eternal life | Craig T. Owens

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Poetry Saturday—Tis Not For Man To Trifle

May 1, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple or Spotify.

‘Tis not for man to trifle! Life is brief,

And sin is here.

Our age is but the falling of a leaf,

A dropping tear.

We have no time to sport away the hours,

All must be earnest in a world like ours.

Not many lives, but only one have we,

One, only one;

How sacred should that one life ever be,

That narrow span!

Day after day filled up with blessed toil,

Hour after hour still bringing in new spoil.

Our being is no shadow of thin air,

No vacant dream;

No fable of the things that never were,

But only seem.

‘Tis full of meanings as of mystery,

Tho’ strange and solemn may that meaning be.

Our sorrows are no phantom of the night,

No idle tale;

No cloud that floats along a sky of light,

On summer gale.

They are the true realities of earth,

Friends and companions even from our birth.

O life below, how brief, and poor, and sad!

One heavy sigh.

O life above, how long, how fair, and glad!

An endless joy.

Oh, to be done with daily dying here!

Now to begin the living in yon sphere!

O day of time, how dark! O sky and earth,

How dull your hue!

O day of Christ, how bright! O sky and earth,

Made fair and new!

Come, better Eden, with thy fresher green;

Come, brighter Salem, gladden all the scene. —Horatius Bonar

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Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: eternal life, eternity, Heaven, Horatius Bonar, hymn, poem, poetry. Leave a Comment »

“Father, Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit”

April 26, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple or Spotify.

I have some sobering news for you: You are going to die.

Death is the great equalizer. It comes for the rich and poor, the scholar and the illiterate, all races, all ages, the healthy as well as the sick. Unless you’re still alive when Jesus comes back again, your odds of dying are 1-in-1.

What happens “on the other side”? What happens after this life is over? Since it seems dark and mysterious to most people, they tend to ignore it until it’s thrust upon them. That’s why I find the dying words of people interesting. Like P.T. Barnum asking, “How were the receipts today at Madison Square Garden?” or W.C. Fields reading a Bible on his deathbed and telling a friend, “I’m looking for a loophole.”

Or the very last words of Jesus: “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.”

Jesus is steeped in Scripture, so nearly everything He says in His final four declarations come directly from the Psalms, including His final phrase which comes from Psalm 31:5.

When Jesus broke a three-hour silence with His cry, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me,” both Matthew and Mark use the Greek words megas phoné to describe how loudly Jesus spoke. And now with His final words, Luke uses the same megas phoné description.

Notice in the first megaphone cry Jesus calls on God the All-Powerful Creator. And with His last megaphone declaration, He calls on His Father who is All-Loving. How comforting it is to know that God is both All-Powerful and All-Loving! Not only can He answer our cries, but He delights to answer them!

The word Jesus uses for “commit” is in the future tense and it means “to entrust as a deposit.” Jesus believed that God was going to do more than just give Him life again, but that He would give life to all who would believe in Him.

Unlike atheist Bertrand Russell who said, “I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong,” Jesus DID die for His beliefs, and by rising from the dead proved He was right in trusting God.

Job saw an inescapable death for all mankind, but he also foresaw the forgiveness of God (Job 14:5, 16-17). Jesus died once for all mankind and was then resurrected, bringing about the death of death by making forgiveness accessible to anyone (Hebrews 9:27-28; 1 Corinthians 15:19-22).

We can now have the peace that comes from trusting the only One to Whom we can safely entrust our souls. Because Jesus brought death to death, we can have the same peace when we die that Jesus had when He died.

With faith in Jesus, you can…

…live today knowing you’re invincible until God calls you home

…live today full of joy because your home in heaven is secure

…live your very last day in peace because you know to Whom your soul is entrusted

Because Jesus died at peace with God, we can face death triumphantly!

If you’ve missed any of the messages in our series on the dying declarations of Jesus, you can access the full list by clicking here.

