Friday, May 13
[Abraham] was awaiting the city having real foundations, whose designer and builder is God.—Heb. 11:10.
Abraham had such strong faith in God’s promises that it was as if he could see the Anointed One, or Messiah, who would be King of God’s Kingdom. For this reason, Jesus could tell the Jews in his day: “Abraham your father rejoiced greatly at the prospect of seeing my day, and he saw it and rejoiced.” (John 8:56) Clearly, Abraham knew that his descendants would form a Kingdom that had Jehovah’s backing, and he was willing to wait for Jehovah to fulfill that promise. How did Abraham show that he was waiting for the city, or Kingdom, designed by God? First, Abraham did not join himself to any earthly kingdom. He remained a nomad, choosing not to settle down and give his support to a human king. In addition, Abraham did not try to set up his own kingdom. Instead, he kept obeying Jehovah and waited for Him to fulfill His promise. In doing so, Abraham showed extraordinary faith in Jehovah. w20.08 3 ¶4-5
Saturday, May 14
The one who has died has been acquitted from his sin.—Rom. 6:7.
Jehovah promises that no one living under Christ’s rule will say: “I am sick.” (Isa. 33:24) Thus, those who are raised from the dead will be re-created with healthy bodies. However, they will not immediately be perfect. If they were, they might seem unfamiliar to their loved ones. It seems that all mankind will gradually grow to perfection during the Thousand Year Reign of Christ. It is only at the end of the thousand years that Jesus will hand the Kingdom back to his Father. Then the Kingdom will have accomplished its work completely, including the raising of mankind to a perfect state. (1 Cor. 15:24-28; Rev. 20:1-3) Imagine what it will be like to greet your loved ones again. Will the joy you feel make you laugh or cry? Will you fill the air with songs of praise to Jehovah? One thing is certain, you will feel intense love for your caring Father and his unselfish Son because of the wonderful gift of the resurrection. w20.08 16-17 ¶9-10
Sunday, May 15
Each one has his own gift from God, one in this way, another in that way.—1 Cor. 7:7.
The apostle Paul encouraged Christians to consider whether they could serve Jehovah as single people. (1 Cor. 7:8, 9) Certainly Paul did not look down on single Christians. In fact, he chose young Timothy, a single brother, to care for weighty assignments. (Phil. 2:19-22) Obviously, then, it would be wrong to think that a brother is more qualified or less qualified based solely on whether he is married or not. (1 Cor. 7:32-35, 38) Neither Jesus nor Paul taught that Christians must marry or that they must remain single. What, then, can we say about marriage and singleness? The Watchtower of October 1, 2012, stated it nicely when it said: “Really, both [marriage and singleness] can be described as gifts from God. . . . Jehovah does not view [singleness] as a cause for shame or grief.” With this in mind, we need to respect the place of single brothers and sisters in the congregation. w20.08 28 ¶8-9