2 Corinthians 5:1-5 (NKJV)
1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3 if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. 4 For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3 if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. 4 For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
The apostle writes about the assurance of resurrection for
those who have placed their faith in the promise of God that Jesus Christ died
for our sin, rose again to life that we may too have victory over death and
live an eternal life in heaven with the Father and the Son.
Hawa Ahmed was a Muslim student in North Africa. One day,
she read a Christian tract in her dormitory and decided to become a Christian.
Her father was an Emir (Islamic ruler), so she expected to lose her inheritance
because of her conversion. She was completely unprepared for what happened.
When she told her family she had become a Christian and changed her name to
Faith, her father exploded in rage. Her father and brothers stripped her naked
and bound her to a chair fixed to a metal plate with which they wanted to
electrocute her. Faith asked them to at least lay a Bible in her lap. Her
father responded, "If you want to die together with your false religion,
so be it." One of her brothers added, "That will show that your
religion is powerless." Although they had bound her, she was able to touch
a corner of the Bible. She felt a strange peace, as though someone were
standing beside her. Her father and brothers pushed the plug into the
socket—and nothing happened. They tried four times with various cables, but it
was as though the electricity refused to flow. Finally her father, angry and
frustrated, hit her and screamed, "You are no longer my daughter."
Then he threw her into the street, naked. She ran through
the streets, humiliated and in pain. People looked at her, curious rather than
shocked. Shaking and tearful, she ran to a friend. Her friend let her in,
clothed her, and gave her shelter. The next day, her friend asked neighbors
what they had thought when they had seen Faith running naked through the
streets. "What are you talking about?" they asked. "The girl had
a wonderful white dress on. We asked ourselves why someone so beautifully
clothed had to run through the streets." God had hidden her nakedness from
their eyes, clothing her in a beautiful white dress. Today, Faith is a
full-time evangelist with Every Home for Christ.
[Guido Kuwas , Global Revival News (12-17-01); submitted
by Owen Bourgaize, Guernsey, United Kingdom]
It wasn’t time for Hawa Ahmed to go home to be with God,
although she was prepared to do so. God had plans to use her here on earth for
a while longer. Today, Faith is a full-time evangelist with Every Home for
Christ. Let us give praise to God while
we exist here in these earthly bodies and give Him praise for the future bodies
of immortal life waiting for us.
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