The Ideal King

Isaiah 11: 1-10 (December 5, 2010)

1) The Text

11A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 2The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; 4but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. 6The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. 7The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. 9They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

10On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.

2) The Context

This reading needs to be considered in the context of Isaiah 10:24 in which the people are told not to fear the Assyrians because God is in control. In contrast to the lopping down of the branches of Assyria and the majestic tress of Lebanon falling, God will send forth a branch from the root of Jesse, that is, the House of David. Isaiah was preaching in the time of Ahaz who lived in fear of an Assyrian invasion which threatened Judah and later totally destroyed the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom in 721 BCE. The prophecy of Isaiah 11:1-5 was fulfilled in Judah in the persons of Kings Hezekiah and later Josiah. It was a message of hope to a people who were facing possible destruction and the answer lay in the power and authority of God. The constant message of Isaiah was to trust in God alone. If Isaiah was preaching this message in the time of Hezekiah there was very little left of Judah, and the Davidic kingdom could be depicted as little more than a stump. The message relates back to the promise given to David in 2 Sam 7 in which God promises unconditionally that David's house will last forever.

In each of the units (vv.1-5, 6-10) which make up Isaiah 11:1-10, God reigns within sociopolitical order through the Spirit of the Lord resting on the king and in vv.6-10, God reigns in the order of creation. Although the move from v.5 to v.6 appears abrupt, it is depicting a picture of what would happen in everyday life when a king reigns who has the Spirit of God resting on him. V.9 completes the unit by referring back to the knowledge of the Lord filling the earth. This ideal king deals with people in the same way as God deals with humans - with justice and compassion.

3) Interpretation

As we look toward Christmas, we anticipate not only the birth of a baby but the coming to fruition of God’s new creation. In Advent, we prepare not just for Christmas, but for the feast of the reign of Christ. The beginning of the Christian year anticipates its end, while its end and the celebration of Christ’s reign over all, can only be fully understood as we reflect on the nature of the incarnation of Christ, his death, and resurrection etc. Isaiah 11:1-10 looks toward the rule of one whose life is shaped by the ‘spirit of the Lord’ (vv. 1-5). It envisages a world in which peace will also be experienced in the world of nature (vv. 6-9).

The passage falls into two sections. Verses 1-5 use the metaphor of the shoot coming from the stump of the tree to speak of the continuance of the royal dynasty of David in Jerusalem. After the disappointments of the rule of King Ahaz, the prophet’s words are put together to stress that hope in a just and faithful rule by a descendant of David is not in vain. The image of the tree stump carries the idea of removing what is corrupt and getting back to secure beginnings. This future ruler will be guided by the spirit of the Lord.

The gifts of the spirit are spelled out in terms of the royal domain. They include wisdom and understanding, a gift thought given to Egyptian and Babylonians kings by the gods as well as to Israel’s kings. The king was to judge not only with equity and fairness but with a concern for what we would call social policy and welfare. In other words, the law was there to address the social and economic inequities in society. While this king possessed power (‘might’ in v. 2), he is not described here as a battlefield hero or conqueror. What will drive this king is the ‘fear of the Lord’ (vv. 2-3). In contrast to King Ahaz, faith in God is to be at the heart of this king’s actions. His garb will not be that of power, or wealth or battle, but that of faith (v. 5).

There are points of both difference and continuity as we move to the second section, vv. 6-9. This idyllic picture of peace and harmony seems almost not to require one who will rule and ensure equity is established. The reference to ‘God’s holy mountain’ in v. 9 helps broaden the image. The idyllic image of vv. 6-9 is one for the whole earth. This is underlined in v. 10 and connected back to the metaphor at the beginning of the passage by mention of ‘the root of Jesse’. The messiah described in vv. 1-5 is a messiah for all peoples, just as the image of peace is one for all the earth. The messiah in this passage is not seen as an oppressor of the nations, but as an advisor. This messiah is not one concerned for glory or power, but in the removal of all evil.

