WHEN THE TRUMPET SOUNDS

Time with Jesus - Friday, 19 October 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation looks at Adam, Eve and fall. What happened in the Garden? What was Adam doing? We observe that Adam was only a tenant. He had a leasehold agreement for the earth from God. Satan stole it by deception. Jesus cancelled the leasehold and now exerts His freehold rights. When the trumpet blows, Satan will be evicted.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 19 October 2012			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
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INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	WHEN THE TRUMPET SOUNDS
The fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. I wonder what it looked like. How easy was it to identify. We know that it was located in the middle of the Garden of Eden. But how did Adam know which tree it was? Did it look any different from all the other trees? Was it in the middle of an orchard? Did it stand all alone so that you would recognise it if you walked toward it? We don’t know. What we do know is that Adam and Eve had the complete run of the garden. But they were not given ownership. 15 The LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. Genesis 2:15 NLT Adam and Eve were “innocents in paradise” with no restriction on them. I assume that the fruit of every other tree in the garden would contribute to their knowledge of what was good. I’m not sure that they had any idea about evil at all. How could they. The knowledge of evil was confined to the fruit of one tree. There was no other evil in that garden. Presumably, if Satan hadn’t come along, we would all be there romping and playing in the garden and enjoying our time with God in the cool of the evening! But I digress. There was no sin in the world. Nothing died. Did the trees grow? Did the grass, flowers and plant life grow? What about the animals? Man was told to be fruitful, multiply and fill the earth. Presumably this applied to all the creatures God had made. The instruction may have been given to Adam and Eve only. Presumably it applied to all the creatures? It seems that this would inevitably result in the entire world being fully populated. Only one thing could prevent this from happening. If Adam ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. he would lose the leasehold right of occupation on God’s world. Only one sin was possible. For Adam (not Eve) to eat the forbidden fruit. We usually include Eve in this prohibition. But the way she spoke to the serpent, suggests the Lord had not given the instruction to her. God gave the order to Adam. It was his responsibility to pass it on. We know what happened. God had given Adam an indefinite lease on the Garden. 1 The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it. The world and all the people belong to Him. Psalms 24:1 NLT Satan now had legal possession for an undefined period. But he didn’t own it. This means that God had the right to take it back, subject to the laws He had put in place. So Jesus did not “steal” the world back. He legally cancelled the lease and terminated Satan’s tenancy agreement. Since the “freehold” was His, He had every right to do so. One of these days, Satan will be evicted. When the last trumpet blows! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			1 Are you cheerful because you belong to Christ? Does his love comfort you? Is the Holy Spirit your companion? Has Christ been gentle and loving toward you? Philippians 2:1 NIrV 1 "How frail is humanity! How short is life, how full of trouble! 2 We blossom like a flower and then wither. Like a passing shadow, we quickly disappear. Job 14:1-2 NLT 26 When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, GOD is rock-firm and faithful. Psalms 73:26 MSG 16 I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you.26 The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. John 14:16 & 26 MSG 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NLT 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with Him the believers who have died. 15 We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet Him ahead of those who have died. 16 For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. 17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. 18 So encourage each other with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18 NLT	When he’d been created; in the days before the fall; I’ve wondered about Adam. Did he understand at all, What the Lord was saying, when He told him he would die. The fruit of good and evil He told him not to try. If ever Adam ate it, death would come on board And he would face destruction, by death’s great and mighty sword. Did he really listen? Did he comprehend, The outcome of his eating and that death would be his end? It seems he wasn’t frightened. He wasn’t quite aware, Of all the consequences. He didn’t seem to care. But after he had fallen; with Satan in control, He knew that all his children had lost their mortal soul. He didn’t seem to realise, a little tiny sin, Would put all of his children in the mess that we are in. He didn’t quite appreciate that everyone would die. That fear of death would haunt us, for to all death would apply. From that very moment, when death was in control, We have all been frightened, of what happens to our “soul”. From that very instant, we have been the slaves of fear. Terrified of dying and knowing it was near. No one could avoid it. Death’s “jaws” were open wide. It was unrelenting and to all it was applied. No one could avoid it. No man dispute its claim. This would last forever, or till Christ the Saviour came. He took on the devil and Satan was defeated! Beat him fair and squarely. The devil wasn’t cheated. Jesus through His lifetime had not committed sin. So it was inevitable Jesus Christ would win. Death had been defeated, when Christ was resurrected! By His precious blood, His saints are thoroughly protected. Death has lost its terror. His saints can overcome, In the precious Name of Jesus Christ God’s only son. Yes, our mortal bodies will surely pass away. But we’ll get a new one when He comes again one day! So be a little patient. All of us will rise, The instant that His trumpet sounds. the devil and his guys, Will have to give the lease back. It will not be extended. And Christ will have the “freehold” of all that God intended. Jim Strickland – Written 19th October 2012