Heaven

One God

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Bible Study

One God 

February 26, 2022

“Do not make an idol for yourself—no form whatsoever”  Exodus 20:4 

I’ll never forget the first new car I bought. I was so excited to finally have a brand-spanking new car. Shiny and clean. And I vowed to keep it that way. Even though I had a family and job, my red and white Volkswagen Bus was always clean. Rain or Shine! At a neighborhood meeting, I met a man for the first time who said, “Oh, you’re the guy who washes his bus in the rain. Boy, I thought, he is really dedicated.” 

But that was the wrong description of what I was. I was obsessed. I was inching God a little off His rightful place of worship in my life to make room for my vehicle. I loved a man-made, metal box on wheels. I was dedicated to its well being. “See my shiny new bus? See how dedicated to keeping it clean and shiny I am?” God was not pleased. 

How hard is it for us to let go of things and people we love? Very! But our Heavenly Father understands, which is why he provided Jesus as our Savior, the One who could overcome all the temptations for us. He knew and decided to commit Himself fully to us by sending Jesus to die in our place. “Amazing Grace, how could it be?” And yet, in the middle of His grace and mercy is our choice to be obedient. His death can only cleanse our sins if we choose to follow Him. Choose to be forgiven. And choose to walk in His way. 

Matthew 4:10  “For the Scriptures say, You must worship the LORD your God and serve only Him.”

Matthew 16:24-29  Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

How serious are we about following the Lord? “Here I am Lord, send me!” Is this our stand? Really? Have we counted the cost? 

Matthew 10:32-42  “Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven. 

 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword.  ‘I have come to set a man against his father,  a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.  Your enemies will be right in your own household!’ 

  “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. 

 “Anyone who receives you receives me, and anyone who receives me receives the Father who sent me. If you receive a prophet as one who speaks for God, you will be given the same reward as a prophet. And if you receive righteous people because of their righteousness, you will be given a reward like theirs. And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded.” 

If we were in an audience listening to a person preaching on this subject, as they finished with this section of Scripture there would be silence in the room. Instinctively we recoil from these demands. Say it isn’t so, we quietly murmur. Surely not. God is not like this. He is a God of love. Indeed He is but He demands our absolute loyalty and focus if we are to walk on the path He’s set out before us. 

Life is spiritual and the battle is intense! We are the messengers of the Lord on earth, carrying out our orders from On High. Soldiers in battle are acutely aware of the dangers and keep their senses keenly alert. A moment of lethargy could spell disaster or—death! And that, dear friends, is our life, until the Great and Mighty God calls us home. 

Hebrews 12:1-4  “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. 3 Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.”

Life After Death!

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Life After Death

July 10, 2021

“Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die” ~Jesus

Two men were discussing what happens after death.  One of them said that since they were both Christians, it was certain that they would not really die but pass from this life into the next, living forever with God. The second man, however expressed doubts about that, saying he sure hoped it was true. He had been a Christian for over 40 years!

Are you a Christian? Have you expressed faith in Jesus Christ? If so your sins are forgiven and the Bible promises that you will spend eternity with God. The following are Bible verses that give all Christians assurance of eternal life with God.

John 11:25-26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

John 3:36 “Anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life.”

1 Peter 1:3-5 “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.”

John 10:27-30 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”

John 6:35-40 Jesus replied, “. . .This is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those He has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. For it is my Father’s will that all who see His Son and believe in Him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.”

John 6:47, 51 “I assure you, anyone who believes in Me already has eternal life. Yes, I am the bread of life. . .I am that Living Bread that came down out of heaven.”

Romans 8:38 “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.”

John 3:16 “ God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die.”

It is by faith that we are saved and our sins forgiven. It is by that same faith that we believe in eternal life with our Heavenly Father…without exception.

Commanding Shout!

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“Therefore I will protect you from the time of Great Tribulation” ~Rev 3:10 

“Do you know the next great event on God’s prophetic calendar?” Chris asked his friend, Evan. 

“The tribulation?” 

“Actually this event occurs just before the tribulation.” 

“I guess I’m not sure. I often get the end times stuff mixed up.” 

“The next big prophetic event is…The Rapture!” 

