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Scripture

[ecko_quote source="Genesis 3:23"]Therefore, the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.[/ecko_quote]

Devotion

God created Adam in His image (Genesis 1:27) with full of wisdom, knowledge and power. And also God gave him the power and dominion over every living thing. He was a perfect man because he was created in the image of Almighty. Further, he had a fellowship with God in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). During fellowship, God commanded Adam saying “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17).

Now, Adam got a choice to believe God what He said or reject Him. Then the temptation came but unfortunately, as you know, Adam and Eve did not believe God but Satan, the tempter.  Up to this time, Adam was morally innocent. When he sinned, he by nature became a sinner. As such he died. He died spiritually immediately as God said, and he began to die physically like a branch cut off from the tree. The book of Genesis to Revelation ( including now), God’s message to the people is the same- to believe Him, Trust Him and have faith in Him(John 20:31).

Therefore, Adam is the “federal head” form whom every other man came. Like begets like. Apples beget apples. Dogs beget dogs. Human beings beget human beings. Since Adam became a sinner before Eve conceived a child, every human being descended from him is a sinner just like him except Jesus Christ. Because of Adam’s sin death entered the human race and every human being needs to have a new life (born again experience)- Roman 5:12-14.

In contrast, Mary conceived Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit. There is no difference between first Adam and second Adam (Jesus)  in their birth both have Almighty God is the Father/source. Jesus Christ grew in the knowledge and became strong in the spirit. Similarly, Jesus was tempted by Satan, but Jesus chose God and quoted the God’s word and overcame the temptation. He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin (Hebrew 4:15). Therefore He became our perfect substitute to pay off our debt ( for the consequence of our sins). Jesus through His life, death and resurrection regained the access for us to approach our Heavenly Father and in essence, He regained the Garden of Eden.In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace (Ephesians 1:7 )

What's next?

We are washed in His blood, and accepted Him as our saviour and further empowered by the Holy Spirit to be ambassadors for Christ in this world. There has been nothing changed in Satan tactics, and he still keeps tempting. Whether we yield to sin or not is our choice, Remember, Holy Spirit God is residing in us to say no to sin and yes to Jesus. Follow the whispering voice of the Holy Spirit God and do not sell your possession in Jesus for corruptible things like our forefather first Adam did.

 

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Scripture

[ecko_quote source="1 Timothy 6:6-8 "]Now godliness with contentment is a great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.[/ecko_quote]

Devotion

One of my Pastors told the following story. "Once there was a man who heard that when you die, you can’t take anything with you. So he decided he would at least try. He put all of his money in a big jug with a handle on it and put it in the attic of his house. He believed he was going to die in his home. Since the attic was right above his bedroom, on the way up to heaven, he figured, he would snatch that jug and see if he could take it with him.

Well, he has died, and after everybody had come and gone, the wife went up into the attic to see if the jug was still there. Guess what? It was still there. She thought, "Well, maybe he should have kept it in the basement!".

Now, whether you put it in the attic or the basement, you are not going to take it with you! For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out".

However, Revelation 14:13 states that "Then I heard a voice from the heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labour, for their deeds will follow them." They rest from all sin, temptation, sorrow, and persecution; for there the wicked cease from troubling, there the weary are at rest. Their works follow them:  do not go before as their title but follow them as proofs of their having lived and died in the Lord.

There are at least two ways in which our works follow us. First, there is a temporal following. That is, our act of obedience, sharing the gospel, teaching the Word, ministering to those in need - resulting in tangible rewards here and now. New believers enter the kingdom; young converts grow into able disciples. The feeble are fed, clothed and sheltered. We gain close new relationships with our Christian brothers and sisters. Even after our death, these works multiply through the lives and deeds of those in whom we have invested our time, spiritual gifts and callings. Think for a moment, how the lives of Apostle Peter and Paul still speak to our lives today.

But there is a second way through which our works follow us, and that is what the Spirit is saying in Rev. 14:13. As the Saints leave the suffering of this present age and pass through the portals of heaven, they enter into eternal rest and discover the treasures that have been laid up for them in heaven. They meet people who have trusted in Christ because of their testimony or the treasures that they have invested in global ministries. They are rewarded with "crowns" – laurel garlands – that testify to their faithfulness. Most importantly, they are greeted by Jesus (Rob Philips- once delivered.net)

What's next?

If you want to know how much you own, add up everything you have that money cannot buy, and death cannot take away. Money talks (Paisa Bolta Hai); it says good-bye. If it does not say good-bye to you, you will be saying good-bye to it.

Hence, we must remember that eternal life consists of two things, faith and what follows faith. If you go, believe and do good to your neighbour, everlasting life will follow, although you never work towards it.

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Scripture

[ecko_quote source="1Thessalonians 4:18"]Therefore, comfort one another with these words .[/ecko_quote]

Devotion

My beloved uncle and the servant of God,  Rev Tummalla Prabhakar Rao went to be with the Lord yesterday while spending time with his grandchildren. He served as a Senior Presbyter in various Pastorates for several decades in the Church of South India – Medak Diocese. I had an opportunity to know him personally during the course of my ministry. One thing I like about this man of God is his childlike heart - and as Jesus said for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these (Matt 19:14). He speaks to the people with great love (calling them lovingly “Naye-nah”, “Amma “and “Paapa”) and we can notice in him the innocence in a good sense. He believes and trusts everyone.

During the viewing time of my beloved uncle, as I was listening to the dear ones’ consoling words and quotes from the Holy Bible. The Lord brought into my remembrance one of the events that took place at the Airport. While I was waiting to send-off one of my friends, a family with kids also came to send-off their father who was travelling overseas. The kids and his wife were in tears, sobbing. Their father was assuring them and giving them hugs. As I was watching them, the Lord spoke to me saying, see my son, the husband is going overseas for a few days and on completion of his work, he will return. Despite knowing this, the family are still sobbing because of the temporary separation from their dear one. They were grief-stricken but have the hope that their father will come back remained. Similarly, we should be aware of the fact that our loved ones left us temporarily and will come back with Jesus, or we will meet them when we finish our earthly journey. Jesus put it this way, "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28)

We all know that death is not a popular subject and we even go to the lengths of avoiding to talk about it. We even shuffle the channels on the TV to avoid hearing about it. No matter how much we try to avoid it, death is a very real fact; and we shouldn’t be afraid of it. It is something we are to anticipate. Like David, we know the Lord is our Shepherd, and we should say, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for Thou art with me; They rod and Thy staff, they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4) - LWF

Ecclesiastes 3:1-4 states that "To everything, there is a season. A time for every purpose under heaven. A time to be born, And a time to die, … A time to weep, And a time to laugh. Our pilgrim is progressing, and we have to go through this last enemy "death". However, during the bereavement time, we have to grieve and weep remembering our dear one (remember "Jesus wept" – John 11:35). It’s not a celebration of life at this moment. That will follow after the grieving period.

Apostle Paul in I Thessalonians 4:16-18 summarised it in this manner "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus…. for the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, comfort one another with these words.

What's next?

Many people are terrified by the thought of dying. It is looked upon as the most tragic experience. To be sure, there is a pain in being separated from those who are dear to us. The physical discomfort that sometimes accompanies dying is not pleasant to endure. At times like these, our faith may falter as we lose sight of the glory that awaits us. That’s why we must never forget that death for the Christian is but the doorway to heaven!

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