From a Dear Abby letter some time ago comes the story of a young man who was about to graduate from high school. He and his father had talked about his receiving a car as a graduation gift. They looked at cars for some time and finally found the perfect one.
One his graduation day, the father handed his son a gift wrapped Bible. The son, expecting the keys to a car threw the Bible down and stormed out of the house and out of his father's life. So intense was the son's anger that they never saw each other again. You see, the son wanted that car really bad.
The years went by and as some of us know, they went faster as as we get older. It was only thw news of his fathers' death that brought the son home again. As he sat that night going through his father's possessions and papers as we all have done, he came across the Bible his father had given to him for his graduation. He wiped off the dust and opened it to John 3:16 because there was an envelope there.
He opened the envelope and there he found a cashier's check, dated the day of his graduation in the exact amount of the car they had chosen together.
When I thought about that, I could not help but wonder how many people in this world have done the same thing with God. Literally tossed aside a wonderful promise because they did not understand it or they did not believe that it was possible?
God has never made a promise that He did not keep! The world is full of "empty" promises. We watch TV and the advertisments tell us that we can be happy, sexy, rich, or famous if we only use their product. It does not take long before we have been fooled enough to know that the world's promises are full of "emptiness".
BUT GOD IS DIFFERENT! Instead of promises full of "emptiness", on Easter He gave us EMPTINESS THAT IS FULL OF PROMISE!!! Think about it for just a monent.
The cross of Jesus is EMPTY. The tomb of Jesus is EMPTY. The burial cloths of Jesus are EMPTY.
It is the very fact that each of these is EMPTY that assures us that God's promises are real and valid. Because they could not hold Jesus, because He could not be contained by the cross, the tomb or His burial cloth's, we can be absolutely sure of the fullness of God's promises in our lives.
I pray that you all will enjoy the Resurrection Day of the Lord Jesus and that you will remember that this "EMPTINESS" of the cros, tomb and burial cloths is God's way of saying to us...............................
Relax my child, I took the sting of death for you and death can not hurt you anymore".
Bless you all!
Major.
One his graduation day, the father handed his son a gift wrapped Bible. The son, expecting the keys to a car threw the Bible down and stormed out of the house and out of his father's life. So intense was the son's anger that they never saw each other again. You see, the son wanted that car really bad.
The years went by and as some of us know, they went faster as as we get older. It was only thw news of his fathers' death that brought the son home again. As he sat that night going through his father's possessions and papers as we all have done, he came across the Bible his father had given to him for his graduation. He wiped off the dust and opened it to John 3:16 because there was an envelope there.
He opened the envelope and there he found a cashier's check, dated the day of his graduation in the exact amount of the car they had chosen together.
When I thought about that, I could not help but wonder how many people in this world have done the same thing with God. Literally tossed aside a wonderful promise because they did not understand it or they did not believe that it was possible?
God has never made a promise that He did not keep! The world is full of "empty" promises. We watch TV and the advertisments tell us that we can be happy, sexy, rich, or famous if we only use their product. It does not take long before we have been fooled enough to know that the world's promises are full of "emptiness".
BUT GOD IS DIFFERENT! Instead of promises full of "emptiness", on Easter He gave us EMPTINESS THAT IS FULL OF PROMISE!!! Think about it for just a monent.
The cross of Jesus is EMPTY. The tomb of Jesus is EMPTY. The burial cloths of Jesus are EMPTY.
It is the very fact that each of these is EMPTY that assures us that God's promises are real and valid. Because they could not hold Jesus, because He could not be contained by the cross, the tomb or His burial cloth's, we can be absolutely sure of the fullness of God's promises in our lives.
I pray that you all will enjoy the Resurrection Day of the Lord Jesus and that you will remember that this "EMPTINESS" of the cros, tomb and burial cloths is God's way of saying to us...............................
Relax my child, I took the sting of death for you and death can not hurt you anymore".
Bless you all!
Major.