What in the world is going to happen to you?
Explosions, Bombs, Ricin packages, College Campus Shootings, Police shoot outs and Police shooters. Terrorists, Baby Murdering Doctors, Elementary School Massacres, Mass stabbings of little ones, Movie Theatre massacre, Financial fallout, Ultimatums from North Korea, Iran, Syria, Russia, Israel….
Everywhere we see mayhem… Weeping, stress, anger, people losing loved ones, thrown out of homes they’ve owned their entire lives, retirement savings down the drain, or homeless, some do not know where their next meal will come from. Everywhere; murders, deaths, and even suicides…
Deaths from car accidents, cancer, heart attacks, strokes, aids, diabetes, pneumonia, old age, stress…You might fall asleep and not wake up.
If you died now, where would you go?
Many (maybe someone who is reading right now) do not believe in a heaven, or a hell. Some have answered me by saying they aren’t sure. Others say they just guess they’re going to hell…trust me, you do not EVER want to spend eternity in that kind of pain, darkness, terror that you can never escape.
I want to ask you in all sincerity. What if you are wrong about there being no hell? What if you are just desensitized to all that is going on around you? I see people walking around in Massachusetts, as if nothing at all has changed, or as if this terrorism happened in another time, another place. Smiling, laughing, seemingly unconcerned….
Will this be YOU right before you die? Oblivious to what lies ahead?
We never think it will be us do we?
But as the Bible states, it is appointed to each of us to die, then the judgment, so how are we judged?
Each and every one of us is a sinner.
These sins, whether you believe yours are great or small, are equally a stench in the nostrils of God. He is Holy and cannot tolerate evil of any kind. We try to minimize our own sin. We lie and call it a white lie. God is not a man that He should lie. Never! We are dead in our sins. It only takes one, I am in no way judging myself to be better. Like a dead bird crawling with ants, or a dead animal that has begun to stink (or is really rank), we are good for nothing, we cannot approach God in this state.
Do not deceive yourself… please! You and not any other person, is good enough to face God, let alone live with Him in eternity, no matter what religion you belong to, or how many good works you do. He will not have someone who has rejected His Son as the only way, abiding in His perfect kingdom.
Mother Theresa in letters she wrote at the end of her life, doubted where she would spend eternity sadly. And even with a lifetime of good works was not good enough to enter heaven unless she trusted Jesus Christ alone for her salvation. The Bible tells us we can know, why didn’t she know if she was saved or not? (See John 20:31; I John 3:14; I John 5:10-13)
You’re on your own…
No Priest, no Minister, no Pastor….no father, no mother, no husband or wife, can stand in front of you and protect you. You (and us all) will kneel before a Holy God, and there His Son Jesus will stand at His right hand; who was fully man, and fully God, who came so that we might have life, to deliver us. He came to set us free from our sin, and ultimate death. And Jesus Christ is the ONLY one who can stand in front of you and the wrath of a Holy God against sin. Have you believed upon Him for your salvation? Did you maybe ‘invite Jesus into your heart’? Or perhaps you have ‘repented of your sins’ and believe you are saved? What about ‘being good’ or ‘going to church’ or ‘raised a Christian’? Are you sure?
What will you say?
I will say, “He called me friend, and I am His own. He holds me in His hand since I believed on the gospel. What will you say (those who do not believe)? Are you are going tell God you rejected His Son’s sacrifice in your place? I would not want to be in your shoes. You will have NO excuse. Please pray on this…ask God if He will show you the truth. There is not much time, life is short.
He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. John 3:18
Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Isaiah 54:6
How will you answer God when He has Said there is One way?
But I was a good person God….
But I thought all religions and good paths lead to You….
But I didn’t know….
But I was brought up this way….
But I went to Mass several times a week.
But I worked at the Homeless Shelter.
But I was a member of THE ________________Church.
But….
Sadly, The answer will be something like this, “Depart from me, I never knew you”…. (see Matt 7:22-23, Luke 13:25-28)
For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Mark 8:36-37
Fill in your own blank, but there is only ONE right answer. One WAY–JESUS!
Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:1,6
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. John 3:16,36
“Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the Master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from’. Luke 13:24-25
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate, and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Matt 7:13-14
We enter by believing on Jesus and His work on the cross for our salvation.
JESUS, the WAY, the TRUTH, the LIFE…
I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. John 10:9
And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. John 3:16-18
Jesus is the gate/door/way. He is the truth and the life. There is no other way. Not works, not a certain religion, not being good, not being baptized, but JESUS! Believe on Him, and you shall be saved (Acts 16:31)
One day, no more sorrow and no more tears…
The Just Live shall live by Faith
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”
God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools. Romans 1:16-22
Want the bad news first?
