Building on the Foundation

  In this physical realm, death is part of life. As we go through life, we will all lose loved ones. Every flesh-and-blood human being we have ever known or met will one day perish. “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Heb. 9:27). God didn’t design these physical bodies to endure forever, and this world around us is only temporary. And that includes death. Death , too, is only temporary. One day, death itself will pass away and be no more. Of course, it’s natural and healthy to mourn the loss of a loved one. Abraham mourned for Sarah and wept over her (Gen. 23:2). Joseph, his brothers, and even the Egyptians mourned and wept for Jacob (Gen. 50:1-14). Joshua and the children of Israel mourned and wept for Moses (Deut. 34:8). And so on. Throughout Scripture, there are many examples of mourning and weeping at the loss of a loved one. Yet it’s also important to remember that, for the righteous, death is simply a prelude to something far better. Near the ...

  Have you ever wondered what will become of the billions who lived and died without ever hearing the name of Jesus or seeing a Bible? The miscarried and the stillborn? The young children who died of smallpox, starvation, or abuse? Eskimos, Chinese, Pacific islanders, Australian aborigines, Africans, and South American tribes who lived and died long before anyone could tell them about Jesus? Only those who believe in and accept Jesus Christ can be saved. No exceptions. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). No one of any other belief can enter into God’s Kingdom. “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Jesus said, “No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). So how could old-time Pacific islanders accept Jesus Christ when they’d never heard of Him? How could the s...

There are numerous lessons that we can learn from the story of Gideon, but one of my favorite pictures that is painted is about the resurrection.  No, Gideon was not brought back to life after meeting his demise, nor were any other people in this story. In fact, there is a lot of death and destruction contained in these pages.   Let's start in the book of Judges and in Chapter seven.   Gideon was leading an army of 32,000 Israelite men.  The enemy were the Midianites and the Amalekites, and were described in verse 12 as being "... as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude ." That's a lot more than 32,000 men. Now Gideon was a nobody that was recruited by our God for this task. He had no military history, nor was he a renowned general.  And even if he had been; it would still be akin to suicide to engage in such a lop-sided battle.   Then in verse 2 things really get interesting. ...