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Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Corinthians, Bertrand Russell, Calvary, Calvary Assembly of God, Cross, death, eternal life, Gospel of Luke, Hebrews, Jesus Christ, job, joy, no fear, peace, Psalm, resurrection, sermon, video, YouTube. 2 Comments »

How To Bring Men To Christ (book review)

March 16, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple or Spotify.

Among the last words Jesus spoke to His disciples was His commission that after they were empowered by the baptism in the Holy Spirit they should go into all the world, preaching the gospel, and making more disciples of Jesus. R.A. Torrey spent his life fulfilling this commission, and he shares the lessons he learned in his book How To Bring Men To Christ.

This book is a highly practical guide that is set up almost like an encyclopedia. After a brief introduction, the second chapter is simply entitled “How to begin,” and it outlines the broad, big-picture strokes. Then the next nine chapters are all entitled “Dealing with….” Torrey gives us a detailed listing of passages of Scripture, including how and when to use them, for various types of people, such as: the indifferent, those anxious about their eternal fate, those with false hopes, those who lack assurance of salvation, skeptics, complainers, and the hardheaded. Torrey gives the Christian soul-winner all of the biblical help they will need, plus some personal examples of how he employed these scriptures himself.

The final two chapters of this book focus on the role of the Holy Spirit in helping Christians progress in their own sanctification and grow in their maturity as soul winners.

How To Bring Men To Christ can probably be read through quite quickly, but it is a book that many Christians will want to put in a place of reference where they can return to it again and again. All Christians who want to live out the Great Commission that was given to us by Jesus Himself will want to read this highly practical book.

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Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible study, book review, education, eternal life, Great Commission, Holy Spirit, lifelong learner, R.A. Torrey, salvation. 1 Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Growing Old

October 10, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

They call it “going down the hill” when we are growing old,

And speak with mournful accents when our tale is nearly told;

They sigh when talking of the past, the days that used to be,

As if the future were not bright with immortality.

But it is not going down; ‘tis climbing high and higher,

Until we almost see the mountain that our souls desire;

For if the natural eye grows dim it is but dim to earth,

While the eye of faith grows keener to discern the Savior’s worth.

Who would exchange for shooting blade the waving golden grain?

Or, when the corn is fully ripe, would wish it green again?

And who would wish the hoary head, found in the way of truth

To be again encircled in the sunny locks of youth?

For though, in truth, the outward man must perish and decay,

The inward man shall be renewed by grace from day to day;

Those who are planted by the Lord, unshaken in their root,

Shall in their old age flourish and bring forth their choicest fruit.

It is not years that make men old; the spirit may be young,

Though fully threescore years and ten the wheels of life have run.

God has Himself recorded, in His blessed Word of truth,

That they who wait upon the Lord shall even renew their youth.

And when the eye, now dim, shall open to behold the King,

And ears now dull with age shall hear the harps of Heaven ring,

And on the head now hoary shall be placed the crown of gold,

Then shall be known the lasting joy of never growing old. —Anonymous

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: death, eternal life, immortality, old age, poem, poetry, Savior. Leave a Comment »

Jesus Says

October 6, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Jesus says, “I will…

…make you fishers of men” (Matthew 7:23; Mark 1:17)

…acknowledge in Heaven those who acknowledge Me on earth” (Matthew 10:32-33)

…give you rest” (Matthew 11:28)

…build My church” (Matthew 16:18)

…give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 16:19)

…show you whom you should fear” (Luke 12:5)

…drive out demons and heal people” (Luke 13:32)

…never drive away those who come to Me” (John 6:37)

…give My life for your life” (John 6:51)

…rise again from the dead” (Matthew 27:63; Mark 14:28; John 2:19)

…raise up believers to eternal life” (John 6:40, 44, 54)

…come back to take you to be with Me forever” (John 14:3)

…do whatever you ask in My name” (John 14:13, 14; 16:28)

