Doesn’t the thought of becoming one again with God usher in a deep sense of peace? Becoming whole–fractured pieces coming back together in such a way that one forgets what it feels like to be broken. Or maybe the opposite is true for you: The thought of becoming one with God stirs up a greater sense of anxiety. Maybe there’s been a constant grasping for what once was or had never truly been—wholeness within your soul. Whether you find yourself saturated in peace, in a losing battle with anxiety, or somewhere in between, becoming one again with God is the hope we turn our eyes toward as we approach Resurrection Sunday.

We celebrate the death of Jesus Christ because if his innocent blood wasn’t shed, we could never grasp hold of the healing that is our inheritance. We celebrate Jesus’ subsequent resurrection because if death was never defeated, we could never hold hands, never stand face-to-face, nor ever stare directly into the eyes of the One who makes us complete and thus becomes our whole being. If the resurrection of Christ gives us the invitation for reconciliation, then how does one accept this gift? Other than a willful decision to allow Jesus to be the guiding light for our lives, how do we lean in further to the journey of becoming one again with God? In the paragraphs to come, I’d like to suggest a simple, yet radical, perspective switch: We grow in becoming one with God by making a conscious choice to live a lifestyle of praise.

In Psalm 145:1-2, King David wasn’t speaking in grandiose terms when he declared, “I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. Every day I will praise you.” David, a man after God’s own heart, made a humble and bold covenant agreement to praise God every single day. 

Mountaintop and ‘Depths of the valley’ days. 

‘My cup runneth over’ and ‘My cup runneth dry’ days. 

‘I feel nothing but peace’ and ‘I feel everything but peace’ days. 

How is David able to offer continual praises to God when his circumstances are often far from praiseworthy? He is able by remembering the testimonies of generations before him.

In verse 4 of Psalm 145, David notes that “one generation commends (God’s) works to another; they tell of your mighty acts” (Psalm 145:4). Generational praise to God is passed down from one part of the body to another, which gives emerging generations hope for the present and the future. The prophet Jeremiah shares a glimpse of this hope in Jeremiah 29:11, penning familiar words: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” David recalls these words from Jeremiah when he also describes this hope as being rooted in God’s own loving character: “The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love” (Psalm 145:8). 

Whether you find yourself saturated in peace, in a losing battle with anxiety, or somewhere in between, becoming one again with God is the hope we turn our eyes toward as we approach Resurrection Sunday. Share on X

Do the phrases slow to anger and rich in love not mirror what the Apostle Paul spoke to the church at Corinth? When admonishing the Corinthians for allowing differences to cause division, Paul notes that what reconciles them together as one is love. 1 Corinthians 13 goes on to define love as being patient, kind, and slow to anger, amongst other characteristics. 

What Paul does not explicitly state, but is likely suggesting, is that in defining love, he’s simultaneously describing the person and character of Jesus. Namely:

“(Jesus) is patient, (Jesus) is kind. (Jesus) does not envy, (Jesus) does not boast, (Jesus) is not proud. (Jesus) does not dishonor others, (Jesus) is not self-seeking, (Jesus) is not easily angered, (Jesus) keeps no record of wrongs. (Jesus) does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (Jesus) always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

Take note of all the opportunities we have to praise God in this passage. 

• Praise God for his patience! 
• Praise God for his kindness! 
• Praise God that he does not dishonor us! 
• Praise God that he keeps no record of wrong! 
• Praise God that he always perseveres and overcomes the circumstances that try to leave us fragmented and broken! 

Paul ends 1 Corinthians 13 with this verse: “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). 

The word “remain” in this verse is the same Greek word used throughout John 15:1-17, menó. This word is defined as “to remain, to abide, to stay, to continue, to dwell, to endure.” Throughout John 15, Jesus uses the metaphor of a vine and branches to illustrate to the disciples how abiding (remaining) in his love produces wholeness. He notes that apart from the vine, branches are not able to produce fruit that leads to praise. When we’re separated from the wholeness that rests in Jesus, we are unable to experience abiding peace. At first glance, one may assume that John 15:1-17 and 1 Corinthians 13:8 are referencing different topics. However, upon closer contemplation, we can recognize that they both point to a deep communion with the Trinity.

We partner with the Spirit of Faith (Holy Spirit) to believe in the Living Hope that is Jesus, who was given through the Spirit of Love (God) so that we could be made whole as we abide in all three. 

John 3:16 declares, “For God so loved the world…”–meaning, that Jesus was given to be both the hope and the future that was prophesied through Jeremiah. Without the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have no hope for being made whole and thus no future wholeness to anticipate. This resurrected hope is what gives us strength to lift our voices in praise every time we’re gifted with another day.

“(Jesus) never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.” (1 Corinthians 13:8-9).

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We partner with the Spirit of Faith (Holy Spirit) to believe in the Living Hope that is Jesus, who was given through the Spirit of Love (God) so that we could be made whole as we abide in all three. Share on X