Today’s Bible Verse:
Jeremiah 29:11; “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
Encouraging Word:
Well, It’s that time once again to say goodbye to the old year and bring in the New Year. The first question that you need to ask ourselves is this, What have I accomplished in 2023 that has made a difference in my life. I’m not referring to material things such as cars, boats, new homes or even nice vacations. I’m referring to things that you have done for the Kingdom of Christ. Sure, it’s nice to have all those material things that I just mentioned, but they will eventually fade away into the dust of the earth. Nothing material will last forever.
We read the following Words from God, Himself, Matthew 24:35; “ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” Everything in this present age will eventually be gone. Including us.
Read these words of wisdom written by C. T. Studd. “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” How true this is!
I’m going to share one of my highlights from 2023. Many of you that I went to school with will be able to relate to this. We had our fiftieth class reunion this last year, 2023. I can’t believe how quickly the last fifty years have gone. It almost seemed like yesterday that we were all back in school. It was unbelievable how many classmates were present at this reunion. We were all delighted to talk about and remember things that happened back when we were in school, and again, it was almost like it all happened yesterday. I have to say, I really enjoyed reconnecting with old classmates and even meeting some of them for the first time. They are those that I knew of back in school, but for some reason I just never got to know on a personal level. But with all the joy that we felt going over what we referred to as the good ole days, there was a dark cloud that hovered over this otherwise, joyous event. When we first entered the room where we would all eventually gather, there, on a table was a plaque honoring those that have passed on before us. I thought it was a really nice touch to recognize those that are no longer with us. Some of the names on this list were very good friends of mine back in high school. But as I was looking at this list, one thought came to mind, where are they now? They are in one of two places fully aware of where they are. I would like to know how many of them would love the opportunity to come back and warn us of what lies ahead in the afterlife, especially those that are not in heaven?
Let me share a story in the Bible that explains exactly what I am referring to. I’m going to read this whole story because I’m pretty sure that if you belong to a denominational church, you haven’t heard this teaching. So please listen and understand what this story is saying.
“The Rich Man and Lazarus”
Luke 16:19-31;“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. “The time came when the beggar died, and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
This story is being told by Jesus and it is not a parable as some may suggest. A parable is usually a short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle. This teaching by Jesus is a real event because it names the participants in this story. My question is this, how many of our loved ones that passed away, went to Hades and would love to come back and warn us of the horrors that await those that reject Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Don’t just blow this off as most people do, its reality. Those that are in Hades now are there because they rejected the truth of salvation. Notice, it was their choice to make, as to where they would spend eternity. But I’m sure that if they could come back and relive their lives, they would certainly live to serve Jesus Christ knowing what lies ahead if you don’t. They also know, now that the only way to heaven is through Jesus Christ, not good works. As much as I hate to say this, don’t assume everybody that you know that died went to heaven. See, their choices have been made, we who are still alive have that choice to make. You can make that choice right up to your last beath here on earth, but it is a huge gamble to wait even one more day, because we do not know what tomorrow will bring. It could be the last day for any one of us. As a matter of fact, here is a Bible verse that should wake us all up, especially those that believe that they will all end up in heaven one day.
We read in; Matthew 7:13-14; “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.”
These two verse make it very clear that few will be that go to heaven. As we can see, the gate is narrow which leads to eternal life. You may ask, what is the deciding factor that will determine where we go? Let me mention first, right up front, all those that thought that they were good enough to go to heaven based on their good deeds are in Hades. You can never be good enough to earn your way to heaven.
Here is what the following Bible verse says; Ephesians 2:8-9; 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.”
It clearly states that it is not by good Works! This is the written Word of God, so read it again and let it sink in. You most likely will not hear this teaching in most of the churches of today, unless you attend a church that teaches through the Bible, book by book, chapter by chapter and verse by verse, which very few choose to do.
Let me explain something in a way that will give you a better understanding of the human body from a spiritual perspective. For those of you that have been around a while, you most likely have heard of a computer disk or some other source for storing away important data. If you take a blank computer disk and weight it on a scale, it will weigh about 0.7 oz. If you spend hundreds of dollars and load it with over a million bytes of software, it will still weigh 0.7 oz. Software has no mass. Although it may be resident in a physical system, it has no mass of its own. It can even be transmitted through the airwaves. Our lives are like computer disks. Computer disks have hardware and software. The hardware is tangible, you can touch it and see it. Every computer disk will eventually have software loaded into it. The software is invisible to the naked eye. This is exactly like the human body. Our bodies are something that can be seen, touched and will eventually decay back into the earth in which they came, or at least until the resurrection of the dead, which is another complete study in and of itself. Then we all have software that cannot be seen or touched, which is referred to as our soul. Even though our bodies will eventually decay and rot away in this world, our souls will live on forever. Where ever your soul ends up, you will be very conscious of where you are, and you will be there for all eternity. Know this, time is a physical property: it varies with mass, acceleration, and gravity. Therefore, since software has no mass, it has no time dimension of its own. The real "you" -- call it soul, spirit, or whatever -- is eternal whether you are saved or not. That's the problem. Where will you spend your eternity? The real you is Software, not Hardware! Your software will go on forever in one of two places. If you are being taught that once you die, your body just goes away and there is no afterlife, run as quickly as you can from that church to a church that teaches the truth.
