0807Now Is The Time

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(Blue entries in the meditation are links; clicking on them will take you to the verse(s) in the New International Version; to see the verse(s) in another translation, on that page under 'passage results' where the current entry is 'New International Version' click on the down arrow and select another English version; then click on 'update'. On this page entries in reddish brown are the words of Scripture (NIV). Occasionally links on my page are to another file of mine.

NOW

IS THE TIME

By Cameron Paine

INTRODUCTION

The Bible says, "In the last days scoffers will come,…. They will say, "Where is this `coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." (2 Peter 3:3-4) This is part of the ‘scoffers’ view of history. Their thought is what the world (of unbelievers) believes. But it is not true. Not true.

According to the ‘scoffers view of life and history which says "everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation" the truth or non-truth of that teaching no longer matters to a person when he or she dies. But that is not true. God’s ‘drama’ includes eternity as well as time. God’s ‘drama’ does not end with the viewer’s death but transcends both time and death. Whether an individual believes it or not what God says will take place as planned. The Bible says to believers, "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you (believers) to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming." (2 Peter 3:10-12; see also 1 Peter 1:13)

However it is so easy to be lulled into the ‘scoffers view of history’. So easy. It is so easy that it hard not to be absorbed into the scoffers view of history and life. What individual who is alive on earth has seen or personally experienced the ‘intervention of God in history on a grand scale? Nobody. That is, nobody on earth. Who has seen the flood? Nobody on earth. Have all the learned men and women (scientists) who have studied what they call the laws of physics, chemistry, geology, or biology (etc.) seen or experienced what they believed was the intervention of God? Do their pronouncements indicate that their view of history differs from the ‘scoffers view of history’? Why not believe the ‘scoffers view of history’? Many people held the ‘scoffers view of history and reality’ throughout the time when the Old and New Testaments were written down as is apparent from the language the Bible uses. Why believe the Creator’s view of history and eternity?

What does the Word of God itself say? "Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near." (Revelation 1:3)

What do I and many other believers need to remember?
--that I (and every other person on earth) is living in a phase of God's history that will end when God has purposed that it will end;
--that what I see now has not always been and what I see now will not last forever;
--that even my physical death will not remove me from having to face God’s judgment (when the consequences of my behavior (in intention, word or deed), consequences which will last forever unless transferred to the account of Jesus the Christ--will be set in motion. No event (including my death—the disintegration of my body) can remove me from having to face my God on the Judgment Day. (Daniel 12:2, 13; 2 Corinthians 5:10)

What does God say to believers about that 'day' when time/history, ends and eternity ‘takes over’? That is what the rest of this meditation is designed to bring to the attention of believers. Since I (like every other believer) live in a world in which I am constantly bombarded with the ‘scoffer’s or world’s view of history and reality it is good to fill my mind with God’s words. Why? Because only God’s words present the 'big picture' which includes eternity as well as time. The period of life that precedes the disintegration of the body (‘death’) is only a brief preliminary ‘phase’ of God’s drama. And the event which ends life on earth--death is in the Christian view only the transition from the brief preliminary period of God’s drama to the eternal part of God’s drama.

Why was this meditation written? To remind professing believers not to get caught up in a false view of history--the ‘scoffers’ view of history. Why not? Because God’s plan of history is bigger and truer. Unlike the scoffers view of history and life God’s plan of history, God’s dealing with his people, does not end with death but transcends both time and death.

1^ST HEADING
WHAT WE NEED TO HEAR

What does God do about the reminder which God knows we need to hear? He sets it before us repeatedly. God repeatedly puts it before like the refrain in a song. God’s reminders come in different ‘shapes’ but they always remind believers of the ‘big picture’= God’s drama which includes both time and eternity.

When the same truth of God is presented to our minds over and over again in different forms and in different contexts it just might stick in our minds. And what is that truth that God sets before us again and again? -- 'to be constantly alert, watchful and prepared for that ‘Day’'.

Remember, "The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you (believers) to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming." (2 Peter 3:10-12; see also 1 Peter 1:13)

"It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, `My master is taking a long time in coming,' and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers. That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows." (Luke 12:43-47)

While no one knows (Christ did not know) and the Bible does not tell us when that day will be, in many places the Bible unequivocally states that that ‘day’ will happen and that inevitable events will occur at that time. It is in the context of these momentous event(s) that we again hear God’s constant reminder to be watchful, to be self-controlled, to be alert, to always be prepared for that day.

