? My comment here is how comfortable life can be many times, right? It keeps us from groaning. Here's back to J. Vernon McGee. I listen to him every morning. Margaret so nicely has cut all his CDs for me and I'm getting at the end of June now ready to hit Revelation. I think I mentioned this last week, so forgive me.

J. Vernon keeps saying he had cancer, metastatic prostate cancer, and he kept saying, I want to live.

I mean there's nothing wrong with wanting to live because our life here is related to those around us who love us and some mostly undeservingly but anyway they love us, they interact with us, we provide for our families and we do everything we can to in the spirit to bring glory to the Lord. So J. Vernon felt his ministry wasn't done here so he wanted to live but yet he also had this understanding and truthful desire that when he's out of here, he's like today's text, he's with the Lord in a new pair of clothing.

So I think our groanings sometimes cease to exist because we get comfortable here. Do people relate to this at all? I see a lot of blank faces here. Bonnie says all creation grows. Scripture does support that. We've grown because of what's going on in the world. Well, we've grown because of that, but we're separated from it, aren't we? But we may not be for long yet. I mean, I deal with a lot with this.

You know, Trump's made a decision on kind of immigration, at least putting at least some bans on people coming into the country from certain regions of the Middle East, particularly. And in my academic community, you know, there's a lot of scientists who work in some of these countries and they're coming to meetings and setting centers being prohibited. And so the liberal mindset of that is, look, this is terrible to think that we can. personalized individuals who are contributing to the scientific advancement of science and medicine from coming to this state either on a sabbatical or a period of additional training and all that. Anyway, that's all world system stuff. I'm not going to say yay or nay. I understand the liberals position on this.

But also, I mean, we're not going to protect ourselves forever from the terror of this world system. And keep in mind, the Bible says nothing good about the future of the earthly system, right? So when you put that into perspective spiritually, do we self-destruct? No, we wait for his timing to allow these things to occur. But the London Bridge event last night just is more evidence that this earth is going to hell, right?

And it's ultimately going to be very, very devastating to follow. And then, of course, if we're here, we're raptured, right? We're out of here. But if we're not, whenever that's going to occur. I mean, if I ask the class, how many people think the rapture is nigh? versus those who think it's it's it's there's just his coming.

I mean his. It can be imminent. He can come at any time. It's just the timing of the father. But think of the apostolic age. There was a lot of thoughts that this was forthcoming. Think of the middle ages and all the issues that occurred there. Think of World War II as our most recent example, right? Where Hitler looked like the Antichrist. I don't know. It could be centuries. It could be a millennium until this all occurs. We don't have any idea. I don't know. I just know it's going to get a lot worse than it is now.

But as Margaret was saying to me last night, there's no way that we can pick up this kind of terrorist activity that existed on London Bridge last night. Those people didn't see the story. Some people drove this van, just ran people down on the London Bridge, just murdered them by running over them. And then they got out with these knives. Anyway, too much detail.

But the point is, it's an airflare system. It ain't going to get any better. Somebody doesn't have to build a bomb. You can ban guns. England doesn't have guns. You can do all that stuff. They still killed 30 people or whatever it was. Six people were killed, 30 were injured. Just with knives.

Kitchen knives. well guess what you know that can happen anywhere anytime and Bob and I think about this when we travel around the world you know we could be I mean we've been in London we've been in a lot of these places where these things have happened and we go you know what we're not going to be held captive we just refuse to let the terrorists rule our life because we have no control over when the Lord has our time to be out of here and we're just I'm just I'm not we're not stupid, but you take precautions. Yeah, but we don't we're not going to Syria anytime soon. It's not on my bucket list. I've never been there. Anyway, let's move on. Is this new wardrobe all wishful thinking? No, it's not. It's spiritually based.

Paul's eyes are on the ultimate, not the intermediate state. I think, is it Macaulay or Wiest? I think it was Macaulay who described it as the intermediate state. Why would we call our current existence the intermediate state? That's not something I pose on the handout. It's not the final state. This is our business address. True. But why intermediate? Why wouldn't it be the first estate? McCauley didn't explain this. He just used the term.

