We live in a world of sinners, of unrepentant souls, of the wicked, this is the way of this world, and while Satan can be labeled as the cause of some of the woes of this planet, he cannot be held accountable for all of the sins committed by mankind.
A deceiver, a tempter, a liar and usurper, but man has free will, and it is our response not to our adversary for how we will be held accountable, but the knowledge of what sin is in the eyes of the Almighty.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2nd Tim. 2:15)
Do not think that you will find any of your excuses accepted by the Lord on that day of your accounting, the Word of God is available to you, and the Holy Spirit has opened your mind to be receptive to its truths. The sincerity of our hearts desire to be obedient in love, submissive to His will, and desirous to be profitable by adhering to, not only in our heart, but by our actions to His commandments, will be the foundation of either receiving or losing rewards on that day.
I bring up these truths today in this short letter to you to ask you a question, what if every single person who has not been hid in Christ, all who have not been born-again were removed from this planet today? What type of world would it be tomorrow?
Do you believe that all of us who have been crucified with Christ love our neighbors enough that peace would be continuous? Would we be more willing to bear our brothers and sisters burdens, to grieve with them as well as rejoice with them? Would there be no more hatred, no more crime, no jealousy, anger or spiteful words?
Would every thought of our imaginations be pure toward all we meet, would love for each other abound, and that without reservations?
Can we be holy, righteous, true, even honorable without being glorified?
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1st John 1:8)
It is a thought worth contemplation my friends, for it will reveal to you who you are today in Christ.
“As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” (Gal. 6:10)
That scenario breaks apart the thoughts we have toward the wicked and those we call our brothers and sisters in Christ, for if we who serve the Lord Jesus Christ are the only ones left on this planet, would we serve each other anymore than we do today?
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” (John 13:34)
Do we?
Do we treat those whom we will spend eternity with differently than those unrepentant souls, do we confide in them more, do we share our burdens with them, do we always speak the truth to them no matter what? Do we correct, reprove and rebuke each other for the edifying of our souls, so that we can stand firm on the Rock of our salvation, walking the strait path to that gate?
Or are they just “good friends” that we share a pew with and an occasional meal with after the sermon at times?
“And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren?” (Mark 3:33)
If there were none on this planet but those chosen by the Almighty, would you treat them any differently than you do today?
This is not going to happen, but it should give us reason to pause and consider, why would we behave differently to those we will spend eternity with after being glorified than we do now?
We shouldn’t, but we do.
In a small way, this is what the Lord was trying to get Peter to understand when He asked him three times, “Do you love me.”
How much more tomorrow in heaven than today here on earth will your love to your brothers and sisters in Christ be revealed, and why, is the question. What is hindering your love?
