God’s grace…
free and undeserved.
For we know
that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down
(that is, when we die and leave this earthly body),
we will have a house in heaven,
an eternal body made for us by God himself
and not by human hands.
You will keep in perfect peace
all who trust in you,
all whose thoughts are fixed on you!
Trust in the LORD always,
for the LORD GOD is the
eternal Rock.
Even the wilderness and desert will be glad in those days.
The wasteland will rejoice and blossom with spring crocuses.
With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands,
and encourage those who have weak knees.
Say to those with fearful hearts,
“Be strong, and do not fear,
for your God is coming to destroy your enemies.
He is coming to save you.”
Isaiah 35:1, 3-4
The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known.
They speak without a sound or word;
their voice is never heard.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
Psalm 19:1-4
I love the Lord because he hears my voice
and my prayer for mercy.
Because he bends down to listen,
I will pray as long as I have breath!
For the word of God is alive and powerful.
It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword,
cutting between soul and spirit,
between joint and marrow.
It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God.
Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes,
and he is the one to whom we are accountable.
So God’s rest is there for people to enter,
but those who first heard this good news failed to enter
because they disobeyed God.
So God set another time for entering his rest,
and that time is today…
…the Holy Spirit says,
“Today when you hear his voice,
don’t harden your hearts…
Remember what it says:
“Today when you hear his voice,
don’t harden your heart…”
…think carefully about this Jesus…