Posted on 02/15/2020 4:49:24 PM PST by pastorbillrandles
What would I say , if I was given a chance to totally communicate freely with everyone I have ever loved; My brothers, sisters, cousins, friends, acquaintances, former church members, even my enemies ? What would I say if I was given a chance to before I die to put into the barest form, what I long for you to realize?
What are my essentials?
I believe I should be succinct. I will give you seven things I hope you don’t die without knowing personally,
First of all; That Jesus died for us as a substitute, on the cross.
I used to look at the crucifix in front of the Czeck Catholic church I was brought up in, St Ludmila’s, and often pondered ‘ Why is He doing this?’ and ‘What should my reaction be to it? Am I to feel guilty? Am I to denounce the pleasures of life? ‘
It wasn’t until my 18th year that I commenced reading the scriptures, prayerfully, and found this gem of a revelation,
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.( 2 Corinthians 5:21)
Secondly I wish you all knew that we must be born again at some time in our adult life, in order to be reconciled to God.
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ( John 3:3)
Personally I had never heard of the term ‘Born Again’ until 1976 when Jimmy Carter ran for President. He was a self confessed ‘born again’ Christian. A couple of years later I saw the term when reading the third chapter of the Gospel of John.
What does it mean that Jesus tells us that we ‘must be born again’, in order to see and enter into the Kingdom of God?
Simply this, that we are not right with God as we are by natural birth, we are all fallen by nature and must receive the gift of God, at some point in our life as thinking and deciding persons. No one can do it for you, (infant baptism will not save you) the only way to be born again, is to believe on the Son of God, whom God sent to die for our sins.
Thirdly I would wish that everyone I know, or have ever known would realize thatwe are all heading for a Divine Judgment, either after we die, or at the end of all things.
God is good, and loving, but also He is Holy. There is coming for all of us day of reckoning, all of our sins, thoughts, Words and actions will be evaluated on that day, even the secrets of our hearts!
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.( Rev 20:11-15)
The standard of that Judgment cannot be anything less than perfect Righteousness, complete conformity in each and every way to what is good, true and right.
Who can say they would be able to pass such a judgment? Who among us is righteous?
The fourth thing I would wish my friends knew, is that The Righteousness God demands, is also a gift He is willing to give to those who turn to him and believe…
This is the meaning of the cross of Jesus. He took our place in judgment, the prophet Isaiah proclaimed that,
The logic of salvation is substitution, Jesus took our place and suffered our punishment as a sinner, to reconcile us to God.
Above all, Fifthly,I wish you all knew Jesus. Jesus is real, alive, and can be known and loved. He has risen from the dead, and is seated at the Right hand of God, but he is coming again.
Oh that you would come to know JESUS, the Savior and LORD, and the only mediator between God and man!
We know Jesus, he speaks to us through his Word, and has sent his Spirit to help us in our path. We have never seen Him but we love Him and await his second coming.
Sixthly I think you should know the truth about the World. The Bible has a lot to say about it, but let me clear up possible confusion. I am not speaking of the earth, nor am I even speaking of all of the people of the World.
The expression “the World” is a spiritual reference to human society as it organizes itself without God or without reference to or dependance on God. It is the Kingdom of man into which we were all born and bred.
The World is not going to be improved, it is under a Judgment, the sentence hasn’t been passed yet, but the World is under a cloud of Divine Judgment.
Man’s pride and independence from God is almost at it’s zenith, we can see it manifest in such things as the wanton slaughter of abortion, and the willful sexual anarchy expressed in open homosexuality and even transgender madness.
We are told that the time of the second coming will be very similar to the times such as before the flood of Noah and the destruction of Sodom and Gommorah. The new Ark is Jesus, those who enter into faith in Him will be lifted up out of the judgment about to break out.
Oh that people would fear God and remove themselves n Spirit from this mad, defiant, God rejecting World!
Finally I wish you knew that there is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun. There are only two options, there is no purgatory nor is their annihilation. We all bear the Image of God, thus we shall all last forever. Jesus loved you so much he came down from his place in heaven to die for your sins.
It is in the simplicity of believing into Jesus, what he did for us and who he is, and confessing him with your mouth, that you can be saved, forgiven, born again, and launched out into a new and beautiful life with Him. I did it when I was 19 years old, I asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and to come into my heart, and take over my life. It is real dear friends, brothers, sisters, cousins, people I have met along the way…
“Whosoever will call upon the Lord shall be Saved…” Romans 10:13
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