GOD’S WORD FOR SEPTEMBER 1 ~ ~ 1Corinthians 2:9-12 ~ ~ “ But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God”

I’m starting a different book with writings from the late and great, Charles H. Spurgeon, known as the “Prince of Preachers” and preaching in the 1800’s…, with additions from Randy Alcorn.

The Book is called “We Shall See God” and it describes the eternal life of the true believer in Jesus Christ. To obtain the beautiful life this book describes, one must make Jesus their personal Savior, believing that He died for their sins, was resurrected from the dead, will return to rule heaven and earth, and that He is the second person of the Triune Godhead, (The Trinity), having come to earth as fully God and fully man, in order to save mankind from sin. A beautiful life awaits us after physical death. This book is written as assuming that the reader has made this personal commitment to live for Jesus Christ.”

Charles Spurgeon:

We can’t see things clearly because we can’t yet see God clearly. However, in the midst of our squinting and straining, we can anticipate the day we will see him as he truly is—when our joy will be complete.

The whole creation is fair and beautiful even in its present condition. I have no sort of sympathy with those who cannot enjoy the beauties of nature.

Climbing the lofty alps, wandering through the charming valley, skimming the blue sea, or traversing the lush green forest, we have felt that this world, however desecrated by sin, was evidently built to be a temple of God, and the grandeur and the glory of it plainly declare that “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” –Psalm 24:1

The Earth in ruins reveals a magnificence which shows the sign of a royal founder and an extraordinary purpose. Creation glows with a thousand beauties even in its present fallen condition, yet clearly enough it is not as when it came from the Maker’s hand—the slime of the serpent is on it all—this is not the world which God pronounced to be “very good” in Genesis chapter 1.

It’s a sad, sad world. Thorns and thistles it brings forth, not from its soil alone, but from all that comes of it. Earth wears upon her brow, like the mark of Cain, the brand of transgression—sin.

The groaning and anguish which are general throughout creation are deeply felt among the sons of men. The apostle Paul tells us that not only is there a groan from creation but this is shared by God’s people—Romans 8:22-23

We were once simply a part of creation, subject to the same curse as the rest of the world, but distinguishing grace has made a difference where no difference naturally was. We are now no longer treated as criminals condemned but as children and heirs of God. We have received a divine life by which we are made partakers of the divine nature, having “escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” 2 Peter 1:4

God dwells in us, and we are one with Christ. We have at this present moment in us certain priceless things which distinguish us as believers in Christ fro all the rest of God’s creatures. “We HAVE,” it says in 1 Cor. 2:12, not “we hope and trust sometime we have,” nor “possibly we may have”, but “we have, we know we have, we are sure we have.”

Believing in Jesus, we speak confidently—we have unspeakable blessings given to us by the Father. True, many things are yet in the future, but even at this present moment, we have obtained an inheritance.

Randy Alcorn:

In Heaven the barriers between redeemed human beings and God will be gone forever. “The groaning and anguish which are general throughout creation” that Spurgeon speaks of will be replaced by the joy of seeing things clearly for the first time. Why? Because not only will we see god, He will be the lens through which we see everything else—people, ourselves, and the events of this life.

To look into God’s eyes will be to see what we’ve always longed to see: the One who made us for His own good pleasure.

What is the essence of eternal life? “That they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.” (John 17:3). Our primary joy in heaven will be seeing and knowing God. All other joy will be derivative, flowing from the fountain of our relationship with God.

Jonathon Edwards, who lived a century before Spurgeon and whose theology Spurgeon shared, describes in one of his sermons the delight we can anticipate in Heaven: “God Himself is the great good which the redeemed are brought to the possession and enjoyment of by redemption. He is the highest good, and the sum of all that good which Christ purchased (by His death on the cross) The redeemed will indeed enjoy other things….but that which they shall enjoy in the angels, each other, or in anything else, that will yield them delight and happiness, will be what will be seen of God in them.

The Psalmist says: “whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you” (Psalm 73:25) We desire many other things, but in desiring them, it is really GOD we desire. Augustine called God the “end of our desires”

In heaven, we’ll at last be freed from self-righteousness and self-deceit. We’ll no longer question God’s goodness; we’ll see it, savor it, enjoy it, and declare it to our companions. Surely we will wonder how we ever could have doubted His goodness. One look at the scarred hands of our Savior will suffice, for then our faith will be sight—we shall see God.

Published by liveinthelightofourlord

View all posts by liveinthelightofourlord