“But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in gleaming clothing; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why are you seeking the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise from the dead.” And they remembered His words, and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven, and to all the rest.” (Luke 24:1-9 NASB)
By the middle of the day, on this Friday, all three of our church’s Victory Classes, will have worked our way completely through “The Gospel According to Luke,” verse by verse. It’s been quite a journey, but we know that diligently studying the word of God is rewarding. We not only find out what it says when we study, but we accurately ascertain what it means, and then we come away with how it applies to us! Yes, we take away wisdom that is profitable even as it pertains to our personal, individual lives as the Lord’s children.
I decided to insert the opening verse because, to be truthful, one could have been brought down going through chapter 22 and chapter 23 in Luke’s gospel. Why? Because we were granted a ringside seat at the trials Jesus went through, a seat that let our spiritual eyes see the suffering He endured for us, and we were presented with a vivid picture of the crucifixion. As it relates to the latter, we looked at the physical mistreatment of Jesus and we pictured the crucifixion by gaining an understanding of the gory, gruesome, and gut-wrenching details of Roman crucifixion during Jesus’ time. So, as we closed out chapter 23, we peaked ahead and saw that the best is yet to come in our study. I know we needed some good news after witnessing by means of our in-depth study, all that Jesus did for us…including you! He was atoning for our sins! He was sinless, the perfect Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. Again, when we get to chapter 24, our grimaces will turn to grins and our hurt will turn to happiness and our disappointment with mankind, in their worst moment, will be displace by rejoicing, celebrating Jesus, in His best moment. I know our classes will go through this and you ought to as well. But if you start at chapter 22, just keep in mind, the best is yet to come.
Now, because He lives, and because we as believers have abundant life and eternal life in Him, we can look ahead, no matter what we are going through personally, and we can see how it is with Jesus. When you hope is in Christ Jesus, the best is still ahead, no matter where you find yourself at any given time! Thus, the title of this meditation: “The Best Is Yet To Come.”
Do me a favor this morning! Read the words taken from the old hymn, “Because He Lives,” and highlight which part stands out for you and speaks clearly to you because you serve a risen Savior! Me too! Go ahead and rejoice! Praise the Lord! Be blessed!
“Because He lives, I can face tomorrow…
Because He lives, all fear is gone…
Because I know, He holds the future…
And life is worth the living…
Just because he lives!”
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King