The Upside Down Kingdom E-Book

Chris Castaldo

• Herausgeber: Crossway
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

An Examination of the Beatitudes and Jesus's Counterintuitive Promises In our sinful world, we often struggle with anxiety, loneliness, and heartache. Everywhere we look, we see broken families and divided communities. How can we truly cultivate God's kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven" in such a broken place?  In the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:2–12), Jesus urges us to set ourselves apart from the world, living in a counterculture with a new identity rooted in him. The Upside Down Kingdom examines this counterintuitive wisdom and explores its relevance for today. Drawing on insights from the biblical story of redemption, church fathers, Reformation scholars throughout history, and contemporary life, this book equips and encourages readers to get their spiritual bearings in an upside-down world. Author Chris Castaldo ultimately points readers to the kingdom of Christ—not as a set of rules, but as a means of bringing peace and blessing here and now. - Written for Laypersons and Teachers of the Word: Perfect for those interested in issues confronting the church  - Thorough Study of the Beatitudes: Each chapter explores a core teaching in Christ's Sermon on the Mount - Appeals to Pastors and Disciple Makers: A historically informed, biblically rich, and countercultural vision of Christian life Download Study Guide

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“G. K. Chesterton once defined a paradox as ‘truth standing on its head calling for attention.’ And this, most certainly, is what Chris Castaldo achieves as he deftly guides us through the inverted glories of the Beatitudes in The Upside Down Kingdom. His beautifully written exposition invites these eight compressed theological H-bombs to graciously detonate within our hearts. The Upside Down Kingdom is not only a treasure trove of wisdom; it’s also a bracing call to deeper devotion to Christ and the gospel.”

R. Kent Hughes, Senior Pastor Emeritus, College Church, Wheaton, Illinois

“What happens if we read the Beatitudes from a relentlessly biblical perspective that interprets them in terms of the unmerited grace God has offered us in Christ? What happens when we read them in terms of what God has done for us in Christ’s cross work, what he is doing in us by the Holy Spirit, and what he will do for the world through us? Chris Castaldo’s The Upside Down Kingdom startles us with the answers. Here is a book that equips us to be the world’s salt and light by helping us learn to live according to the ‘rhythms of heaven’ that beat in God’s own heart.”

Mark Talbot, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Wheaton College; author, Suffering and the Christian Life series

“To modern readers, the Beatitudes can sometimes sound confusing or even off-putting. Chris Castaldo does a lovely job demystifying Jesus’s teachings—and therefore making them truly beautiful—for Christians today. His explanations and examples are easy to grasp, giving context in a gentle and winsome way. This book would be perfect for a group Bible study or individual devotions—I read with my Bible on my lap, highlighting and making notes the whole way through.”

Sarah Zylstra, Senior Writer, The Gospel Coalition; coauthor, Gospelbound: Living with Resolute Hope in an Anxious Age

“I love this book. Thank you, Chris Castaldo, for the gift of The Upside Down Kingdom. This warm, engaging, and yet thought-provoking work wonderfully draws us to the vision of the Beatitudes. In the words of Castaldo, this is ‘a vision that invites us from the shadows of alienation into the purpose and joy of Christ’s kingdom.’ Truly, when we embrace this counterintuitive vision and way of life, we will be portraits to a watching world of what it looks like to live according to God’s heart.”

Crawford W. Loritts, Jr., author; speaker; radio host; President, Beyond Our Generation

“Chris Castaldo is a model pastor-theologian, and The Upside Down Kingdom puts his considerable pastoral and theological gifts on full display. Wise and winsome, subtle and profound, thought-provoking and heart-warming, his exposition of the Beatitudes captures the living voice of their original author and thus provides a tonic for the lackadaisical and a solace for the beleaguered—an invitation into Jesus’s upside-down kingdom. Beautifully done! Highly recommended!”

Todd Wilson, Cofounder and President, Center for Pastor Theologians

“Chris Castaldo has issued a timely and desperately needed prophetic call for the church to embody the lordship of Jesus Christ in distinctly countercultural and counterintuitive ways within our increasingly polarized world. Incorporating depth of biblical-theological reflection, historical perspective, pastoral experience, and cultural sensitivity, with appropriate nuance and refreshing personal honesty, this book warmly invites us to experience the blessedness of identity in Christ as we align our affections and allegiances more fully with Christ and his kingdom. In a day of significant cultural confusion, The Upside Down Kingdom is a clarion call for Christian identity and ethic.”

