Have you ever read the last chapter of a book first? People do this to see if the book is worth reading. A great story is only as good as its ending. A great ending can save a tragic story. It does not take away the drama to know the ending. It takes away the fear of not knowing how it will end and frees you to enjoy the drama because some things are too important to be left to chance. Your heart cannot cope with not knowing how it will end. Those who know this woman ask her why her lover is so remarkable compared to all the world's lovers.

It seems God's people are inept to answer that question choosing to live like Robinson Crusoe making the best out of a wreck that used to be a great ship. She had read the last chapter and can say who he is with clarity

When you look at your own story there does not seem to be any flow to the way you live your life. Even Bible characters seem to read in an unfair way. Noah got drunk and God calls him a man of faith. Moses murdered an Egyptian and God calls him a prophet. Abraham lies about his wife twice and he is given a vision of a nation. Jacob is two-faced and becomes Israel. Christ is the Son of God who gave himself for others and he was crucified. But the story of faith in your life does not mean safety in God. Job was a man of faith and suffered incredible loss. He had three friends Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. They sat with Job for seven days in silence covering themselves in ashes. Their conclusion was 'if you have not sinned then you will be all right. If you have sinned then you will not be all right. Since you have lost so much you must have sinned.' His three friends portrayed God as a godfather of the mafia as God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. If you were not in his family he was to be feared. If you were in his family he is to be respected and he may get you a deal on a great car or pay for your children's college. If you just happen to mention your neighbors dog barks at night don't be surprised if it winds up dead the next day. Most see God this way because the Old Testament can appear to portray him that way. But Israel never read between the lines that they were part of a bigger story. The same applies for the New Testament. Most of you would describe the church as a Sunday service but 'church' is a bigger story than Sunday.

If this is true was God like a police officer watching Job get beaten up to see how long he would respect to the law?

This is what his three friends could not bring themselves to say in the struggle of his loss. God turns on the friends of Job and tells them that they knew nothing about who he was.

Job was saying 'now I understand that I lost perspective through all this drama how the last chapter reads, "…he is altogether lovely…" 'You have not left me. You never left me. Facing trouble does not mean I have sinned. But I know the last chapter.' Christ came upon a blind man from birth and his disciples asked him who has sinned, his parents or the blind man. Christ said neither of them.

Forrest Gump rescued Lt. Dan and they both ended up in hospital. Lt. Dan lost both legs and one night pulled Forrest out of bed and asked him why he saved his life making him a cripple? Lt. Dan came from three generations of men who gave their lives for their country. Why did Forrest steal that honor? Years later Lt. Dan is using drugs, drink and prostitutes. He feels that his story was stolen from him. The next scene is Forrest and Lt. Dan in a shrimp boat catching nothing but old boots. It went from bad to worse. A storm came and Lt. Dan challenged God if he was real. He had taken his legs and his life. Every boat was wrecked except their boat. They went on to make millions in the shrimp market. The last scene is Lt. Dan thanking Forrest for saving his life. As Lt. Dan jumps off the boat and swims to shore Forrest says, 'I think Lt. Dan has finally made his peace with God.'

Peter, Edmond, Susan and Lucy all enter Narnia through the wardrobe. The land is under the spell of the white witch in permanent winter. Aslan is the king of Narnia but he is nowhere to be found. He appears to have left them. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver take the four children to their home and tell them of a prophecy given many years ago concerning their own lives. They are meant to be kings and queens of Narnia reigning with Aslan. They ask if Aslan was a man. Mr. Beaver replied that Aslan was the king and a lion. Mrs. Beaver said that anyone who appears before Aslan is fearful. They ask if it safe to meet Aslan. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver say it is not safe but he is good and he is king. We want goodness to by synonymous with safety. But being in relationship with God is like riding shotgun to Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon. God will chase a car on foot into oncoming traffic and expect you to follow him. He is Indiana Jones swinging over a pit of snakes with boldness and courage and he expects you to hold on. Is Christ a mere man? No, and it is never safe but he is good and he is king. Shakespeare's Henry 5th tells the story of England facing France. The English were down to 7000 men who knew they would never see home again. 30 000 French soldiers faced them. King Henry appealed to his men on Crispin's Day:

That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made,
And crowns for convoy put into his purse;
We would not die in that man's company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is called the feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when this day is named,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbors,
And say 'To-morrow is Saint Crispian.'
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
And say 'These wounds I had on Crispian's day.'
Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot,
But he'll remember, with advantages,
What feats he did that day. Then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words-
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester-
Be in their flowing cups freshly remembered.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
Make him a member of the gentry, even if he is a commoner.
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

