It's called the "incarnation" of our Lord and
Saviour, Jesus Christ.
The noun
"incarnation" is derived from ancient Latin. "Carnus" means
flesh, just plain human flesh. And the prefix "in" (still
Latin) is directional ... describing One Who came "in" flesh,
One Who was eternal!
God the Son took
upon Himself skin and tissue and muscles and bones!
The "incarnation"
of Jesus occurred historically and literally by means of a
miracle! How else could it have been?
Jesus was born of
a virgin, the young pure Jewish girl named Mary, her having been
overshadowed by the Holy Spirit of God.
See Luke 1:27 and
35.
This pivotal
Event is described by six words in 1st Timothy 3:16.
"And without controversy great is the
mystery of godliness:
God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit,
seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the
world, received up into glory."
Let me repeat the
"incarnation phrase" of our great verse:
"God was manifest in the flesh!"
The verb "was
manifest" expresses the Greek verb "phaneroo" which means to
reveal or to show or to make known. This word gives us the
English noun "epiphany!" It suggests a bright light suddenly
flashing on a dark night! Jesus literally "burst" on the scene
of world history ... pure Holiness invading a planet of iniquity
... pristine light flooding an orb of darkness!
"Phaneroo" here
is framed as a passive verb. That means Jesus was sent into the
world by Another! By God the Father according to John 3:16.
"For God so loved the world, that
he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life." Better yet is 1st John
4:14. "And we have seen and do testify
that the Father sent the
Son to be the Saviour of the world."
Amen!
Furthermore, "phaneroo"
is an aorist, teaching us that this "sending" of Jesus via a
virgin's womb is a completed action! It is a fact of history!
It is not some ongoing mythical process ... fueled by some
liberal's agnosticism! It literally and physically happened!
Without the virgin birth of Jesus ... there could have been no
Calvary ... or salvation of lost souls!
But ... in what
form did God the Son appear?
"In" the flesh!
"In" the form of
humanity!
He, being God ...
and remaining God of course ... for all eternity ... was clothed
a body like ours!
"In" (in Greek =
"en") indicates a fixed position. With a dative case noun (as
here) it means "within." Jesus was not a spirit! Jesus was not
a dream! Jesus was not an angel! Jesus had real human skin and
bones! God indwelt man, a body! John the Apostle, using one of
his favorite Names for Jesus said: "And
the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of
grace and truth." John 1:14
Then comes the
word "flesh." Jesus (God) was manifest in the "flesh!"
Paul sometimes
used our word here, "sarx," to indicate our old sinful natures.
For example, "Now the works of the flesh
are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness ...." (See Galatians 5:19)
However, that is not its meaning when applied to Jesus!
Jesus had no
sinful nature!
In fact, Jesus
never once failed His Father ... never a single time did He sin!
He lived "without
sin!" See Hebrews 4:15.
Therefore "flesh"
(Greek = "sarx") in our verse today simply means a physical
body. Often Scripture mentions "flesh and blood," a term
indicating human beings.
God the Son ...
manifested in the flesh!
Why?
Why did Jesus so
come?
"For the Son of man is come to seek and to
save that which was lost." Luke 19:10
"For this purpose the Son of God was
manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil."
1st John 3:8
Jesus came to die
on the Cross ... that we might be saved! He said:
"Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me
from this hour (the Cross): but
for this cause came I unto this hour." John 12:27
That's WHY He was
manifest in the flesh!
He came to
provide salvation for our lost souls!
Without that
truth ... we would all die and go to Hell!
Friend, I am so
thankful today that Jesus was "God manifest in the flesh!"
Aren't you?
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 4:
Have you ever
thought much about Jesus' relationship with the Holy Spirit?
That's an unusual topic!
Jesus the Son and God the Father are
often mentioned together in the Scriptures.
But Jesus and the Holy Spirit ...
not nearly as often!
However, the Apostle Paul gives us
one great Text that clearly associates the Second and Third
Persons of the Godhead.
"And without
controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached
unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into
glory." 1st Timothy 3:16
"God manifest in the flesh" is
obviously a reference to our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thus ... He is the Subject of this
whole verse.
Note that the
Lord was "justified in the Spirit!"
The verb
"justified" here (in Greek = "diakaino") means "to declare
right!"