Two of those different (?) ‘events’ which will happen at that time are these:
---the second coming of the Christ (the ‘parousia’)
---and the ‘day’ of God’s wrath or judgment.
Perhaps these ‘two’ events are really a single event that ‘ends’ history but that event will be a totally different experience for different categories of people--believers vs. unbelievers.

The rest of this meditation lets God’s reminder speak for itself as it is repeated over and over in its various ‘forms’ or categories.

2^ND HEADING
THE ‘TIME’ PHASE OF GOD’S HISTORY WILL COME TO AN END

Remember: the phase of God’s history everybody is living in now will come to an end. 'If'? ‘If’ is not even a possibility. The only unknown is ‘when’. Remind yourself again and again of this fact.

How often the Bible speaks of the end of the period of history in which believers are currently living. How often the Bible speaks of that period of ‘time’ which comes after the period of time we are living in. The period we are living in is a period of grace during which God does not immediately punish individuals for their anti-god thoughts or behavior. That period of time does not last forever. Nor does the absence of a visible judgment of God indicate that God is not offended by that behavior. "What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?" (Romans 9:22)

The moment of decision is now! The time for behavior that honors God is now--during the period of grace. Now is the time for behavior that says ‘I am the child you called out of darkness who wants to please you’.

"This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous" (Matthew 13:49) Do you know which group of people you really belong to (which of course God also knows now and has always known)? How do you know?

What happens on that ‘Day’ which marks the end of history as we know it is a far more significant event that the death of the body. What happens on that ‘Day’ does not affect only people living now. That event bears on everybody whether alive now or who lived in earlier segments of history or who has not yet been born.

When history ‘ends’ the Bible says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." (Daniel 12:2)

It will be a period of God’s history "when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ." (Ephesians 1:10)

While the period or phase of God’s history that is in effect now is the only one we have ever lived in it is not the only period of God’s history that is real.

Jesus’ words are emphatic. "‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus replied, ‘no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life." (Mark 10.29-10:30)

"Jesus said to them (his disciples), ‘I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man (the title Jesus often used of himself) sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." (Matthew 19:28)

Different ‘realities’ will prevail in that future age after death. For example, there will be no more crying or death. There will be no need of sunlight or moonlight because the Lord’s light will prevail. (Revelation 21:4, 23) "But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage," (Luke 20:35) As there will be no more death so also there will be no more procreation! How different that future age will be!

Jesus frequently taught about the future age in parables. Sometimes he explained them more fully to his disciples. Let’s listen to Jesus’ explanation of his parable of the ‘Sower and the Seed’--"and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age " (Matthew 13:39-40)

God said these comforting words to Daniel the prophet: "As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance." (Daniel 12:13) What will he say to me?

"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. … But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness." (2 Peter 3:10-12, 13)

The only period of history we have ever lived in or read about in secular history is clearly not the whole picture. Over and over God’s revelation speaks about a period or age in the future. "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions --it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:4-7)

What were the last words Jesus spoke to his disciples before he ascended into heaven? "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:20)

Everybody is living within God’s history. But there are different segments of it. We are living now in what the Bible calls the ‘last days’. The New Testament which was written down after the coming--the obedience--the sacrificial death--the resurrection of the Christ, says, "But in these last days he (God) has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe." (Hebrews 1:2)

Later in the same book the writer points out that the sacrificial death of Christ occurred in God’s history at the ‘end of the ages’, saying, "But now he (Christ) has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself." (Hebrews 9:26)

Does history come to an end? Yes. Remember there is no possibility that the end will not come. There is no question that what God says will happen will happen. The only unknown regarding the 'end of history' is ‘when’ that 'Day' will come.

3^rd HEADING
GOD’S ‘TIME-SCALE’ IS NOT THE SAME AS OURS

Another awe-producing fact to consider when thinking about how close ‘that day’ is : God’s ‘time-scale’ is totally different from ours.

