Reflecting God - Embrace Holy Living from Wordaction of The Global Church of the Nazarene Publishing House in Kansas City, Missouri, United States "Beauty Out of Dying" by Lori Miller for Thursday, 16 February 2017 with Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-28

Reflecting God - Embrace Holy Living from Wordaction of The Global Church of the Nazarene Publishing House in Kansas City, Missouri, United States "Beauty Out of Dying"  by Lori Miller for Thursday, 16 February 2017 with Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-28
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"Beauty Out of Dying" by Lori Miller
1 Corinthians 15:12 But if it has been proclaimed that the Messiah has been raised from the dead, how is it that some of you are saying there is no such thing as a resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the Messiah has not been raised; 14 and if the Messiah has not been raised, then what we have proclaimed is in vain; also your trust is in vain; 15 furthermore, we are shown up as false witnesses for God in having testified that God raised up the Messiah, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then the Messiah has not been raised either; 17 and if the Messiah has not been raised, your trust is useless, and you are still in your sins. 18 Also, if this is the case, those who died in union with the Messiah are lost. 19 If it is only for this life that we have put our hope in the Messiah, we are more pitiable than anyone.
20 But the fact is that the Messiah has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have died. 21 For since death came through a man, also the resurrection of the dead has come through a man. 22 For just as in connection with Adam all die, so in connection with the Messiah all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: the Messiah is the firstfruits; then those who belong to the Messiah, at the time of his coming; 24 then the culmination, when he hands over the Kingdom to God the Father, after having put an end to every rulership, yes, to every authority and power. 25 For he has to rule until he puts all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be done away with will be death, 27 for “He put everything in subjection under his feet.”[1 Corinthians 15:27 Psalm 8:7(6)] But when it says that “everything” has been subjected, obviously the word does not include God, who is himself the one subjecting everything to the Messiah. 28 Now when everything has been subjected to the Son, then he will subject himself to God, who subjected everything to him; so that God may be everything in everyone.
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The earth’s transformation in autumn is without measure. The forest becomes a symphony of copper and crimson, a stunning transition from summer to fall. The passages of grief in the face of loss are strangely similar. The grace of God, the Season-Changer himself, is evident in the different paths to mourning and in the eventual return to resilience. As we look around at the unfolding of summer to fall, we can see the seeds of the future.
In the resurrection of Christ, we are given a glimpse of the future. As believers we are hopeful, victorious, and purposeful even in the face of death, for the promise of all believers is the gift of eternal life. Even as our earthly bodies weaken and decay, we can look forward to a time when the purposes of God for our bodies and spirits are revealed, as they are transformed and enriched in ways unfathomable until revealed in the life to come.
Tucked within the peculiar season of autumn is the delicate juxtaposition of beauty in the falling apart of life. I have affection for autumn, for in it I can see God the Healer’s breathtaking ability to paint beauty out of dying.-------
Hymn for Today: "Christ the Lord is Risen Today" by Charles Wesley
1. Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia! 
Earth and heaven in chorus say, Alleluia! 
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia! 
Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia! 
2. Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia! 
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia! 
Death in vain forbids him rise, Alleluia! 
Christ has opened paradise, Alleluia! 
3. Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia! 
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia! 
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia! 
Where's thy victory, boasting grave? Alleluia! 
4. Soar we now where Christ has led, Alleluia! 
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia! 
Made like him, like him we rise, Alleluia! 
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia! 
5. Hail the Lord of earth and heaven, Alleluia! 
Praise to thee by both be given, Alleluia! 
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia! 
Hail the Resurrection, thou, Alleluia! 
6. King of glory, soul of bliss, Alleluia! 
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia! 
Thee to know, thy power to prove, Alleluia! 
Thus to sing, and thus to love, Alleluia! 
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Thought for Today: Romans 8:18 I don’t think the sufferings we are going through now are even worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed to us in the future.
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Please Pray: For the development of Christian leaders in the United Kingdom.
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