When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again!

I’m sure that I’m dating myself by telling you that I remember this old WWII song, “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again”. For those of you who are too young to remember, here is the first verse:

When Johnny comes marching home again, hoorah, hoorah,

We’ll give him a hearty welcome then, hoorah, hoorah,

The men will cheer, the boys will shout, the ladies, they will all turn out

And we’ll all feel gay when, Johnny comes marching home.

One of my brothers’ was named John. He was the first male in my immediate family, to ever serve in the Armed Forces. He served during the Korean war, but while he was away, I saw many WWII movies that sang that song, and it resonated with me, because of his name and because as a wide-eyed little girl, I was in love with my big brother, who was the strongest man in the world!

I’ll never forget the first time my brother, John, came home on ‘leave’. He had written my mother a letter and had given her the day and time of his arrival. She had made arrangements for relatives to pick up my brother at the train station. She had told the family, what time he should arrive. However, because I could not tell time, I anxiously sat in the living room window, and watched until nightfall for his arrival. I could hardly wait. I refused to go outside and play; refused to eat at the dinner table; refused to do anything other than to watch and wait for the ‘coming of my big brother’; and oh, what a reunion that was for me. When I saw those headlights pull up in the front yard of the house, I knew that he would burst through that front door, scoop me up in his arms, and toss me up in the air, as he had often done before he left. It is with similar anticipation that I watch and wait for the soon coming of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Today, I’m combining lines 11 and 12, because they must be read and explained together, in order to gather a fuller understanding of the second coming of Christ and what it means for the believing Christian. Let us read these two lines now:

Line 11: To meet Him gladly up in the air, to leave death behind and go with Him where – 

Line 12: There will be no more sickness, or sorrow, or pain, no more death, just life and eternal gain. 

We’re told in Scripture that when Jesus comes, he will “come with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead, in Christ will rise first:”  I Thessalonians 4:16-17.  We discussed this at length in our last segment. However, let us take this a little further. Remember, that we established in John 11:11-14 (when referring to Jesus’ explanation of Lazarus’ death) that the dead are sleeping a special sleep. However, when Jesus showed up at his tomb, He called Lazarus forth from that sleep. He also referred to himself, as the “Resurrection and the Life” John 11:25.  Therefore, it is no stretch of the imagination when we read I Thessalonians 4:17  about how Jesus returns, and how He will wake up or resurrect His sleeping saints and catch them up into the air to meet Him; for His feet will not touch the earth when He comes the second time. It is so important to note that part of the Scripture in I Thessalonians 4:17.

Another issue Jesus cautioned His followers regarding was deception and the impersonation of  His second coming, which helps to clarify the importance of knowing that Jesus will not touch down, upon the earth, at His second coming. He gives clear instructions in Matthew 24:4-5; 24:23-27.  Remember! We are to be ‘caught up’ to meet Him in the air.

"So now where is he taking them?” You might ask. Well, according to the following Scriptures, He is taking them to be with Him, in the mansions that He has prepared for them, in His Father’s house; and we are not to trouble ourselves about this transition, whatsoever. We have been assured that this will happen, both by Jesus and by His attending angels.  John 14:1-3; Acts 1:8-11

Then comes the bonus to this resurrected life; for many, just being saved would be good enough. However, once we’ve been resurrected and taken to heaven, we will find that there is no more sickness, sorrow, or sighing; no pain, no bills, no con men; nothing that will disturb our peace, will be found. We will never have to say good-bye to saved loved ones again; there, we will be in Utopia, and it will last forever. Rev. 21:1-5

I tell you, this is some of the best news in the world! Please go and tell somebody about what you’ve read. It will make you feel good all over, just like it did to me. HalleluYah!

All Scriptures are taken from the KJV – King James Version Bible

First posted on the Internet – 11/25/16

More: Ginger's World.net, 

When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again!

I’m sure that I’m dating myself by telling you that I remember this old WWII song, “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again”. For those of you who are too young to remember, here is the first verse:

When Johnny comes marching home again, hoorah, hoorah,

We’ll give him a hearty welcome then, hoorah, hoorah,

The men will cheer, the boys will shout, the ladies, they will all turn out

And we’ll all feel gay when, Johnny comes marching home.

One of my brothers’ was named John. He was the first male in my immediate family, to ever serve in the Armed Forces. He served during the Korean war, but while he was away, I saw many WWII movies that sang that song, and it resonated with me, because of his name and because as a wide-eyed little girl, I was in love with my big brother, who was the strongest man in the world!

