There are times when I sit here before my computer and wonder if any of these articles are getting across to unsaved individuals. Or as some have stated, “Are you preaching to the choir?”
I will say that there have been a few people who have written and asked if they may use my articles in a particular manner. So to an extent, I believe these articles are, indeed, getting to some who are unsaved. There is a problem, though. Let me see if I can open this can of worms and dissect the problem.
I like to write in a manner that gives people the ability to read and then see that I am no better or worse than they are; that I am a normal person—someone just like they are. I write to show I am a sinner just as they are. But today I am a born-again believer and follower of Jesus Christ and my sins are covered by the blood that HE shed on the Cross. I am heaven bound, eternally blessed by my Lord and Savior. And I am so thankful to HIM…for this particular situation, for our personal relationship.
As I go about living every day, I keep seeing a particular disconnect. The churches in my area are all about preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ… to an extent. I have no problem with the gospel of Jesus Christ! As a matter of fact, I enjoy the gospels and find a great deal of comfort in them. Yet we already know there are always two sides to every coin.
Wherever there is good there is also bad, righteousness and then evil; and such is the state of our lives here on earth. We have this life to find and know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior or to turn our backs on Him and follow what we want instead.
In our lives, especially here in the USA, we have things pretty good… for the most part. The majority have their needs met for housing, clothing, food and education on a daily basis. And we also know there are some who struggle for various reasons.
My friends, we are NOT here to save the lost. That is not our mission. We are messengers, as Scripture teaches! Our job is to bring the message of salvation to everyone we come across. Believers have never been in the position to save anyone. This is because we are just as fallen as anyone else. Saving anyone to heaven is the job of Jesus Christ. Only HE is able to save.
Our testimonies of what Jesus Christ did for us in our lives, that is what we should be telling everyone. We must realize that it is Jesus Christ who came here to earth and died to pay for our sins. It was never you or me. (Although some of us know it should have been you and me.)
We us to never have a superiority complex because we are saved to Jesus Christ. We are no better than anyone else, and having this sort of attitude destroys our ability to witness to others. We have been saved to Jesus Christ… by HIS grace, which then means we will be with HIM in heaven.
So now you’re wondering what is that “disconnect” I have been talking about? The disconnect is forgetting about the flipside. The gospels are wonderful and comforting to anyone who is willing to read them. I LOVE THEM! Because I walk with my Lord and Savior, I know these gospels apply to my life and my final destination will be to an eternity with HIM.
The flipside is all about hell and the lake of fire. It is all about destruction and everything horrible and bad that eternity is able to hold for those who fail to come to Jesus Christ. That IS a very defining part of life, just as much as birth and death are a part of life. It is obvious to everyone that birth and death are not under our control.
choice we have between these two things is what really matters and everyone will be forced to face this; it is the reason for this life!
The Word of God—the Bible, is rife with examples of choices that were made by others. We remember that the Word of God states, “Noah walked with God.” Thus the reason for Noah building the Ark—God told him to build it. God told Noah that there would be a flood of biblical proportions and the Ark would be the only way to survive. Noah told others that in order to live, they needed to go into the Ark. Since there were only 8 survivors, the choices by everyone else led to their doom on earth.
Sodom and Gomorrah had a similar situation. Lot belonged to the Lord; thus angels came to Lot and told him that the cities were going to be destroyed. And that is exactly what happened. We are told that Lot and his family were the only ones to survive. They were told by the angel not to look back, but Lot’s wife did look back and was turned to a “pillar of salt.”
Are you able to see the problem? The stories in the Bible are full of people making choices, or failing to do so and then the end results. The Lord has told us to preach the Word of God to the entire world, but does that mean we are to tell them only the good parts. Are we to preach only the prosperity and the feel-good gospel?
The last I remember death still occurs every minute of every day and night. Am I not correct? The problem is this: We don’t like to flip that coin over and see the other side. I believe you will now agree that there is good and bad, salvation and destruction, life and death and…WE…are right in the middle of all of it. WE are the integral component in this earthly life because we are the ones who must make the decision of where we wish to spend eternity.
