Seasons, Winter

 Winter, 

Hello. Welcome, today. We are currently talking about seasons. There are natural seasons, and all lives have seasons as well. So far we talked about birth or Spring. We talked about Summertime, this is where most grow and learn and live. We talked about Fall, which is the latter years of our lives. Where we mature and grow old. The wise have already accepted Jesus and have linked their Spiritual and Physical seasons together. They have no, or they should have no fear of the last season to come. Winter. 

First and foremost, we are going to be talking about death. Plain and simple. If this offends you, perhaps you should not continue. If it scares you, PLEASE do continue. Death is not something to be feared. Not for Christians. Life on earth is like everything else on earth. Life on earth is temporal. It is for but a time, then it is on to the next stage of existence. Death is as natural as birth. It is as natural as living itself. It will come for all living things.

I understand that many fear death. It is natural to fear the unknown. But it doesn't have to be the unknown. Being a child of God, you know what to expect. You understand, that when that time comes for you, it is not a punishment. It is not a horrific event. It comes because it must. Turn to Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

"For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace."

A little bit later it says this. 

"For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return."

In other words, death will come. There is an appointed time. We all must face our immortality in this temporal world. I truly believe that our fear is in what comes next. However, Jesus tells us what comes next...

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." John 14:1-3

The book of  Revelations, it tells us what the capital, if you will, of the new Earth looks like. In  Revelation 21

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel's measurement. The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life."

This is after the tribulation. The end time. But I want you to think about this. "The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son." And "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." Imagine that? It is a far better place to that of which we go, than this of which we leave. A place where God Himself will wipe away our tears. A place where there will be no more sorrow, pain, sickness, or death itself. You see, it is appointed to man {Humans} to die twice. Yup. Twice.

The first is physical death. The body will die. As stated in Ecclesiastes 3: 2

"a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;"

The second is spiritual death. The old man is put away. In Revelations, it declares.....

"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death." Revelation 21:8

This is the aftermath of the White Throne Judgement. Revelation 20:10-15

"and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."

So let us look at the two deaths. And how do you get your name written in the Book of Life? The first is obvious. A physical death. The body fades away. From dust to dust. Every living thing faces this death. The second is spiritual.

You must remember, because of one man, we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We are born into sin. We are born into the family of the devil. We are NOT all children of God. We are all God's creation. But not all children.

"that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." John 3:15-18

Remember, he was talking to the "religious folks" when He said this in John 8:43-45

"Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me."

Just because they were religious, doesn't mean they were saved. That doesn't mean that they were children of God. He called them the children of the devil. The only way you can become a child of God is through the adoption of the Spirit. Romans 8:13-18

"For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him."

Then, and only then, you can be called a child of God. Do you know for certain, that you are, without doubt, a child of God? If not, please say this Prayer. Right now. Wherever you may be. Say it in your own words, and do not doubt in your heart. God will hear you. He will send the Spirit of Life to you. Say this Prayer...

"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a Sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus and His Sacrifice for me. I believe that He raised from the Dead. I repent my Sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"

That's it. It really is just that simple. Now go tell someone what you have just done. "That if you shalt confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead, you shalt be saved." {Romans 10:9} You need to find a Church that God leads you to and be Baptized the way Jesus said to be. You are now a Child of God. A New Creature. You "have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him." {Colossians 3:10}

From the beginning of time, man has sought out ways to extend his life here on Earth. They seek immortality. They want to live forever. However, would that be a blessing or a curse? Have you really thought about that?

We know that the Word declares "absent the body, present with the Lord." If you do not leave your body? You can not be with the Lord. For the Lord and the kingdom of heaven is spiritual. The body is material. It's physical. We are in physical bodies to enjoy this gift God gave us. Besides all that. How long would you want to live in a place where there IS sickness, disease, sorrow, pain, etc? One hundred years? Two hundred years? Remember, for God, our time on Earth is nothing. Even time as we know it. The world as we know it will come to an end. In 2 Peter 3:8-18

"But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him,  as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You, therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

This is why Jesus tells us to seek first the Kingdom of God. We are His children, He will meet our needs. All this "stuff" the world has to offer is nothing. It's here one moment and gone the next. As a child of God, you ARE immortal. You are going to live forever.

But what about the sorrow we feel when a loved one passes on? I hate funerals. I really do. The person laying in the box is not there anymore. They are not at their own funeral. Funerals are for those left behind. The deceased is gone. Whatever God decides in the afterlife, is between them and God. Jesus is telling us that once we become children of God, nothing else matters. Those that did not accept the spirit of adoption, they are dead already. They have no part in the Kingdom. But you DO. You are a child of God. You should never worry about the past. You have no past. You are a new creature. A new man. A new woman. You are an heir to the Kingdom of God. Your name is written in the Book of Life. You should have no fear.

So when a Child of God, comes into their Winter, or  "dies," what really happens is that they are transformed. They leave the physical and become spiritual. They go to a place where God Himself will wipe away their tears. Who is better off? Us? Or them? I submit to you, that they are. By FAR.

Death is a time of celebration for a child of God. Of course, you will have sorrow. That is normal. I get sad if someone I love takes a trip. I miss them. I know I will see them again in time. But I miss them. When a loved one dies, they are simply taking a very long trip. But the good news is, if they are a child of God, as are you, you will see them again. Celebrate their passing, and look forward to seeing them again. Live on and seek first the Kingdom of God. Continue to spread the word. Your time will come as well. As well will the time come for the end of everything. But as a child of God, these things are not to be feared, but things to be looked forward to.

Until next time, be well, be blessed, and Jesus IS Lord!