A way believers are reminded that the life we have always known or read about in history is not the whole picture is to remember that God’s scale of ‘time’ includes both time/history and eternity. God’s ‘time-scale’ therefore does not have to fit into our tiny ‘time-scale’ which is based on our limited experience within only a single phase of God’s drama, that portion of God’s drama called ‘time’ which precedes the death of the body. A truth we often forget that makes God’s warnings or reminders more meaningful, more pointed is that God’s words are not conditioned by, or confined to, our conceptions of ‘soon’ or ‘near’ or ‘quickly’.

"When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong." (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

"But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness." (2 Peter 3:8-9)

What do the scoffers forget? What truth does the Bible says such unbelievers forget or set aside? They forget that this is God's world, God's creation. "They deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men." (2 Peter 3:5-7) Do I too conveniently forget, or set aside this truth?

Don’t think to yourselves, as the scoffers think, ‘things have been going on the same way ever since the beginning of time therefore I have plenty of time to change my ways in the future to please God.’ God’s time scale is not the same as that of people (like myself) who only exist on earth for but for a moment—‘here one moment and gone the next’. Nobody knows when the end, when that ‘day’ will come.

4^th HEADING
THE TRANSITION POINT IN GOD’S ‘DRAMA’ BETWEEN TIME AND ETERNITY
IS COMING

Remember: the ‘day’ which is the transition point in God’s ‘drama’ is coming; the ‘day’ which is infinitely more important than the event which we call ‘death’ is coming. That ‘day’, that ‘day’ is not the end of ‘life’ but is just a transition point to another stage of life (like when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly). For human beings whether believers or unbelievers the transition point to the ‘eternal’ stage is coming.

Like the day of all final exams--get ready for it. Look at the momentous event which God says will occur on that ‘day’. Whether that ‘day’ will be a ‘day’ of extreme rejoicing or the first day of eternal suffering depends upon whether one is a believer or an unbeliever. The time for preparation, the time for decision and the time for making one’s "calling and election sure" (2 Peter 1:10-11), will end abruptly and without warning. God’s written Word expresses this truth thus: ‘that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap’. (Luke 21:34)

Therefore God repeatedly reminds believers not to be lazy but to always be ready’; to be alert, to be constantly watching. When that ‘day’ comes will the Christ who sacrificed his life for me find me busy doing what he commands?

What event in God’s plan marks the end to history as we know it and have experienced it? --The judgment of all peoples when believers and unbelievers will each receive their ‘rewards’ that God purposed to bestow upon such people. This takes place at the time of Jesus Christ’s 2^nd coming when, as it were, 'the eternal' again enters human history

That time will be a ‘day’ of separation of all peoples. For evil doers it will be a time of condemnation and the beginning of their eternal punishment. For God’s people it will be the time to begin enjoying their eternal nheritance--that reward that Christ’s perfect obedience and sacrificial death earned for them.

"The time has come" the Bible says. In the last book of the Bible which speaks of a ‘time’ that is still future to us, we read, "The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great— and for destroying those who destroy the earth." (Revelation 11:18)

"When the Son of Man (the title Jesus often used of himself) comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. "Then the King will say to those on his right, `Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world." (Matthew 25:31-34)

"Then he will say to those on his left, `Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels…. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." (Matthew 25:41, 46)

How any individual will be treated on that ‘day’’ by God depends. Depends upon what? Upon which group of people (believers or unbelievers) any individual belongs to. Whether an individual is a believer depends upon whether that individual is (has been) a recipient of God’s mercy (Romans 9:11-12, 15-16) Are you one of the individuals God called out of darkness into his wonderful light? (2 Peter 2:9) Are you one of the individuals God transformed into an heir to an inheritance of eternal life in his eternal kingdom? (Ephesians 2:6-7; Colossians 1:12-13) If God’s actions on your behalf have made you grateful are you hiding or showing that fact?

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son." (John 3:16-18) What will happen on that day? What will take place on that day of transition? God’s judgment of everyone who has been or is alive.

That ‘day’ will be a ‘day’ of pain, darkness, destruction, death, a day to be feared or dreaded—by every individual who has not been delivered from condemnation because he or she did not trust the substitutionary power of Jesus’ shed blood to pay for his or her sins. Do my actions demonstrate that I am infinitely grateful for God’s actions on my behalf?

The ‘day’ when all this will take place is coming.

