Written by: John Sernaque
Call to Worship
Psalms 68: 32-34
68:32 Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord; Selah:
68:33 To him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens, [which were] of old; lo, he doth send out his voice, [and that] a mighty voice.
68:34 Ascribe ye strength unto God: his excellency [is] over Israel, and his strength [is] in the clouds.
While the disciples were gazing upward to catch the last glimpse of their ascending Lord, He was received into the rejoicing ranks of heavenly angels. As these angels escorted Him to the courts above, they sang in triumph, “Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord, to Him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens.... Ascribe ye strength unto God: His excellency is over Israel, and His strength is in the heavens.” Psalm 68:32-34, margin. {AA 32.3}
As Jesus went to heaven in the cloud of angels, so shall He return. With a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God, every eye will see Him. There will be a rapture, but there will be nothing secret about it. The dead in Christ shall rise first, and then those, which are alive and remain, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air to be forever with the Lord. The corruptible shall put on incorruption, the mortal put on immortality, and death will be swallowed up in victory. Thanks be to God, which gives us the victory through our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus.
Our Heavenly Father,
We are so thankful and grateful for Your promise to us that You will return for us, so that where You are we will be also. You have gone for now, to prepare a mansion in heaven to be ready for us when we get to heaven. We thank You for this, and in the meantime, we thank You for leaving the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to abide with us and teach us all things. We thank You for giving us peace, not as the world gives, but as You give. We pray that we may hear Your voice of peace. We thank You for hearing and answering our prayers, in Your name, Christ Jesus we pray. Amen.
