One important insight that we can glean from the resurrection of Jesus is this - the choice of the Son of God to take up the form of a human being was NOT a temporary state of existence that ended in the death of His (imperfect) physical body. Rather, Jesus resurrects the body-spirit existence of mankind back to the state of perfection when He permanently takes on the physical form of a spiritual body (a form that is perfect and eternal).
We can look forward to our own resurrection into spiritual bodies the next time Jesus comes into the world.
And that, my dear brothers and sisters in Jesus, is what we actually mean when we say that the resurrection of Jesus conquered death (the by-product of our imperfect and fallen state of existence).
I share with you the words of Jesus to His dear friend Martha - "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:26) NIV
~~~~~
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Suffering
God did not create suffering in the world. Rather, suffering was introduced into the world by the exercise of man’s free will to be separate from God and raise himself to the level of God. Yet, even though suffering is an unfortunate by-product of this unfortunate choice (by the first man), it is also the means by which redemption from it comes.
A good metaphor for this concept would be the poison of a snake. We use it as a means to build an effective antidote to it. In like manner, suffering is the path to developing an effective remedy for it.
To grasp the truth of this spiritual concept, one need only reflect on why Jesus willed Himself to endure an incredible amount of physical and mental agony (and ultimately die on a tree) in order to bridge the spiritual divide between God and man.
Learn to embrace suffering with a loving outlook, and in doing so, peace will rest within you.
~~~~~
A good metaphor for this concept would be the poison of a snake. We use it as a means to build an effective antidote to it. In like manner, suffering is the path to developing an effective remedy for it.
To grasp the truth of this spiritual concept, one need only reflect on why Jesus willed Himself to endure an incredible amount of physical and mental agony (and ultimately die on a tree) in order to bridge the spiritual divide between God and man.
Learn to embrace suffering with a loving outlook, and in doing so, peace will rest within you.
~~~~~
Monday, January 11, 2010
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Dear Daughters (12-29-2009)
Each and every EPISODE of fear that creeps into our mind and overwhelms our body can be leveraged into OPPORTUNITIES to incrementally strengthen our faith in God and our belief and trust that He will only let happen in our lives that which is for the good of our soul and others. If you believe in God in this way, then it shall be so for you and your life.
This fearlessness must always be tempered with Jesus' reminder "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Matthew 4:7).
Always maintain a healthy respect for fear. Never overcome fear with reckless abandon. The only time we should go into harm's way is when we are called to render an act of love to a person in desperate need.
An excellent illustration of this philosophy is that of Mother Teresa walking unharmed to and from across the active line of gunfire in Beirut as she tended to the needs of orphans and the handicapped trapped under rubble caused by the bombings in Lebanon.
You are not putting God to the test when you put yourself in harm's way in this manner.
~~~~~
This fearlessness must always be tempered with Jesus' reminder "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Matthew 4:7).
Always maintain a healthy respect for fear. Never overcome fear with reckless abandon. The only time we should go into harm's way is when we are called to render an act of love to a person in desperate need.
An excellent illustration of this philosophy is that of Mother Teresa walking unharmed to and from across the active line of gunfire in Beirut as she tended to the needs of orphans and the handicapped trapped under rubble caused by the bombings in Lebanon.
You are not putting God to the test when you put yourself in harm's way in this manner.
~~~~~
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