At the cash game we visited in north Florida last week, we asked a man next to us if he believed in Jesus. The man told us he did. But the discussion stemming from the Lord's physical appearance didn't stop there.
"I'll just have to wait till I get to heaven to find out," one man declared.
"I'm personally hoping for Jesus to come back, so I can meet Him in the air," we responded.
Many people (even many Christians) think they're going to heaven when they die. But there's a problem with that reasoning - and it's Biblical:
"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day.... God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.... For David did not ascend to heaven...." - Acts 2:29, 32, 34Jesus was resurrected, and Acts 1:9 shows He ascended to heaven. But David, who's called a man after God's own heart in Acts 13:22, has NOT ascended to heaven. His body apparently awaits a moment many believers hope to see:
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. - I Thessalonians 4:14We admittedly did a double-take when we reviewed this verse. How can God in heaven "bring" someone who's asleep in the ground and buried?
The answer may be hidden in the Greek word for "bring." That word is translated "led" elsewhere in the New Testament (such as John 18:28 and Acts 8:32). We've concluded Jesus will lead dead believers out of their "final resting places."
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. - I Thessalonians 4:17Several people at our cash game expressed opinions that the way world events are going, Jesus needs to come back quickly -- and even should. We mentioned in our last post no one knows the exact return time. But are you ready, whenever it happens?
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