“To tell you the truth, I am a little foggy on how that is supposed to work, Chris. Can you fill me in? Oh, and should I worry about being left behind?” 

“I can give you the ultimate test to see if you will be included in the rapture (if it happens before you die). Answer this question for me and we will know for sure: the Bible says, in Romans 10:13, “For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” Evan, have you called upon the name of the Lord to save you?” 

“Yes. I have. I most certainly have.” 

“Then you will not be left behind; plain and simple.” 

“Praise God. That is a relief. So, go ahead, tell me about the Rapture.” 

“Let me quote Mark Hitchcock’s book, 101 Answers To The Most Asked Questions About The End Times 

The Rapture is that future event when Jesus Christ will descend from heaven and, in a moment of time, resurrect the bodies of departed believers, transform the bodies of living believers immediately into His glorious presence, and then escort them to heaven to live with Him forever. The Rapture is the blessed hope of the church.” 

“When is this supposed to happen?” 

“That is the question for all the ages, Evan. Only God knows the date and time. So we are to look with expectancy…anticipating that at any moment we might hear the mighty shout and trumpet blast calling us home.” 

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-3  

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. 

“We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words. 

“Now concerning how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you. For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. When people are saying, “Everything is peaceful and secure,” then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains begin. And there will be no escape.” NLT 

“There are many teachings about the End Times, Evan, but our primary source should be the Bible. I know that sometimes it is difficult to understand exactly what the verses are saying but, in the Book of James, chapter one, verses 5 through 8, James writes that we can ask God for wisdom and He will answer that request. But we must have faith in God alone.” 

James 1:5-6 

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He wil give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.” 

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 “I tell you this, my brothers: an earthly body made of flesh and blood cannot get into God’s Kingdom. These perishable bodies of ours are not the right kind to live forever. 

But I am telling you this strange and wonderful secret: we shall not all die, but we shall all be given new bodies! It will all happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For there will be a trumpet blast from the sky, and all the Christians who have died will suddenly become alive, with new bodies that will never, never die; and then we who are still alive shall suddenly have new bodies too. For our earthly bodies, the ones we have now that can die, must be transformed into heavenly bodies that cannot perish but will live forever. 

“How we thank God for all of this! It is he who makes us victorious through Jesus Christ our Lord! VACBC 

“So, my dear brothers, since future victory is sure, be strong and steady, always abounding in the Lord’s work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever wasted as it would be if there were no resurrection.” 

“Life in these mortal bodies often brings conflict, sadness, sorrow, uncertainty and discouragement, Evan, which is why verse 18 in 1 Thessalonians, above, is so crucial: So comfort and encourage each other with these words! When a friend, a fellow believer, is at rock-bottom, encourage them with these words! We cannot hear them too often and we need the powerful, life-changing assurance God’s word brings to our souls. Therefore, comfort and encourage each other with these words!” 

The Trumpet Call

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“Therefore I will protect you from the time of Great Tribulation” ~Rev 3:10 

“Do you know the next great event on God’s prophetic calendar?” Chris asked his friend, Evan. 

“The tribulation?” 

“Actually this event occurs just before the tribulation.” 

“I guess I’m not sure. I often get the end times stuff mixed up.” 

“The next big prophetic event is the  Rapture!” 

“To tell you the truth, I am a little foggy on how that is supposed to work, Chris. Can you fill me in. Oh, and should I worry about being left behind?” 

“I can give you the ultimate test to see if you will be included in the rapture (if it happens before you die). Answer this question for me and we will know for sure: the Bible says, in Romans 10:13, “For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” Evan, have you called upon the name of the Lord to save you?” 

“Yes. I have. I most certainly have.” 

“Then you will not be left behind; plain and simple.” 

“Praise God. That is a relief. So, go ahead, tell me about the Rapture.” 

“Let me quote Mark Hitchcock’s book, 101 Answers To The Most Asked Questions About The End Times 

“The Rapture is that future event when Jesus Christ will descend from heaven and, in a moment of time, resurrect the bodies of departed believers, transform the bodies of living believers immediately into His glorious presence, and then escort them to heaven to live with Him forever. The Rapture is the blessed hope of the church.” 