Laurie L. Norris, Professor of Bible, Moody Theological Seminary; coeditor, One Volume Seminary: A Complete Ministry Education from the Faculty of Moody Bible Institute and Moody Theological Seminary

“The Beatitudes are a special part of the New Testament. Chris Castaldo’s excellent exposition brings them to life with the aid of real-life examples and the wisdom of the ages. A challenging and inspiring book that is recommended to all.”

Tony Lane, Professor of Historical Theology, London School of Theology

“I’ve learned a lot from Chris’s teaching and example of following Christ through the counterintuitive turn of the kingdom. And I’m thrilled that many more will benefit likewise with this book. When we realize the way up first goes down, then we’ll find the power of God to overcome today’s challenges.”

Collin Hansen, Vice President and Editor in Chief, The Gospel Coalition; author, Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation

The Upside Down Kingdom

The Upside Down Kingdom

Wisdom for Life from the Beatitudes

Chris Castaldo

The Upside Down Kingdom: Wisdom for Life from the Beatitudes

Copyright © 2023 by Chris Castaldo

Published by Crossway 1300 Crescent Street Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law. Crossway® is a registered trademark in the United States of America.

Cover design: Jordan Singer

First printing 2023

Printed in the United States of America

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated into any other language.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked RSV are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the author.

Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4335-8491-6 ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-8494-7 PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-8492-3 Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-8493-0

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Castaldo, Chris, 1971- author.

Title: The upside down kingdom : wisdom for life from the beatitudes / Chris Castaldo.

Description: Wheaton, Illinois : Crossway, [2023] | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022041836 (print) | LCCN 2022041837 (ebook) | ISBN 9781433584916 (Trade paperback) | ISBN 9781433584923 (PDF) | ISBN 9781433584947 (ePub)  

Subjects: LCSH: Beatitudes. | Christian life–Study and teaching. 

Classification: LCC BT382 .C385 2023  (print) | LCC BT382  (ebook) | DDC 226.9/3--dc23/eng/20221123 

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022041836

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022041837

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

2023-06-12 02:51:06 PM

This book is dedicated with love

to Luke, Philip, Simeon, Aliza, and Malachi

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction: You Are Invited

1  The Poverty That Makes One Rich

2  When Loss Becomes Gain

3  Gentleness in a Hostile World

4  Taste and See

5  The Face of Mercy

6  Seeing God

7  Peace Be with You

8  Even So, Rejoice

Epilogue: When Down Is Up

Notes

General Index

Scripture Index

Acknowledgments

I am grateful for friends whose encouragement motivated me to embark on this project, namely R. Kent Hughes, Collin Hansen, Terri Hands, and my colleagues at the Center for Pastor Theologians.

I am also thankful for several friends who have kindly read this book in draft and have offered suggestions, corrections, and clarifications. They are not responsible for any weaknesses that remain. I think particularly of Stan Guthrie, Carolyn Thayer, John Neuenkirchen, Bruce Callender, Karyn Hecht, Doug O’Donnell, Mike McDuffee, Bryan Litfin, Joel Lawrence, Kristin Neva, Allyson Brown, and Tony Balsamo.

Heartfelt thanks to Bishop Julian Dobbs and the Anglican Diocese of the Living Word with whom I had the privilege of first sharing this material at their 2021 clergy and spouse retreat.

To New Covenant Church in Naperville, whose hunger and thirst for righteousness is an inspiration and ongoing gift, thank you for the privilege of letting me serve as your pastor.

I want to acknowledge Todd Augustine and Justin Taylor, whose enthusiasm and expertise brought the manuscript to the light of day.

Finally, I thank God for my dear wife, Angela, and our five amazing children—Luke, Philip, Simeon, Aliza, and Malachi—to whom this book is dedicated. Your sacrifice has made it possible.

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven

Matthew 5:3

Introduction

You Are Invited

When we pray for God’s kingdom to come “on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10), we sometimes imagine the kingdom to be far away. It is, however, closer than we think. In the crucified and risen King, the two realms now overlap—a holy ground that is simultaneously mundane and heavenly, temporal and eternal.

