If pride could be sold by the ounce, as are silver and gold, most everyone in the world today would be wealthy, but at what cost?

Satan (Lucifer), the father of sin and all those who follow him, said in his heart:

” … ‘I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High'” (Isaiah 14:13-14).

The pride that consumed Satan and turned his heart as black as pitch is the same pride that is consuming many today, and pride gives birth to so many other sins, such as: jealousy, hatred, murder, greed, theft, etc. It is stealing the souls of millions in our world.

God, especially in the person of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, has been for all intents and purposes eliminated from our society. We (generally speaking of course) want nothing to do with God. Unfortunately, where there is a vacuum, something must fill it, and we most certainly are filling it.

It just blows my mind to think how far we have sunk in character and morality in just fifty years or less. The sad thing is we as a society think we have outgrown God. We think we are smarter than God and know what is best for us all. We embrace anything and everything that is contrary to what the Word of God plainly states. We put God over in the corner to keep Him quiet since we know more than He does anyway about the very book He wrote … the Bible. Actually, we have gone even farther than that; we think of ourselves as gods.

Along with Eve, we listened to Satan’s lie, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5).

Yes sir, we bought the lie, but there is only one message people need today, and that message is, “We are sinners bound for hell, and only Jesus Christ can save us.”

I ask, “Where is our humility toward Almighty God?” Most today have none because it is swallowed up in pride. Even many so-called leaders of Christianity mock His name by their support for sin. They rob His people because of their greed. They rob souls because they won’t speak the Truth and stand up for the Truth. They are wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:5). People are dying and going to hell because many of those who know the Truth don’t share it with those who need to hear it.

It is expected that those without God in their hearts have no respect for God and His Word. Sadly, partly because there are so many wolves in the pulpits, most of society in our day are literally fulfilling God’s words:

“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
And prudent in their own sight!

“Woe to men mighty at drinking wine,
Woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink,
Who justify the wicked for a bribe,
And take away justice from the righteous man!” (Isaiah 5:20-23).

As a saturated sponge, we are totally consumed by sinful deeds in this land … the land that once served Almighty God. Instead of the pure water from on high filling our souls, we have soaked up all the dregs of Satan’s sewers. Our lips speak blasphemies, and our actions mock the very God who could destroy us all in hell, if He so chose (Matthew 10:28).

The wisest man who ever lived, Solomon, had this to say:

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

To the contrary, most in our society seem to have, or at least they display, an obnoxious audacity against God. Society looks toward Heaven with clinched fists and a smirk, cursing the very God they say they don’t believe in in the first place. They want no evidence of God, although it’s all around them (Romans 1:18-21), so they dismantle everything that is Christ related. They hate and ridicule His people, wishing they would just go away; and they will eventually get their wish (Rapture).

We, as a society, treat God as a feeble, white-haired, senile old man that puts His stamp of approval on all our sins. The Son of God, Jesus, who is God in the flesh, is portrayed as a wimpy love-child (we used to call them beatniks) who welcomes any and all into Heaven, even those who want nothing to do with Him. In my opinion, our 21^st century society is more antagonistically disrespectful of the one and only true God than any before us.

Yet those who really know Him bow before Him as Savior and Lord. His love is shown by His own sacrifice for those who will come to Him to be saved from sin. In the same breath, He is God and demands our respect. Why hasn’t He brought down justice upon this world? He will. It is commonly referred to as the Tribulation. Thankfully, He is patient, not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), but those who rally against Him will perish in due time.

Following are just a few examples of true humility from men who beheld their own wretchedness in the light of God’s glory.

ISAIAH

“So I said: ‘Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts'” (Isaiah 6:5).

APOSTLE JOHN

“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last'” (Revelation 1:17).

DANIEL

“Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength” (Daniel 10:8).

THE APOSTLE PAUL

“O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24).

THE PUBLICAN (TAX COLLECTOR)

“And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!'” (Luke 18:13).

JESUS SAID

“For it is written:
‘As I live, says the LORD,
Every knee shall bow to Me,
And every tongue shall confess to God'” (Romans 14:11).

Jesus reminds us through the apostle Paul, “So then each of us shall give account of himself to God” (Romans 14:11-12).

Then He makes it very clear, in this passage from Isaiah, who He is:

“For thus says the Lord,
Who created the heavens,
Who is God,
Who formed the earth and made it,
Who has established it,
Who did not create it in vain,
Who formed it to be inhabited:
‘I am the Lord, and there is no other.

‘I have not spoken in secret,
In a dark place of the earth;
I did not say to the seed of Jacob,
‘Seek Me in vain’;
I, the Lord, speak righteousness,
I declare things that are right.

‘Assemble yourselves and come;
Draw near together,
You who have escaped from the nations.
They have no knowledge,
Who carry the wood of their carved image,
And pray to a god that cannot save.

‘Tell and bring forth your case;
Yes, let them take counsel together.
Who has declared this from ancient time?
Who has told it from that time?
Have not I, the Lord?
And there is no other God besides Me,
A just God and a Savior;
There is none besides Me.

‘Look to Me, and be saved, All you ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.

‘I have sworn by Myself;
The word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness,
And shall not return,
That to Me every knee shall bow,
Every tongue shall take an oath.

