Coffee With The Lord

Sharon, my wife, is an avid reader… she consumes books at an incredible rate of reading!  But I caught her doing it… Yup!  Caught her “red-handed!” … I caught her flipping to the last chapter of a new novel to find out how it all ended!

So “sheepishly” I’m going to do it today – gonna follow her lead here in “coffee with the Lord!”  On this Tuesday of “Holy Week” before Easter Sunday, I’m going to sneak past “Good Friday” and celebrate how it all ends up on Easter… I’m even going to go further and check out the “Epilogue” of Easter! 

No shame!  Going to do it with a smile on my face, rejoicing in my heart, and even triumphant praise on my lips!!!  (My excuse? … It was part of my Bible reading this morning!)

Here’s what I read today (part of one of the greatest chapters in all of the Bible – 1 Corinthians 15)…

“Our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever.  But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret… We will not all die, but we will all be transformed!  It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.  For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.  Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory!  O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’  For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.  But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ!!!” (From 1 Corinthians 15:50-57)

So what is it that prompted this wonderful glimpse into the end of the story?  Glad you asked…

“Let me now remind you of the Good News I preached to you before… Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.  He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said! … And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins.  In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost!  And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. ²⁰ But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead!  He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.  So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man.  Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.  But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 17–23 NLT)

There!  I couldn’t help myself… I just had to let you in on “the rest of the story!”

A beautiful Spring day here in North Texas! … “The sun is shining!  Birds are singing!…” – a snatch of those lyrics came to mind this morning as I reflected on Psalm 50 during my time of “coffee with the Lord”

Here’s a “taste” of what that Psalm declares…

“For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills!  I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine! … The world is Mine, and all its fullness!

“Offer to God thanksgiving!  Pay your vows to the Most High!  Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me!

“Whoever offers praise glorifies Me!  And to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God!”

Hey, it’s Monday of “Holy Week” … I’m going to do it!  Will you join me?

Materialism is a trap – a delusion. 

We think we “can take it with us” … fact is, we can’t.  The only thing that really matters is what endures beyond the grave – eternal values!!  Thought deeply about that today as I read this passage this morning during “coffee with the Lord”!  (Some posts just don’t need much comment J)

“Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world, both low and high, rich and poor alike:  My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding…

“Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me— those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches?  

“No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them— the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough— so that they should live on forever and not see decay.  For all can see that the wise die, that the foolish and the senseless also perish, leaving their wealth to others.  Their tombs will remain their houses forever, their dwellings for endless generations, though they had named lands after themselves.  People, despite their wealth, do not endure; they are like the beasts that perish.  This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings…

“But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead; he will surely take me to himself.   

“So do not be overawed when others grow rich, when the splendor of their houses increases; for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them… People who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish.” (from Psalm 49 NIV)