At the same time it is the time of Christ’s 2^nd coming (also known as the ‘parousia). For believers it will be a day of light, a day of rejoicing, a day of salvation. Believers are individuals who do believe in the efficacy of Christ’s blood to cancel out the consequences of his or her sins. (Psalm 32; 1-2; 103:10-12, 17; 1 Peter 1:15)

"For he says, 'In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.' I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 6:2)

The apostle Paul in his letter to the believers in Thessalonica said this: "According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words....But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 5:8-11)

5^TH HEADING
THE CHARACTER OF THAT ‘DAY’

Does looking at the character of that ‘day’ give me reason to think about my life, my record? Does thinking about the character of that ‘day’ make me glad or make me squirm when I think about the extent to which it reflects an obedient response to God in gratitude to God for his laying my sins on Christ and thereby qualifying me "to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light." (Colossians 1:12)?

Is my mind filled with images of what that day will be like? Can looking at descriptions of that day have any affect on believers other than to cause every believer who looks at it to shudder and to feel that the time we have to make [our] election sure (to ourselves) is precious and needs to be made good use of. (2 Peter 1:10)

"How awful that day will be! None will be like it. It will be a time of trouble for Jacob, but he will be saved out of it." (Jeremiah 30:7)

"Alas for that day! For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty." (Joel 1:15)

"For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause." (Isaiah 34:8)

"The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?" (Joel 2:11)

"See, the day of the Lord is coming —a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger— to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it." (Isaiah 13:9)

Definitely not a time to be taken lightly!---

"For the day is near, the day of the Lord is near— a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations." (Ezekiel 30:3)

"The ruthless will vanish, the mockers will disappear, and all who have an eye for evil will be cut down—" (Isaiah 29:20)

"The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled)," (Isaiah 2:12)

"The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." (Joel 2:31)

"Therefore the LORD's anger burns against his people; his hand is raised and he strikes them down. The mountains shake, and the dead bodies are like refuse in the streets." (Isaiah 5:25)

How awesome to be present as such a time!

"Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is close at hand— a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and
blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was of old nor ever will be in ages to come." (Joel 2:1-2)

"Men will flee to caves in the rocks and to holes in the ground from dread of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth." (Isaiah 2:19)

"They will flee to caverns in the rocks and to the overhanging crags from dread of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth." (Isaiah 2:21)

"The great day of the Lord is near— near and coming quickly. Listen! The cry on the day of the Lord will be bitter, the shouting of the warrior there. That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness," (Zephaniah 1:14-15)

The ‘final exam’--"The arrogance of man will be brought low and the pride of men humbled; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day," (Isaiah 2:17)

"At the time of your appearing you will make them like a fiery furnace. In his wrath the Lord will swallow them up, and his fire will consume them." (Psalm 21:9)

"Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire," says the Lord Almighty. "Not a root or a branch will be left to them." (Malachi 4:1)

To imagine such a time takes my breath away!

"The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: "Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?" (Isaiah 33:14)

"You have rejected me," declares the Lord. "You keep on backsliding. So I will lay hands on you and destroy you; I can no longer show compassion." (Jeremiah 15:6)

"You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell." (Psalm 5:4)

"‘Because you did not remember the days of your youth but enraged me with all these things, I will surely bring down on your head what you have done, declares the Sovereign Lord. Did you not add lewdness to all your other detestable practices?" (Ezekiel 16:43)

"This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. "(2 Thessalonians 1:7-10) (On that ‘Day’ will my record be one of thankful obedience?)

6^TH HEADING
GOD HAS TOLD BELIEVERS WHAT HE VALUES AND WHAT THE
RECORD OF OUR ‘BEHAVIOR’ SHOULD SHOW ON THAT ‘DAY’

What God values is not the same as what mortals value. To recognize this difference is absolutely essential. The Bible illustrates this fundamental difference in many ways.

The Ineradicable Distinction

God’s ultimate concerns never pass away or become irrelevant. Unlike worldly concerns God’s concerns do not become non-existent or irrelevant when my body dies.