…not leave you as orphans” (John 14:18)

…ask the Father to give you an Advocate” (John 14:18)

…give you words and wisdom that are irresistible” (Luke 21:15)

…see you again and give you eternal joy” (John 16:22)

Oh, what a Savior!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: church, eternal life, eternity, God's help, Gospel of John, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Matthew, Gospels, Heaven, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, joy, rest, resurrection, rewards, Savior. 1 Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Epitaphium Meum

August 29, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

From my years young in days of youth,

God did make known to me His truth,

And call’d me from my native place

For to enjoy the means of grace

In wilderness He did me guide,

And in strange lands for me provide.

In fears and wants, through weal and woe,

As pilgrim passed I to and fro:

Oft left of them whom I did trust;

How vain it is to rest on dust!

A man of sorrows I have been,

And many changes I have seen.

Wars, wants, peace, plenty have I known;

And some advanc’d, others thrown down.

The humble, poor, cheerful and glad;

Rich, discontent, sower and sad:

When fears with sorrows have been mixed,

Consolations came betwixt.

Faint not, poor soul, in God still trust,

Fear not the things thou suffer must;

For, whom He loves He doth chastise,

And then all tears wipes from their eyes.

Farewell, dear children, whom I love,

Your better Father is above:

When I am gone, He can supply;

To Him I leave you when I die.

Fear Him in truth, walk in His ways,

And He will bless you all your days.

My days are spent, old age is come,

My strength it fails, my glass near run:

Now I will wait when work is done,

Until my happy change shall come,

When from my labors I shall rest

With Christ above for to be blest. —William Bradford

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Christianity, death, eternal life, God's help, Heaven, Jesus Christ, legacy, poem, poetry, William Bradford. Leave a Comment »

Thursdays With Spurgeon—Christ’s Momentary Pain, Your Eternal Gain

July 30, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Charles Spurgeon. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Spurgeon” in the search box to read more entries.

Christ’s Momentary Pain, Your Eternal Gain

After Jesus said this, He looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You. (John 17:1)

The Son of God was glorified while He was dying, and it was one part of His glory that He should be able to bear the enormous load of human guilt. As a race we lay crushed beneath it.

A thousand Samsons could not relieve us! Angels and archangels, cherubim and seraphim could never lift the stupendous mass! But this one Man alone, with no help, in weakness of body and in death pains, bore away the enormous load of human guilt! The chastisement of our peace was upon Him. The Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all! What a load it was! And that He could bear it was, indeed, a display of His glory. The lost in hell cannot bear the wrath of God! An eternity of suffering will not have discharged the dreadful penalty, and yet He bore that burden in an hour! Oh, marvelous strength of the incarnate God! Glorious are You indeed, O Christ, upon Your Cross! …

I say He was glorified in His passion and His prayer was heard! The Father did glorify His Son even on the Tree! It was an hour of glory that might dazzle angels’ eyes; that hour when He said, ‘It is finished!’ (John 19:30) and gave up the ghost. What had He finished? He had finished that which saved His people! He had peopled heaven with immortal spirits who will delight in Him forever and had shaken the gates of hell! God indeed glorified His Son in enabling Him to bear, and bear so well, all the weight of sin and the penalty that was due to it. …

When He died, He did not render the redemption of His people possible, but He ransomed them completely. By His agonies and death He did not merely give a bare hope of the pardon of sin, but He hurled the sin of all His elect into the depths of the sea in that same moment! He did not merely make the salvation of men a possibility if they would, but He saved His people then and there! He finished the work that He came to do, and proof of it is written that ‘this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God’ (Hebrews 10:12).

From The Son Glorified By The Father And The Father Glorified By The Son

The enemy of your soul would love for you to believe his lies that you have to do something to secure your salvation, or that your most recent sin somehow made your salvation iffy, or that God is angry with you.

THOSE ARE ALL LIES!