Jesus’s Beatitudes are concerned with cultivating this kingdom life, though perhaps not in the way we would expect. For many, the Beatitudes are thought to increase our happiness by imparting blessings—at least that’s the impression our Israeli tour guide gave us. Facing the shimmering Sea of Galilee, she portrayed the rabbi from Nazareth on a grassy slope, holding forth in a flowing violet robe, encircled by attentive disciples. “Here, Jesus offered the secrets to living a happy life,” she explained.1

Unfortunately, the gently blended lines of this portrait easily obscure the stark, counterintuitive thrust of Christ’s kingdom. Our guide’s pastel-colored depiction may offer comfort, but it’s not where we live. Many of us labor under nagging concern for our children, encroaching loneliness, financial disaster, and creeping old age. We are haunted by the past and afraid of the future. We are troubled over the brokenness in our communities. Scammers prey on the elderly and walk away laughing. Victims of abuse wrestle with heartache and bitterness. In our world, naked with lust and greed, people often grab whatever they can get. And just when we start to feel morally superior to those wretches “out there,” we find uncomfortable traces of this evil in ourselves. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn bluntly observed, “The line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being.”2

In this familiar cauldron of life and death, of struggle and strain, how does one experience the peace of God’s kingdom? The Hebrew word for peace is of course “shalom.” It describes life as God intended, the long-awaited age in which his manifest glory would set the world right, making crooked places straight and rough places smooth. Weeping would become joy, mountains would drip with fresh wine, and deserts would flourish with life. In the words of Cornelius Plantinga Jr.,

People would work in peace and work to fruitful effect. Lambs could lie down with lions. All nature would be fruitful, benign, and filled with wonder upon wonder; all humans would be knit together in brotherhood and sisterhood; and all nature and all humans would look to God, walk with God, lean toward God, and delight in God.3

This is the vision of the Beatitudes—a vision that invites us from the shadows of alienation into the purpose and joy of Christ’s kingdom. But, as we shall see, this blessedness is both counterintuitive and countercultural.4 The Beatitudes pour gasoline on our contemporary ideals—and then light a match. To satisfy our hunger for wealth, Jesus offers poverty. He extols meekness over hostility. Rather than personal pleasure and fame, he proposes patience and a commitment to justice. Instead of lust and greed, he commends purity of heart. For the soul riddled with anxiety and fear, he offers peace. Rather than vanity and pride, he bestows security and inner strength. The Beatitudes dig beneath the surface, exposing what we really need to value and practice. Servais Pinckaers suggests that we can compare the work of the Beatitudes to that of a plow in the fields. “Drawn along with determination,” he writes, “it drives the sharp edge of the plowshare into the earth and carves out, as the poets say, a deep wound, a broad furrow.”5 This blessed furrow uproots the weeds of our pride and perversion, renewing the soil of our souls, a renewal in which the eternal fruit of God’s kingdom burgeons with life.

By excavating the attachments of our soul, the Beatitudes reveal the pernicious lies we have internalized while simultaneously portraying the life God intends for his people. In them Jesus is not, as many suppose, offering a religious ladder that can be climbed all the way up to a smiling Deity who rewards our religious effort. Nor is he giving an ideal moral system reserved for an elite group of chosen disciples, or laying out a penitential program whereby one receives divine blessing by assuming the posture of a doormat.

Rather, Jesus is describing the man or woman who belongs to his Father’s kingdom and therefore lives according to God’s heart. These blessed ones lived in the “shadow of death,” but now “a light has dawned” (Matt. 4:16), a divine illumination that offers a new logic. In this fallen world, it’s the wealthy, the charming, and the strong who are exalted. But Jesus shows us that God’s heart—full of steadfast love and faithfulness—extends to the weak, the vulnerable, and the awkward. Throughout his parables, Jesus makes the marginalized and oppressed the heroes, an ironic and unexpected turn that explodes like fireworks throughout his teaching. He preached:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matt. 5:3–12)6

Our Counterintuitive Calling

The Greek word rendered “blessed” (makarios) is rich in meaning. There is no single term in English that conveys its complexity, beauty, and nuance.7 Some suggest the word “fortunate” best conveys the idea because it describes a valuable gift that cannot be earned.8 Others have translated makarios as “happy.” Augustine, for example, takes this approach, identifying happiness as the goal and outcome of a righteous life, a gift that one enjoys in communion with Christ.9 But however sure the link between happiness and holiness, this understanding must be supplemented by the full-orbed, biblical conception of blessedness offered to us in the Beatitudes.

