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ARE YOU READY or Just Playing Games?
ARE YOU READY FOR CHRIST? HE IS READY FOR YOU! Robbie L. Rogers
I once heard a man speak. He was one of the few survivors from one of the worst plane crashes in this country’s history. It was a fully loaded 747 that crashed on a landing, bursting into flames. He was burned badly, yet, helped some passengers escape. What would you do in times of emergency? Most did not panic like you would suppose. Instead they simply sat there, refusing to recognize the condition they found themselves in. Frozen, without hearing. Refusing the urging he gave to them to move. To get up and save themselves . Instead they perished. The last recorded words of the captain who was flying the aircraft were those of cursing God. Many who perished were Christian. Many were not. Some might have been praying. We don’t know. The survivors were all changed, wondering why they were spared. One man desperately tried to save many; instead he realized he could only save some. Enveloped in flames he ran through the isles and climbed over seats. He shouted, not in vain cursing God, instead he proclaimed scripture, the word of God. Matthew 25:6-13 "At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and welcome him!’ "All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps. Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’ But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’"But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘sir, open the door for us!’ But he called back, ‘I don’t know you!’ "So stay awake and be prepared, because you do not know the day or hour of my return." What we are told here is, first, be ready for we know not when the hour comes, secondly don’t let those around you who claim to be ready steal your inheritance by false teachings and unrighteous acts, instead stand ready according to the word of God. There are now overwhelming numbers of people who are attempting to water down the message and reality of Christ, saying there really is no sin. They portray sinful living as righteousness by simply saying Jesus did not really mean what He said; He meant this and that. They are claiming that living in sin according to all the scriptures is not a problem with God, that in fact He embraces their lifestyle. They will find out that in the end the rewards for such lies is damnation into eternal death. Matthew 25:31- 46 "But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate them as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. Then the King will say to those on the right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’"Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ And the King will tell them, ‘I assure you, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’"Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his demons! For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me anything to drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me no clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’"Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’ And he will answer, ‘I assure you, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life."Jesus is saying here that many will say, in the later times, "Didn’t we feed and cloth you?" But, Jesus who will judge the world, knows his sheep, and His sheep will know His voice. Jesus, I believe, is speaking directly to those who are doing the pulling aside when He says I do not know you. Nevertheless, He is also speaking to those who were drawn aside and believed they were doing His work but living the lifestyle of a sinner. The worst condemnation will of course be upon those people in leadership positions in such churches. Scriptures tell us better a milestone tied around their neck than to harm a little one. He was speaking about His children as little ones there. How can we be ready? How can we find the peace that passes all understanding; that saving grace that saved a retch like me, even from a sure death. I want to ask you a profound question, what is the difference between a stinky sheep and stinky goat? What, you say? You gotta be kidding! Yeah, well... I must confess, I at times feel as though I am a wet and stinky goat in sheep's clothing. Many of the qualities of a goat I seem at times to possess. Those holy sheep, however, sometimes follow the leader, like a buffalo, right off the cliff, I think.
