ETERNAL COMMUNION AND POPE JOHN PAUL II
J. Grant Swank, Jr.
Communion with Christ begins for believer here on Earth. But Christ’s provision is that that Communion lasts for an eternity.
When partaking of the elements of His body and blood here, we look forward to celebrating that sinless sacrifice forever with him in heaven. That’s what He promised His disciples prior to His crucifixion. Whatever Christ promises, Christ provides. Therefore, the eternal Communion table awaits all those servants of the cross who walk through death’s door.
Those without Christ have no such hope. They simply languish with one worldly philosophy or another. But there is no certainty to their philosophizing.
They hold to various wishful thinking hope-fors but actuality can never be cast for any of them. That’s sad for such individuals often strain to discover something to hold onto in this life. Nevertheless, having forsaken Christ, they come upon nothing but mist in the night’s air.
Christ instead promises His grace children the Holy Spirit companionship in this life as well as the forever
Communion fellowship in the world to come. It is that gospel message that believers attempt to share with friends and neighbors. Some catch hold of the hope. Others discard it disdainfully. And still other scratch their heads as if to say that the gospel is too good to be true.
Can it be? How can you bank on it? Who says so? Are you fools to throw your minds in such a direction? How can an intelligent, sophisticated person ever condescend to such religious make believe?
And so they go on their dark paths, groping, getting older and no happier, until they crust over with disbelief. The very disbelief becomes a religion cast in stone.
What such devotees of the unknown don’t realize is that even the stone they cling to will one day be obliterated. It will occur when this heaven and earth will be extinguished. Then the saved of all time will enter the New Heaven and New Earth while the damned consign themselves to the lake of fire and brimstone. It’s all there in The Revelation, that vision provided John the Beloved Disciple by none other than Christ Himself.
Therefore, Pope John Paul II, having left us for the forever Communion table, now enjoys that holy fellowship with the redeemed of all time. The Host, Christ, is at the head of the table, if you will.
There is such happiness. There is no hint of sin nor death. There is no intrusion of Satan and imps of The Pit. Instead, that which is delighted in — happiness in holiness — is very much intact without closure. It’s forever and then some.
In Matthew 26:26-29 it is recorded: "And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the reemission of sins.
"But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom."
That is the promise. Christ made it.
Those fools of faith who live for that Christ — bloodied upon Calvary’s tree, then resurrected from the dead — will meet with Him, sup with Him, embrace Him, and thank Him for an everlasting kingdom.
It’s the promise of the forever Communion table spread for His children of grace.
Thank you, Christ.
For more: http://conservativeposts.us/ <http://conservativeposts.us/>
Communion with Christ begins for believer here on Earth. But Christ’s provision is that that Communion lasts for an eternity.
When partaking of the elements of His body and blood here, we look forward to celebrating that sinless sacrifice forever with him in heaven. That’s what He promised His disciples prior to His crucifixion. Whatever Christ promises, Christ provides. Therefore, the eternal Communion table awaits all those servants of the cross who walk through death’s door.
Those without Christ have no such hope. They simply languish with one worldly philosophy or another. But there is no certainty to their philosophizing.
They hold to various wishful thinking hope-fors but actuality can never be cast for any of them. That’s sad for such individuals often strain to discover something to hold onto in this life. Nevertheless, having forsaken Christ, they come upon nothing but mist in the night’s air.
Christ instead promises His grace children the Holy Spirit companionship in this life as well as the forever
Communion fellowship in the world to come. It is that gospel message that believers attempt to share with friends and neighbors. Some catch hold of the hope. Others discard it disdainfully. And still other scratch their heads as if to say that the gospel is too good to be true.
Can it be? How can you bank on it? Who says so? Are you fools to throw your minds in such a direction? How can an intelligent, sophisticated person ever condescend to such religious make believe?
And so they go on their dark paths, groping, getting older and no happier, until they crust over with disbelief. The very disbelief becomes a religion cast in stone.
What such devotees of the unknown don’t realize is that even the stone they cling to will one day be obliterated. It will occur when this heaven and earth will be extinguished. Then the saved of all time will enter the New Heaven and New Earth while the damned consign themselves to the lake of fire and brimstone. It’s all there in The Revelation, that vision provided John the Beloved Disciple by none other than Christ Himself.
Therefore, Pope John Paul II, having left us for the forever Communion table, now enjoys that holy fellowship with the redeemed of all time. The Host, Christ, is at the head of the table, if you will.
There is such happiness. There is no hint of sin nor death. There is no intrusion of Satan and imps of The Pit. Instead, that which is delighted in — happiness in holiness — is very much intact without closure. It’s forever and then some.
In Matthew 26:26-29 it is recorded: "And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the reemission of sins.
"But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom."
That is the promise. Christ made it.
Those fools of faith who live for that Christ — bloodied upon Calvary’s tree, then resurrected from the dead — will meet with Him, sup with Him, embrace Him, and thank Him for an everlasting kingdom.
It’s the promise of the forever Communion table spread for His children of grace.
Thank you, Christ.
For more: http://conservativeposts.us/ <http://conservativeposts.us/>
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