You are a sinner. One sin will send you out of God’s presence for all eternity. You will be judged. You will die. Let’s be honest, I am sure you are fully aware of all the many, many you have committed in your life. I know mine were/are too many to count.
Ever looked at someone with lust? It’s the same as adultery in God’s eyes, and He hates divorce.
Ever told a lie? Been dishonest? Cheated? Stolen something, or took something that is not yours? Can you be honest with yourself right now?
Ever been drunk? Curse? Said God or Jesus Christ in vain?
Besides lying, have you ever just been proud, had pride? Had a haughty look even? Been smug? Gloated over someone’s failure? Thought of something wrong even in your heart? Said mean things? Hated someone? Not forgiven someone in your life?
God hates all these things, they are rebellion and sin, and all sin is against HIM. (Psalm 51). Another reason He hates these things, is that He loves us, and made us to commune and fellowship with Him, and our initial rebellion separated us from God forever.
But He made a way…
Here is the good news… God, who is our Maker, owns all souls. His Word declares that the soul who sins must die, but you do not have to die spiritually. God says He desires NONE should perish, (2 Pet 3:9) but you MUST decide whether you believe on Him for your salvation. He created us with a free will, and a choice to choose between good or evil (obeying or disobeying Him). That was our choice from the beginning. I think it’s clear, we all sin, and this sin will send us to an eternity of suffering in hell.
You don’t think it’s fair for God to send people to hell? God is just. He is Holy. He is Almighty. He made you. If you choose to reject Him, reject His Son, ignore the way He laid out for you to be saved from the penalty of your sins, to justify yourself in His sight, then you know the alternative.
ETERNAL LIFE IS A FREE GIFT
Although the wages of sin is death (to everyone), the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
We have all sinned, but the righteousness of God is revealed, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all andon all who believe. (short paraphrase of Rom 3:21-23)
From the first sin (Satan and his pride) who enticed the other angels after him, and then Eve and Adam, God still had a plan for us with this prophecy, regarding the Messiah, Jesus, who come to save us from the sting of death.
And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.
But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. I Cor 15:54-57
Jesus died for us.
They crucified Him for no reason, Pilate declared Him innocent. If you do not know what Jesus Christ did for you on the Cross, if you do not believe He is real, or think He is just a “good man”, consider reading these prophecies that foretold of His death. Many details of the method of His death, the manner of beatings and piercings and even having His beard plucked from out of His face. He suffered and died for you, in your place….
SEE THE PROPHECIES OF THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS HERE.
Jesus rose again from the dead, again, just as the Scriptures said He would, showing He was not only man, but fully God. Jesus prophesied of this in advance. And it was witnessed by many. Just as He rose again, when we put our faith in Him, we too will rise again to an incorruptible body to spend eternity with Him.
“Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”
What Gospel do you need to believe?
Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. I Cor 15:1-11
In John 6:28-29
Jesus was asked, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”
Jesus’ answer? “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
He also answered: And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:40
Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. John 6:47
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9
WHO WILL YOU BELIEVE IN?
April 20,2013
Well done Holly, This posting gives glory to God in this crazy world where the news is enough to drive you to your knees and to the Holy Scriptures….”In that day a man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will have respect for the Holy one of Israel” Isaiah 17:7
I am sharing it with family and friends and praying it gets to the ones who need to take it to heart.
In His Love,
Marcie
April 20,2013
Well done Holly, The Boston Bombings sent grief to all our hearts and sends us to our knees and to the Scriptures.
“In that day a man will look to his Maker, and his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel”. Isaiah 17:7
We know that the Holy One of Israel is Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God, our Lord and Savior. He alone is our hope, the God sent Gospel tells us that. I am sharing this with family and friends in the hope that someone who reads it will take it to heart.
Marcie, we have had our share of tragedies in this country, and in our own lives, but still somehow, I believe we’ve been conditioned to think on the temporal things vs. the eternal.
Only in trusting Jesus Christ and what He did, is there a guarantee of eternal life with Him. If we place our trust in being the elect, in being chosen, in our works, in anything we do, or in any church we attend, or denomination we associate with. I am afraid they are in danger for their very souls and the lives of those they may mislead. May we all remember WHO is the Savior.
Not the Catholic Church, Not the Reformed Church, but Jesus Christ alone.
He is the Rock on which we stand!