Comfort is not desirable only as it pleases us, but also as it strengthens us, and helps us in our greatest duties. And when is it more needful than in sickness, and the approach of death? I shall therefore add such directions as are necessary...
1 I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he comes to set up his Kingdom: 2 Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently...
A prayer of Moses, the man of God. 1 Lord, through all the generations you have been our home! 2 Before the mountains were born, before you gave birth to the earth and the world, from beginning to end, you are God. 3 You turn people back to dust, saying, “Return to dust,...
The Raising of Lazarus 1 A man named Lazarus was sick. He lived in Bethany with his sisters, Mary and Martha. 2 This is the Mary who later poured the expensive perfume on the Lord’s feet and wiped them with her hair. Her brother, Lazarus, was sick....
In week three of our continuing series on A Theology of Death, Matt Williams taught through the often difficult reality that none of us are getting younger. How do the ideas of aging and suffering couple with our call as believers to grow in a...
By Chrystie Cole “It’s my body and no one has a right to tell me what I can or can’t do with it.” This is the foundational argument behind many of today’s most heated topics such as abortion, suicide, and death with dignity (the right to...
The Resurrection Body 35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” 36 What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first. 37 And...
You who are in Christ, who are true Christians, have hope in your end. And such a great hope that it may comfort you against all those fears which arise from the consideration of your dying hour. Case 1: Some believers say, “The idea of death...
by Ken and Doris Bickel In the recent past, both of us have lost our mothers – Ken in April of 2013, and Doris just this past fall. Both of our fathers had died at a much earlier age (largely due to poor personal health habits),...
The Resurrection of Christ 1 Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe...
1 O Lord, I have come to you for protection; don’t let me be disgraced. 2 Save me and rescue me, for you do what is right. Turn your ear to listen to me, and set me free. 3 Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save...
To help us worship through and memorize the truths of Romans Chapter 8 as part of our current series, "A Theology of Death," the Grace Church worship team has written a song called "Set My Hope." "Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the...
Advice for Young and Old 7 Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning. 8 When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to...
Staring down the sobering possibility of the approach of his own death in a prison in Rome, the apostle Paul declares that for him, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21, ESV). Widely known and recited, this statement presents Christians with...
The Future Glory 18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. 20 Against its will, all...
Death is ours — and for our good. It does us more good than all the friends we have in the world. It determines and ends all our misery and sin; and it is the suburbs of heaven. It lets us into those joys above. But...
God Offers Comfort to All 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled,...
A psalm of David. 27The Lord is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? 2 When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. 3 Though a...
Over the weekend Matt Williams revealed the new phrase accompanying Grace Church's logo, "Defined and Directed by Scripture." "By defined we mean identity. That we are who God says we are. We are defined by Him and we are directed by Scripture. Scripture teaches us about...
5Now concerning how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you. 2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. 3 When people are saying,...
Since every one of us must one day depart this world, we must turn our eyes to God — for it is towards God that the path of death ultimately leads and directs us. Here we find the beginning of the narrow gate and of...
New Bodies 5For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human...
Paul’s Life for Christ 20 For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I...
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba. 51Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. 2 Wash me...
Last Friday, our family began the day like so many others in America who have made fitness resolutions for the new year. We went to the gym....