I’ll never forget the first time my elder brother, John, came home on ‘leave’. He had written my mother a letter and had given her the day and time of his arrival. She had made arrangements for relatives to pick up my brother at the train station. She had told the family, what time he should arrive. However, because I could not tell time, I anxiously sat in the living room window, and watched until nightfall for his arrival. I could hardly wait. I refused to go outside and play; refused to eat at the dinner table; refused to do anything other than to watch and wait for the ‘coming of my big brother’; and oh, what a reunion that was for me. When I saw those headlights pull up in the front yard of the house, I knew that he would burst through that front door, scoop me up in his arms, and toss me up in the air, as he had often done before he left. It is with similar anticipation that I watch and wait for the soon coming of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Today, I’m combining lines 11 and 12, because they must be read and explained together, in order to gather a fuller understanding of the second coming of Christ and what it means for the believing Christian. Let us read these two lines now:

Line 11: To meet Him gladly up in the air, to leave death behind and go with Him where – 

Line 12: There will be no more sickness, or sorrow, or pain, no more death, just life and eternal gain. 

We’re told in Scripture that when Jesus comes, he will “come with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead, in Christ will rise first:”  I Thessalonians 4:16-17.  We discussed this at length in our last segment. However, let us take this a little further. Remember, that we established in John 11:11-14 (when referring to Jesus’ explanation of Lazarus’ death) that the dead are sleeping a special sleep. However, when Jesus showed up at his tomb, He called Lazarus forth from that sleep. He also referred to himself, as the “Resurrection and the Life” John 11:25.  Therefore, it is no stretch of the imagination when we read I Thessalonians 4:17  about how Jesus returns, and how He will wake up or resurrect His sleeping saints and catch them up into the air to meet Him; for His feet will not touch the earth when He comes the second time. It is so important to note that part of the Scripture in I Thessalonians 4:17, also, Jesus will take them with Him, as He returns to heaven.

Another issue Jesus cautioned His followers regarding was deception and the impersonation of His second coming. He gives clear instructions in Matthew 24:4-5; 24:23-27

"So now where is he taking them?” You might ask. Well, according to the following Scriptures, He is taking them to be with Him, in the mansions that He has prepared for them, in His Father’s house, and we are not to trouble ourselves about this transition, whatsoever. We have been assured that this will happen, both by Jesus and by His attending angels.  John 14:1-3; Acts 1:8-11

Then comes the bonus to this resurrected life; for many, just being saved would be good enough. However, once we’ve been resurrected and taken to heaven, we will find that there is no more sickness, sorrow, or sighing; no pain, no bills, no con men; nothing that will disturb our peace, will be found. We will never have to say good-bye to saved loved ones again; there, we will have found Utopia, and it will last forever. Rev. 21:1-5

I tell you, this is some of the best news in the world! Please go and tell somebody about what you’ve read. It will make you feel good all over, just like it did to me. HalleluYah!

All Scriptures are taken from the KJV – King James Version Bible

First posted on the Internet – 11/25/16

More: Ginger's World.net, 

Notice: This is copyrighted material and is intended for the sole use of this author. No part of this material may be reproduced in written or digital form, without the written consent of its originator.

Yet Another

During the last five days, my husband and I have, again, attended three more funerals and ‘yet another’ is scheduled for the weekend after Thanksgiving. I am exceedingly thankful that I am still an attendee, and not the “Guest of Honor”.

During the last several blogs, we have discussed the reality of the state of the dead. We’ve established that the dead are not in heaven; they are not praising God; they have no knowledge of what is going on, in the lives of the living; nor are they aware of any grudges or special feelings for others, which they might have had. Lastly, the angels have marked their burying places, wherever they might be. However, the transition that we are now about to make, is my favorite part of the poem. It talks about the "First Resurrection."

“What is a resurrection?” You might be asking. “What makes it so special?” Well, for those of us who take the Bible at its word, the resurrection is the most prominent and literally, the most ‘life-changing’ event in Scripture. It is the time when the righteous dead are called forth from their sleep, their time spent in the Hebrew term – Sheol or hell, or the grave – to eternal, never ending life! Let’s look at the next line.