I would suggest that our intermediate state is being in our earthly bodies and being saved versus being in the earthly bodies and being unsaved. That's our initial state. Is it not? And the intermediate state is we're still here, but we have a spiritual and eternal relationship through the cross with the Lord Jesus Christ. Tom?

I'm wondering because at the time this letter was written, of course, the temple was still there. Things could still have happened. The Jews as a nation could have had a change of heart and everything would be already in place, the temple, everything else. But after 70 A.D., gone may be gone, but Paul didn't have that insight.

True, okay. Any other thoughts about kind of the intermediate state? I mean, again, I probably just used this in passing, but it made me ponder a little bit about what he really meant. Okay with that? I mean, I think the initial state would be being born physically.

The intermediate state is us still in an earthly body with a sin nature, unfortunately, but we have it, but being saved and being righteous, being made righteous by our faith in what occurred. And then the eternal state, ultimately, the ultimate state, is that that we're looking forward to. But further, again, clothed upon, invested with our heavenly body. Wiest makes that point, really. He feels that we don't look at this is a spiritual change, it's the same spirit, the same soul, but now being newly clothed, clothed upon. Again, mortality would be replaced with immortality, and that's with a new wardrobe.

So what does that mortality may be swallowed up by life indicate? And why do you think swallowed up is subjunctive? What's subjunctive mean? Something's happening, being done to you, you're not the object. But that's passive. But subjunctive means? Potential. Yeah, right.

So why do you think swallowed up, let's go back to the verse again, which I'm not going to go back. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened, not that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon that morality, mortality, which might be swallowed up. in life or swallowed up by life. So again, why is mortality, or mortality may be swallowed up by life, why is swallowed up subjunctive? May be swallowed up, in other words, maybe it will, maybe it won't. What are your thoughts about that? That's because he's talking about he and the crew he's traveling with are being persecuted. They don't know when that persecution may lead to death. So it's subjunctive. So it's the uncertainty of what's to come.

Is that what you're saying, Randy, in terms of the timing of that? Yeah. Okay. Any other thoughts? I wonder if you go back to the middle of the verse, it seems like he's concerned Obviously this unclothed or nakedness is a state which we know something about from what you kind of talked about. The fact that that's a state that unbelievers will be in. They'll be unclothed. It's almost like that he's kind of relating that. He says, for indeed we are in this tent.

We groan being burdened because we do not want to be unclothed. We don't want to be unclothed, but clothed, with the purpose that, or in order that, that may happen, that mortality may be swallowed up or covered by Christ. You know, there's other verses that talk about being clothed with Christ. So it seems like he's saying, we don't want to be like the unsaved. I don't know, that's... Just looking at the context of that verse.

That turned me to 1 Corinthians 15 which we alluded to in another section of the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians. So when this corruptible has put on incorruptible, by the way, when it's put on. When this corruption has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall we be brought to pass the saying that is written, death is swallowed up in victory. So I think the conditional nature is kind of what Randy said. I think the timing of this is really what's not clear, but it will occur. It's subjunctive based on timing, but it's not subjunctive based on truth. When are we going to die? Does anybody know that? No?

It's good that we don't. worry about our death. My late wife Sharon, the only wish she had was that she would not be realizing what death is all about near its end. In fact the Lord put her into a coma for 36 hours before she died. She died without terminal suffering and pain. We all would want Miles. Think about Miles' death. He was asleep at night and died. As far as we know, there was no pain or suffering. That's the way we'd all like to go, but none of us know that, how that death will occur. But that's not something we should worry about or focus on. It's in the Lord's hands. And whatever glory goes to him, no matter how this ultimately ensues.