‘He shall say, ‘Surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength.
To Him men shall come, And all shall be ashamed
Who are incensed against Him'” (Isaiah 45:18-24)

I close with these words from James and the apostle Peter:

“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up” (James 4:10).

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7).

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com

Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com

Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html

Is it possible to be too good to be saved? According to Jesus, the Savior, it is certainly possible. When Jesus was upon the earth headed toward the cross of Calvary, many in that day were too good to be saved. Some were Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes. Others were folks like the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-27 and Luke 18:18-27), and then the lawyer in Luke 10:25-30. Let us not forget those who were chief priests and elders. And what about the Herodians mentioned in Matthew 22:15-22; Mark 12-13-17 and Luke 20:20-26? Not all, but most of these mentioned, and others, thought they were too good for anything Jesus had to offer. For that matter, they accused Him of being a blasphemer, and eventually crucified Him.

Do we dare omit the faceless crowd that stood before Pilate and cried out, “Crucify Him!” and “His blood is on us and on our children!”

All of these people thought they were good enough. They went to Sunday school and church every time the doors were open. They paid their tithes. They said their prayers at night (Now I lay me down to sleep….). They paid their bills. They kept all the Ten Commandments … well maybe most … Uh some … well a couple … maybe. They were good people, for crying out loud! They weren’t sinners like those prostitutes and tax collectors. They don’t murder, steal, drink, smoke, chew or run around with those who do.

For Pete’s sake! These folks were preachers well known in the media, respected community leaders, Bible teachers, seminary professors, and well-educated for the most part. They were attorneys, politicians, doctors, celebrities; even many were just average hard-working folks; farmers, plumbers, electricians, fishermen, etc., who raised respectable families who contributed to the community and were known by all for their good deeds. Some were even on the cover of the most popular magazines of the day. Yes, good, respectable folks!

I am not attempting to provide a list of people in certain categories that are too good to be saved. It isn’t about the lists. It is about the heart. From the lips of most you will hear, “I’m sure my goodwill outweighs any bad. The scales will balance. Besides, God is a loving God and would not send anyone to hell, if there is such a place.”

Now let’s hear what Jesus has to say about it:

“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22-23).

If the eye is blind, there can be nothing but darkness inside. Jesus is saying that if we can see the Truth, seeing ourselves as God sees us and our need for Him to save us, then we can be saved; but if we think we’re ‘good enough,’ we’ll never see that need, and we will remain in darkness and lost forever.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24).

Only God knows just how many people call themselves Christians, but are actually Christians-in-name-only. They are no more a Christian than the car that sits in their driveway. Far too many think their soul is like a townhouse. Jesus can live on one side and Satan on the other. Actually, most think they can let Jesus live in a small room in the back of the house while the rest of the house is for their pleasure. Sorry, but the Holy Spirit of God cannot and will not set up housekeeping with “mammon.” (Jesus is not talking only of ‘money,’ by the way. He is referring to anything we put above Him.) Again, it can’t be done. It won’t be done. It is either God or mammon, but it can’t be both.

“When Jesus heard that, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance’” (Matthew 9:12-13) – (Hosea 6:6).

All Jesus is saying here is that those who know they are sinners and call out to Him to be healed, He will heal/save them. All those who think they’re special and don’t need a Physician will die in their sins.

Would Jesus identify us with the Pharisee or the tax collector in Luke 18:9-14?

Jesus is also stressing that He doesn’t want our works. He wants His works done in us. He wants our heart.

“Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi’s house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, ‘How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard it, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance’” (Mark 2:15-17).

It is clear that even Jesus can’t help a person if that person doesn’t think he needs help, but those who know they are sick may call out to Him, and He will heal them.

“And Jesus said, ‘For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.’ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, ‘Are we blind also?’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains’” (John (9:39-41).

When Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world…” He is speaking of the judgment He will endure on the cross for us. He came into this world to go to the cross for us.

The Pharisees were blind. They were blind to their need to be saved. Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and all are sinners. However, we must see that we are sinners and need to be saved, then we can be saved by calling upon Him.

Finally, the apostle Paul said:

“This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1:15).

Much of this can be clarified by a quote from Dr. J. Vernon McGee:

“I believe it is easier to reach a godless atheist than a hypocritical churchgoer. The godless atheist may respond when he hears the Gospel for the first time, but the hypocritical churchgoer has heard the Gospel again and again and has become hardened to it. That is the real tragedy.”

That was exactly the problem with the Pharisees. They had become hardened to the Gospel. Many today have become hardened to the Gospel. But those who know their life is in shambles, and hear the Gospel, will more likely call out to Jesus to be saved.

Jesus came to save sinners, and until we recognize that we are sinners, we will remain blind. The apostle Paul, through the Holy Spirit, has some very good advice.

“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

Hundreds, thousands, perhaps millions of people are going through life walking arm and arm with Satan toward hell. Any second their foot could slip into that eternal abyss. They think they see, but Jesus says they are blind. Jesus came to save sinners. Don’t allow Satan to steal your most precious possession … your eternal soul. Call out to God and ask Him to open your eyes, then put your hand in His.

How about it? Are you too good to be saved?

Grant Phillips

Email: Phillip5769@twc.com

Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com

Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html