God’s statements about what to focus on or what to watch out for are themselves reminders that life now on earth is only part of the big picture, just a preliminary part of God’s plan, God’s drama. God’s statements about what to focus on or what to watch out for bring to mind the ineradicable distinction between what God considers ‘treasures’ and what unbelievers see as ‘treasures’--the fleeting earthly pleasures or momentary achievements in this world that sinners may seek or covet as long as the body is alive. But what is ‘success’ in God’s eyes is entirely different.

Treasures On Earth Or Treasures In Heaven

What God values is not the same kind of ‘thing’ as earthly treasures. God brings out this contrast, the contrast between earthly concerns, earthly treasures and the gospel message, saying,

"but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." (Mark 4:19) Am I ready to appear before my maker?

Jesus said, "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand." (John 10:28) What a meaningless declaration this is if my existence and that of any believer ceases when the body disintegrates!

"O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well." (Luke 12:28-31)

Jesus illustrated this truth with a parable "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, `What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, `This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, `You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?‘ This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." (Luke 12:17-21)

The apostle Paul addressed these words to his protégé (Timothy) "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." (1 Timothy 6:17-19)

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." (1 Timothy 6:11-12)

Righteousness; Holiness

What really concerns the Creator of this world whom we call God –is righteousness, is holiness, values or qualities that have no meaning or definition apart from God. In this world ‘righteousness’ and ‘holiness’ are not values in themselves but are nothing more than means to ends. But with God there is nothing more fundamental than righteousness, holiness--Godly intentions, Godly thoughts, Godly behavior. Blamelessness. (Ephesians 1:4; Jude 1:24; Matthew 6:33)

"Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death." (Proverbs 11:4)

"Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the Lord’s anger." (Zephaniah 2:3

"For the moth will eat them up like a garment; the worm will devour them like wool. But my righteousness will last forever, my salvation through all generations." (Isaiah 51:8)

God himself said, "Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are righteousness and strength.’ ‘All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame." (Isaiah 45:22-24)

In the New Testament after the coming of the Lord, after the obedience of the Lord, after the sacrificial death of the Lord, and after the resurrection of the Lord, the Lord’s apostles repeatedly set forth the importance of righteousness.

The apostle Peter said, "But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. (2 Peter 3:13)

The apostle Paul said, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." (Romans 14:17)

"When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness." (Romans 6:20)

The apostle Paul said, "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" (Galatians 2:21)

Jesus himself said, "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things (necessities for living on earth) will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33)

The apostle Paul addressed these words to his protégé (Timothy) "For the love of money (a commodity of earth) is a root of all kinds of evil. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." (1 Timothy 6:11-12)

At the time the apostle Paul believed that his mission on earth was nearly over he said, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

The other term that the Bible uses when speaking of God’s ‘other worldly’ values is ‘holiness’.

In Old Testament times God said to his people, "You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own." (Leviticus 20:26)

"‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God." (Leviticus 20:7)

The vital importance of this concept or state of being is reasserted many times by Jesus’ disciples, his apostles, in the New Testament.

"But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;" (1 Peter 1:15)

"To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours" (1 Corinthians 1:2)

The Word of God states that this purpose of God for his people was in God’s mind from the beginning, saying, "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight." (Ephesians 1:4)

The possession of this ‘quality’ (holiness) is not just a pretty addition but is an absolute necessity, an indispensable attribute.

"Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14)

Apart from God who is holy, apart from the Holy Spirit, righteousness and holiness have no independent existence any more than a thought has existence without a thinker

The Response That The Eternal God Wants To See (‘obedience’) Is Not An Option

Behaving like a Christian now, behaving like an individual whom God called out of darkness now, is not an option for any believer anymore than disregarding God is an option or avoiding the consequences God has ordained is an option.

"Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." (Galatians 6:7-10)

The record of stubbornness and an unrepentant heart will not go unnoticed. "But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed." (Romans 2:5)

When history ‘ends’ the Bible says, "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." (Daniel 12:2)

"This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous" (Matthew 13:49)

Let’s listen to Jesus’ explanation of his parable of the ‘Sower and the Seed’--"and the enemy who sows them is he devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age " (Matthew 13:39-40)

Is My Mind Filled With Images Of The Consequences Or Cost Of Not Behaving As God Wants?

