No.37 - Resurrection Life

Joshua Menon
Jun 22
6 min read

In Christ we have life - Praise the Lord.

Verse of the Week

'But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.'

1 Corinthians 15:20-22

The certain historical truth that Christ rose from the dead can cause us to be confident that we too will be raised from the dead. What a glorious reality. In Christ, death is not the end; we will all be raised to new life.

I love the firstfruits picture. I imagine you have fields and fields of apple trees. The day you see the first apple appear on one of those trees, you know you have a whole lot more apples on the way. Christ is the first fruit of the harvest. He has bought us all the hope of resurrection life.

Encouragements

At my bible course in Cambridge, I was greatly encouraged by learning about how the Old Testament prophets fit into the bible story. It was a joy to hear about how God sent them to call his people back to himself, to remind them of the promises he had made to them and to call them away from judgment and to his blessings (even if they didn't listen).

I had a very encouraging life group meeting looking at 1 Corinthians 15:12-34. It was wonderful to think about the reality that death isn't the end. It was really encouraging to be able to chat through how we can let the resurrection shape our lives.

Near the end of the week, I had the joy of thinking through some of a book called Real Change. We looked at a section in 1 Peter that helped us to see that our suffering isn't pointless. By His amazing grace, God uses our suffering to strengthen our faith in Him, so that we will keep trusting him to the end. And get to enjoy him forever in the perfect new creation to come.

A Little Update

Here are a few of the things we've been up to and some of what we've got coming up. Praise the Lord for his kindness!

The Last Week

Monday - Selected the songs for the next few weeks at church
Monday - Music Rehearsal
Wednesday - Attended my Cambridge bible training course
Thursday - Church planning meeting
Thursday - Met with some church members to study the Westminster Confession of Faith
Thursday - Attended my life group meeting
Friday - Led a midday bible study group
Friday - Updated church website events page
Saturday - Attended a Christian book study group
Sunday - Led sung worship at church

The Next Few Weeks

Mid-day bible study, Life group, Cambridge bible course, Christian book study group
23rd June- Holiday Club meeting (Children's evangelistic event)
29th June - Playing keys in church
1st July - Ministry Training day in London
2nd July - Last day of TEAM (Cambridge bible course)
2nd July - Holiday Club meeting (Children's evangelistic event)
4th July - Running and speaking at an Evangelistic event
13th July - Giving a children's talk on the Psalms
13th July - Leading our Church meeting for the first time
14th July - Children's ministry training evening
19th-25th July - Attending Keswick Bible Conference

Prayer Requests

I've been spending more time this week preparing to apply for various Christian grants for the next year. I think the fundraising process will be a great way for me to grow my trust in the Lord to provide for all our needs. So I would love your prayers that I could remember this truth over the next few weeks instead of worrying about the future.

I will also be sending out some more information shortly, letting you know what ministry work and training I will be doing over the next 12 months. It has been such a blessing to have your prayers and support over the last year, and if you are able, it would be a real joy to know you are continuing to pray for us as I start the next part of my ministry training and work.

Love and prayers to you all

God bless,

Joshua & Luci.

P.S. - I've recorded another Episode of Delighted By Christ. If you are feeling a bit too tired to listen to a Sermon or read a Christian book, but still want to be encouraged, my hope is that this could be a great way to help you keep delighting in Christ. So if you want to hear more about how I've been delighted by Christ over the last week, feel free to listen to the video below. I hope you may find it encouraging :)

Cambridge Bible Course Notes

The Last Things

We expect to concisely be with God when we die

Jesus says today you will be with me in paradise to the thief on the Cross
Paul saying it’s better to die and go be with Christ

No one knows when Christ will return

We won’t miss it when Christ returns

Our new creation bodies will be similar, different and better

Handeling OT Prophets

Facts about OT prophets

A prophet = God’s mouthpiece (Exodus 3:1-6; 4:14-16; 7:1-2)
The prophet’s books were made up of Oracles
The prophet’s books were ordered by theme for maximum impact

Different types of Prophetic writing

The Announcement Oracle
- Because of X i will do Y
The lament Oracle
- Announcement of their distress
- Reason for their distress
- Pronouncement of their doom
The Lawsuit Oracle
- Court convene
- Accusation presented
- Evidence given is clear
- Judgment pronounced
The Promise Oracle
- Promise re future blessing
- Big change - their restoration
- Description of God’s blessing

The prophet’s books use parallel lines

One line helps understand the other
But they often don’t say exactly the same thing

There are four basic types of parallelism:

Synonymous parallelism (repeating)
Antithetic parallelism (contrasting)
Synthetic parallelism (extending)
External parallelism (multiple parallelism)

Prophets in Context

Key points

The prophets were acting when the Abrahamic promises seem to be falling apart
The exile of Judah is a big focus
The prophets aimed to called people back to a covenant relationship with God - if you don’t come back judgment will come, God wants you to come back and be blessed
Prophets were not mainly charged with predicting the future but rather preaching and applying the first 5 books to a new generation
2 Main messages - Warning of Judgment and Promise of Hope

The events in the Prophets had immediate fulfilments and future fulfilments

Biblical counselling

2 extreme reactions to suffering:

Stoic acceptance – just have to grudgingly accept it
See it as THE critical problem in life, bigger than sin – can result in ‘happiness entitlement’ and anger towards God when he doesn’t alleviate suffering as we want him to

Causes of suffering:

Myself – foolish choices, sinful hearts, BUT be very careful in making a clear link between suffering and personal sin – only if very clearly the case
Adam’s curse – all creation cursed, death, sickness (Rom 8:22)
Other people, being sinned against – strong emphasis in scripture, the strong oppress the weak etc
Satan – can afflict people, contributing to/using circumstances, our own sinful desires, sowing seeds of doubt (Luke 13:16 woman bound by Satan for 18 years)
God himself – he is over all things, in control of everything including our suffering – a comfort (Job eg ch2:10, Lamentations 3:37-38)

Ten help things to do while suffering

Don’t be surprised by suffering (1 Pet. 4:12).
Live by faith, see the unseen (Heb. 2:2).
Let suffering reveal where you seek help from (Jam. 1:2).
Remember God is God, you are not (Job 38-42).
Confess sin. (Heb. 12).
See the Suffering Servant in scripture. (Isaiah 39-53, John 10-21)
Speak honestly and often to the Lord.
Expect to get to know God better (Phil. 3:10-11).
Talk and listen to those who have suffered
Look ahead. (Ps. 84).

4 ways to be comforted in grief

Realise the loving presence of God.
Know the promises of God.
Seek out God in prayer.
Experience the loving presence of God’s people.

Continued grief over loosing someone, though painful isn’t always a bad thing. It can be a great reminder of how much you loved them and the blessing they were in your life.