Goats don’t do that, do they; they go their own way, doing what they want to do. Not only that, they rebel against the intrusion of any form of leadership. They butt whoever they want whenever they feel like it, they eat what they want when they want, and basically, oh oh, personify the American way of life. Do it to the hilt, your way, we Americans say. Are you ready for the football? Still some goats faint, feet stiff in the air; and, out of fear they do nothing. They don’t hear God or stand on His word. They cling to their own understanding. Two opposite ends of the stick wouldn’t you say, goats and sheep. Jesus is speaking metaphorically here and not considering us as hard headed people who go around butting into each other or fall off cliffs because of poor leadership.... or is He? Do you feel that way? The way of a goat, or a sheep? I guess we all often feel like a close relative to the goat. Remember the cute little guy from Greek fables, he plays the pan flute like Zamfir, he is half man and half goat isn't he. Many believe he was Satan. No matter, as God’s sheep we will not be fooled. We will know Jesus’ voice... won’t we? Jesus IS not talking about us blindly following leadership; but, He is talking about doing so with God, in all things having faith, in all things believing in the direction God leads us, no matter what. Like sheep following the Good Shepard... because we trust Him and His leadership. John 10:1-16 "I assure you, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber! For a shepherd enters through the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they recognize his voice. They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t recognize his voice." Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn’t understand what he meant, so he explained it to them. "I assure you, I am the gate for the sheep," he said. "All others who came before me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. Wherever they go, they will find green pastures. The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness. "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will leave the sheep because they aren’t his and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. The hired hand runs away because he is merely hired and has no real concern for the sheep. "I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice; and there will be one flock with one shepherd. "The Father loves me because I lay down my life that I may have it back again. No one can take my life from me. I lay down my life voluntarily. For I have the right to lay it down when I want to and also the power to take it again. For my Father has given me this command." Speaking of
hearing His voice, remember, you must know the character of God, Jesus,
and the Holy Spirit through reading the word and having direct a
fellowship with them through prayer, communion through the breaking of
bread at the alter, and by reading the Bible, God’s word. Remember too that we are promised that Jesus will not lose one of us, He has promised all mighty God that fact. That means you and me, doesn’t it? John 6:35-51 Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. No one who comes to me will ever be hungry again. Those who believe in me will never thirst. But you haven’t believed in me even though you have seen me. However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do what I want. And 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 to eternal life 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—that I should raise them at the last day."Then the people began to murmur in disagreement because he had said, "I am the bread from heaven." They said, "This is Jesus, the son of Joseph. We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?" But Jesus replied, "Don’t complain about what I said. For people can’t come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them from the dead. As it is written in the Scriptures, ‘they will all be taught by God. Everyone who hears and learns from the Father comes to me. (Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only I, who was sent from God, have seen him.) "I assure you, anyone who believes in me already has eternal life. Yes, I am the bread of life! Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. However, the bread from heaven gives eternal life to everyone who eats it. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; this bread is my flesh, offered so the world may live." Now bearing that scripture in mind, if God is on your side, what can mere man do? What can death hold over you. It is merely a barrier to cross. God has promised he will not dessert you, no matter what. Roman 8:31. "What can we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?" Not only that... remember we are promised that we will sit on the judgment seat with Jesus to judge the world and the angels too. 1 Corn 6:2—11 "Don’t you know that someday we Christians are going to judge the world? And since you are going to judge the world, can’t you decide these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we Christians will judge angels? So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disagreements here on earth. If you have legal disputes about such matters, why do you go to outside judges who are not respected by the church? I am saying this to shame you. Isn’t there anyone in all the church who is wise enough to decide these arguments? But instead, one Christian£ sues another—right in front of unbelievers! To have such lawsuits at all is a real defeat for you. Why not just accept the injustice and leave it at that? Why not let yourselves be cheated? But instead, you yourselves are the ones who do wrong and cheat even your own Christian brothers and sisters. Don’t you know that those who do wrong will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, who are idol worshipers, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexuals, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, abusers, and swindlers—none of these will have a share in the Kingdom of God. There was a time when some of you were just like that, but now your sins have been washed away, and you have been set apart for God. You have been made right with God because of what the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of our God have done for you." Okay, again we come to doing the will of God; becoming sanctified, like Holy sheep destined for the alter not hell. Don’t curse God. In times of peril, trust Him! Live a goodly life to silence ignorant men, being ready when someone asks why you have the hope in you. It is God’s will that your good lives should silence those who make foolish accusations against you. Run through the fiery darts and wreckages of life that you see about you. Be in fellowship with Christians, strengthening them as well as yourself. Luke 22:32 "But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen and build up your brothers." Not doing your will but doing that of God’s, living everything in faith. John 6: 38. "For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do what I want." Reading the scriptures, so you can have understanding. John 6:44 "For people can’t come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them from the dead." Be an active Christian, attending Church. John 6:53. "So Jesus said again, `I assure you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.’" Do it without grumbling. Philippians 2:14 "In everything you do, stay away from complaining and arguing." Where do you get all these ideas, this right thinking, you ask? Through direct fellowship with God (prayer), through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. You see He has promised that if any of us lacks wisdom He will give it to us, and I above all seek it, for I wish also that I might always know his voice when he says to you and me, "Come up here." Through His promises I know I will hear that call... will you? If you desire to know more about this Jesus Christ who loves you, and you want to ask Him into your heart, receiving His Saving Grace please click Here. |
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