This is a picture of me; the year was 1956 and westerns were "The Thing". Those of you who have only known me for 30 or 40 years will not recognize the photo; I HAVE CHANGED!!! This is completely normal. We start out learning our name (our "who") and then learn what the "who" really means as we progress through life. It happens by "what" we learn, "when" we learn it, "where" we are "when" we learn it and "why" we learn the things we do. And we become a part of the lives of others along the way; parents, friends, our spouse and then children and grandchildren. Our progression in life becomes part of the progression of others and dies only when that memory ceases with the death of others. Or does it? Is there more to life than this? Consider the following chapters from the book of Galatians...
Galatians 1:1-24 (WEB)
1) Paul, an apostle (not from men, neither through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead),
2) and all the brothers who are with me, to the assemblies of Galatia:
3) Grace to you and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ,
4) who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father—
5) to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
6) I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”;
7) and there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you, and want to pervert the Good News of Christ.
8) But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed.
9) As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed.
10) For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ.
11) But I make known to you, brothers, concerning the Good News which was preached by me, that it is not according to man.
12) For neither did I receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through revelation of Jesus Christ.
13) For you have heard of my way of living in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the assembly of God, and ravaged it.
14) I advanced in the Jews’ religion beyond many of my own age among my countrymen, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
15) But when it was the good pleasure of God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me through his grace,
16) to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I didn’t immediately confer with flesh and blood,
17) nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia. Then I returned to Damascus.
18) Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Peter, and stayed with him fifteen days.
19) But of the other apostles I saw no one, except James, the Lord’s brother.
20) Now about the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I’m not lying.
21) Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
22) I was still unknown by face to the assemblies of Judea which were in Christ,
23) but they only heard: “He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy.”
24) And they glorified God in me.
1) Paul, an apostle (not from men, neither through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead),
2) and all the brothers who are with me, to the assemblies of Galatia:
3) Grace to you and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ,
4) who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father—
5) to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
6) I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”;
7) and there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you, and want to pervert the Good News of Christ.
8) But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed.
9) As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed.
10) For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ.
11) But I make known to you, brothers, concerning the Good News which was preached by me, that it is not according to man.
12) For neither did I receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through revelation of Jesus Christ.
13) For you have heard of my way of living in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the assembly of God, and ravaged it.
14) I advanced in the Jews’ religion beyond many of my own age among my countrymen, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.
15) But when it was the good pleasure of God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me through his grace,
16) to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I didn’t immediately confer with flesh and blood,
17) nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia. Then I returned to Damascus.
18) Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Peter, and stayed with him fifteen days.
19) But of the other apostles I saw no one, except James, the Lord’s brother.
20) Now about the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I’m not lying.
21) Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
22) I was still unknown by face to the assemblies of Judea which were in Christ,
23) but they only heard: “He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy.”
24) And they glorified God in me.
Galatians 2:1-21 (WEB)
1) Then after a period of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me.
2) I went up by revelation, and I laid before them the Good News which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately before those who were respected, for fear that I might be running, or had run, in vain.
3) But not even Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised.
4) This was because of the false brothers secretly brought in, who stole in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage;
5) to whom we gave no place in the way of subjection, not for an hour, that the truth of the Good News might continue with you.
6) But from those who were reputed to be important (whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God doesn’t show partiality to man)—they, I say, who were respected imparted nothing to me,
7) but to the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the Good News for the uncircumcision, even as Peter with the Good News for the circumcision
8) (for he who appointed Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision appointed me also to the Gentiles);
9) and when they perceived the grace that was given to me, James and Cephas and John, they who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcision.
10) They only asked us to remember the poor—which very thing I was also zealous to do.
11) But when Peter came to Antioch, I resisted him to his face, because he stood condemned.
12) For before some people came from James, he ate with the Gentiles. But when they came, he drew back and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.
13) And the rest of the Jews joined him in his hypocrisy; so that even Barnabas was carried away with their hypocrisy.
14) But when I saw that they didn’t walk uprightly according to the truth of the Good News, I said to Peter before them all, “If you, being a Jew, live as the Gentiles do, and not as the Jews do, why do you compel the Gentiles to live as the Jews do?
15) “We, being Jews by nature, and not Gentile sinners,
16) yet knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law, because no flesh will be justified by the works of the law.
17) But if, while we sought to be justified in Christ, we ourselves also were found sinners, is Christ a servant of sin? Certainly not!
18) For if I build up again those things which I destroyed, I prove myself a law-breaker.
19) For I, through the law, died to the law, that I might live to God.
20) I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me. That life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me.
21) I don’t make void the grace of God. For if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nothing!”
Paul is a man unlike any other I have know; gentle, compassionate and yet uncompromising and very powerful in spirit. God saw something in him and chose him to spread "The truth of the Gospel" far and wide. From persecutor of Christians to evangelist extraordinaire, this devote Jew became the poster boy for Christianity. His life is the story of what God can do with a man; how he can be molded so that the world can be changed. Today, think about your life; how you came to be what you are today and what you hope to be tomorrow. If God is part of the progression, then you will never really die, because you will live forever and the only thing that will change will be time. Humm, I wonder if there are cameras in heaven?