One ancient writer expressed the brevity of life in this
way, “You’re nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before
disappearing.” My wife and I are
experiencing this on a micro level as it seems our four children became adults
all of a sudden though it took 20 – 25 years.
However, the life to come is forever. It is sobering to realize that there are only
two forever options for every living person.
One is to live forever unconditionally loved by God where all suffering,
pain, sorrows, sickness and death are no more, and the world is the most beautiful
place ever. The other option is to live
forever in a place where there is no love, no relationships, no parties, no
light and none of God’s presence.
The question is who goes where and why?
Many people think that good people are the ones who go to a “better
place” and bad people go to the alternative.
But how good does a person need to be go to this heavenly place?
Let’s look at a few of the 10 Commandments for just a
moment. One commandment says, “Thou
shalt not steal”. Have you ever stolen
anything? Everyone has even if it is a
very small item. That means you will
stand before God one day as a thief and thieves cannot go to heaven. Another commandment says, “Thou shalt not
bear false witness (lie).” Have you ever
lied? Sure you have, even if it was a little
white lie. All liars will stand before
God one day and be judged as one who cannot go to heaven. Let me give you part of the 10th
Commandment. “Thou shalt not covet thy
neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife…” Have ever had a sexually lustful thought
towards another person whether on television, the internet, in your
neighborhood or anywhere else? Every
person has done that more than once. As
a result, you will stand before God guilty of sexual lust. Sadly, no one who has done this, even once,
will go to heaven.
Hopefully you can see that no one is good enough to go to
heaven because we have all broken at least some of the 10 Commandments.
Because God loves you, He wants you to be with Him forever
and has provided a way for you to be there.
You see God loves everyone, but he doesn't accept everyone. He only accepts those who are
acceptable. So how do you become acceptable
to God since no one is good enough?
You may or may not be familiar with what Jesus Christ said
as recorded in the Bible in John chapter 3 verses 16-17. “For God so loved the
world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not
perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to
condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
God loved you personally so much, that He sent His own Son, from heaven to earth, not
to condemn you, but to save you from option 2. The one condition is that you believe in His Son, Jesus
Christ.
Believing in Jesus Christ means that you believe He died on
the cross to take your judgment for your mistakes and sins. You also believe He was buried and on the 3rd
day and He rose from the grave because He conquered death for us. To believe is not just a mental belief. It is also a giving of yourself to Jesus so
you can fulfill the purpose for which you were created. You were placed on this earth for a specific
purpose which may include your present profession.
A relationship with Jesus Christ is not about being
religious but is about learning to have a dynamic relationship with Him. To keep it real, this does not mean your life
will be great after you believe. You
will have problems in this life just like I do and everyone else does. For example, I have a child with Down
syndrome and have lost most of my ability to smell. And because of our problems, we may be
tempted to give up on our belief in Jesus.
Don’t do that. Remember, you are
preparing for the next life not just this one.
Keep the faith in Him.
Would you like to place your faith in Jesus Christ right
now? Don’t say, “I’ll do it later.” This may be your last chance. None of us is assured that we have a tomorrow. Join me and many others who have already
believed. If you are willing to do this,
I have a suggested prayer for you to pray.
I was encouraging a friend one time to place his faith in Jesus Christ when he said, "But I don't feel anything so I don't think I should". I explained that you don't have to have a certain "feeling" to place your faith in Christ. You may or may not “feel” like praying this prayer of belief but
feelings are fickle and they come and go.
In other words, go ahead. Don’t
wait until you feel like it. He did and was forever changed.
Here is the suggested prayer. Just stop for a moment and pray this to God either out loud or silently.
“Dear God, I believe that you love me so much that you sent
Jesus Christ to die for my mistakes and sins.
I believe that He was buried and that you also raised him from the dead.” I not only believe in Him but I surrender my
life to you desiring to discover and live your plan for my life.” Amen.
God encourages you in your prayer above with this Bible
verse. “If you declare with your mouth,
"Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from
the dead, you will be saved.” This is in Romans chapter 10 verse :9.
If you placed your faith in Jesus Christ just now, please
email me at Mark@GraceLifeInternational.com.
You don’t have to. I am not a pastor. I just want to know so I can pray for you and
send you another email about how to grow in this new relationship. I will never use your email for any other
purpose or ask you for money. There is
so much more to understand about your relationship with Jesus Christ and I want
to help you.
God bless you in your new adventure with Him!
Live Free In Christ,
Mark Maulding, President and Founder
www.GraceLifeInternational.com
All Content Copyright © 2013 Mark Maulding
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