"Our Loving Father"

 "Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." (John 20:17 KJV)

  "But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, "Abba, Father." Now you are no longer a slave, but God's own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir." (Galatians 4:4-7 NLT)

 There is so much to see here, it could take a little while to get this all figured out! Obviously, Mary was ready to embrace Him, as if He was back, much as it was for Lazarus, the one Jesus had brought back to life. This was a whole different kind of resurrection! He was risen to die no more, unlike Lazarus, who He called forth from that tomb, but only to die again, when his time would come! 

 Paul makes this point, saying, "So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone, a new life has begun!" (2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT) Jesus Christ was the first of the Resurrection! (1 Corinthians 15:20-28) 

 Additionally, we have changed our location! Once we were subject to the death, looking towards the grave as our resting place; but now, we look towards heaven to be the place we go to when this body takes its last breath upon this earth! Upon the special time, we will be reunited with a new body, one that does not decay or grow old, one that is eternal, which does not die or decay! 

 You must believe that; no matter how much you might get discouraged and want to challenge to things you have learned, you must not waiver or feel as though you doubt it to be true! What a terrible life to live, if this life is all that there is! Cast all your cares on Him, letting the love of our Father show you what you need, what you long for, and the powerful sacrifice He made for you to have it! 

 Another aspect of what we can see here, is the Man! O man, O man! Yes, Jesus was Emanuel, God with us; but He was born as a man, to be subject to the law, meaning, death! If you step in front of a train, you die; that is the law of death! If you try to fly off of a thousand-foot cliff, you die; that is the law of death! The death that Jesus suffered was real death, as much as you and I will die, He died also! 

 I will hold that thought for a moment, just to let it sink in. (Pause!) Okay, that is time enough. We share with Him something that He came to fulfill, death! The eternal God, who cannot die, took on death, that we might live eternally...

"For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam's one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ's one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous. God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:17-21 NLT)