What do people who do not believe the truth have to look forward to? "Their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." (See the complete verse quoted below) Belief and unbelief are opposites; they do not both lead to the same results. They do not lead to the same destinies. "But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." (Revelation 21:8; see also John 3:36; Matthew 10:28)

Could any statement in the word of God be any clearer or more frightening than this? Now is the time to shape up. Now may be the last moment I have to show my gratitude to God by heeding his words.

"For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death." (Romans 7:5)

"You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ." (Romans 8:9) What a horrible thought! What a terrible destiny lies ahead of individuals who were never called out of darkness! (Revelation 21:8, above)

"His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire." (Matthew 3:12)

"For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done." (Matthew 16:27)

"All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." (Matthew 25:32)

"‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless. "Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ "For many are invited, but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:12-14)

"The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. "At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ "No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. "Later the others also came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they said. ‘Open the door for us!’ "But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’" (Matthew 25:5-12)

"But suppose the servant says to himself, `My master is taking a long time in coming,' and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers." (Luke 12:45-46)

"This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you." (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10)

"And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books." (Revelation 20:12)

"If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:15)

"Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous." (Psalm 1:5)

"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1 Corinthians 15:58)

Godly behavior is not an option. We can choose not to do what God wants but we cannot avoid the consequences that God has connected to our choice, consequences in this world and/or in the next. Believers cannot avoid the consequences of their choices anymore than they can avoid injury or death if they choose to step out a high window of a tall building. (But God can--and has--chosen to show mercy to some people by 'laying' the consequences of their actions on Jesus Christ. This is the gospel. (Romans 9:11-12, 15-16)

When that ‘day’ comes our record has, as it were, already been written ‘in stone’. When that 'day' has come it is too late for any additions or changes to be made or to show our gratitude to God for his mercy.'. Act now.

God’s Reminder: Act Now--While We Still Have The Opportunity
To ‘Behave’ As God Commands Us To Do

"So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did. That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.’ So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’ " See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God." (Hebrews 3:7-12)

"Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?" (Hebrews 10:28-29)

"See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?" (Hebrews 12:25)

"These things happened to them (the Israelites who had left Egypt) as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come." (1 Corinthians 10:11)

"How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth!" (Psalm 47:2)

"Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it." (Hebrews 4:1)

"See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many."
(Hebrews 12:15)

"We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first." (Hebrews 3:14; see also Matthew 10:28)

"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?" (James 2:14)

"You see that his (Abraham’s) faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did." (James 2:22)

"And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed?" (Hebrews 3:18)

Not everyone who displays some of the ‘trappings’ of holiness are among the saved. Not everyone who displays some of the ‘trappings’ of holiness have been "called ... out of darkness into his wonderful light" (1 Peter 2:9) or been delivered "from the dominion of darkness and brought ...into the kingdom of the Son he loves." (Colossians 1:13)

"Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, `I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' " (Matthew 7:21-23; see also (Matthew 22:12-14)

"Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness’." (2 Timothy 2:19)

Obedience is not an option. How many reminders do we need? What did Jesus say to the religious leaders of the Jews? "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, `We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." (Matthew 3:7-10) Shudder!

"If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned." (John 15:6) Shudder!

"And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 25:30)

No, obedience is not an option. Obedience is obligatory whether or not a person wants to do it. (Matthew 3:10)

Being Obedient Is A Deliberate Action Which Demands Both
Purpose And Effort

Distinguishing between the ‘real thing’ and an imposter is not self-evident. Jesus said, "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them." (Luke 21:8; see also 1 John 4:1)

Effort is required to discern the truth. Effort is required to distinguish between truth and error; to discern what is the will of God in particular situations. Believers must test the spirits. Doing so takes effort—repeated efforts which we call practice. (Hebrews 5:14)

"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them…You also must be ready, because the Son of Man (the title Jesus often used of himself) will come at an hour when you do not expect him." (Luke 12:35-37, 40)

"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows." (Luke 12:47-48)

Over and over the warning is heard: "Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come." (Mark 13:33)

‘Self-control’

Self-control is the quality, which according to God’s writers of the New Testament, characterizes Christian behavior. And it is ‘self-control’ that points to the ‘deliberateness’ of Christian behavior. Christian behavior does not just happen. It is exerted.

