Come to Jesus

A few days ago I was reading Luke 16: 19-31. Jesus is speaking to his disciples and also to the Pharisees regarding the deaths of the rich man and Lazarus and reminds them of Abraham’s answers. 

  Verses 24-26 say: “Then he (rich man) cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented.’ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.”

When we die our souls are separated from our bodies. The body remains in the grave – whether buried underground, above ground or cremated, but our souls are immediately transported to heaven or to hell. There is no intermediate place.

 Verse 26 reminds us that at death there is no escape. No amount of praying by our loved ones can move one from hell to heaven. It is the life lived while alive, to whom your allegiance lay, that determines your fate.   Alive or dead, we are either “in Christ” or “in and of the World.”

If you do not know the Lord, only know of Him, make the effort, take the time, do it now before it is too late, and come to Jesus.

If you don't believe in The One True God heaven is not your final destination

If you don't believe in the very one who died for you, how can you honestly believe you will spend eternity in heaven?

Heaven is not the final destiny of every human on earth. There is a hell. It is not a fictitious place.

Living the"good life," believing in "a god," but not The One True God, does not bring you to the place of eternal peace.

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."  (Galatians 6:7)

If you do not have a life set apart
If you have not accepted God's free gift
If you do not believe in Him
If you do not live and walk as Jesus while you have the opportunity,
your eternal home is NOT heaven.

"For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life." (Galatians 6:8)

"And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." (Galatians 5:24-25)

It's your choice, but don't wait

"And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt." (Daniel 12:2)

The Lord God almighty knows all who will come to everlasting life and those who will not. We do not. We are to share the Good News of His Son, Jesus Christ, to all we meet along the ways we travel. Our job is to share, to witness to all we come in contact; their response is between themselves and the Lord. We cannot make the right decision for them.

The other night on television there was a two-part episode of "Ghost Whisperer." A plane had crashed near a city and all except one (who was not even on the plane) died. But they were in limbo land. They didn't know what happened and wanted to know; upon learning, they could make the decision to go toward the light (depicted as heaven) or toward the dark (depicted as Satan and hell).

Our decisions to do what is right are not made at our death (as portrayed in this show), but while we are alive.

At death, our souls have already moved on, based on decisions made while alive. It is then too late. Do't wait until it is too late. Don't keep saying "later, later." You repeatedly say this over and over -- later, after high school, after college, after I have some fun, after this beer, after this trip, after the surgery. Later never comes. When you have died, there is no later. You are in the later and your decision is made.

Do it now. Go into the light. Be part of the light. Live life with the Father, who art in heaven.