The fleeting nature of worldly happiness, after all, is not sturdy enough to sustain the eternal weight of glory to which Jesus points us. “Happiness,” wrote William Bennett, “is like a cat. If you try to coax it or call it, it will avoid you: it will never come.”10Nevertheless, it’s still commonplace to hear Christians promoting “Be-Happy Attitudes,” as Robert Schuller used to say.11 In his book by that title, Schuller offers motivational insights to fortify the church with cheerfulness. For instance, he paraphrases the blessing upon mourners with the affirmation, “I’m really hurting—but I’m going to bounce back!”12 The message of positive thinking is clear: the right attitude and sufficient effort will produce the happiness we desire.

Life in the kingdom, though, is not about striving for happiness or avoiding the ills of human existence. It’s about receiving and finding. It’s about recognizing and living into God’s promises, even amid the pain and suffering of life (Eph. 1:3; James 1:17). “Blessed” is therefore not an achievement, attitude, or a subjective emotion; it is the tangible gift of God’s loving embrace, an identity in Christ that experiences life as it ought to be—“as in heaven.”

God’s blessing, however, goes even further. In addition to saving our own souls, the Beatitudes set forth the clearly demarcated way of righteousness in the world. Thus, when Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945) started a seminary for the Confessing Church at Finkenwalde, it was modeled on the Sermon on the Mount.13 Fiercely opposed to Hitler, Bonhoeffer and his colleagues employed the Beatitudes to confront the Nazi’s devilish propaganda and influence. Here is how Craig Slane explains it:

Bonhoeffer believed that it was possible for a community gathered on the basis of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount to provide the necessary ground for resistance against tyranny. The practices of dying to one’s self in confession, meditation, and intercession produced openness to others and forged the kind of solidarity required for moral risk-taking.14

Like Bonhoeffer, we must put Jesus’s message into the foreground. We must stress, as he did, that the only place on earth where one finds this beatitudinal life “is where the poorest, meekest, and most sorely tried of all men is to be found—on the cross at Golgotha.”15 The wealthy, charming, and strong, as it turns out, may become the greatest tragedies of all because they rely on their natural gifts. But people who lack such advantages, or those who are courageous enough to confess their need for God, are poised to receive his blessing.

The Beatitudes, therefore, answer the essential questions of identity and calling by placing squarely before us a counterintuitive kingdom that inexorably aligns our affections and priorities with the rhythms of heaven. Here we find the “blessed” life that God intends for his people—not just in the future, but here and now.

We begin by considering the “poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3).

1

The Poverty That Makes One Rich

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:3

Mike Vetrone was accustomed to luxury sports cars and beachside mansions during his years as a drug runner for the New York Mafia, a lifestyle that is now a distant memory. “With judges, court clerks, and casino officers on the payroll, I pranced through Atlantic City like the mayor,” he says now.1

Yet Mike soon began a descent into a heroin addiction that threatened his life. After a customer discovered that Mike had stolen some of his drugs, Mike packed a bag and fled to Florida. Menacing death threats followed him, intimidation that continued for months. “I remained alone,” he remembers, “bound by my addiction, facing a dismal future.”

He began thinking of suicide. “I was now haunted by what was, in fact, a not altogether unpleasant idea of ending my misery with the click of a trigger,” Mike says. “My .22 caliber handgun, which was usually within arm’s reach, held a fresh cartridge. After two years, the moment of reckoning had come.”

On an uncharacteristically overcast morning in South Florida, Mike dropped by a favorite haunt, Big Apple Bagel, to pick up what he assumed would be his last meal. Back in his apartment, he flipped on the television, looking for company one last time as he ate. On came a television preacher. With a distinct southern accent, the man exclaimed, “Life has a way of grabbing you by the collar, forcing you down to your knees.”

Mike turned up the volume.

“There’s a chain that binds every soul,” the preacher exclaimed, “and that chain is sin—an addiction from which Jesus’s death and resurrection sets us free.” Suddenly, as the television evangelist invited viewers to embrace Christ, Mike felt energy pulsing through his veins and found himself shouting at the television, “Yes!” In that moment, he no longer felt alone but sensed an encircling presence. Mike was facing not the end of his life, but a new beginning.

I met Mike in 1995 while serving as a pastoral intern in South Florida. For nearly three months, I shadowed him, learning that the addicted, downtrodden, and hopeless are the people who are poised to receive the blessing of God. The kingdom, I learned from Mike, is not for the graspers, but for the broken—those who reach the end of themselves and approach God with empty hands. Such people recognize that “they are completely and utterly destitute in the realm of the spirit.”2

This is what it means to be “poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3). Unlike the Pharisees of Jesus’s day—full of religious swagger—the spiritually poor see their bankruptcy. They know that they can do nothing to merit divine favor. So, they depend on the Lord’s provision, the one who gives the most magnificent gift imaginable—himself.3 Indeed, this living relationship with the King defines what it means to participate in the kingdom, not in the far-off future, but right now. Today.

