I’d like for everyone reading today’s post to picture this for a minute: suppose you went to the doctor and were told that you had a terrible, incurable disease that would kill you within the next thirty days. After the shock, how do you think you’d feel? Would you feel content knowing that soon you’d be in the presence of your Creator…or would you be bitter and resent the fact that your life was being cut so short?
The fact of the matter is no one can escape death. The Bible teaches that we all will spend eternity in one of two places: Heaven or Hell – there’s no in between. Sooner or later, a question every human being must face is this: am I ready to meet God if I were to die tonight?
A lot of folks believe they’ll go to Heaven because they’ve never done anything terribly bad in life like stealing or murder. They figure it’s the murderers like Charles Manson and Hitler who should go to Hell because they’re the really wicked ones.
The problem for us is that God views sin as sin, no matter how we minimize it. One sin is all it takes to send a person to Hell. Looking at pornography or cussing or thinking bad things about someone – they’re all sins, and any one of them is enough to condemn us to Hell.
(Mat 5:28 KJV) But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart
God doesn’t make any distinctions in the Bible between acceptable sins such as “little white lies” and unacceptable sins like murder or stealing. All sin leads to judgment…and sin is the breaking of God’s holy law.
(1 John 3:4) Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
Some might be thinking “I don’t break His law, I go to church/fellowship when I can – I give to charitable causes. Doesn’t that count for something?” Maybe that will impress your neighbor but in God’s sight, every single human being has broken His law and sinned.
(Rom 3:10 KJV) As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
(Rom 3:23 KJV) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Here in the United States, if someone has done wrong, they’re innocent until proven guilty and they take their case before a judge. All sinners on the Last Day will have an opportunity to explain to the Judge of Heaven & Earth why they did the things they did. But there will be NO mercy shown to anyone on that great and terrible Day. Those standing for judgment will be judged for ALL the actions in their life. This means that everything they did in secret, said in secret, and heard in secret, will be brought to light. Everyone found guilty will be cast into eternal Hell. That’s a horrible thought, isn’t it.
Some may be thinking, “Look here, blog man, I’ve been to church and have taken Communion, plus I was baptized. That accounts for something. Why should I listen to you?” You know, you’re right. What is typed into this blog doesn’t amount to a hill of beans. What matters is what God says. He’s the One who says that going through the rituals, traditions and membership of a church (or fellowship!) doesn’t guarantee anyone salvation. Many churches today teach that a person becomes saved at baptism and through their own ceremonies and rituals.
Jesus upbraided the religious rulers of Israel for believing that just because they faithfully read the Scriptures, their salvation was guaranteed.
(John 5:39 KJV) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life
Thinking you have eternal life and having eternal life are two entirely different things.
Some out there may now be thinking, “Uh oh, now I’m starting to get worried. I’ve been called a lot of names in my life but “Perfect” isn’t one of them. I’ve broken more of God’s laws than I’ve kept. If I can’t put my hope in a church/fellowship or a pastor, then what kind of hope can someone like myself have?”
Friend, my only hope – your only hope, mankind’s only hope — is in Jesus Christ alone. God sent the Lord Jesus Christ into the world for the purpose of saving ugly sinners like us. That means that Jesus paid the entire penalty for all the heinous, shameful sins of those He came to save. If any of us are going to become saved, it means we must receive the Lord Jesus as our personal Savior.
Saving Faith is what enables any of us to receive Christ as our Savior. Saving faith is the key that unlocks Heaven’s door to sinners. God gives us the saving faith we need to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and if we are one of those whom Christ came to save, then we will be drawn to the Lord Jesus, and we will readily admit that we’re a sinner and we’ll want Christ to be our Savior.
If we’re not one of those whom Christ came to save, then we’ll just think this whole thing is a big waste of time. God says, (John 6:44 KJV) No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
So what about it readers…has today’s posting been just a colossal waste of your time? For some, it may have been.
Some readers might be thinking, “Yeah, I know what you said is right. I know that I’m on a collision course with Hell and that I can’t save myself. But it’s too much to think about. I’ll wait till I go to church/fellowship the next time and see if I feel the same way. Maybe next week or next month.”
If that’s you, think about this: hundreds of thousands of people who put their clothes on this morning will have the undertaker take them off tonight. Reader, time is not our friend.
Several years ago there was a popular song that spoke of a man who had a T-shirt with Bible verses on it, a bracelet with the letters WWJD, Bible magnets on his refrigerator, a welcome mat to bless people when they entered his home; he had Christian necklaces and key chains, a Jesus bumper sticker and the outline of a fish stuck on his car. He said that all these things were well and good, but then he asked this question: what about the change? What about the difference? He asked himself whether he was living a life that showed he’d undergone “The Change”.
In the course of reading today’s posting some might be thinking to themselves, “AMEN! Jesus has cleansed me from all my sins and He’s my personal LORD and Savior.” If that’s true, then praise God! And if it is…if Jesus is truly your personal LORD and Savior, then you should be able to tell the people you come into contact with today — family, friends, co-workers — what it’s like to go thru “THE CHANGE” of being saved.
All true believers should be experiencing a miraculous change – a change that God initiates in their lives. If you don’t sense any difference in the order and priorities of your life, then you better ask yourself that same question — “What about the change?”
God tells us always to be ready to tell another about the hope that is in us. In 1Peter 3:15 God says, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.”
Behold, now is the day of salvation.
To God Be The Glory!
Posted by Jeff & Cindy 
