“Say a prayer for me!” Those are the words of some, as they observe others going to church. But those going to church should say, “How about you coming with me, and saying the prayer yourself?”
Allow me to say that I agree with that statement. Why ask someone else to pray for you when you should take an interest in knowing how to pray yourself? God wants to hear prayers from people, and He wants people to go to church. So why shun the duty that one is suppose to do? (Luke 18:1; Hebrews 10:25; Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-4; Matthew 6:1-15). But here is a note of caution. God doesn’t listen to those who enjoy sin (John 9:31; Psalm 66:18). Get rid of your sins, so you can start praying to God (Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16). How many times have you heard of people becoming enemies because someone borrowed money and didn’t repay? It is shameful that some people think that they can get free money from others. Now if a giver is feeling generous and tells the borrower that it doesn’t have to be paid back, it, then, is a gift.
But if a person said, they would loan money, then the borrower must pay it back. And if a borrower cannot pay back the lender before the due date, he shouldn’t be borrowing. Also people shouldn’t borrow at the spur of the moment. There needs to be a plan of repayment before getting the money. That way, the borrower will not be causing problems for the lender because the lender has his own obligations, and he doesn’t need “a dead beat” adding trouble. So the moral is, “Do unto others as you want them to do to you” (Luke 6:31). Are you having a good time being critical of someone who has sinned? If so, please take a moment and read John 8:1-11.
“Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst, They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” The lesson we can take from the heat of summer is “uncomfortable.” The sun torches the skin, the thick air makes us sweat. All is still, and there is no breeze to cool us off, etc. Yes, the hot heat of summer is very mean and really unfriendly toward us. So, what are we getting at with all this? We are getting to the subject of Hell fire (Mark 9:43-48). Many claim they don’t believe in Hell. I have no idea how they came about believing that, and they couldn’t prove it to you either.
But despite all that, we can be assured there is a Hell just as there is a Heaven because there is God (Psalm 90:1-2). But what I want to focus upon is Hell’s misery (Matthew 13:40-43). Hell is no joke, nor a few minutes in a frying pan. Hell is forever, it is not nice, and it is punishment for what we have done in life (Matt. 25:41). If we cannot stand the Pennsylvania summers, how will we be able to stand the eternal punishment of everlasting Hell? (Matt. 25:46, 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:7-10). Some criminals claim no fear of death, so they shoot others and get shot themselves. But the truth is Satan has thugs fooled because every ungodly person should be afraid to die. For after death all deeds will have to be answered to the Creator, and nothing will be forgotten or hidden (Ecclesiastes 12:14; Psalm 9:17; Revelation 20:12-15; Hebrews 9:27).
Imagine a guy getting killed while attempting a carjacking. That man’s final deed was robbery, so he will be doomed to the eternal fires of hell (Mark 9:43-48). Death is no picnic! It is the final stamp on a person’s life, and there is no way to change afterward. So if one dies in his sins, he will not spend eternity with God (John 8:21). Thugs do not make a wise choice when they begin a life of crime. Instead they chose a life that will get them a first class ticket into the hottest fire imaginable, and they don’t have sense enough to realize it. Yes, evildoers should be afraid to die because unrighteous souls won’t enter heaven (1 Cor 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21). People have questions of “Why didn’t God do something?” “Why didn’t God stop this or create that? ” etc, etc, etc. Well, if God did everything that people expected, this life wouldn’t have accidents, fears, injustice, hardships, etc.
No negative activity would exist and everything would be picture perfect, and this life would become heaven. And if this were heaven, there would be no after life to look forward to. Once a person is finish on earth, one would be completely done as far as his existence is concerned (1 Corinthians 15:32). But such isn’t the case; for there is a hereafter, and even though God knows and sees all (Job 28:23-24; Jeremiah 23:23-24), He doesn’t do away with evil and hardship because He wants man to persevere in this life and enjoy perfection in the next (Revelation 2:26-29). He causes some good things to happen and allows some bad things to go unchecked because He has a set Day coming when He will judge all things (Acts 17:30-34; Ecclesastes 12:14). Increasing murders though out world cities have proven that life in the eyes of many is cheap. People will kill over here, rape over there, and steal down the road. Back before God sent the flood upon the earth, He observed the evil which men were dishing out on each other, and it saddened Him to see this kind of behavior (Genesis 6:5-7).
The evil of man still sickens the Creator, and just because it may seem that He isn’t around, you can be assured that He is (Proverbs 15:3). There is no magic stick to wave and make evil go away. Evil is stopped when a person comes to his or her senses and realizes that a wicked life isn’t right (Luke 13:3, 15:17-19; Acts 2:28). The way of God isn’t popular, but it is the only way which men can make evil go away (John 14:6; Matthew 24:35; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). The Devil just keeps on doing his work, and that is for 24 hours a day. It doesn’t matter if a person is gay, muslim, atheist, etc. If you don’t agree, there is the polemic platform: have a debate. Let each side present their evidence and allow the listeners to conclude who has the truth. But, what one must not do is get a gun, walk into a place, and open fire. No one has the right to do that.
The Bible teaches that murder is murder, and that is all there is to it (Romans 13:9-10). Such a sin will condemn a person to hell. That guy in Orlando might think he is headed for paradise after shooting up that night club, but such will not be the case for him, nor any other foolish person who decides to follow in his footsteps (Matthew 15:13-14). A person cannot win the approval of God by shooting and killing others simply they don’t agree with them. All shooters will be hell bound if they die in the gun battle with police (John 8:21). While people are in their beds sleeping; someone is out in the streets early in the am roaming around, up to no good. Why? Why is that person not sleeping like everyone else? I’ll tell you why. This person isn’t resting because he cannot do so. The Devil has no time for rest. He knows that he has little time so he must do as much damage as he can before the Judgement Day stops him.
“And the Lord said to Satan, “where have you been?” Satan answered “From going to and fro on the earth and from walking back and forth on it” (Job 1:7). “Therefore rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you having great wrath because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12). “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). A person wakes up in the morning only to hear that car tires were slashed. Someone has been shot and killed. Someone robbed, assaulted, and raped. A fire bomb was thrown into a house. etc. The Devil takes no time off because he has too much work to do. As people continue to depart from the Lord and get comfortable in things that are wrong, they develop no concept of what is right (Proverbs 14:12, 21:2).
And if there are people living according to what the Lord requires, there will be a clash of cultures (Amos 3:3; 2 Corinthians 6:14-15). In one corner will be people who are crying for a return to the way which God has ordained and in the other corner will be those who cry: “it’s my life and I will live it as I want and I don’t care what others think”(Jeremiah 7:1-34). If this kind of mentality continues and the majority goes in the direction which is wrong, it could lead to persecution of Christians (Matthew 10:16-23). This happened in ancient times when Rome immersed itself in the heathen way of life, and the Christians attempted to get Rome to repent. Instead the government arrested the Christians and threw many to the lions (John 16:2). America shouldn’t accept this shameful way of life where Christians are attacked and sued for speaking the truth. |