Key Thought

Today's Prayer

Father, thank you for not letting death have the final word. Thank you for demonstrating your power over our death through Jesus' resurrection. Give me the courage to live with conviction and faithfulness knowing that my life will not be claimed by my death, but by my Savior, with whom I will live and reign forever. In his name, Jesus Christ my Lord, I pray. Amen.

Today's Verses in Context

Jesus was doing these things (healing) on the Sabbath day. So the Jews began to do bad things to Jesus. But Jesus said to the Jews, "My Father never stops working. And so I work too." This made these Jews try harder to kill him. {The Jews said}, "First this man (Jesus) was breaking the law about the Sabbath day. Then he said that God is his Father! He is making himself equal with God!" But Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth. The Son can do nothing alone. The Son does only what he sees his Father doing. The Son does the same things that the Father does. The Father loves the Son, and the Father shows the Son all the things he does. {This man was healed.} But the Father will show the Son greater things than this to do. Then you will all be amazed. The Father raises dead people and gives them life. In the same way, the Son gives life to the people he wants to. Also, the Father judges no one. But the Father has given the Son power to do all the judging. God did this so that all people will respect the Son the same as they respect the Father. If a person does not respect the Son, then that person does not respect the Father. The Father is the One who sent the Son. "I tell you the truth. If a person hears what I say and believes in the One (God) who sent me, that person has life forever. That person will not be judged guilty. He has already left death and has entered into life. I tell you the truth. An {important} time is coming. That time is already here. People that are dead {in sin} will hear the voice of the Son of God. And the people that {accept the things they} hear {from the Son} will have life {forever}. Life comes from the Father (God) himself. So the Father has also allowed the Son (Jesus) to give life. And the Father has given the Son the power to judge all people. Why? Because that Son is the Son of Man. Don't be surprised at this. A time is coming when all people that are dead and in their graves will hear his voice. Then they will come out of their graves.The people that did good in this life will rise and have life forever. But the people that did evil will rise to be judged guilty. "I can do nothing alone. I judge only the way I am told. So my judgment is right. Why? Because I don't try to please myself. But I want to please the One (God) who sent me.

Related Scripture Readings

We believe that Jesus died. But we believe that Jesus rose again. So, because of Jesus, God will raise to be with Jesus those people who have died. What we tell you now is the Lord's own message. We who are living now might still be living when the Lord comes again. We who are living at that time will be with the Lord, but not before those people who have already died. The Lord himself will come down from heaven. There will be a loud command. That command will be given with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God. And the people who have died and were in Christ will rise first. After that, we people who are still alive at that time will be gathered up with those people who have died. We will be taken up in the clouds and meet the Lord in the air. And we will be with the Lord forever.

Christ must rule until God puts all enemies under Christ's control. The last enemy to be destroyed will be death. {Like the Scripture says,} "God put all things under his control." When it says that "all things" are put under him (Christ), it is clear that this does not include God himself. God is the one putting everything under Christ's control. After everything has been put under Christ, then the Son (Christ) himself will be put under God. God is the One who put all things under Christ. Christ will be put under God, so that God will be the complete ruler over everything. It will only take the time of a second. We will be changed as quickly as an eye blinks. This will happen when the last trumpet blows. The trumpet will blow and those {believers} who have died will be raised to live forever. And we {also} will all be changed. This {body} that will ruin must clothe itself with something that will never ruin. And this {body} that dies must clothe itself with something that will never die. So this {body} that ruins will clothe itself with that which never ruins. And this body that dies will clothe itself with that which never dies. When this happens, then the Scriptures will be made true: "Death is swallowed (defeated) in victory." "Death, where is your victory? Grave, where is your power to hurt?" Death's power to hurt is sin. And the power of sin is the law. But we thank God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

John the Baptizer was in prison. He heard about the things Christ was doing. So John sent some of his followers to Jesus. John's followers asked Jesus, "Are you the man that {John said} was coming, or should we wait for another man?" Jesus answered, "Go back to John and tell him about the things that you hear and see: Blind people are able to see again; crippled people are able to walk again; people that have leprosy are healed; deaf people can hear again; dead people are raised from death; and the Good News is told to the poor people. The person that can accept me is blessed."