Words of Promise

Today was my grandfather's funeral. I was blessed to be able to rest in the fact that I will see him again once more. As I was dwelling on this fact this morning, I became curious as to where exactly in Scripture do we find this promise? Thus the mini-Bible study began.

*Bible Study Time*

• ‎"O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." ~ 1 Corinthians 15:55-57:  The grave is not the end for the Christian. Because of Christ's sacrifice, we can have "eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord"~ Romans 6:23

• ‎"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." ~ 1 Thessalonians. 4:13-14: We have hope in Christ that we will see our loved ones who have gone before once again. We may sorrow for ourselves, but not as those who are missing God's comfort and promise~ leading to the next verse...

• ‎"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new." Revelation 21:4-5a: One glorious day, after Christ has raptured His church, there will be no more pain~ emotional or physical. The Creator of the universe Himself will wipe away our tears, and we will enter an eternity of joy with Him.

•  ‎"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28: Even through the death of a loved one, God works things together for His glory and our good. Many of Grandpa's unsaved friends heard a clear presentation of the Gospel today. Grandma and uncle have started coming to church. I felt my Savior's presence in a way unlike any other I have known. And these are just the visible ways that God has worked a sad event (on our part) for a greater good.

  There are also a few songs that are a beautiful reminder of heaven, and a comfort to me through this time. Here are the titles:

"Homesick" ~ mercyme

"Finally Home"~ mercyme

"I Can Only Imagine"~ mercyme

"Amazing Grace: My Chains Are Gone"~ Chris Tomlin

"He Is"~ Mark Schultz

"I Am"~ Mark Schultz

I have been so blessed with the songs, Scriptures, and prayers for our family! God is good!