Wednesday
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.)
Another Old Testament passage that leads us to Jesus is I Samuel 2:10. This verse proclaims that “The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth.” We should always remember that with God judgment is justice; it is never tinged with rancor or favoritism. The New Testament makes it clear that God the Son, Jesus Christ, will judge. I Corinthians 3:11-15 and II Corinthians 5:10 tell us that all Christians will be judged for their service and granted reward accordingly; we cannot lose the salvation that our God has graciously given to us, but we can lose or gain eternal rewards. The nations of the world in rebellion against God will be judged at the second coming of Christ (Matthew 25:31-46). At the same time, Israel will be judged (Ezekiel 20:37-38); during the Tribulation preceding Christ’s return, many Jewish people will receive Jesus as their Messiah and will be gloriously saved. Fallen angels (Jude 6), Satan (Revelation 20:10), and those who refuse to trust in Jesus for salvation (Revelation 20:11-15) will be judged as human history as we know it is completed.
It is hard to live in a world where iniquity causes inequity, where rich and powerful people are often able to avoid any accountability for their wrongdoing. However, we have the assurance that our Savior is just; I John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We may travel a hard road at times, but our Judge offers forgiveness and cleansing if we only ask. As Pastor Stuart often reminded us, it is better farther on.