"So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled." (1 Thessalonians 5:6)

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." (Colossians 4:2)

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8)

"But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet." (1 Thessalonians 5:8; see also Ephesians 6:10-17)

"Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self- controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed." (1 Peter 1:13)

"Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed." (Revelation 16:15)

In the apostle Peter’s list of Christian ‘qualities’ which believers should possess ‘in increasing measure’ self-control--which is the application of knowledge—comes right after ‘knowledge’. The apostle said, "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love." (2 Peter 1:5-7)

Self-control has to be exerted now, not when I no longer have the choice. Self-control has to be exerted now, not when my record has been made and I stand before the judgment seat on that ‘Day’.

"But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. …But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 5:4-6, 8-9)

What does the Bible say about the character that the believers who should be examples to the congregation ? What does the Bible say about the character that the believers who are leaders in the congregation should have?

"He must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined." (Titus 1:8)

"Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach," (1 Timothy 3:2)

In his last meeting with the leaders, the elders, of the Church in Ephesus the apostle Paul laid this command upon them: "Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood." (Acts 20:28)

In the apostle’s letter to the congregation(s) in Galatia he wrote: "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galatians 5:22-24)

The time for decision and the time for making one’s "calling and election sure" (2 Peter 1:10-11), will end abruptly and without warning. God’s written Word expresses this truth thus: ‘that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap’. (Luke 21:34)

How must I use the time God has given me? By doing what he says! My salvation or inheritance of eternal life, immortality is not dependant my obedience. No mortal’s obedience could earn or merit salvation. (James 2:10) My salvation or inheritance of eternal life, immortality is the result of God’s action--his being merciful to me by putting my sins on Jesus. My doing what pleases God is only my response, my demonstration of gratitude.

"And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." (Colossians 1:10)

"May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (Hebrews 13:20-21)

"To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he (God) will give eternal life." (Romans 2:7)

"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?" (James 2:14)

"You see that his faith (Abraham’s) and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did." (James 2:22)

Being a conscientious servant is not an automatic response; it requires thought and deliberate effort. Nobody is swept into heaven as by an irresistible force.

"But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh." (Jude 1:17-23)

It is to God that each of us must look to for mercy, for salvation. We deserve death. But God had and has other purposes for us. (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10)

On the very night when Jesus the Christ knew he was going to be betrayed into the hands of his religious enemies and would be crucified, he told his disciples, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." (John 14:1-3)

What does the Bible say? After setting forth a list of Christian virtues the apostle Peter says, "For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. … Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:8, 10-11)

The time for decision and the time for making one’s "calling and election sure" (to oneself) (2 Peter 1:10-11) is now-before the judgment day.

While how a believer behaves earns no credit toward salvation (the mercy of God cannot be earned!) it reveals a lot about whether a concern to please God is in the heart that individual. Do I really want to please God? Do I really want to make my ‘calling and election sure (to myself)? The all-knowing God is already sure; he already knows the individuals that are his. (2 Timothy 2:19)

Whether I want it to happen or not how I behave in the present will reveal how I think. It ‘tells’ God, and may suggest to believers (including myself) whether or not I am one of those people God "called …out of darkness into his wonderful light," whether I am one of those individuals "the Father …has qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light." (1 Peter 2:9; Colossians 1:12).

How I behave in the present shows me what is in my heart. What is in my heart matters greatly. What is in my heart determines whether I have reason to expect that when Jesus the Christ comes on that ‘day’ he will say to me, ‘Well done good and faithful servant’ (Matthew 25:21)

CONCLUDING REMARKS

How great is the need of God’s reminders! What person does not need to hear God’s reminders if throughout his or her life on earth that person has been continually immersed in a dark world, a world of unbelievers, a world that believes the ‘scoffers view of history’? And who hasn’t grown up in such world?

Junk food does not sustain the body for long. Nor do the erroneous beliefs and declarations of mortals carry great weight. Why not? Because they are sinners who have never lived for more the tiniest moment of ‘time’ and, even more importantly, because they --who have never seen the reality that is beyond death--cannot have an eternal perspective.

