Scrooge, the immortal character created by Charles Dickens, met the ghost of the past and came to realize that the way in which he dealt with his fellow-man was really the source of his misery. Many today resemble Scrooge, but unfortunately they have too much sense to see ghosts. They continue in their misery, being overly selfish and possessive, forgetting that God gave them all that they have. Perhaps we don’t have fields or vineyards, as the Bible speaks of in Leviticus 19; But a generous spirit is worthy of cultivation. It is in the realization that God has given us enough to share that we might find joy. Likewise God has given us a spirit of compassion worthy of cultivation, that we may be aware the needs of our fellow-man and seek to aid him.

Leviticus 19:10 And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.

Jesus knew the time was approaching when the disciples would need to rely on His unseen presence. As we face one crisis after another, we must remain faithful in trusting our Father’s hand. When we see cities devastated by hurricanes, earthquakes, or even flooding we find it hard to understand, especially when it affects our own lives, loved ones or friends. What we see again and again is Gods faithfulness to those who have lost much. A church destroyed by flooding spent years rebuilding their ministry while serving all over the nation. They were not sad because of what they had lost but were filled with joy for what they had gained. They are now being blessed with a church building that they had never envisioned. His faithfulness is overwhelming for these faithful servants who gave even when they had little to give.

So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20 [NKJV]

John’s vision of Jesus throughout the book of Revelation presents a powerful defense for why Jesus is crowned Lord of all. Jesus’ purity, Power, Faithfulness, wisdom, and grace permeate the entire book. No one can walk away from John’s vision with any other picture of Jesus than King of kings and Lord of lords. In the history of the church, we have been blessed to receive powerful songs penned by those who sought to express sound theology and doxology in light of the greatness of Jesus. One powerful hymn is “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” often referred to as the “National Anthem of Christendom.” Edward Perronet wrote the lyrics in 1779 while he served as missionary in India. The text has been translated in which Christianity is known. Adding to Perronet’s lyrics, John Rippon attached these memorable words in 1777: “O that with yonder sacred throng We at His feet may fall! We’ll join the everlasting song, and crown Him Lord of all”

His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. Revelation 19:12

Through His death on the cross and His resurrection, Christ offers us the ultimate freedom- freedom over sin and death. Through Gods grace, we are free to serve Him obediently and joyfully. Freedom  in Christ allows us to live unselfishly, thinking of others. How many around us need to hear about the freedom Jesus offers?. Do we place a high enough value on our freedom in Christ  that we are willing to say as Isaiah did, ”Here am I; send me” Isaiah 6:8, Through our freedom in Christ we can be assured of eternal life- the hope of righteousness. Our hope in Christ is much more than a maybe. It’s a guarantee, sealed by His death on the cross and His Resurrection.

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1

The uniqueness of Christianity lies in the resurrection of its leader, Jesus Christ-the only religious leader who ever rose from the dead. The glorious news of Christianity is that the Savior is alive and promised that believers, too, will one day be resurrected. What better proof of the truth of this gospel than that the news of it was foretold in the Old Testament hundreds of years before it happened and described in the New Testament soon after the events occurred? Added affirmation of the validity of this gospel include untold numbers of Christians who testify to the presence of the living Christ in their lives; countless millions who, down through history, committed them-selves in faith to Christ; multitudes of God-called preachers who have spent their life proclaiming the gospel; and numerous martyrs who died for the faith. This gospel is unchanged. Only lives are changed.

1 Corinthians 15: 3-5 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.

The disciples probably had never seen anything quite like the ascension of Jesus. Like you and i if we had been there they were likely just as wide-eyed, and trying to convince themselves they were not going insane, as we would have been had we been there. God used these ordinary men in mighty ways. Shortly after the ascension, the disciples preached at an event known as Pentecost and performed many other miracles. Just like the disciples we have a job to do. Jesus is coming back, and He wants us to go with Him. One day He will split the eastern sky with a shout. However He doesn’t want us standing around in a daze trying to be the first one to see it happen. He expects us to get to work. He wants us to be prepared. Our job is to tell everyone possible how to make the trip.

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 come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven Acts 1:11…..