Pilate may
question our Lord and Herod may doubt Him. The Pharisees may
scoff and the lost crowds might scream "Crucify Him, crucify
Him!"
But the Holy
Spirit sincerely says ... "I find no wrong in Him!"
Think with me a
few minutes.
At Jesus' very
conception, in the womb of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Spirit was
present and active, approving God's Way of getting Jesus to
earth! "And the angel answered and said
unto her, The Holy Ghost
shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall
overshdow thee: therefore also that holy thing which
shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."
Luke 1:35
That's the Holy
Spirit's approval of Jesus the Babe!
Then thirty years
later, at Jesus' baptism, the Holy Spirit again "justified" Him!
Luke tells us that Jesus saw and heard ...
"And the Holy Ghost
descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon Him, and a
voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in
thee I am well pleased." Luke 3:22
Next came the
temptation, 40 days of trial by the devil himself! And after
victory, Jesus "returned
in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went
out a fame of him through all the region round about."
Luke 4:14
Had the Holy
Spirit not approved ("justified") Jesus in an overwhelming
manner ... He would have never empowered Him so, returning with
Him to the Holy Land.
On the Cross of
Calvary too ... the Holy Spirit justified Jesus! Our dear Lord
could not have died as the powerful Saviour He is ... without
the Spirit's co-operation and delight!
"How much more shall the blood of
Christ, who through the
eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge
your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"
Hebrews 9:14
Jesus died having
been fully accredited by the Holy Spirit!
Then ...
naturally ... the Resurrection as well. Peter writes:
"For Christ also hath once suffered for
sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but
quickened by the Spirit."
1st Peter 3:18
Jesus was raised
from the dead by a delighted Holy Spirit!
"Quickened" means
"made alive!"
In fact, in one
vast over-all Biblical "sweep" you can tell how deeply the Holy
Spirit participated in the Life and Work of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Isaiah prophesied
Jesus as saying:
"The Spirit of the Lord
GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to
preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up
the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the
opening of the prison to them that are bound ...."
Isaiah 61:1
Jesus used this
Isaiah Text for His first recorded sermon in Luke 4. His whole
Life was endued with Holy Spirit Presence and Power!
So much so that
John the Apostle said of Jesus and the Holy Spirit:
"For He whom God hath sent (Jesus)
speaketh the words of God: for
God giveth not the
Spirit by measure unto Him." John 3:34
Jesus was filled
with a measureless supply of the Holy Spirit!
I call that being
"justified" in the Spirit!
How about you,
Christian friend?
Are you filled
with the Holy Spirit of God?
Do you want to
be?
Jesus indeed was!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 5:
Two thousand
years ago Jesus, the Son of God, was born in a human body.
He, as God the Son, is eternal!
But He, as the God/Man, had a
beginning point in time!
Of course from now through all of
eternity He will remain as God Who became man! He is our great
High Priest! He "ever liveth" to make intercession for us!
This fact, the incarnation of Jesus,
greatly interests the angels of heaven!
Read carefully Peter's remarks about
the interest of the angels, interest in the Gospel story. The
Apostle, writing to Believers in Christ mentions:
"The end of your faith, even the
salvation of your souls. Of which salvation the prophets
have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the
grace that should come unto you: searching what, or what
manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did
signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ,
and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed,
that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the
things, which are now reported unto you by them that have
preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from
heaven; which things the
angels desire to look into."
Notice the
capitalized words!
Angels "desire to
look into" the amazing things about Jesus and His death, burial
and resurrection!
The verb here is
"parakupto" and means "to bend down and lean forward in order to
examine something!"
Angels, the very
angels of Heaven, are that interested in Jesus our Lord, His
Person and Work!
I have been
thinking about that: Jesus ... and the angels.
The angel Gabriel
announced the coming Birth of Jesus to both Mary the virgin and
Joseph her husband-to-be! For example:
"And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast
found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy
womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS."
Luke 1:30-31
Angels were
present the very night of Jesus' Birth, appearing to the
shepherds near Bethlehem! "And there were
in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord
came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about
them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them,
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in
the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord ... And
suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God." Luke 2:8-11 and 13
Angels are also
mentioned at the Temptation of Jesus. He, having conquered the
devil, had also not eaten in forty days! Matthew 4:11 records
what happened next: "Then the devil
leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him."