So it made me think, you know, these verses are very strong, very uplifting, very filled with fact and hope, aren't they? So the question is, how do we conclude, or what have we learned from these four verses that we can apply? And I really, the Lord didn't have to take me very far into my mindset to think of what that might be. So what can we learn and apply from this passage?

I should have a question mark, not a colon there. Philippians 1, 21 to 23. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor. Yet what I shall choose I cannot tell, for I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better." So what's Paul saying here? I mean, to me, to live is Christ and die is gain, it's a win-win situation, isn't it?

There is no losing in this game. This is not an 18 inning game where somebody finally hits a homerun in the bottom of the 18th area. This in fact is a win-win. So our life here is an identification of life led by the Spirit in the new creation that we are in Christ Jesus. That's a win. God gets the glory. We just walk by faith. The other alternative is when we're out of here, it's eternal peace, lack of suffering, trials and tribulations forevermore, and we're with the Lord Jesus Christ, which is really the victory that we all want.

As I related to Jay Verna, which again, he's not perfect, but he does a reasonably good job of lifting my spirits up every morning on my way to work. And he wanted to be here, but also he recognized the truth of where he will be when he's not. So we need to walk victorious in that truth. For me to live as Christ, but yet to die is gain. Where I want to be, you don't have to worry about that.

You're not falling short of God's glory by saying, Paul said, look, I'm here, and you got me here for a while. And for me, that life is that exchange life in the Lord Jesus. Other thoughts about today's passage? I can just quote the words of this song and I won't try to sing it but I think it has great relevance connected with this it's better better by far to be there with the Lord with bright morning star this old world just can't compare with the glory we'll find there heaven is better by far Well stated. It's amazing how many things you have well memorized, Tom. Thanks. So, yes, Jack. I'm sorry to say I'm jumping ahead a little bit. Well, you can jump ahead. It talks about here. What verse are you in?

The fifth verse of this chapter says we have this Now he that hath brought in us for the very same thing is God who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. So Jack's egg verse 5 has the earnestness of the spirit, that's the spirit that provides us in that current zone of true life in the Lord Jesus Christ and also gives us that balance between here and there. And Randy's got the responsibilities of dealing with that next week. given to us. But it's an enactment of our lives on a day-to-day basis by faith isn't it?

Sure. So Randy how many verses do you have next week? Till verse 8. Alright any other thoughts here about today? Yes. You know, we may not like the situations that we're going through, but we do know that Christ is with us through those situations. In this time, it is perfect. Yes. Yeah. It's so hard sometimes to put this into perspective for the non-believer, isn't it? I mean, everything from their perspective is an earthly experience. There's just nothing with any security.

I just got done reading a book that Byrd had recommended called Cold Case Christianity. And if you want a really outstanding book that kind of looks at a skeptic and an atheist who came to the Lord, who was a detective in homicide cases. They put together all the evidence. Now that doesn't mean you have to go there to get saved. It just means these people with an earthly mindset only, if they would look like Josh McDowell or a few others who have written this transition from an atheist to a believer, This is really a good book.

It's called Cold Case Christianity. The reason it's named that is this is a homicide detective who ultimately needed to gather the evidence necessary to convict someone of murder. and he reveals case after case, but then uses that same analogy as he approached the historical and biblical evidence for Christianity. And by the way, there are many things in the Bible that I guess historically are a little bit different verses, some verses that aren't there, and some verses that really had been, you know, taken out, and they're just small things that don't affect the strong foundation we have in biblical truth. But it's a really good read. and I would recommend it if you have friends who are kind of interested but doubt the evidence as it currently exists.

Alright, so let's close in prayer. Father we're grateful, we're thankful for the scripture and what it really does each and every day to lift us up and give us the truth we need to carry on in this earthly existence. May we learn by the power of the Spirit in our life to groan a bit more for this earthly existence and accept the fact that you have perfect timing for us here and for our placement, which we already have in eternal places. So we're thankful again for the scripture, for the opportunity to fellowship around it, and may we be changed by it day in and day out as we live by faith. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.