Just something that you should understand also. Our spirits will one day be resurrected, and we will be reunited with a physical body. If you go to heaven, it will be a glorified body, But whatever body you get reunited with, that is the body that you will spend eternity in. While the Scripture gives much detail with respect to the body of the saved, there is absolutely nothing said with respect to the body of the lost. We know they are raised and judged. Yet Scripture is silent as to what form they will assume upon their resurrection.
So, as I started out with this message, The old year is gone, and a new year is starting. Last year at this time, how many people that were here at the beginning of last year are no longer with us today? In the same way, how many people that are here today, will not be next year at this time. Answer, nobody knows but God. My friends, we can live as if we will be here for a long time, which is a huge gamble, or we can choose to live for Christ now and know this, that no matter what day we pass from this life to the next, we will be in the heavenly realm that God prepared for those that would receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and become born again into the Holy Spirit. And yes, you must be born again, as it very clearly states in the following Bible verse. And once again, I will read this because you will most likely not hear this teaching in your denominational church.
Let me share with you this fact in the following Bible verses.
John 3:1-7; “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.”
This is why it is so important that we all read the Bible for ourselves. Since we are not being taught this truth in today’s churches, there will be a lot of people that will not know the truth because their pastors neglected to teach them from the whole counsel of God. There is going to be a lot of weeping and gnashing of teeth as the Bible refers to. Remember what I just mentioned a few minutes ago, “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
Now, let me end with these final thoughts. A New Year is like an ocean. There will be untested winds and waves. We'll meet ships we never knew, and we'll have all kinds of opportunities as we sail into an uncharted seas in our quest to discover the good life. This year, we must be careful that we do not drift aimless into a dead end toad. The worst thing that could happen to us this coming year is that we just let this year happen to us rather than charting a course and getting into God's appointed harbor. More than likely, you won't decide to drift. It'll just happen. You'll be coasting along at a good clip, and then before you know it you're drifting away, that is, unless you have an anchor.
The anchor that you need is the Word of God. Unless you are in the Word of God daily, you will most likely drift away from your spiritual walk. This world is full of distractions that can pull us away and if we do not have a good solid foundation in the true Word of God...we will drift. The Bible speaks of the apostasy “falling away from true Biblical doctrine” in the end days and that is what we are seeing happening today at an unprecedented rate. American Christians are departing from the true Word of God. The Bible indicates that there will be a great apostasy during the end times. The “Great Apostasy” is mentioned in;
2 Thessalonians 2:3; “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, (The day of the Lord) except there comes a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;”
The King James Version calls it the “falling away,” while the New International Version and English Standard Version call it “the rebellion.” And that’s what apostasy is: a rebellion, an abandonment of the truth. The end times will include a full scale rejection of God’s revelation, a further “falling away” of an already fallen world. You see it every day, especially in the social media. You can't even watch a commercial these days that don’t under mind the Word of God. As a young man growing up in the 60’s and the 70’s, I never imagined seeing the evil that is on the television today. Programs that were rated R and even X back then are seen on most channels today. And then we wonder what is happening to our children and society as a whole.
As we enter a New Year, make it a point to set aside a certain time of the day to spend with Jesus. You will be so glad that you did. You can't battle the forces of evil by yourself, you need Jesus in your life to combat the ever growing evil that exists in this world. If you don’t battle the spirits of evil with the right gear, you will conform to this world and all the evil therein. The Bible tells us what we need to do to fend off the wiles of Satan. We read this in;
Ephesians 6: 13-17; “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
Do yourself a big favor, do not leave your house this year without your full armor.
Let me end with this explanation in terms that everybody should understand. If you were a pro football player, would you even think of going out on the filed without your full gear. Dumb question of course, but going out into the world without God’s full armor is much more dangerous. In football you can only hurt the body, in this world, you can lose your soul. We read in;
Matthew 10:28; “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
Take a few minutes to reflect on this past year. What were some things you did right... what are some things you will do differently this next year? You have only one life to live and then eternity. Eternity could start at any moment, please prepare for that moment. It is certain that thousands of people will enter their eternal dwelling place in the upcoming year. For those that choose Jesus Christ, they will be forever with Him in paradise, for those that reject His provision for sin, will find themselves in a completely different dwelling, one I don’t find pleasure in speaking of, so please receive Jesus Christ today and join Gods family of born-again believers that will spend eternity with Him.
And I’ll end with this, And now, May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
May God Bless you in all you do and guide you according to His will in the upcoming year! Amen!
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