I think they, among other things, brought Him some food!
Again in
Gethsemane at one of Jesus' most difficult moments ...
"There appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening
Him." Luke 22:43
And His
Resurrection was an angelic favorite too!
"But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she
wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,
and seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and
the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain."
John 20:11-12
And, amazingly,
angels witnessed His Ascension also! "And
while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up,
behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said,
Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same
Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in
like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." Acts
1:10-11
And what if I
told you there's Bible evidence that angels will accompany Him
when He returns to "catch away" His Bride, the Church?
There is!
"For the Lord himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with
the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then
we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so
shall we ever be with the Lord." 1st Thessalonians
4:16-17
Angels ... and
Jesus!
But, Preacher
Bagwell, is there a verse that summarizes this angelic
captivation with Jesus?
Oh, yes!
I will capitalize
and underline the pertinent words. "And
without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was
manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit,
seen of angels,
preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received
up into glory." 1st Timothy 3:16
The verb that
depicts Jesus "having been seen" of angels is "horao."
Basically, in the passive voce as here, it means "observed,
noticed, recognized!" It even implies "being visited,
understood, or cared for!"
Oh, that we
should be as interested in the Saviour as are the angels!
Today multitudes
have chosen to ignore Him Who was the very Focus of angelic gaze
for all the days of His earthly life!
In fact ... in
Heaven right now and for all of eternity future ... Jesus will
continue to be worshipped by angels!
John saw it and
has recorded his observations: "And I
beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the
throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was
ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to
receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour,
and glory, and blessing." Revelation 5:11-12
Jesus is The
Lamb!
Oh, this time of
the year ... praise His dear Name!
Make much of
Jesus!
After all, the
angels sure do!
Surely those
lovely created beings ... who, after all, have never really
personally experienced the saving grace of God ... should not
"out-praise" us old ex-sinners who have been washed in the Blood
of the lamb!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 6:
Generally
speaking, the Bible sees mankind as divided into two groups,
Jews and Gentiles.
Yet when Jesus came and died on
Calvary, Paul detailed another group, the "church" of the living
God!
Watch what he writes:
"Give none offence, neither to the Jews,
nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God." 1st
Corinthians 10:32
God's "chosen" people, the "apple of
His eye," are the Jews. Jesus was a Jew. The writers of
Scripture were also. The Lord even went so far as to say in
John 4:22 that "Salvation is of the Jews."
It's a well-known fact that the
Gospel was preached first to the Jews! Again, Paul says:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one
that believeth; to the
Jew first, and also to the Greek." Romans 1:16
John goes even further! He explains
to us that Jesus "came unto His Own,"
the Jews! They rejected Him of course, but they were first on
His list!
Now let me
quickly give you the rest of that passage, John 1:11-13.
"He came unto his own, and his own
received him not. But as
many as received him, to them gave he power to become the
sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of
the will of man, but of God."
The Jews did not
want the Lord Jesus ... so He turned to as many as would receive
Him! That group logically includes the Gentiles!
Jesus loves
sinners of all kinds ... of every tribe and nation on earth!
There is one
outstanding verse of Scripture in which Paul encapsulates the
whole of Jesus' Ministry in just a few words.
"And without controversy great is the
mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified
in the Spirit, seen of angels,
preached unto the
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into
glory." 1st Timothy 3:16
Do notice that
right in the middle of that Holy Spirit inspired biography is
the clause "preached unto the Gentiles!"
The Jews did not
highly value Gentiles! They called us "dogs!" We were the very
filth of the earth.
But Jesus loved
us!
He even saved and
called Paul the Apostle to be a special envoy "to the
Gentiles!" Right after his salvation experience, the Lord said
about Paul: "he is a chosen vessel unto
me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the
children of Israel." Note here that Acts 9:15 just put
the Gentiles before the Jews! Wow!
Miracle of
miracles: Jesus ... preached unto the Gentiles!
The verb
"preached" here is "kerusso." Jesus the Saviour and Lord was
announced and proclaimed and presented as the Coming One, the
very Son of God!