“When is this supposed to happen?” 

“That is the question for all the ages, Evan. Only God knows the date and time. So we are to look with expectancy— anticipating that at any moment we might hear the mighty shout and trumpet blast calling us home.” 

 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-2  

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. 

“We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.

“When is all this going to happen? I really don’t need to say anything about that, dear brothers, for you know perfectly well that no one knows. That day of the Lord will come unexpectedly like a thief in the night.” 

 2 Peter 3:8-13 

“But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.

Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness.”

“Life in these mortal bodies often brings conflict, sadness, sorrow, uncertainty and discouragement, Evan, which is why verse 18 in 1 Thessalonians, above, is so crucial: So comfort and encourage each other with these words! When a friend, a fellow believer, is at rock-bottom, encourage them with these words! We cannot hear them too often and need the life-changing assurance God’s word brings to our souls.” 

I Hope I Make It

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 “The twelve gates were twelve pearls” ~Revelation 21:21

Two friends were talking over lunch when one said, “I just hope I make it through those Pearly Gates!”

“What do you mean?” said his friend.

“Just what I said. I mean I give a tithe in church, well, most of the time. I drive a food truck for meals on wheels. I help my older neighbor keep up his landscaping and I help support a few missionaries through our church. I’m sure that must count to my credit on that final day.”

“I am sure that God delights in your sacrificial giving, Charlie. And those who receive the fruit of your labors are certainly blessed. But what has that got to do with the Pearly Gates of the New Jerusalem?”

“Well, I don’t want to be turned away on that final day. I couldn’t think of anything worse, Bill.”

“So, you think that God keeps a tally for every person who’s ever lived and if their works don’t measure up, they might be turned away at the Pearly Gates?”

Charlie blushed at Bill’s description and felt confused when he heard it described in this way. “I’ve got to admit that when I hear your description, I’m not sure but I am concerned about not getting in. I mean a guy can only do so much and I’m sure God’s requirements are pretty high.”

“The amount of good deeds you and your family accomplish is phenomenal, Charlie, but that has nothing to do with gaining entrance through the Pearly Gates.”

What are you talking about. I’ve heard that said most of my life. How could I be wrong?”

“Let’s back up a bit. First off, how do we know we’re going to spend eternity with God?”

“By believing in Christ as our Savior!”

“Exactly. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9-10). And then, a few verses later it says, “For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

“I get that, of course but we still have to do good works,” said Charlie

“Good works should be a natural outcropping of your new life in Christ, Charlie, not an obligation that assures you of your salvation. Our salvation which brings total forgiveness of sins was given to us freely, not based on our good reputation.”

“Look at Ephesians 2:8-10, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

“There it is, man. We have to do the good things he planned long ago. Clearly if we don’t, no pearly gate entrance,” said Charlie.

“Really? So you think Jesus suffered horribly and died on that cross so we could all get busy and work out heads off to prove how much we love Him, sort of earning our salvation? Charlie, I understand how easy it is to get confused and think we must do works to keep our salvation and on that final day present ourselves at a pearly gate, hoping we did enough to get inside. But it isn’t true. Think about the thief on the cross (Luke 23:42-43). He said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And the Lord said, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” He did not say, I’d like to bring you into paradise but you’ve only done bad works and now it’s too late.”

“What about the woman caught in adultery? After her accusers left in shame, “Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” ~John 8:10-11

“Charlie, there is no moment of truth where we are presented to an angel or Peter, as some of the stories indicate, at one of the pearly gates, asking if we qualify to enter. That is a myth which brings fear and confusion. So who do you think made it up? Obviously not God. Our eternal destination is settled once, for all time, when we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive forgiveness of all sins!

“Well, what about the pearly gate. I know it is mentioned in the Bible.”

“Indeed. Chapter 21 of Revelation describes The New Jerusalem as “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven. Its walls will be 216 feet thick and its length and width and height will be 1,400 miles!

“There will be twelve gates made of pearls— each gate from a single pearl! Its gates will never be closed…Nothing evil will be allowed to enter…but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life!”

Since we believe the blood of the Lamb was shed to save our souls, our names are inscribed in that special Book.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 ~For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.