Well, day 90 - 3 months in to this little experiment of a series. In case you've jumped in late, or just happen on this post, I have created this series to chronicle 1 year in my life with a picture of the day. Today marks 90 days, or about 3 months. I started it on my birthday, July 2nd, and will end it on my birthday next year, Lord willing.
Today's post of a tape measure is just a catalyst for a question - What are you measuring your chance of eternal life against? A lot of people bank on their goodness, which has nothing to measure it against, only their moral inclinations, which can vary greatly from person to person. Hence the tape measure, it is used to gain a proper and consistent guide to length of an object. You could say that its measurement is "truth" and something used to measure, other than the tape measure, that comes up with a different measurement is outside of that truth. The same hold true with what we are measured against to attain eternal life.
When you ask someone why they have eternal life, are saved, converted or going to heaven, most will tell you it is because of something they did in the past, because they believe in Jesus, they made a decision or their goodness outweighs the bad they have done. But the bible says something different- it says that none are good, that we all fall short of the glory of God and that we are destined to an eternal hell or the second death. We have no hope in and of ourselves. Our "goodness" is measured against the Perfect Lamb, Jesus Christ. On judgment day we will stand before God and have to tell where our hope lies. It will either be in our own "goodness", with hopes that we somehow did enough good in our lifetime to merit eternal life or it will lie solely on Jesus for His sacrifice and His redemptive work on the cross as the Spotless Lamb.
See, we all will go to heaven when we die, but we will all not stay there. On the day of judgment many will stand before the Holy God and proclaim their goodness, saying they healed the sick, done good their whole life, even cast out demons in the Name of Christ. Will that matter? No. Will someones profession that they believed in God be enough? No, even the demons believe and they are smart enough to tremble where they stand. Will feeding the poor trump the lies you told to your parents? Or will giving $5.00 to the Salvation Army take precedence over lying on your taxes? Not at all. If you have told one lie you are under the judgment of God. Saying everyone has lied will not be an excuse, because it will be you and you alone before the Judge.
If you have broken even one single commandment you are doomed, there is no hope in and of yourself. Romans 3:20 says there is none righteous, not even you. Then in Romans 6:23 it says the wages of sin is death, or you are buying your own ticket to hell with your sins against God. But there is hope, a free gift, the gift of Salvation through Jesus Christ. He came to take away the sins of the world, if one would simply trust in Him, believe his Word and repent of their sins, placing all faith and hope in Him for everything. In other words, instead of paying your own way to hell, you can have a free gift to eternal life with God.
Sounds like a no brainer to me. But so many are also deceived by a false gospel these days. So many are influenced by a very man centered message that demands nothing but a "decision" to be made. Men declare other men saved instead of pointing them to scripture to see what God says about that. After the "decide" then they are back to their sin filled lives focused squarely on themselves, thinking nothing of God unless they need something. They may even rededicate themselves to God if they happen upon a good sermon or are in some kind of great need at a moment in their lives - financial needs, marriage issues, addictions, jail time, etc. Then it is right back to the same old purchasing of their eternal ticket in hell. No remorse, no grief over their sins against God, just a whole lot of "me, me, me" and none of God until they are in need of something once again. I know, I was there for 30 years of my life, saying the damning "sinner's prayer" countless times through my life.
How many times have you said that prayer, hoping it would stick this time? How many times you you ask for forgiveness for the same old sins? Daily? Have you ever repented, not just say you are sorry, but turn from your sins to God and lay your life at His feet for His will to be done? Are you your own or are you God's? When you think about eternal life in heaven does it seem boring to you? Do you still focus on what you will be doing to make you happy for eternity? If yes, then you have some issues to work out. I have heard it said that everyone wants to go to heaven, they just don't want God there when they get her. And I would say that is fairly accurate. Most people just want a reunion with their loved ones, be able to eat as much as they want in their glorified bodies, play golf every day, go fishing every day or do whatever else their self centered minds love more than God here on this fallen Earth. They think nothing of Jesus who will be there to tell us of His love for us. They think nothing of sitting at His feet as He tells us the secrets of scripture that we all got wrong. Nothing about God, except as a divine butler to wait on their every want and need for eternity. How twisted is that?
With every post I make on this little ol' blog, I pray that someone will come across it and God will use it to open someones heart to hear His truth. I desire to see my Lord high and lifted up. Am I perfect? Not even close, but my faith is in the One that is Perfect and I want to share that with you all. I want everyone to know the richness of God's grace and love toward them. I have no hidden agenda, I don't want anyone's money or for them to attend a certain church - I am in it for God's glory. May He use this small blog to reach even one person to pour His glory on. Who knows who might be lead here? I may never know this side of heaven, but I know one day Jesus will tell me. If He has been glorified, then I have done what should come natural to any born again believer - I have sown the seeds of God's Word so that He may water and bring forth fruit - to His glory.
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