Isa 11:1-9 points us to a vision of an ideal world, in both political and natural terms. It stands in sharp contrast to the image of a young family, with a new born child, forced to make do in an animal pen behind an inn. Yet, the images are not unrelated. Isaiah speaks of equity for the meek, justice for the poor, of righteousness and faithfulness, and the ascendency of what is powerless and vulnerable. All these things are embodied in the story of the birth of Jesus. On the other hand, in our anticipation of the birth of Jesus, with all its earthiness and inclusion of what is commonplace, we also anticipate the coming of the fullness of the kingdom of God, with all its glory and hope for what is ‘uncommon’ in our world – peace, justice, equity and security in both the worlds of human society and nature.

4) Thought Exercise

What is your vision of an ideal ruler?

How can we incorporate these traits in our own actions?

Going Home

Isaiah 2: 1-5 (November 28, 2010)

1) The Text

2The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. 2In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; all the nations shall stream to it. 3Many peoples shall come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth instruction and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. 5O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord!

2) The Context

Isaiah was a court prophet in Judea during the reign of kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. His court service began with a peaceful, independent Judea. But it ended with the domination of the small state by the rising Assyrians. Isaiah saw the glory and the shame of Judea under four different kings. His writings (chapters 1-39) reflect the extent of those experiences, but not in sequential order.

The book of Isaiah can be divided into two (and possibly three) parts. Chapters 1 to 39 were written before the exile, from about 740 BC to about 700 BC. These were difficult times for the southern kingdom, Judah: a disastrous war was fought with Syria; the Assyrians conquered Israel, the northern kingdom, in 723 BC, and threatened Judah. Isaiah saw the cause of these events as social injustice, which he condemned, and against which he fought valiantly. Because Chapter 1 begins with similar words, it appears that this and the next few chapters originally formed a separate document. The ideas in vv. 2-4 are also found in Micah 4.

Chapters 40 to 66 were written during and after the Exile in Babylon. They are filled with a message of trust and confident hope that God will soon end the Exile. Some scholars consider that Chapters 56 to 66 form a third part of the book, written after the return to the Promised Land. These chapters speak of hope and despair; they berate the people for their sin, for worshipping other gods. Like Second Isaiah, this part speaks of the hope that God will soon restore Jerusalem to its former glory and make a new home for all peoples.

3) Interpretation

Thomas Wolfe famously said, "You can't go home again," but the Bible suggests otherwise. It could be said that going home, going to the right home, is the Bible's central theme. And Advent is the quintessential time for going home. But if the Bible focuses huge attention on going home, how is it different from the nostalgic call to go on home, to hug your parents, to eat some rich food, to sit about the fire? Isaiah 2 does have a different take on the hope of homecoming. A careful look at the text shows just how different this Israelite, this world, homecoming will be.

The difference begins immediately in the introductory verse; this word that comes from God to Isaiah is not heard by the prophet, but is rather "seen" by him (2:1). The Hebrew verb means "to envision," as if the word has come in the form of a new way of seeing. If we are to understand a new way of going home, we must see differently, we must change our angle of vision. In fact, the vision of the prophet is to occur in "days to come". Rather than thinking about this as some future time, it is helpful to imagine this as a vision always available to those whose eyes have been opened to the newer reality of God. You can always go to this home, if you can see it, envision it -- and in the power of God you can.

Isaiah sees the mountain of God's house established as the highest of the mountains, lifted higher, better than all the hills there ever were (2:2b). The temple in Jerusalem may be the physical reference, resting on the hill of Zion, but visions are not merely about geography. The prophet sees in the vision that God is the center of the universe and all that God represents.

"All the nations are streaming (flowing)" to this mountain (2:2c). "The nations" (goyim) are those non-Israelite peoples who stand over against Israel. Their numbers are legion: Egyptians, Assyrians, Neo-Babylonians, Arameans, Canaanites, and countless smaller groups who over the centuries have warred and struggled with those who live in the tiny land of Israel. There is no agreement when this oracle was composed. But its vision could have come at any time to a people always ready to find out new meanings of their home.

The vast human stream flows toward God's mountain to learn what God uniquely has to teach. And what that is now becomes clear. What God has to impart to the world is Torah. It means "instruction," "teaching," the very ways and paths of God. As the nations approach the sacred mountain, God appears as judge, chief arbiter between and among the huge throng of peoples arrayed on the hill of Zion. The grammar of the sentence is important. God is judge and arbitrates between the peoples "in order that they beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation does not lift up sword against nation; they no longer learn war." And there is the home to which this vision calls Israel and us. Visions are not merely future hopes and dreams; visions are present potential realities.