The noun for
"gentiles" is "ethnos" and means "nations or heathen" or
non-Jews.
I do not know the
exact composition of our readership, but I am sure that you all
are about 95% Gentiles!
We all ought to
be rejoicing that the Gospel came our way too!
Not only were the
Jews given opportunity to know Jesus ... we were included too!
That God for the
day you, dear Gentile friend, heard the glorious message, Jesus
saves!
Amen!
By the way, the
day God saved you ... technically you were no longer just a
member of the Gentile hordes of earth! You became a member of
the Church ... the Church of God! Remember 1st Corinthians
10:32? "Give none offence, neither to the
Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God."
A saved man or
lady is no longer just some ethnic identity!
No!
He or she is a
saint of God!
A born-again
child in His family!
A member of His
Body!
Part of the
Church!
In that too we
old (former) Gentiles can surely rejoice!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 7:
"Believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved!"
That's good news!
These are the very words Paul told a
poor frightened jailer in the ancient city of Philippi. The man
had already heard the preaching of God's Word and was under Holy
Spirit "conviction" for sure!
And he believed!
As apparently did all his household!
Let me just say it right now,
echoing the words of the precious old Gospel song: "Jesus saves!
Jesus saves!"
This is one of the firstfruits of
the Gospel, the Story of the death, burial and resurrection of
Jesus the Christ, God the Son!
That is ... the firstfruit of
"belief" in His Name!
This "saving faith," this "trust,"
this "leaning on Jesus," this "belief" is well described in one
great verse of Scripture, placed in proper perspective again the
background of Jesus' whole life and ministry.
That verse is
found at 1st Timothy 3:16. "And without
controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached
unto the Gentiles,
believed on in the world, received up into glory."
I capitalized the "belief" clause.
Do notice please
that the "believing" follows the "preaching" in our verse!
That's always the
order in which salvation comes!
"Faith cometh
by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" says Paul in
Romans 10:17.
Again in Romans
10, specifically verse 9, Paul says of belief in Jesus: "That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead,
thou shalt be saved."
That sure
corresponds to something Jesus said about belief in John 5:24:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and
believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall
not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
Amen!
The verb
"believed" in today's verse (1st Timothy 3:16) is in Greek
spelled: "pisteuo" and means "to trust" or "to commit" or "to
assent" or "to be persuaded" or "to have confidence" in
something or someone!
Here the verb is
framed in the indicative aorist passive 3rd person singular
form. This belief is not doubtful or shaky ... it is sure
(indicative mood). It is describing the moment in the past when
the one under conviction first placed faith, believing faith, in
Jesus as his or her Saviour (aorist). And it is not
self-assertive faith either (passive voice). This saving faith
is given to the sinner ... by the Grace of God it appears! "For
by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of
works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8-9 And Paul is
here speaking of One unique Saviour, Jesus Christ (3rd person
singular).
Jesus ...
believed on in the world, the whole world!
In heaven some
day we shall all behold, as John on Patmos already did ... "And
they sung a new song, saying, Thou (Lord Jesus) art worthy to
take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for
thou wast slain, and
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation ...." Revelation 5:9
In Acts chapters
8-10 something amazing occurs! Out of all three branches of
mankind, based on the three sons of Noah who stepped off the Ark
after the Flood, descendants of Ham, Shem and Japheth, God
saves many of each!
In Acts 8, an
Ethiopian eunuch is born-again. He is an offspring of Ham!
In Acts 9, Saul
of Tarsus is saved! He is a descendent of Shem, Semitic in
nature!
And in Acts 10
Cornelius is saved, an Italian soldier. He is a child of
Japheth!
Let me again
quote today's clause from 1st Timothy 3:16 ...
"believed on in the world!"
Folks, saved
people reading here today, we all ought to be shouting the
praises of God this Saturday in December!
Why?
Because He came
to us ... imparting His marvelous Grace ...and we believed in
Him! Believed unto salvation! Believed with a faith that was
not vain! Believed for all eternity!
"But as many as
received him (Jesus), to them gave He power to become the sons
of God, even to them
that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of
God." John 1:12-13
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 8:
The "Ascension"
of Jesus is important too!
He is in Heaven today, sitting at
His Father's Right Hand!
