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summed up in che Ten Command–
mems. and Saran's way of comperi–
rion, greed, vanicy.
All sufferi ng - all unhappiness,
fear, misery, and dearh - has come
from che
transgression
of God's Law.
Living
by rhat greac Law of !ove,
chen, is che only way
co
peace, happi–
ness, and joy.
God placed man on chis planee ro
learn rhat lesson - ro learn ir
rhrough generarions of experience.
Yes, we, roo, learn by suffering.
God has revealed che crue way - His
revelacion always has been availablc ro
man. Buc man, given che righc of free
choice, always has curncd his back on
God, and God's crue way. And even
rhough man as a wholc srill refuses ro
see or Jearn che lesson, he has writren
this lesson indelibly in the hiscory of
human experience.
We learn chrough experience and
rhrough suffering. This, rhen, is rhe
very sruff of which character
is
made.
W hat We Shall Be Like
Once chis godly CJ IARt\CTER is de–
veloped in us, whar shall we
be
like
in
the resurrection?
Already,
Jl()W,
in chis life, che rruly
converred Christian, having God's
Holy Spiric dwelling wirhin , being
led by God's Spiric, is
a
SON of God.
In prayer he addresses God as "Fa–
cher."
Norice ic in your Bible: "Beloved,
now are we che sons of God, and ir
doch noc yec appear whac we shall
be ..." (l John 3:2). Whac we shall
be is nor now apparent - does nor
now APPEAR - is not yec seen. Con–
rinue, " . . . but we know chac, when
he shall appear, we shall be like him;
for we shall (then} see him as he is."
Our appearance, rhen, will be like
char of Chrisr
tl()W.
And whar does Chrisc look like,
now?
His appearance is described in Rev–
elarion 1:14-16: "His head and his
hairs were white like wool, as whice
as snow; and his eyes were as a Oame
of fire; and his feec like unto fine
brass, as if chey burned in a furnace;
PLAIN TRUTH Avgusl 1972
and his voice as rhe sound of many
warers ... and his councenance was as
che sun shineth in bis srrcng rh."
Buc once acrually born of God -
encering inro His Kingdom - His
FAMJ LY - by che resurreccion, we
shall be
composed ofspirit.
We shall be
Like
God, and
like
Chrisr now is, com–
plctely sinless. " \X7hosoever is born of
God doch nor commic sin; for his
seed remainech in him, and
he camzot
sin,
because he is born of God"
(1
John
3:9).
As Chrisr was bom of God by His
resurrecrion (Romans
l:3-4),
so shall
we be. "For whom he did foreknow,
he also did predestinare
co
be con–
formed ro che image of his Son, chac
he mighc be che firscborn of many
brcthren" (Rom.
8:29) .
Ac thar rime we shaiJ be changed
from mortal
ro
immorcal. "For
our ... [cicizenship} is in heaven;
from whence also we look for rhe
Saviour, che Lord Jesus Chrisr: who
shall changc our vile body, chac ir
may be fashioned like unco his
glorious body ..." (Phi l. 3:20-21,
marginal reading).
Do you begin ro comprehend why
you were born?
One rdigion believes rhac che finaJ
end resulr of human life is
ro
be coral
excinction of individual conscious–
ness. How glorious is che cruch -
promising che very opposice exrreme!
Now
Understand Wby You
Were Bo rn!
The purpose of life is rhar in us
God is really re-creacing
Hú
fJWn
kind
-
reproducing 1-limself
afrer
His
own
kind - for we are, upon real conver–
sion, acrually
begotten
as sons (yec un–
born) of God. Then rhrough srudy of
God's revelarion in His Word, living
by His every Word, conscanc prayer,
daily experience wirh crials and resr–
ings, we grow spiricuaiJy more and
more like God, unril, ar che rime of
che resurreccion, we shall be insran–
raneously changed from morral inro
immorta/
-
composed of spi rir. We
shal l rhen be
born
of God - accually
born into rhe God FAMILY!
For. rernember, che word "God" in
Genesis
1: 1
comes ro us from rhe He–
brew word
Elohim. Elohim
means ONE
Goo - nor many gods. Buc chat ONE
Goo
is
a divine FAMlLY - a KING–
DOM. There is bur one rrue Church -
one
Church, buc many mcmbers
(1
Cor.
! 2:20) .
So ir is wirh God.
As an illuscrarion, chere is rhe min–
eral kingdom, che planc kingdom, che
animal kingdom, che human king–
dom, in chis material world. Spiricu–
ally, rhere is che angel kingdom, and,
high above all, rhe Kingdom of God.
A human - flesh and blood - can–
nor encer inro che Kingdom of God
(John
3:6: 1
Cor. 15:50), buc one
bom
of God can.
The Fantastic, Incredible
Potencial
Do you really grasp ir? The pur–
pose of your being alive is thar finally
you be born inco che Kingdom of
God, which is che divine FAMILY of
God.
Whcn you fully grasp chis cre–
mendous, wonderful truth, your
mind will be filled wirh rranscendenc
joy. le gives a new meaning ro lifc so
wonderful you'll never comprehcnd
rhe full heighrs of ics splendor.
Ir
means, of course, coral renuncia–
tion and denial of rhose injurious
chings and ways which have falsely
see-med
so bright and alluring ro chis
world.
Bur your eyes will be open ac Jase
ro
che g rear deccpcion - rhe scales
will fall from your blinded vision -
you'll see che
meaning
of life, ics greac
purpose.
as you never dreamed ir could
be. Giving up chis wodd's evils,
rempcacions and pirfalls - ics snares
and delusions which have gliccered
and rhen ended only in sorrow and
suffering - is bur emerging from
gross darkness inco che splendor of
rrue light, and of happiness and joy
forever!
In che words of l Pecer 1:8, you
will "rejoice with joy unspeakable
and full of GLORY"! •
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