Face To Face (#206)
Face To Face (#206) is one of my most favorite songs in the SDA Hymnal! Here’s a link to the complete SDA Hymnal: SDA Hymnal
I’m going to reduce the size of my “introductions” to each article! We have much ground to cover, if I’m going to write about all the Hymns in the SDA Hymnal! By now you should know what to expect: emotional tugging on your heart strings, “straight testimony”, and Biblical defense of the lyrics! And you might need a box of tissues! This article is no exception! I should warn you that this article was very hard for me to write, and I’m sure that it will be hard for some of you to accept as well!
Face to face with Christ my Savior,
Face to face, what will it be,
When with rapture I behold Him,
Jesus Christ, who died for me?
Soon You Will See Him Face To Face!
What kind of relationship do these words indicate? “Love at first sight” is what we call it when a guy looks at a woman’s face “with rapture”! His heart is completely snatched away! Is this how much we love Jesus? Or is our love for Him something less? Soon you will see Him Face To Face!
My Autism
I grew up attending “Daniel and Revelation” seminars almost every day of my life, during the first 6 years! My parents were “singing evangelists” with pastor J.J. Millet as the primary speaker and we moved every 4-6 weeks to a new town for the next series of meetings! I’m also Autistic and have had to struggle with this condition my whole life! I’ve always been a “romantically inclined” person! Autism prevents most sufferers from being successful in a relationship like that, however! And until I was 48 years old, I did not trust God to be my “match-maker”! A romantic relationship with a very special woman was both the most important thing to me…and as far as I was concerned, as necessary as breathing!
Surrender To God
At age 48, I finally got completely “fed up” with attempting to find someone online after 6 years of looking! I got angry with God and told Him very directly, “If you want me to find a partner, then YOU FIND HER“! That one decision, to let God be my “match-maker” was all that God was waiting to hear! He had already chosen my wife before either one of us was born! Only 3 days later, God introduced me to my wife through an online dating service, while she was living in Buenos Aires, Argentina! Five days after that introduction, I asked her to marry me and she said “Yes!!! Yes!!! Yes!!!” (that was literally the subject line of her return eMail)!
A Hard Truth To Swallow!
Why am I sharing this with you? To show you how emotionally attached I am to my wife! I have written articles about the importance of marriage and how I believe that there will actually be “marriage in heaven”! But yesterday I finally was confronted by God with another truth from His Word that I had to accept!
"Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife. And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: but they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him". Luke 20:33-38 KJV
The truth God confronted me with is that our marriage to Jesus Christ is quite literal! He showed me that marriage between human men and women is but a “dim reflection” of the marriage we are to have with Jesus Christ! Marriage on Earth is designed to prepare us for marriage to the Son of God! And in this relationship with Jesus, ALL of us, men and women, play the part of the “wife”! This is NOT EASY for me to accept! And I know it is NOT EASY for some of you either!
What Will Happen When I See His Face?
Personally, the thought of learning to be the “wife” of Jesus is not really the future I had in mind! All I can say is “Father, I trust you to change my heart”! Right now, my only concern is making sure that Rachel, the human wife God gave to me is in heaven with me! I want to enjoy her company forever! I’m not concerned with satisfying the desires of Jesus for His relationship with me as His wife! But I can see now, that maybe I should be! How this can happen…I haven’t a clue! But I know that it needs to happen!
Only faintly now I see Him,
With the darkening veil between,
But a blessed day is coming,
When His glory shall be seen.
Love Never Dies!
"Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled. When I was an infant at my mother’s breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good. We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love". 1 Corinthians 13:8-13 The Message Bible (MSG)
What rejoicing in His presence,
When are banished grief and pain;
When the crooked ways are straightened,
And the dark things shall be plain!
A New Heaven And A New Earth!
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son". Revelation 21:1-7 KJV
Face to face! oh, blissful moment!
Face to face to see and know;
Face to face with my Redeemer,
Jesus Christ, who loves me so.
The New Earth
"And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God". Revelation 22:1-9 KJV
Face To Face (#206)
Chorus
Face to face shall I behold Him,
Far beyond the starry sky;
Face to face in all His glory
I shall see Him by and by!
Wrapping Up History!
"And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star". Revelation 22:10-16 KJV
A Final Invitation
"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen". Revelation 22:17-21 KJV