When the proverb says, "Without a vision the people perish," it is not only saying that we need to keep some future hope alive in order that we can live in our difficulties now. The vision of a world without war, mandated by the great God of Zion, is far more than a fanciful dream of a few foolish overly-optimistic peaceniks. When Martin Luther King, Jr. helped all of us envision a world without racism, he was doing more than dreaming. He was casting a vision, another way of seeing the world. If we can see the vision, we can live into it, and need not wait for some long-expected future to do so. We simply must see the visions that God has for us and live always into them and toward them. And that is the home to which Isaiah points Israel and us. Advent points us toward home where the hope of genuine peace reigns.

Advent is a time of anticipation. These verses from Isaiah should fuel our spiritual anticipation. We have a bright future that God will provide. All we have to do is look and walk in faith.

4) Thought Exercise

What are the visions God has for you?

In what ways are you living into these visions?

God’s Wisdom

Colossians 1: 11-20 (November 21, 2010)

1) The Text

11May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully 12giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.13He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; 16for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. 17He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

2) The Context

Colossae was a city in what is now southwestern Turkey. It had flourishing wool and textile industries and a significant Jewish population. It seems that most Christians there were Gentile. Although long thought to be written by Paul, today this epistle is considered non-Pauline for a number of reasons. The most compelling is that it emphasizes what God has already done for his people: Paul tells us what God is going to do in the future (although some argue that Paul shifted his viewpoint in later life.) It gives descriptions of false teachings which were being promulgated in the churches. Some scholars consider this evidence of later authorship. In the ancient world, writing in the name of a respected author was accepted and regarded as an honor.

This passage is part of a larger section dealing with the person and work of Christ, 1:3-23, that seeks to establish the credentials of Jesus. Christ's preeminence over the created order, his authority over the church, and his prime function of reconciling all creation to himself, confirms the security of our standing in the presence of the living God.

3) Interpretation

In the two verses before this passage (1:9-10), we read what the author announces as his prayer for his hearers. It is not about ideals for which to strive by our own efforts, but about living in a way that both produces fruit and provides nourishment which makes fruit possible. While this applies as much to individuals as to groups, what follows broadens the vista to something much wider that involves the whole world. The focus is on a strong sense of belonging and for a purpose. The belonging is not a kind of passive membership, but engagement in a struggle which is fundamental to life. We have moved from being driven by powers opposite to God and love and good to become participants in a stream of goodness that flows from God (1:13). The author speaks of the kingdom or reign described as a sphere of power and influence which expresses itself by changing things. Part of that change includes forgiveness of sins (1:14). Part of being able to move spheres is the recognition of and facing up to the fact that one has been serving other gods, other priorities, than what is good for others and oneself.

The vision expands further in the carefully crafted verses which follow in 1:15-20. Their substance takes us right to the heart of God and the universe. The Christ whom we follow is not just a religious figure who was raised from the dead. Rather, he embodies both what humanity was made to be (the image of God) and simultaneously embodies God's wisdom. Christ embodies the very wisdom which makes sense of the universe and helped set it in motion. These are big claims. But they are ways of avoiding the trivial sectarianism which turns Jesus into a religious hero of a cult. Instead what we meet in Jesus takes us to the heart of God and the universe and its meaning.

The focus is not just on beginnings but on endings. The chaotic state of disjunction and estrangement which characterizes the universe out of harmony with its creator is something Christ came to set right. So 1:18-20 takes us beyond creation to the events of Christ's life. His message of reconciliation was, again, not about getting a few human beings forgiven, but about creating something much larger, a genuine reconciliation which would reverse the effects of the alienation which the gods of hate and greed have caused and cause. The author asserts that God deliberately resolved to be engaged fully in this act (1:19). It interprets the resurrection as a symbol of a new beginning. Christ is the firstborn not only of creation as God's wisdom and word (1:15) but also from the dead (1:18). In that sense he leads the way to reconciliation and renewal (1:19).

Deep within this line of thought we find an allusion to the church (1:18). At one level it seems out of place. Is the author really suggesting that the church with Christ as its head is going to swallow up everything and have the universe at its feet? Perhaps these verses offer a new definition of what it means to be church. In the best sense church is where the reconciling compassion of God is making some headway and is recognized and valued as such. This leaves no room for pretensions. Our joy is then not the power of influence and control, but that love flows and change happens. It is when destructive powers, including those gilded with religious sanction, lose their deity and people see that what matters is love because love lies at the heart of the universe and is God's wisdom and will.

