Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint. But blessed is he
who keeps the law. ~Proverbs 29:18
We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 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. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, for the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with Him in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so, we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words. ~1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say, “no” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good. ~Titus 2:11-14
To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy, to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. ~Jude 24-25
Have you ever experienced the death of a dream? If you have lost a child, a marriage, a spouse, a job, or a ministry, then you know in some way what the followers of Christ were dealing with today. Sometimes, the loss happens slowly. You know that it will happen, and you have the time to prepare, to start the grieving process gently. Sometimes, loss happens abruptly and your body, graciously goes into shock to allow your thoughts and feelings time to catch up with reality.
Probably, the majority of Jesus’ followers were in this second category. Less than 36 hours before, they had been enjoying the traditional Seder meal together, arguing about who was the greatest and enjoying His company. It had all come crashing down so quickly, helped by one of their own. There was a betrayal from within, along with the death of a friend, the death of a dream for the future, the death of hope itself. How in the world does one process that? Where does one go from here?
The disciples waited, in hiding, for the shock to subside so that reality could seep in and a new reality take its place. They also had to think about what to do next. Some could return to their former occupations. Fishing is always a possibility. But what if you were a tax collector? Do you want to go back to doing that? Can you?
Then, there is the sorting of all of Jesus’ teachings. He said many good things. Do you hold on to the new way of thinking that Jesus taught or return to the “LAW,” and the way it is taught by those religious leaders, those men that Jesus was always having to deal with. Are they really right, or was Jesus? They were responsible for His death!
We know that they all huddled together somewhere. Chances are, these were some of the many questions that they were wrestling with on this day. Our proverb says, “Where there is no revelation the people cast off restraint.” I actually prefer the King James version instead which says, “the people parish.” Because it seems more directly applicable for today.
I’m sure that the disciples could easily have been full of enough despair that they wished they could die. Yet, as I think about it, the word restraint works also. When all is lost because a death has occurred, there appears to be no hope. One is tempted to cast off restraint and drift into fatal thoughts of hopelessness.
But, “blessed is the one who keeps the law.” I remember a story that comes from one of the concentration camps during World War II, about a group of Jewish men who came together to take a vote on whether or not God was dead. In their despair they voted that God must be dead. Then, the session ended with them praying!
That is a similar situation to what the disciples faced. They were without hope. Their tradition and law could sustain them through the shock and disappointment, but then what? This is the difference the knowledge of the resurrection makes for those of us who believe. Paul says: “We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” Why? Because we know more of the story!
However, just like the disciples on the day before Jesus’ resurrection, people today who don’t know about life in Christ, are still living in a Black Sabbath reality. When the crisis comes, they truly have no hope. They don’t know a bigger picture. What they do know is that they have lost something precious to them and that is the end. We know a different reality.
The passages above from Paul and Jude make sense to us because we know a new reality. We will never sit in a Black Sabbath moment again. Yes, we will grieve. Loss is real, but no matter how bad it gets, we know the presence of God and the reality of His victory over all that threatens our hope. If you know someone who is experiencing a Black Sabbath, without hope, go and sit with them and share their load. It will lighten the burden for them, and you can bear it because of the hope that is within you. And, you might get the chance to share the light that lightens your load.
Prayer: Thank You Lord, that though we suffer loss, we need not grieve as the world grieves. Thank you that we can always look to the resurrection and know a great hope for a bright future. But in the meantime, use us to bless and comfort those who do not have the hope we have and give us open doors into their hearts, so they can receive the same hope that sustains us. In Jesus' name, amen.
Song: O Sacred Head Now Wounded
We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 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. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, for the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with Him in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so, we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words. ~1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say, “no” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good. ~Titus 2:11-14
To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy, to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. ~Jude 24-25
Have you ever experienced the death of a dream? If you have lost a child, a marriage, a spouse, a job, or a ministry, then you know in some way what the followers of Christ were dealing with today. Sometimes, the loss happens slowly. You know that it will happen, and you have the time to prepare, to start the grieving process gently. Sometimes, loss happens abruptly and your body, graciously goes into shock to allow your thoughts and feelings time to catch up with reality.
Probably, the majority of Jesus’ followers were in this second category. Less than 36 hours before, they had been enjoying the traditional Seder meal together, arguing about who was the greatest and enjoying His company. It had all come crashing down so quickly, helped by one of their own. There was a betrayal from within, along with the death of a friend, the death of a dream for the future, the death of hope itself. How in the world does one process that? Where does one go from here?
The disciples waited, in hiding, for the shock to subside so that reality could seep in and a new reality take its place. They also had to think about what to do next. Some could return to their former occupations. Fishing is always a possibility. But what if you were a tax collector? Do you want to go back to doing that? Can you?
Then, there is the sorting of all of Jesus’ teachings. He said many good things. Do you hold on to the new way of thinking that Jesus taught or return to the “LAW,” and the way it is taught by those religious leaders, those men that Jesus was always having to deal with. Are they really right, or was Jesus? They were responsible for His death!
We know that they all huddled together somewhere. Chances are, these were some of the many questions that they were wrestling with on this day. Our proverb says, “Where there is no revelation the people cast off restraint.” I actually prefer the King James version instead which says, “the people parish.” Because it seems more directly applicable for today.
I’m sure that the disciples could easily have been full of enough despair that they wished they could die. Yet, as I think about it, the word restraint works also. When all is lost because a death has occurred, there appears to be no hope. One is tempted to cast off restraint and drift into fatal thoughts of hopelessness.
But, “blessed is the one who keeps the law.” I remember a story that comes from one of the concentration camps during World War II, about a group of Jewish men who came together to take a vote on whether or not God was dead. In their despair they voted that God must be dead. Then, the session ended with them praying!
That is a similar situation to what the disciples faced. They were without hope. Their tradition and law could sustain them through the shock and disappointment, but then what? This is the difference the knowledge of the resurrection makes for those of us who believe. Paul says: “We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” Why? Because we know more of the story!
However, just like the disciples on the day before Jesus’ resurrection, people today who don’t know about life in Christ, are still living in a Black Sabbath reality. When the crisis comes, they truly have no hope. They don’t know a bigger picture. What they do know is that they have lost something precious to them and that is the end. We know a different reality.
The passages above from Paul and Jude make sense to us because we know a new reality. We will never sit in a Black Sabbath moment again. Yes, we will grieve. Loss is real, but no matter how bad it gets, we know the presence of God and the reality of His victory over all that threatens our hope. If you know someone who is experiencing a Black Sabbath, without hope, go and sit with them and share their load. It will lighten the burden for them, and you can bear it because of the hope that is within you. And, you might get the chance to share the light that lightens your load.
Prayer: Thank You Lord, that though we suffer loss, we need not grieve as the world grieves. Thank you that we can always look to the resurrection and know a great hope for a bright future. But in the meantime, use us to bless and comfort those who do not have the hope we have and give us open doors into their hearts, so they can receive the same hope that sustains us. In Jesus' name, amen.
Song: O Sacred Head Now Wounded
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