Does it make any sense for an angel to stand by the deathbed of someone who is not saved to Jesus Christ? I already know the answer. The question is being asked of you. What do YOU think on this matter?
We are confronted with words from the Bible like Gehenna and Sheol. In some translations those words mean the same thing as “hell.” In others, one means the “grave” and the other “hell.” We always fear at least one, but shouldn’t we be afraid of both? Are not both of these a sense of separation from the Lord? We know the body must be buried or destroyed in some manner after the cessation of life, correct?
Few truly like walking about in cemeteries. Everyone there is already dead, right? There is no life there and yet we already know from the Word of God that our spirits continue to live after we die. So are the deceased still alive or not?
The spirits of the people are still alive somewhere but their physical bodies are left behind… in the graves. Is that Sheol or Gehenna? Does this matter? The point is, there is not one single head-stone that says where the deceased individual is located. All we really know is that the physical body is in the grave and that’s it. So let’s look at this for a moment; really, look at it!
Jesus Christ IS God! He was never just a really nice guy who did some really wonderful things. Jesus Christ who is God—healed the sick, raised the dead, brought HOPE to everyone and is still doing that exact same thing in people today. Or are people so cynical that they no longer see this?
There are still people surviving cancer and many other medical difficulties. Medical science is not to be lauded for this. Do you not know where their intelligence comes from in the first place? It’s remarkable that so few see the miracles of God taking place all around them every day never recognizing them.
Is there death? Absolutely. Had there never been “original sin” we wouldn’t be experiencing death of any kind. Our sins are the reason we experience the worst this life can give. In other words our problems, trials and tribulations, death and anything else are the direct results of our sinful nature. Does this make any sense to you?
It is our choice individually to die in our sins or to turn to Jesus Christ and be forgiven our sins.
Let’s get real about this for a moment. One day you are going to die or be taken in the Rapture.
So the question is this: How many are going in the Rapture? It must be understood, if you do not go in the Rapture… then you will be required to die as a human. More important, if you die, where will your spirit be after you take your last breath?
It is already understood if you go in the Rapture, you already belong to our Lord and Savior. HE will remove all true believers before HE delivers HIS wrath on a sin-filled world during the seven-year Tribulation period. Conversely, if you die here on earth only you and GOD… KNOW where you are headed. Does that make any sense to you?
Please understand, because Adam and Eve ate of the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Every single one of us KNOWS whether we belong to Jesus Christ or not. Boy… that sure shows the importance of Sunday School and studying the Bible. And Sunday School is not just for kids!
Sitting in the pew and going to church every Sunday is NOT going to save you to heaven. You already know if you have invited the Lord Jesus Christ into your life or not. You can do anything you want in this life, run as far away as you can but you will never be able to hide from God.
If you have never given your life to Jesus Christ, you better enjoy everything you can think of… right now, because that is all you will ever have. This truth is written in Bible—the Holy Word of God, (God’s own words to your ears.)
You don’t like talking about death and all the bad things going on today… that’s fine, I can agree with you to an extent. If you never come to Jesus Christ this life will be better than a “Cakewalk” compared to where you are headed. You will mourn the day you chose to turn your back on Jesus Christ and you will mourn—for the rest of eternity.
Death can be scary and it is the reason why no one wishes to talk about it. Hollywood horror movies have compounded this problem and we have dark things like Halloween… The Lord God Almighty is the only One who will ever reign and rule anywhere, so don’t get the idea you can reign in hell with Satan.
Satan will not reign anywhere. The Lord God is the ONLY God there is. Who do you think created Satan? Think about it… But Satan who was once a favored angel rebelled against God.
So what is this “disconnect” I have been talking about? I am talking about whether or not you have come to salvation through Jesus Christ. Whether your sins are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ from the Cross; whether or not you walk a life with the Lord God Almighty.
Or have you been too lazy or prideful to consider this?
Would you rather have one foot in the grave (death) and one in heaven? Well my friend, that is not possible. There is no place in heaven for fence sitters. It is either heaven or hell and it is YOUR choice!