Jesus didn’t make your salvation possible; He made it yours. This is what glorifies God: when you believe that the death of Jesus is all that is needed for your complete and eternal salvation!

Jesus paid it all

All to Him I owe

Sin had left a crimson stain

He washed it white as snow

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: assurance, Calvary, Charles Spurgeon, confidence, Cross, eternal life, God's glory, Gospel of John, Heavenly Father, Hebrews, Isaiah, Jesus Christ, resurrection, salvation. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Sacred Bond

May 16, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

‘Twixt Jesus and the chosen race,

Subsists a bond of sovereign grace.

That hell, with its infernal train.

Shall ne’er dissolve, or rend in twain.

This sacred bond shall never break,

Though earth should to her centre shake ;

Rest, doubting saint, assured of this,

For God has pledged His holiness.

He swore but once, the deed was done;

‘Twas settled by the great Three One;

Christ was appointed to r’deem

All that the Father loved in Him.

Hail sacred union, firm and strong!

How great the grace, how sweet the song!

That worms of earth should ever be

One with incarnate Deity!

One in the tomb, one when He rose,

One when He triumph’d o’er His foes.

One when in heaven He took His seat.

While seraph’s sung all hell’s defeat.

This sacred tie forbids their fears,

For all He is, or has, is theirs;

With Him their head, they stand or fall,

Their life, their surety, and their all. —Anonymous

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: assurance, eternal life, God's Sovereignty, grace, hope, Jesus Christ, poem, poetry, redemption, salvation, Trinity. Leave a Comment »

Where’s God When I Fear Death?

April 13, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Is death the #1 fear people have? The simple and complicated answer is: It depends. Fear of dying is a BIG fear in those that statistically are the least likely to die: the young. But fear of dying is very LOW for those on death row, the elderly, and the terminally ill.

I hope to convince you of a fourth group that shouldn’t fear death. It’s a group that all of us can be a member of: Those who understand that physical death is not the end.

In the Garden of Eden, God planted one tree that was off-limits, and He said that the penalty for eating from this tree was death (Genesis 2:16-17). satan tried to get Adam and Eve to doubt what God said, and after they ate the fruit, it appeared satan was correct—they didn’t die. At least not physically.

But their sin did something far, far worse—it separated them from God’s presence. Now when God appeared, Adam and Eve hid in fear. In fact, Jesus even told His followers that the greatest fear wasn’t physical death but spiritual death (Luke 12:4-5).

Jesus came to lift our hope to something beyond this physical world. He said, “God so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him would not die, but would have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Famed atheist Bertrand Russell said, “I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong.”

On the other hand, Jesus DID die for His beliefs and proved He was right by His resurrection!

Friend, listen to me—We’re definitely not living our best life now. We are all terminal. Unless Jesus returns, the chances of our physical death are 1-in-1.

But physical death is not the end! Death of the body means freedom for the soul. Jesus has defeated Death once for all! “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades,” Jesus said (Revelation 1:17-18)

Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

Invite Jesus into your life right this moment!!

Once you have invited Jesus into your life, and your sins have been forgiven, and your destiny following your physical death is assured, this is how you should now live:

Live in joyful hope. Not optimism—that’s just the belief in what you think you can do. But hope is the belief in what you know Jesus has already done!

Live free of all anxiety and the fear of death. Because nothing can separate you from God’s love and presence (Romans 8:38-39).

Live telling others about your Risen Savior. It’s the most loving thing that you could do for anyone.

I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that to be a Christian and to be fearful of death is a sin. A fearful Christian gives God no praise, robs Him of glory, and paints God in a bad light. A happy, secure Christian knows the Lord is his strength, his comfort, his supply. A happy Christian lifts God high and invites others to know this All-Good, All-Happy God too!

We can live this way because Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sins that separated you from God, and He was resurrected back to life to assure you that your eternal home in God’s presence is secure!