The Bible warns us about following such people, saying, "But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, ‘In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.’ These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit." (Jude 1:17-19)

Yet the power of residual sin in the believer is sobering. Who has never entertained the ‘scoffers’ belief that because there has been no ‘day’ of wrath or day of judgment for thousands of years there won’t be any? (2 Peter 3:5-7) It is difficult not to be influenced by observation, by reading history, by seeing movies etc., not to think ‘throughout history generations have come and gone. Why should I think that the generation I am in is different? Therefore, why should’nt I feel there is little chance that history will not continue for the rest of my life on earth and afterwards?

What will life be like in the ‘last days’—the period of time between Christ’s first coming (when Christ lived an obedient life, died a sacrificial death and rose again) and Christ’s second coming (Matthew 16:27)? : "But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power." (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

It is so easy to fall into thinking and believing the ‘scoffers view of life and history’ which says that life continues as it always has from the beginning. To be caught up in such a way of thinking is deadly. If you want you can believe the ‘scoffers view of life and history’ until the predetermined season that precedes that ‘Day’ comes to an end. If you want you can believe the ‘scoffers view of life and history’ until when, as the Bible says, "that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap". (Luke 21:34)

However, by the time that ‘day’ comes no unbeliever or professing believer will have the power to create a new record or change his or her existing record.

How many people on earth act as if they did not fear death—the very thing that the gospel message says has been over come? (Hebrews 2:15) How many people on earth are not shaken by thoughts of death—that event which is the absolute end of life in the scoffer’s view of life and history but which in God’s ‘drama’ it is only a transition point to another stage of ‘life’, the stage that lasts forever? (Is it possible to fear death and be a believer in the efficacy of Christ’s death to have earned eternal life at the same time?) (John 10:25-28; 1 Corinthians 10:53-54)

Don’t be like the ‘scoffers’; Instead "prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’ " (1 Peter 1:13-16)

The present time is precious. It is not a time to be lazy or be asleep. There is no time to let down my guard as if I were on a coffee break’. There is no time when, as it were, any Christian is ever ‘off duty’ ‘Be always ready’; The Bible does not say ‘sometimes be ready’ or ‘occasionally be ready’. No, it says ‘always be ready’, ‘always be alert’, ‘always be watchful’.

What does the Lord say over and over again? "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come." (Matthew 24:42)

God tells me that even if the day of the Lord does not come today, today may still be my last moment to believe and to be doing what pleases the Lord who redeemed me because I may not be on earth after today. (James 4:13-15)

BELIEVE THE MESSAGE NOW! DON’T DIE

"Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling." (Psalm 2:11)

"Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation,…Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men (like the 'scoffers'!) and fall from your secure position." (2 Peter 3:11-15, 17)

"Therefore," says the apostle Paul to the believers in Philippi, "continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. (Philippians 2:12-13)

And again, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far " (Philippians 1:21-23)

The Bible describes the incredible position God has put believers—his people—in. It says, "All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future--all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God." (1 Corinthians 3:21-23)

"Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully." (2 John 8)

"Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." (Hebrews 10:35-36; see also Matthew 24:13)

Jesus’ teachings couldn’t be clearer-- "‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus replied, ‘no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them,’ persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life." (Mark 10.29-30)

"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1 Corinthians 15:58)

Remember the last words of the apostle Paul. "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

This is God’s world. His ‘drama’ includes both time and eternity. Therefore it is not just what happens in 'time' that concerns us. God's attitude towards us doesn't cease to be important when our bodies die. The Bible says--"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10:28; see also Luke 12:37-38, 43)

"Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come." (Mark 13:33)

"But Since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet." (1 Thessalonians 5:8; see also Ephesians 6:5, 8, 12-13)

Now, before my earthly life ends and before that ‘Day’ comes, is the time to believe and behave. Please God now. Say thank you now. Don’t wait.

"To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy-- to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen." (Jude 1:24-25)

(If you appreciate what you read here please tell your friends about this URL and sign my guest book on the homepage. Also, if, as you read any of the meditations, you feel you know of a situation that beautifully illustrates any of the points made I would be delighted to learn of it. I might incorporate it.) mailto:camppp21355@comcast.net

If you wish to pursue your own study on issues (thoughts) raised or on the Scripture verses used try these links: The Goshen Bible Study Tools or Translate 2012 Bible Study Tools. An additional translation with many notes can be found at Net Bible. To search for recent related sermons, sermon outlines, articles, devotions and topical sermons go here: Sermon Links.com

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