Final Word

Job 19:25-27

But as for me, I know

          that my Redeemer lives,

     and that He will stand upon

          the earth at last. 

And after my body has decayed,

     yet in my body I will see God!

I will see Him for myself.  Yes,

     I will see Him with my own eyes. 

     I am overwhelmed at the thought!  (NLT)

     If you lost everything; your family, your home, your business, your health, and your friends, would you curse God and blame Him for your troubles or would you stand firm in your faith and ask Him to give you understanding and resolve?  Would you still love God and be a witness to His goodness, or would you turn against Him in hate?  I’m not trying to diminish anyone’s difficult circumstances nor am I implying that God will deliberately cause you to suffer such a loss, but just as Job suffered, we, too, may find ourselves thrown into dire circumstances that we don’t understand—trials that will test our faith—trials that can bring us closer to God or drive us away.  But it is usually this fallen world and Satan that single us out, attacking us in ways that bring great suffering into our lives.  And this can cause us to either question the righteousness of our Holy God or doubt His power and sovereignty.  But whether it is God discipline, Satan's attack, this fallen world, or our own foolish mistakes, we must still live and deal with it.  And until Jesus returns, life on this earth will continue to worsen and decay.  Nothing is immune—all things will suffer. 

     But amidst all the pain and trouble, there is Hope, because the Redeemer has come and restored the broken relationship between God and man.   The Son came in the flesh to shed His blood and sacrifice His life to cleanse our sins and set us free from the power of sin and death.  Death and the grave could not hold our Lord God and Savior, Jesus Christ and He became the first of many to be resurrected from the grave and be given a glorified body that will never again suffer and die.  And like Job, we know that our Redeemer lives, bringing all peoples hope for redemption.  You have been redeemed, my friend, but you must accept and follow your Redeemer, because without Him death will have the final word.  It is a pure and undeserved gift from God to know that no matter what you have done in the past or how much suffering this wicked world has caused you; death will not have the final say.  But until then, live in the Light of the Redeemer and let Jesus have His Way!

                                     A Whisper of Hope

I Am your Redeemer, dear child…the only One who can save you from destroying yourself.  I came to save the world, and I did just that.  And when you believe in Me and the price I paid for your sins; redemption is yours; no questions asked.

Isaiah 53:5-6

But He was wounded and crushed for our sins. 

He was beaten that we might have peace.  He

was whipped, and we were healed!  All of us

have strayed away like sheep.  We have left

God’s paths to follow our own.  Yet the LORD

laid on Him the guilt and sins of us all.  (NLT)

                     But as for me, God will redeem my life. 

           He will snatch me from the power of death.

                                 (Psalm 49:15)