Carpenter Diem (Because Jesus Was a Carpenter and Is Now Preparing a Home for His People)
The resurrection of God the Son, Jesus Christ, is crucial to the Christian faith. In Luke 24:13-35, we read of the resurrected Savior walking the road to Emmaus. This specific geographical reference reminds us of the absolute accuracy of God’s Word in all areas. In verse 27, Jesus begins to teach from the Old Testament; He not only walked the talk but also talked the walk! This passage does not reveal the exact Scriptures Jesus employed to teach these journeying believers, but we do know that He fulfilled the entire Old Testament (Matthew 5:17,18). Fulfilled prophecy is one of the major reasons that we can be certain that our faith in Jesus is not misplaced. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
The book of Joel can be uncomfortable to read. “Hear this, ye old men” (1:2) certainly speaks directly to me! More seriously, “the day of the Lord” is a major theme of the book (1:15; 2:1, 10, 31; 3:14) and is presented in graphic and intense detail. Certainly “the day of the Lord” references Jesus (see, for example, Matthew 24:25 and the entire book of Revelation). Other verses clearly point to Jesus, including Joel 3:16, which calls the Lord “the hope of His people.” Biblical hope is much stronger than a wish or an aspiration; rather, based upon the unchanging character of God, it is an absolute certainty. Colossians 1:27 is one New Testament verse that connects this hope to Jesus Christ. Specifically, He is “the hope of glory.” A full-fledged sermon springs quickly to mind, but let us limit ourselves to one simple but compelling thought: Jesus (“Christ in you” – what a transformed reality!) is our certainty of eternity. If our faith is in this Savior, we have nothing to fear forever.