Satan will tell you that he is absent like Aslan in Narnia. Christ is like Napoleon who led his great army into Russian. But as soon as the winter came he left them for the safety of home and the great army was crushed. Satan is the greatest villain. All other known villains pale into the shadows compared to him. Saddam Hussein; Adolf Hitler; Idi Amin; Joseph Stalin and Mao Tse Tung are famous for their evil. The Bible tells us Satan sees God face to face every day. He is allowed to oppress and harass. But how did we get in the middle of this war between God and Satan? Understand Satan has lost the battle twice. The first time he was thrown out of God's home and heart over the walls of heaven with one third of the angels. He established his kingdom on earth as we see him as the serpent in the Garden of Eden. But Christ took his kingdom by storm taking with him the keys of death. Satan also lost his heavenly name 'Lucifer' which means 'brilliant light.' All his warring angels lost their titles with him but their notoriety was left. Moloch was the Ammonite deity where children into fire in the Valley of Hinnom still parades today with 3 abortions every minute in the United States. Only 6% of all abortions are done because of danger to the mother 94% because of inconvenience. Belial the scoundrel whose name stripped you of any worth whose name means death. Paul said there was no harmony between Christ and Belial. Mammon who will capture your heart in dishonest profit and wealth estranging you from God. Mammon is a master who enslaves. Beelzebub who was considered a prince in the world of deity. These are just a few in his league of fallen angels. God created a new love in the race of men who would freely love him back. Satan and his angels were jealous that God's heart would be captivated by the race of men.

For centuries Satan has disguised himself in religions, psychologies, philosophies, knowledge, and mysticism. Each one took away loving God replacing it with pure study. C.S Lewis said that you cannot study people, but you can get to know them. God can be studied but you never get to know him that way. God invites you to hunger for him while Satan invites you to anything except hunger for him because you might just discover who you are

How would you feel if you sat in a parking lot watching the one you loved go hand in hand into a cheap motel with your worst enemy? How would you feel if you listened through the door to both of them mocking you in their pleasure? If you called the next day and forgave her pleading with her to come home how would you feel if she wanted to stay with him? What would you do if over the years you saw her beauty fade into a haze of alcohol, drugs, occult practice and depravation? Would you then send your only son to tell her how much you loved her only to see him die under the hand of the one you loved? Why would you do all this, why not divorce her and be rid of her adulteries once and for all? God cannot do this because his love is so wide, long, deep and high to fathom.

When your lover loves you with such love why would you settle for a lover that will never love you? Your problem is not new but age old. What is the chief purpose of man? The orthodox confession has been the only answer for centuries 'to know God and enjoy him forever.' But this does not take your breath away. It sounds like an educational answer. It is like listening to a lover's conversation in a restaurant: 'I am looking forward to our wedding with great excitement. I love you so much. I wish I could see more of you because I want to know more about you.' 'That is nice of you to say so. I will send you a book that best describes my life and I'm sure you'll get a lot out of it.' 'I'll be glad to read it but I want to hold you and touch you.' 'I'm sure you do. I'll send you a set of tapes that best describes the various stages of affection.' 'But I want you so badly and I'm so excited about our wedding so we can be together day and night.' 'There is a seminar next weekend I think will do you a lot of good with all these feelings you are having.' Why she dump him for a man who knows how to be passionate. Do you know how to be in a love affair with Christ? He describes how his eyes look upon his bride

Now that takes your breath away. God knows how to impress his bride. Do you see that being with Christ means being in the company of little fat babies playing harps on shapeless clouds with haloes over their fat little heads?

Most people do not feel wanted but more tolerated. It begins in grade school and continues through life that you are not good enough for the sacred circle. At the commencement of heaven will be the wedding feast of Christ and his church. Among the noisy conversations, laughter, music and the clinking of glasses toasting Christ you will not be disappointed. Because Christ will meet you and seat you personally. You shall know and be known. He will give you a new name known only to you and him on a white stone.

It will be a name that two lovers have for each other. Such a name cannot be given until you 'are' that name. It is God speaking through the clouds at the baptism of Christ 'this is my son.' In this life you may be tolerated and treated like a stranger but in heaven you will know and be known.

The story ends 'happy ever after' but with who and doing what? It cannot be fully understood but alluded to. John mentions in Revelation that heaven is 'like' this or that. He used the most beautiful imagery he could. You will have a new body to appreciate such beauty. Not just partaking of it but being one with it passing into it and bathing in it.

Is the expression 'eternal rest' attractive to you or is it just something you read on a tombstone? If heaven begins with a wedding feast what follows it? Do we take a nap for the next 10 000 years sleeping off the heavenly wine? To say we will worship God is too one-dimensional. The parable of the talents gives you a clue that faithfulness on earth is rewarded with great adventure in heaven. Christ did not redeem you to sit on the bench for eternity but he saved you to be in the game. You already know something about God that no one else knows in your testimony.

The last chapter of your life reads:

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