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We shall Recognize Each Other, October 22
Then shall I know even as also I am known.
1 Corinthians 13:12
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We shall know our friends, even as the disciples knew Jesus. They may
have been deformed, diseased, or disfigured, in this mortal life, and they
rise in perfect health and symmetry; yet in the glorified body their identity
will be perfectly preserved.... In the face radiant with the light shining from
the face of Jesus, we shall recognize the lineaments of those we love.
The redeemed will meet and recognize those whose attention they have
directed to the uplifted Saviour. What blessed converse they have with these
souls! “I was a sinner,” it will be said, “without God and without hope
in the world, and you came to me and drew my attention to the precious
Saviour as my only hope....” Others will say, “I was a heathen in heathen
lands. You left your friends and comfortable home and came to teach me
how to find Jesus and believe in Him as the only true God. I demolished
my idols and worshiped God, and now I see Him face to face. I am saved,
eternally saved, ever to behold Him whom I love....”
Others will express their gratitude to those who fed the hungry and
clothed the naked. “When despair bound my soul in unbelief, the Lord sent
you to me,” they say, “to speak words of hope and comfort. You brought
me food for my physical necessities, and you opened to me the Word of
God, awakening me to my spiritual needs. You treated me as a brother. You
sympathized with me in my sorrows, and restored my bruised and wounded
soul, so that I could grasp the hand of Christ that was reached out to save
me. In my ignorance you taught me patiently that I had a Father in heaven
who cared for me. You read to me the precious promises of God’s Word.
You inspired in me the faith that He would save me. My heart was softened,
subdued, broken, as I contemplated the sacrifice which Christ had made for
me.... I am here, saved, eternally saved, ever to live in His presence and to
praise Him who gave His life for me.”
What rejoicing there will be as these redeemed ones meet and greet
those who have had a burden in their behalf! And those who have lived, not
to please themselves, but to be a blessing to the unfortunate who have so
few blessings—how their hearts will thrill with satisfaction!
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