The Dominion of Dependence

Impoverished spirits have a long ancestry. Hearing God’s promise to make of him a great nation and to bless the world, Abraham “obeyed” and “went,” leaving the wealth and security of his home (Heb. 11:8). Through shimmering mirages, he wandered through deserts and into cities, trusting the one who had called him. A mortified and empty Jacob faithfully wrestled with God and exclaimed, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (Gen. 32:26). And a jailed Joseph trusted God in Egypt (Gen. 39–41). In countless ways, Israel experienced poverty.

After four hundred years of silence, God’s people continued to anticipate the long-awaited kingdom. Matthew’s Gospel, where we find the Beatitudes,4 sets the stage in its opening chapters. Like the nation of Israel, Jesus travels down to Egypt, meets a hostile king, returns from Egypt, passes through the water, and enters the wilderness. In these movements, Matthew portrays familiar turns of salvation history, but with a twist.

This portrait features Christ as the realization of Israel’s destiny, the long-anticipated King of the kingdom (Matt. 16:28; Luke 17:21). Time collapses as Jesus enters the stage of history as the ultimate servant and faithful offspring of Abraham who fulfills God’s promise (Gal. 3:16–18; 2 Cor. 1:20). Matthew is rhetorically shouting to his readers that Jesus is the culmination of Jewish hope. He records, “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’” (Matt. 4:17).

The phrase “kingdom of heaven” occurs throughout Matthew and is generally synonymous with “kingdom of God.”5 It describes the true, peaceful, pure, and joyful life that is realized in communion with God (see Matt. 4:23). Such blessings confront our idols—the gods of comfort, success, and national pride—and promise something far greater.6 Indeed, idols are merely the profane and twisted parody of which the kingdom is the satisfying reality. So, Jesus frames his Beatitudes with reference to the kingdom: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3; see 5:10).

Notice how Jesus describes the kingdom of heaven as “theirs.” The positioning of this word at the beginning of the clause gives the sense that the kingdom is for this particular group, the poor in spirit, the marginalized and forgotten—and not for the rich, self-assured, ambitious, or proud. It’s not for those who are content with life and consistently in control. It’s not for those who believe in themselves, who have the natural ability to win the day. As Martin Luther proclaimed from his deathbed, “We are all beggars; this is true.”7

In his 1520 treatise The Freedom of a Christian, Luther makes this point by describing a king who marries a prostitute, which results in the sudden change of her identity. She is now the queen, acquiring all the privileges associated therein. In one sense, of course, she remains the very same person. When she looks in the mirror, she sees the same old face staring back at her. And yet now, because of the king’s love, her status has radically changed. Having heard his wedding pledge, “You are my beloved and I am yours,” the queen is secure (see Song 2:16).

In like manner, says Luther, Christ, the bridegroom, takes our sin as his own. Luther writes,

Who can even begin to appreciate this royal marriage? What can comprehend the riches of this glorious grace? Here, this rich, upstanding bridegroom, Christ, marries this poor, disloyal little prostitute, redeems her from all her evil and adorns her with all his goodness. For now it is impossible for her sins to destroy her, because they have been laid upon Christ and devoured by him. In Christ, her bridegroom, she has her righteousness, which she can enjoy as her very own property.8

This, according to Luther, is the “great exchange” in which all that the church has (her sin) is given to the King and all that he has (justice, blessedness, life, and glory) is bestowed on her. Condemnation is therefore now in the past, as Luther exclaims: “Believe in Christ, in whom grace, righteousness, peace, freedom, and all things are promised to you. If you believe, you will have these things; if you do not believe, you will lack them.”9

Here is where it gets especially practical. Each day when we look into the mirror, we face a shameful sinner who falls short of moral beauty and excellence. Embarrassed by this honest estimation of ourselves, we groan, “How long, O Lord?” (Ps. 13:1). We descend into the valley of self-loathing and despair. But then, just as our souls enter this familiar and dreaded valley, we remember the King’s vow, his promise that lifts us from our downward spiral: “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:2–3).

Billy Graham wisely said, “When we come to the end of ourselves, we come to the beginning of God.”10