“God Of The Living!”

“God Of The Living!”(Mt.22:23-33).
We are daring into the topic we Africans usually don’t like to discuss. Death! Yet death is becoming more rampant that ever before.
What is death?
For the Christian the soul is that part of a person that continues to exist after the body has died. When a person is medically declared dead it means the soul has separated from the body. The soul lives on without a body. While God considers the welfare of the body, he is interested in the soul because the soul is eternal.
The big puzzle: At the resurrection, is the rotted dead body going to rise and unite with the same soul? Does that mean that the soul loiters just around where the decayed body is buried? Some may say these are questions of theodicy.
Matthew records that when Jesus gave up the spirit, the earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people”(Mt.27:50-53). What later became of these people? Did they live again to die a second physical death or they went back to their graves?
These are not new worries. The nature of the raised person is one of Paul’s major topic in his letter to the Corinthians(I Cor.15:35-55). The perishable and mortal bodies are concerned with mundane things, which are actually cravings of the flesh. When at the resurrection the perishable and mortal take on imperishability and immortality, the cravings of the flesh will cease to be a cause for concern.
In the heavenly realm the immortal believers shall constitute one large choir whose only duty is to sing and praise God.
To be sure of being part of that heavenly throng is to live for the LORD in this mortal body.
The Church father Tertullian said, “I believe because it is absurd.” Yes, it must not make sense before we believe. The things that we do not understand, the Spirit will make it clear to us as we prayerfully seek his counsel.
Sunday prayer: Holy Spirit give us proper understanding of things beyond our understanding. Amen!
Have a blessed Sunday! Happy Rally celebration to the Christian Women Fellowship (CWF) mothers of the PCC. Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.