A Bible Study Web Site for Children, Teens and College Students

Bible Topic #6

Do you love mystery?

     In the Bible, Jesus revealed a great mystery to eleven of His disciples after they ate the Passover supper the night before He was betrayed. At the table, Jesus had given a piece of bread that was dipped in a special sauce to Judas and said to him, 'What you are about to do, do quickly!" The others thought perhaps Jesus was sending Judas out to buy food or to give something to the poor, but he went out and betrayed the Lord to the chief priests.

     After that, Jesus began to tell the other eleven disciples that He was going to leave them, but that He would send the Holy Spirit to indwell them, to comfort them and to teach God's Word to them. (John 14:16,17)

Jesus also told them in John 14:18 & 23 that He and the Father, would also come to live inside of them. Yes, during this time in history, known in scripture as the Church Age, all three members of the Trinity indwell every born again believer. That was not true of Old Testament believers. During those days the Holy Spirit came upon certain individuals only for special service and could be taken away, such as in the case of king Saul and of Samson.

     Every believer is in full-time Christian service, and the Lord wants us to fulfill His plan for our lives. Motivation to do that does not originate from our own efforts, but it comes from KNOWING GOD'S WORD. The Christian life is based upon THINKING God's thoughts. Acting upon ones emotional feelings does not and cannot fulfill the Christian way of life.

     The Church is called 'the Bride of Christ', and in Ephesians 5:32, the Apostle Paul calls the relationship between Christ and the church a GREAT MYSTERY. At a time known only by the Father, Jesus Christ will call His bride out of this world: "But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that you sorrow not, even as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so those also who sleep in Jesus God will bring with Him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first; Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore, comfort one another with these words."       (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

The apostle Paul calls this truth, OUR BLESSED HOPE.