A complete account of the Gospel
must furnish this great fact too. Jesus was ...
"received up into glory."
In Paul's great one-verse biography
of our Lord he wrote: "And without
controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached
unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world,
received up into glory."
1st Timothy 3:16
God the Son, our dear Saviour Jesus,
came to earth in a little human body. This event is called His
incarnation and Virgin Birth. Born in a lowly manner, then soon
fleeing to Egypt to escape a wicked king, reared in a
carpenter's shop, despised and rejected of men most of His
earthly days, Jesus was certainly a "Man of sorrows."
BUT ... after His Death, Burial and
Resurrection ... Jesus was "taken up" to Heaven in glory and
honor and adoration!
What a Homecoming it must have been!
That little verb
"received" is interesting. "Analambano" means "to take up"
something or someone! God the Father, having seen Jesus'
perfect completion of the Divine Will, took His Son up ... back
to Glory!
The verb implies
receiving someone with great joy, with great excitement, with
great anticipation!
What a reunion
the Father and Son must have experienced!
I believe Psalm
110:1 tells us exactly what the Father said to His returning
victorious Son: "The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my
right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool."
No doubt when
Jesus ascended to Heaven ... the Father so greeted Him!
So did the
multitudes of angels! "The chariots of God are twenty thousand,
even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai,
in the holy place." Psalm 68:17
And the saints of
all the ages, having been "liberated" from "Abraham's Bosom" or
"Paradise," were led by Jesus into the very abode of God too!
"When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave
gifts unto men." Ephesians 4:8 quoting Psalm 68:18
What joy they
must have expressed at Jesus' Victory over death, hell and the
grave!
But ... now that
Jesus has been so joyfully received up into Glory ... what is He
doing there?
He is there as
our Forerunner! "Whither the forerunner is for us
entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after
the order of Melchisedec." Hebrews 6:20
"Prodromos"
("Forerunner") is the One who has already run the race ("dromos")
... and is already at the goal, awaiting our arrival!
His being there
reveals to us where the race ends ... in this case ... "in
Glory!"
Jesus in Heaven
now is also our Mediator! "And for this cause he is the
mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the
redemption of the transgressions that were under the first
testament, they which are called might receive the promise of
eternal inheritance." Hebrews 9:15
Jesus is the
Middle Man ... the One Who represents us to God the Father and
reveals the Father to us as well! Paul wrote to Timothy: "For
there is one God, and one mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus." 1st Timothy 2:5
The ascended
Jesus is also our Advocate! He is our Lawyer in Heaven!
He fends off the attacks of the devil, attacks on us Believers!
The devil you know is the "accuser of the Brethren." Read 1st
John 2:1 --- "My little children, these things write I unto you,
that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."
He, Jesus, is
also our Great High Priest! He has already
sprinkled the Blood of Atonement, His Own precious Blood, on the
Altar of Heaven on our behalf! He has obtained for us "eternal
redemption" according to Hebrews 9:12. Paul writes of our Lord
... "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is
passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast
our profession." Hebrews 4:14
And He is in
Heaven right now as the Head of the Church! See
Ephesians 5:23. He is the Head ... we Christians are the Body,
the Bride of Christ Jesus. (Usually where one's head goes ...
his or her body soon follows! So is it with the Church! Our
Head is already in Heaven ... the Body will follow soon! What
security this affords true Believers!)
Yes ... busily
sitting on the Throne ... Jesus is all these Things and so much
more!
He was
"received up into Glory!"
The verb
"received" is in the passive voice! Jesus did not lift up
Himself to Heaven!
No!
The Father did
that to him and for Him as the perfect victorious approved Son
of God!
As soon as the
Godhead was again corporally together at the Ascension, I
suspect God the Father yet again announced: "This is My Beloved
Son ... In Whom I am well pleased!"
And where is
Jesus now?
"In Glory!"
Heaven is called
Glory!
The Place where
the "glow" of God is abundantly apparent!
Where God's Will
is done ... completely!
Where sin does
not enter!
Where holiness
rules and reigns!
Where worship
continues without interruption!
And ... where we
who have been saved are headed for eternity!
Thank God ...
Jesus was "received up into Glory!"
Jesus promised us
... "That where I am, there ye may be also."
Amen!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