4) Thought Exercise

How has God’s wisdom guided your life?

How is Pilgrim Church a place of compassion?

Clear Vision

Luke 21: 5-19 (November 14, 2010)

1) The Text

5When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, 6“As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.” 7They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” 8And he said, “Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is near!’ Do not go after them. 9“When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.” 10Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; 11there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven. 12“But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. 13This will give you an opportunity to testify. 14So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; 15for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. 16You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. 17You will be hated by all because of my name. 18But not a hair of your head will perish. 19By your endurance you will gain your souls.

2) The Context

The reading is from the last story about Jesus teaching in the Temple. The Jerusalem temple was the project of Herod the Great, who in 20/19 BCE began a reconstruction that essentially doubled its size and otherwise reflected his own aggrandizing character. Pilgrims pouring into the city from the rustic environs of Palestine and the wider diaspora couldn't not help but be impressed, even overwhelmed, by its sheer size and magnificence. But Jesus foretells of its destruction (“thrown down”, v. 6) – an event then some 40 years in the future.

In Jesus’ time, people were concerned about when the world would end, and what signs would indicate “this is about to take place” (v. 7). Jesus begins to answer, in terms drawn from prophetic books (Micah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Joel, vv. 8-11) and brought together in contemporary books (e.g. 2 Esdras). He adds “the end will not follow immediately” (v. 9), and then diverts to issues that matter now: the treatment his followers will receive, and how they should react to it (vv. 12-19). (“The time”, v. 8, is the time chosen by God for the end of the era.)

3) Interpretation

This passage speaks of deep and difficult realities in words we don't often use today. Most of us live in a "non-apocalyptic" mind set. Though we may have in the back of our minds the notion that the world might come to an end, we don't live as if this is the case. This passage allows either a discussion of these elusive "end times" or something that is much closer to the meaning of the passage-- that is the problem of interpretation or discernment in a confusing world. Jesus will speak about a coming persecution and destruction of the Temple, to be sure, but the broader context of his words is how to interpret various things in our world. How do we interpret the world in which we live? Here Jesus interprets two different things: (1) the meaning of a structure; and (2) the meaning of coming events.

In Chapter 20, Jesus has just emerged from a series of confrontations with religious leaders. He has acquitted himself well as a Biblical interpreter; he has also probably fueled the leaders' determination to "get him." Jesus sees himself in a larger historical context--as one of the prophets who must perish in Jerusalem. This consciousness gives him a freedom in interpreting things around him. He easily can put an alternative "twist" on things because his mind and conceptualization of the world isn't beholden to the interpretations of the religious leaders. He seems to speak with a freedom borne from achieving clarity of message and clarity of mission.

When we achieve these kinds of clarities in life, life flows much better for us, too. When you know what you stand for and what your message is in this life, you not only cherish your life and live it more fully, but you discover a new utility in life that you never knew you had. So, in this passage, Jesus gives two different "takes" on two common experiences or questions in life.

The first has to do with interpreting the beautiful building around him. The restored temple was the pride and joy of the community. It probably looked as if it was built to stand until the end of the world. But the external beauty and magnificence of the temple seems not to affect his view of what will happen. He knows that life, events, structures are evanescent or fleeting. Is the key to Jesus' ability to "read" the future of the temple found in an un-shareable divinity which he has--or to a spiritual/political perception he possesses that is also available to us? It brings up the question of whether there are people in our own midst, or whether we ourselves, have this interpretive capacity--the ability to "see" how things will unfold.

Finally, the most significant thing about Jesus' words in these verses is the division between people that it assumes. There will be divisions between nations as wars break out and divisions within families and groups that should share a common interest. Although Jesus’ words have a strong sense of warning, He also offers words of hope and advice on how to deal with all the strange events and personal trials. His advice is simply to stand firm - to endure. There may be suffering and even death - but endurance will be the greatest defense. It is an endurance born of trust - that in the midst of the turmoil, Jesus is in it with us and will give the words and strength we need to face what comes. The challenge Jesus puts before us is clear vision.

