Calvary Chapel Sarasota

08/08/2026

08/03/2026

August 03, 2026

Home with the Lord
by Pastor Chuck Swindoll

For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands.
(2 Corinthians 5:1)

Remember this: Every time you attend a funeral or memorial service, you are merely viewing the physical remains of the deceased individual. You are seeing only the body, which is decaying, decomposing. You are not viewing the person—only the outer “shell.”

Regardless of how we refer to the remains—slumbering, at rest, at peace—or how “natural” he or she may look, we are looking at that which is going to be changed and glorified, renewed so that the body can endure eternity.

The soul-spirit, that invisible part of the Christian, has been taken to be in the presence of the Lord. What you are seeing before you is the external “suit of clothes”; or, as Paul wrote, the “house” which is “torn down” (2 Corinthians 5:1 NASB). The funeral service provides us a time to give God thanks for the memory of the person and for the fact that that body will be raised some day in the future.

One of my favorite lines that I often state once the funeral party gathers at the grave site is related to that future day when the dead will be raised. I will usually say, “whether you realize it or not, at this very moment you are standing on resurrection ground.” (I’ve actually seen people look down, then step aside two or three feet!)

There will be a time when the graves will be opened, and the bodies will be removed in a glorified state to be forever with the Lord Jesus. Plain and simple, the Christian has no reason to fear death since the future is so full of hope and happiness. Even though we cannot turn to any Scripture that states that a believer was interviewed after death, we know these things are true.

Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the Spirit as a pledge. Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord—for we walk by faith, not by sight—we are of good courage and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:5–8 NASB)

06/25/2026

June 25, 2026

When Logic Fails
by Pastor Chuck Swindoll

Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.
(Hebrews 6:20)

Human logic breaks down in crisis. The mystery is enormous, and it is the enormity of it all that calls for faith. I'm sorry if that sounds like an overused bromide. But if we could unravel it, why would we need faith? If that were true, all we'd really need is the answer in the back of the book and someone to point it out to us; we'd read it, and that's all there would be to it. But God's plan is that we walk by faith, not by sight. It is faith and patience that stretch us to the breaking point. Such things send doubt running.

When you find yourself dealing with doubt, let me give you three things to remember. First, God cannot lie. He can test, and He will. He can say no, and He sometimes will; He can say yes, and He will; He can say wait, and occasionally He will—but God cannot lie. He must keep His word. Doubt says, "You fool, you're stupid to believe in a God who puts you through this." By faith, keep remembering that God cannot lie.

Here's the second piece of advice that helps me: We will not lose. Doubt says, "You lose if you trust God through this. You lose." If I read anything in this whole section of Hebrews 6, I read that in the mysterious manner of God's own timing, for some unexplainable and yet unchangeable purpose, those of us who trust Him ultimately win—because God ultimately wins.

There's a little chorus Christians love to sing. It is quiet and tender, yet tough and true:

In His time, in His time,
He makes all things beautiful
In His time.
Lord, please show me every day,
As You're teaching me Your way,
That You do just what You say,
In Your time.1

God cannot lie. We will not lose. Your mate has walked away from you, an unfair departure—you will not lose, child of God. Your baby has been born and for some reason, it has been chosen to be one of those special persons on this earth. You will not lose. You've waited and waited, and you were convinced things would improve, yet things have only gotten worse—keep remembering, you will not lose. God swears on it with an oath that cannot change. You will not lose.

Third—and I guess it's the best of all—is that our Lord Jesus does not leave. To quote a verse from Scripture, He "sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24).

"Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever . . . " Hebrews 6:20. That means He is there at any time . . . and always.

God cannot lie. He will always keep His Word.
You cannot lose. God is trustworthy.
Our Lord Jesus does not leave. He is with you even now.