“ Where will you spend eternity” - Author and Writer Ronald Nelson

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“. . . but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14

ENCOURAGING WORD:

The question that I asked in the beginning of this message, should be the most important question that you could ask yourself. However, I would be willing to bet that 90% of the world population give very little thought about where they will spend eternity. Sure, it may cross every bodies mind occasionally, but they don’t worry about it till death comes knocking at their door. With this being said, it could be to late to worry about at that time.

When I was a child, I never thought about death. I just went on every day thinking that I would live forever. Even growing up in the 70’s and 80’s and into the 90’s I never gave it a thought. I always felt that I was so healthy that I couldn’t die. God definitely blessed me with good health beyond anything I could have hoped for in my life. I say that because very seldom during those days did I ever bless God back, but yet, He still allowed me to live the life style that I was living knowing that one day He would use me for His glory. I look back at so many times that I actually had a brush with death, but never even considered it was God or my guardian angel, or angels that saved me from certain death. I truly believe that we all have a guardian angel or two. I know for a fact that I wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t. If you deny this fact, then maybe you don’t have a guardian angel. God will always protect those that have given their lives over to Jesus Christ. If you haven’t received Jesus Christ or denied the fact that He died for you, then you are under the power of the fallen angels or demonic beings.

But now, as I look out into the world, I see death all over. Loved ones are dying and the obituaries are flooded with people young and old. The other day as I was out and about, I drove by a cemetery. I looked out over the grave sights and a very concerning thought hit me as it had many times before, but this time it seemed a little bit different. When we look out over a cemetery, we all just see headstones or some other kind of marker. But we very seldom do we ever realize that underneath every grave stone or marker, there is a corpse. A corpse that has been there a few days or hundreds of years. Everyone of them have one thing in common though, they are alive somewhere in one of two places…no exception.

According to the Bible most of these people that have passed on are in hades waiting judgment. I often wonder how many people think about that. Their bodies are in the grave, but their souls are either in heaven or hell, no exceptions. I’m going to once again share this very concerning Bible verse with you as I have many times before.

Matthew 7:13-20; “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.”

Why do you think The Holy Spirit would put this in the Bible. I’ll tell you why. First of all, what is the recurring theme that we hear at every funeral. We always hear, “They are in a better place.” Well, its nice to think that way, but in most cases that is a lie from the pit of hell, because Satan wants us all to think we are going to heaven. No so, if you read the verse that I just quoted above.

Satan wants us all to believe that we will all go to heaven regardless of how we live our lives. Actually, from the sermons that I hear from the denominational; churches,  that is what they teach. Satan loves these churches because if he can get everybody to believe that they are going to heaven, then he will be victorious in His mission to deceive millions of people, or should I say billions of people. You are not going to heaven because you are a Lutheran, Catholic or any other sect of Christianity, if that is what you are banking on to get to heaven. Religion has absolutely nothing to do with your salvation.

Read the following Bible verse.  Acts 4:12; “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

For those of you that think you will go to heaven because of the sect of Christianity that you are faithful too, read the above verse again. I don’t see anywhere, where it says you must be a Catholic, Lutheran or any other religion, Do you? Jesus paid the price for all of us, nothing that we can add to it. As a matter of fact, read these two verses that appear at the end of the book of Revelation.

Revelation 22:18-19; “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”

I find it very interesting that the Bible would end with this warning. If you hold your allegiance to any religious sect of Christianity, you will suffer the consequence of your actions according to the verses that I just read. Everything written in the Bible was inspired by the Holy Spirit, so why do so many people ignore what the Bible teaches?

Acts 16:31; “They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

Once again, dos it say anything about belonging to a religion or faith…No! God did not set up any religions. Religions are made up by man. I challenge anybody to find anywhere in the Holy Bible that teaches any different. You can either believe your religious leaders or you can believe the Word of God; you can’t do both. Religion or the Bible?

When you stand at the “White Throne Judgment”, the only one there that will be doing the judging is Jesus Christ, not the Pope, not Martin Luther or any other so-called founding father of some religious sect. All Jesus will be interested in is this, have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and have you been born again into the Holy Spirit. Let me share where this is validated.   

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.’ 

He said this three times in these verses. You Must Be Born Again!

Let me ask you a question if you are putting your faith in any religious sect of Christianity. Have you ever heard this teaching in your selective church. The Catholics might take this out of context and say, “You must be born-again into the Catholic faith.” Once again, please show me where that is written. We must be born again into the Holy Spirit! If you are putting your faith in man, you will be extremely sorry when you stand before Jesus Christ at the “White Throne Judgement.” Know this, these are not truths that you should take lightly. Your salvation is at stake.

For those of you that are being taught that good works will save you, please show me where that is in the Bible as well. Know this, and I say this with extreme sadness, there will be a lot of good people in hell. You may gasp at what I just said, but know this, good to God means perfect in every way, in other words you have never sinned. Good to us has a completely different  meaning.

Here is another Bible verse to validate what I just said.