Although we can't fully separate the interpretive from the apocalyptic message of the passage, take a lesson from Jesus and wade into the interpretive arena-- look at the structures around you (the temple) and the events of our world--and try to make sense of them. That is the encouragement of this passage.

4) Thought Exercise

Can we see beyond the crises of life and nation?

Can our faith help us understand the challenges of these uncertain times?

Life After Death

Luke 20: 27-38 (November 7, 2010)

1) The Text

27Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him 28and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. 29Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; 30then the second 31and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. 32Finally the woman also died. 33In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” 34Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; 35but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. 36Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. 37And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 38Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”

2) The Context

It is important to remember the context of this passage: Jesus has entered Jerusalem (Luke 19:28-40) and a series of confrontations with the authorities begins. He has less than a week to live before he will be falsely charged, secretly arrested by night, tortured, and then brutally executed.

Just before this week’s passage, Jesus told a parable of wicked tenants (Luke 20:9-19), and following this Luke had commented: So (the authorities) watched (Jesus) and sent spies who pretended to be honest, in order to trap him by what he said, so as to hand him over to the jurisdiction and authority of the governor (Pontius Pilate).

This passage is intended to be one of those traps. The question asked by the Sadducees is NOT an honest, "good faith," question; it is an exaggerated "mind game" intended to trap Jesus into speaking against the Law. This story reflects a controversy between Sadducees and Pharisees regarding the hope of resurrection. The Sadducees were strict constructionists. They didn't believe in anything that was not in the written Torah—the five books of the Law. In contrast, the Pharisees accepted as valid the traditions of the oral law, the interpretations of the Torah that had developed in the oral traditions of the Pharisees. Resurrection was one of those beliefs that developed in the exilic and post-exilic periods. Most Pharisees believed in the hope of the resurrection, but Sadducees did not.

3) Interpretation

How do we know there is life after death? This was the question the foes of Jesus posed to him.

The Sadducees began with a principle of the Law on the obligation of family to a widowed in-law who had no children (found in Deuteronomy 25:5-10) [20:28]. With the passing of a husband, widows no longer had a place; they became homeless. And, there were no descendants to carry on the memory of the deceased. To alleviate this social problem and insure descendants-in-name to remember the dead, the Law obliged the brothers of the deceased to marry the widow.

Through a story, the Sadducees tried to show that God's Law on the serious obligations of marriage conflicted with belief in the afterlife. After all, which brother would be faithful to the widow? [20:29-33] Marital faithfulness was a virtue firmly grounded in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:14, Deuteronomy 5:18). The Sadducees argued that God would never create a condition in where his Will would contradict his Law. So, to insure the sanctity of marriage found in the Law, the Sadducees implied, God would never create an afterlife.

Jesus answered the Sadducees in two ways. First, he argued that marriage is an earthly institution blessed by God, but there was no such institution in God's Kingdom. [20:34-36] Such a concept was radical at the time. If there was not the institution of marriage, there may not be institutions of social class or slavery in the Kingdom. Women were equal to men, slaves were equal to freemen, the poor were equal to the rich. Only one status mattered: standing before God as his child [20:36].

Second, Jesus insisted that, when he had his first encounter with the Lord, Moses acknowledged the resurrection of the dead before he received the Law [20:37-38]. How did Moses do this? Moses experienced the divine as a dynamic presence that the Jews referred to as the "Living God." This God acted with power and definite purpose. He took the initiative in creation and in the affairs of people. This was not a transcendent power that could be manipulated through prayers, incantations, or spells. No! When people experienced the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they were shaken by a powerful presence beyond their control; they lie in the hands of a God that was truly alive.

As God was alive, so too, were those who experienced him. Here, Jesus showed a subtle, but definite shift in logic. Only the living can experience that which lives; only the living can encounter the "Living God." If the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the "Living God," then Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob must be alive in his presence. If Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob still live, then there must be a resurrection of the dead. In the very title of their God, Jews found the revelation of his purpose to give life after death.

How do we know there is life after death? We know through Scripture and the tradition of the Church. But more important than these, through God's dynamic presence, he communicates the love and compassion of his will. We can trust God in all things, including the greatest challenge life gives us, death. If he lives, so shall we, for his love transcends all things, even death itself.

4) Thought Exercise

What are your beliefs about the resurrection of the dead?

What importance does this belief have in your life?