Jobs in the Afterlife

I Cor 6:2, 3 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

How do you picture the activities of saints in heaven? Floating around on clouds, strumming harps, picking fruit off the tree of life, talking with the apostles and just taking it easy?

News flash! There is work to be done up yonder. Enjoyable, fulfilling, important jobs tailored to your inclinations and rewarded upon your faithfulness as a steward for God down here.

Surprised? Disappointed? Relieved? I know the homilies you have heard since childhood have painted pictures of a leisurely afterlife of fellowship and rest, and this is not entirely untrue, however, God's heaven will be one of satisfying productivity.

To name a few of the responsibilities:

1. Judging the World.  I Cor 6:2

2. Judging angels.  I Cor 6:3

3. Accounting for my congregants.  Heb 13:17

4. Ruling and reigning as a kings and priests during the millennial reign of Christ on earth. Rev 5:10

5. Reporting regularly to the throne for assignments. As His servants, we will serve Him.   Rev. 22:3

In the hymn, Trust and Obey, the songwriter said:

Then in fellowship sweet,

We will sit at His feet,

Or we'll walk by His side in the way.

Where He sends we will go,

What He says we will do,

Never fear only trust and obey.

Not much time for strumming a harp and dipping my toes in the river of life while tasting the fruit of the tree of life.

It is going to be great! It is going to be fulfilling! It is going to be, well..... Heaven!!!

God is Faithful! I Corinthians 1

1Cor 1:3  Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 4  I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; 5  That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; 6  Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: 7  So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: 8  Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

I blog as things pop out at me during my own personal devotional reading. Things which speak to me, I desire to record and relate to others. Every day something “pops” but seldom does something pop like these three words that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth – “God is faithful.”

Corinth. If God is faithful to that mess in Corinth, then I can take umbrage that He is faithful to this mess typing at this keyboard.

Here is what I see in the passage concerning our faithful God...

1. His grace is given me by Jesus Christ. (4)

2. He is enriching me in all things, including what He would have me to say and learn. (5)

3. The testimony of Christ is reflected in me. (6)

4. He bestows spiritual gifts upon me to bless others until the 2nd coming. (7)

5. He will keep me secure and blameless until such a time. (8)

6. He has placed me in a wonderful fellowship of His family. (9)

Goose bumps, fellow pilgrims! I may not be as faithful as I would like, as He would expect or as you would imagine, yet He remains faithful to me! Praise God.

Personal Preferences and the Destruction of the Work of God

Rom 14:20  For meat destroy not the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence.

In context, the work of God is the local church. (See gifts within the body in ch. 12)

How often do we see splinters and splits within Christ's body over personal preferences? Grace issues are parceled out and picked over by the weaker brethren who fail to recognize the greater picture of the functioning body.

The apostles faced this very problem when, at a counsel in Jerusalem, they concluded, "Look, don't eat blood, don't eat meat that has been strangled and don't commit fornication, otherwise, let people worship God and live their lives without a bunch of rules, accepting them as believers on par with the rest."

We are definitely intended to live our lives pleasing to God, the most of which proceeds from faith. We are to submit our bodies to Him as usable, holy vessels. But to pick at each other about what we eat and which days we observe is legalistic and divisive. How we do church and ministry may differ from church to church, week to week and person to person.  

Might I add that music styles, dress codes, political inclinations and the like can also divide and alienate those who are meant to cooperate in the work of God.

Next time you are tempted to ostracize or criticize another for their penchants, place your tongue firmly between your teeth and opt to shut up for the sake of the work of God. Your church demands that you respect the God-loving. grace-living people of your faith community.

The only thing constant around here is change!

Psalm 71:3  Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.

One day, you look at your life: your family, your marriage, your job, your health, your church, your relationships, your friends, your recreation, your ministry, your house, your car and you wonder why you get to be so blessed. You are on the top of the world and wonder how you could ever be sad about anything.

A couple of days later, you look at your life: your family, marriage, job, health, church, relationships, friends, recreation, ministry, house, car and you wonder how in the world you could ever be happy. Just making it through the day is going to be a genuine chore.

Life is strange with its twists and turns. The unexpected reversals, the gargantuan obstacles and the disappointing circumstances thwart agendas and divest our sails of the winds necessary to move us in a positive direction.

But then we find ourselves on some breath-taking summit visually drinking in glorious vistas, glad thoughts and gratitude exuding from our hearts.

Our lives can go from exuberant delight to intolerable boredom to raw terror in mere heartbeats. Our circumstances can change on a dime - a call from the doctor’s office, a distracted driver’s veer into our lane, a rude remark from a trusted friend, a visit from the flu bug are the types of things which take us from comfort to catastrophe to convalescence.

Is there any buffer, any insurance to comfort us in the face of troublesome events?

Yes!

It is imperative that our faith in God and explicit trust in His Word remain rock solid throughout our changing circumstances.  All things change, but His love, grace, truth, promise and purpose for you are absolute.

You can always count on Him to be your strong habitation, your continual resort, your rock and your fortress.

So strap in tightly for life’s roller coaster ride, cry out in terror, shout with glee, expect the loop-de-loops and dipsy-doodles, enjoy the journey, persist through the pain, and keep your eyes on Jesus throughout, for He will be the same yesterday, today and forever.