Romans 3:10-18; “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.” “Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit”; “The poison of the asp is under their lips”; “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; Destruction and misery are in their ways; And the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

So, good luck when you tell Jesus that you believe you should go to heaven because your were good. Wake up, time is running out!

2 Timothy 1:9; “He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time.”

Ephesians 2:8-9; “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”

I’m going to share with new a very interesting parable that I’m sure has never been preached on in any of the denominational churches. If they did, I’m sure that they took it out of the context in which it was written. The parable is “The parable of the ten virgins.”

Matthew 25: 1-13; “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.”

 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’  But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”

First of all, let me explain what the lamps are symbolic of. Everybody who proclaims that they are Christian, has a lamp. That lamp is the church that you attend each and every week. When it speaks of the oil that is in the lamps, oil is always symbolic of the Holy Spirit. The only way for you to have oil in your lamp is by being born again into the Holy Spirit. Once again, read the verses above from John 3:1-7. It states very clearing that we must be born again before we can enter the Kingdom of heaven. So, when you read about the five virgins that weren’t allowed into the marriage supper of the Lamb, its because they were not born again, they never indwelt the Holy Spirit, thus having no oil in their lamps. Those that had oil in their lamps are those that were born again and had the Holy Spirit indwelling in their hearts. So, those of you that attend a certain church every week, know this, it will have nothing to do with your salvation. The churches of today are full of people that have never been born again because the churches of today do not teach that doctrine. Shame on them!  

No, when Jesus comes for the true church at the rapture of the church, he will not find many that are indwelled with the Holy Spirit, thus the verse that say, and there are few who find it.” A few means a few. I personally believe it will be much fewer than we think based on the churches of today. Those of you that do not take a literal view of the rapture of the church, you are already lost because this event will come upon the world like a thief in the nigh, and you won’t be ready. Only those that have their lamps trimmed with be snatched up to meet the Lord in the air. The rest will be left behind to face the most horrific time ever, known as the great tribulation.

Matthew 24: 21;“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.”

This verse is speaking of the great tribulation. For those that have not been taught the truth, you are being deceived just like the Bible says would happen in the end days.

Galatians 6:7-10; “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

If you are rejecting the truth of the rapture of the church, then you are mocking the word of God. As we read through the scriptures of the Bible, there is a common theme about deception in the end days. Wake up, Gods word will not return void. Take a good look at yourself, Are you believing what your church leaders teach or are you believing the word of God. You can’t have it both ways. They are very contrary to each other in many ways. Let me remind you again what we read in; Revelation 22:18-19. If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life,”

For those of you that are being taught that prophecy is not to be taken seriously, know this, you are rejecting 30% of Gods Word. We are living in the days right now where God is warning us that Jesus is coming soon. And when I say soon, I mean soon. The satge is set for the tribulation to begin, which tells us that the rapture is right around the corner and Jesus is at the door. The rapture has to happen before thr tribulation can start, so if the tribulation is right around the corner, that means the rapture is even closer.

Luke 21:25-28; “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.”

You may say, “All these things have been happening for a long time. That’s true, but you have to be brain dead not to see the convergence of all these things happening at once. They are all converging at an unprecedented level like never before. Most people are trying to ignore the evidence of what is taking place because it scares them. Well, if you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, it should scare you to death. This is coming whether you are prepared for it or not. Our salvation depends on our relationship with Jesus Christ. It has nothing to do with how good we are, how often we attend church, or anything out side of your relationship with Christ.

Now, I know that very few people will read this message all the way to the end for the same reason that few will be that find the way. God already knows who will be saved and who will not, so, if you do not take His Word seriously, then you are most likely one that He is not calling because He already knows that you will reject the truth. He already knows how you will receive His Word. If this message speak to you, God is trying to bring you into His family of born again believers. If you choose to ingnor His truth, then go ahead and live life the way you feel. The sad thing is this, If you are living life outside of Gods will, then this is as close to heaven as you will get. If you are born again, then this life is as close to hell as you will get. Keep in mind, those of us that are believers are just passing through, this is not our world.

Let me end with this last truth. God did not give us prophecy to scare us; He gave us prophecy to prepare us. Every time throughout History, God always warned people of upcoming tribulation so they could prepare for it or be saved out of it. God is doing the same thing to day. You can either prepare for what is coming or you can wait util it creeps up and bites you in the butt. You have the choice, make it soon, because tomorrow could be to late.

For those of you that despise the Word of God, and those of us that proclaim the Word of God, read the following verse that I often quote.

John 15:18-21; “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.”

I love these verses because they bring me great comfort. I don’t like being hated or despised, but when I read the previous verses, its God telling me that everything is going to work out for the good for me. I will one day be with Jesus Christ, and my hope is this, that all of you who read this message, will become born again and join Gods family. His family is forever. Please don’t be foolish, give Jesus your life today and know for certain, that you will be forever with Him in an environment that human words cannot even utter and minds cannot imagine.

Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.

The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” Amen!