You are not going to be judged by the religious organization that you associate with, not for what your church group did on a mission trip, not for what you and anyone else did together, you are going to be judged for what you did, and the reason behind it. “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12) Just you, all by yourself, alone with the Most High.
How long do you think it will take, the first and perhaps most important meeting that you will have with the Creator of your soul, no matter how old you are when you die, how long to go over all the deeds that you did in this life that were meant for one reason only, to glorify God, to lift up the name of Jesus Christ. Days, hours, maybe just a few minutes, how long will it take for the two of you, and that is all that is going to be at this meeting, just you and Him, how long will you be alone with Him?
The humble side of us, the side that is learning true humility in the face of the Sovereign Lord of all that is, says just a few moments, in fact, that side of us knows that we shouldn’t even be there. The prideful side of us that just will not die disagrees with that statement.
There was one place where only one man went only once a year, the Holy of Holies in the Temple. He went in there for the people of Israel, but he went in alone. The Lord does not need to know what you have done solely for His glory in this life, He already knows, He is the Holy Spirit, if you are a born-again believer, He is indwelling you at this very moment, and He never leaves.
I do not know if this will be a “question and answer” meeting, none of us do, but I do know that most who call Him Lord do not give near enough thought to that moment that will arrive for each of us. Our purpose in this life is to serve God, (Eccl. 12:13) we do that by praising His name and doing deeds that brings honor to His name, this is how we glorify the Lord. Those deeds are to have a result of some form of action, whether it be words spoken in our hearts or to others, they are to be performed before the lost and the saved, they are to be continuous, there are no part-time Christians anywhere, you are either obedient, or you are not. “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15)
If any of the people that have known you for any length of time do not know that you are a Christian, if you have not brought up the name of Jesus to them, who is to say that you are saved. If you don’t love them enough to share the message of salvation by grace through Jesus Christ, how are you proving that you indeed love Him whom you say you serve? “Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:18)
This is another way to say you are probably not saved, no matter how you believe you feel inside, no matter your emotional state, in or out of the congregation. Many who sit in the pews every Sunday morning will say they love the Lord; few can give examples of that love in action. The Bible is nothing more than a “wonderful Book” if it is not applied in the life of one who professes Christ as Lord, the accounts in it are nothing more than stories to those who do not attempt to emulate those who have been crucified with Christ in the Book.
Seconds, minutes, hours, how long will it take, how much of your life has been wood, hay and stubble? (1 Cor. 3:12-15) You will indeed find out one day, but today is the day to begin praying for the ability to find that gold, silver and those precious stones. “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” (Matt. 15:8)
