1 Tessalonicenses 5

1 Tessalonicenses 5:24

Wesley applied this Scripture to Christ, writing, Arise, my soul, arise, shake off thy guilty fears The bleeding Sacrifice in my behalf appears Before the Throne my Surety stands My name is written on His hands. Amen! Play Arise, My Soul, Arise What are these marks but the marks of indelible grace, tangible manifestations of God’s covenant cut with us on Calvary’s Cross, covenant marks testifying today and throughout eternity “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you, so that we may confidently say, the Lord is my Helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?” (Heb 13:5-6-note). For God to forget us or abandon us, the scars inscribed in the palm of His hands must disappear! Perish all thy doubting thoughts! Beloved of the Father (1Jn 3:1-note), see the Savior spread out His hands before us with our own name inscribed in His scarred palms. Surely we are not for even a moment forgotten, but are loved faithfully and forever by our great God! Come with me to that moment in eternity where John is weeping and lamenting that there is no one to open the scroll (Rev 5:4-5–note), writing expectantly “I saw between the throne with the four living creatures and the elders a Lamb standing, AS IF SLAIN, (same verb in Greek of Ex 12:6 describing the perfect lamb Israel was to “slay at twilight”! cf Jn 1:29, 1Co 5:7) (Rev 5:6, 5:9, 12–note; Rev 13:8–note). Transported into the future, John saw those scars indelibly inscribed by the nails that once impaled Him to the old rugged Cross, scars that will forever be the brand marks of God’s everlasting covenant, yes, even the scars that bear our names beloved. Inscribed forever. Eternally secure. Precious pictures of passion perfected for His treasured possessions to marvel at throughout eternity. And so the Lamb Who was slain has not forgotten our name, for He cannot forget what is immutably inscribed in the palm of His hands throughout eternity! Spurgeon encourages us to “Look at the nail-print, that is His memorial, His forget-me-not, and by it He says to thee… Forget thee I will not, I cannot, thy name Engraved on my heart doth forever remain The palms of My hands whilst I look on I see The wounds I received when suffering for thee. Now come with me and gaze expectantly with eyes of faith at future grace (1Pe 1:13–note), that glorious day in eternity future, when we are seated around the Table of the Lord, celebrating the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. John testifies “Blessed (fully satisfied independent of circumstances) are those who are invited to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.” (Rev 19:9–note, cf Lk 14:15, Lk 13:29, Lk 22:28-30, Mt 8:11) Now turn to the parable in Luke 12 which records a glorious passage (Lk 12:37–note) that many commentators such as John MacArthur [note] describe as a “remarkable statement (that) pictures Christ, at His return, ministering as a Servant to believers!” Alexander