Line 10: *But one day soon, Jesus will come in the skies, awaking the saints and they will arise –I Thessalonians 4:16  

Yes, we are told “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first…” I Thessalonians 4:16

This scripture is one of the most exciting scriptures a Bible believer could ever read.  In this one text lies all of the hopes, and dreams of seeing departed loved ones, who believed in Jesus and the Word of God, again. I tell you, the thought of seeing my beloved mother, father and certain siblings and friends again, is a joy untold. Each of them believed in the hope of the resurrection and died looking forward to it.

The text declares that “The Lord himself…!” that’s Jesus! He is not going to send for us to be resurrected and brought to heaven to be with Him, He is going to come “Himself” and call forth every believer, from righteous Abel, who was killed by his brother Cain, to the very last saint that shall be buried, prior to His return.

Additionally, when Jesus comes, it is going to be so loud, so very noisy! The scripture declares that He “shall descend from heaven with a shout…”, that shout is going to be so very loud that it will literally wake up a goodly portion of the dead. Only those who died, with a listening ear tuned toward heaven, will hear this particular shout.  Those who didn’t die with that hope, won’t hear the noise of it all. They shall continue sleeping in their graves.

Jesus also brings with Him a trumpet, which shall be blown and heard entirely around the world; in caverns, beneath the sea, in mountainous rocks, in hovels of the earth; in urns and mausoleums and burying places beyond my ability to describe. Wherever, there is a saint buried, there the trumpet shall sound “and the dead in Christ shall rise first…” Oh happy day! But notice how the scriptures declare that the "dead in Christ shall arise first..." Only the saints of God are going to be resurrected, when Jesus comes the second time; it is an awesome day for the children of God! That is going to be such a reunion! I can hardly wait, it seems sometimes. Jesus really is going to return to resurrect His children, and we’ll be going home. Halleluyah!

All Scriptures are taken from the KJV – King James Version Bible

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  First posted on the Internet – 11/23/16

Notice: This is copyrighted material and is intended for the sole use of this author. No part of this material may be reproduced in written, digital form, without the written consent of its originator.

Marking His Place

I have never buried anything, with the intention of going back later to get it. I’ve never found any buried treasure. As a matter of fact, I’ve not even seen a real, legitimate treasure map, but yet I believe that there are those who have hidden treasures and marked the spot where they hid them, with the intention of coming back one day to recover them from the earth. Probably each of us has buried a loved one, and as Christians, we hold dear the belief that one day the Lord will return and call forth His saints from the earth, the sea, the ash pots or wherever their remains might be housed. Their spots have been marked, by their guardian angel, who will know where to go and escort them heavenward to meet the Lord in the air.

Line 9: Are all gone now, as he rests fast asleep, the angels mark his place and vigilance keep.

We are told in scripture that in God’s church or vineyard are both ‘tares’ and ‘wheat’.  God has sown the wheat, but the enemy has sown the tares. However, God knows which ones are good and which ones are bad. At the end of the ages, God will send forth His angels to separate the two. How will they know where they are? They will know, because the angels, which are ministering spirits to them who are to be saved – Hebrews 1:12, have faithfully attended to them and keep good records concerning their life and death.

In one parable that Jesus told, we get a sense of how the angels are used by God to minister unto us.

 “The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.” Matthew  13:38-39

In this parable we see the angels ministering to both the good and the bad, in the field of Christ’s love. They are not partial in their ministry; for the Word declares that they are the reapers. How can they reap, unless they know where to go to reap? Let’s look at an additional text of scripture.

^“The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;  And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth; then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear” Matthew 13:41-43

Not everyone that dies is a righteous person; some are wicked or ‘tares’.  The angels mark their graves, as well as, their residences, for wherever they are when Jesus returns, the angels will gather them for destruction, and thus leave the righteous to be caught up with the Lord in the air. Amen!

Therefore, let none fret regarding what might have happened to a loved one after he/she passed away. Cremation will not keep them back from meeting with God; being buried at sea, will not keep him/her from being gathered; nor will the fact that some are shredded by animals or even cannibalized.  Because the angels mark the place where your loved one last existed, he/she will be gathered – either for salvation or destruction. May God help each of us reflect in our lives the character of wheat today, so that our final gathering will be a positive one.

All Scriptures are taken from the KJV – King James Version Bible

Notice: This is copyrighted material and is intended for the sole use of this author. No part of this material may be reproduced in written, digital form, without the written consent of its originator.

First posted on the Internet 11/21/2016

More: The Death Poem