But God's invitation manifest His divine love for mankind. For God created
man for Himself unlike the Animals which was created by God for man.
48G.1
What did God intend man to be when
He created him?
In Ephesians 1:4, this is written:
just as he chose us in
Christ {Gk [in him]}
before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before
him in love.
(NRSV)
God chose Man in Christ to be holy and blameless before Him in love.
48G.2 Why did God choose man for
Himself?
In Psalms 100:3 & 2, we can read:
Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.
(NKJV)
God created man,
to serve the Him with gladness and love. Of all
creation here on earth, it is only man that God chose for Himself in order
to serve Him.
48G.3 What kind of man has God chosen
for Himself?
In Isaiah 38: 18-19, we can read, thus:
For the grave cannot praise
you, death cannot sing your praise; those who go down to the pit cannot
hope for your faithfulness. The living, the living--they
praise you, as I am doing today; fathers tell
their children about your faithfulness. (NIV)
The same verse in the New King James Bible:
For Sheol cannot thank You, death cannot praise You; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
The living, the living man, he shall praise You, as I do this day; the father shall make known Your truth to the children.
(NKJV)
The living man was chosen by God to praise
and serve Him. For the dead man cannot serve and glorify Him. Sheol
is grave in Hebrew while Hades is grave in Greek.
48G.4
But, how can a man praise and glorify God, when in
fact he will only live for a short time in this earth, then die like the animals?
In Matthew 22:31-32, Jesus said these words:
"But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying,
`I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.''
(NKJV)
God is not God of the dead but of the
living. A godly man may die (cessation of breath),
but He will surely be resurrected by God on the Day of Judgment, so he can praise
and serve the Living God and the Lord Jesus Christ forever and ever.
But other people may argue that the sinful man will also be
resurrected by God, so what is the difference?
and will come forth;
those who did the good {deeds} to a resurrection of life, those who
committed the evil {deeds} to a resurrection of judgment. (
John 5:29, New American Standard)
Comparatively, the godly man will re resurrected to eternal life and the
sinful man will be resurrected to judgment, which is punishable by the
second death.
The second death is the full payment of sin which is the eternal punishment in the lake of fire,
where the sinful man will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
__________________
God chose
Man in Christ to be holy and blameless before Him in love. God created man,
to serve the Him with gladness and love. Of all
creation here on earth, it is only man that God chose for Himself in order
to serve Him. The living man was chosen by God to praise
and serve Him. For the dead man cannot serve and glorify Him. God is
not God of the dead but of the living. For this reason, God will resurrect
the dead, and the godly man will be resurrected to eternal life
to serve the Living God, while the
sinful man will be resurrected to the second death — the eternal punishment
in the lake if fire.
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