Thought For Today – March 20
Have A Good Forever!
Dear Reader:
A wise person is one who makes
preparation for the future. Have you thought about your future? You
CAN have an abundant life and a “good forever” if you WILL, it's
all up to you. The right to choose has been given to you by a loving
heavenly Father who, being rich, became poor that you might become
rich. What will your future be like?
If you knew that you had only a
few more hours to live and at this time tomorrow you would be
somewhere in eternity, wouldn't you want to know that you were
“right” with God? Wouldn't you want to have truth and justice on
your side?
We all must die sooner or later.
Some will die today. It could be your time today. If you were to
die today, do you know for sure where you will spend eternity?
“And as it is appointed unto men
once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27), where
will you stand at the last judgment of God? “Boast not thyself of
tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”
(Proverbs 27: 1.
An important man in the eyes of
the world once asked, “What is truth?” Unfortunately, he did not
wait for the answer.
God is true, and the Word of God
is truth. We are surrounded by darkness and uncertainties, but the
light from heaven shines forth the truth of God to give us light to
dispel the darkness and bring us good news and hope.
“In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginniung with God. All things were made by him: and without him
was not any thing made that was made. In him was life: and the life
was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness and the
darkness comprehended it not.” (John 1: 1-5) “And the Word was
made flesh, and dwelt among us, ( and we beheld his glory, the glory
as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.”
(John 1:14) “He was in the world, and the world was made by him,
and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own
received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power
to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”
(John 1: 10-12.
The “Word made flesh” is none
other than the Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten, divine son of
God, who is one with the Father. He came into the world to reveal to
us the Father and to lay down his life for the sins of all mankind.
The Word of God says that all people are sinners from birth, and are
separated from God. If they remain in this condition, they will be
forever separated from God and will go to hell.
“As it is written, there is none
righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is
none that seeketh after God.” (Romans 3: 10,11) “For all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” ( Romans 3: 23.) “For
the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6: 23)
The Word of God also tells us that
whosoever will believe in his heart that Jesus Christ is the divine
son of God (virgin born), and that he laid down his life on the cross
and shed his blood to pay for the sins of individuals; whosoever
will believe that God hath raised him from the dead and that he ever
liveth to make intercession for us; whosoever will call upon the
Lord Jesus Christ from his heart, repent, and turn away from sin and
invite the Lord Jesus Christ to come live in his heart shall be
saved. He will be “born again” into the family of God and will
become a child of God.
Jesus said: “Verily, verily, I
say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom
of God.” ( John 3: 3.)
The Philippian jailer asked, “What
must I do to be saved?” The answer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (Acts 16: 30,31)
“And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name
of the Lord shall be saved.” (Acts 2: 21). “Neither is there
salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12). “He
that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is
condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the
only begotten son of God.” (John 3: 18).
The one and only thing that can
determine your destiny for all eternity is what you do with Jesus
Christ, God's gift of love to you. The one and only thing that can
seal your doom in hell is your rejection of the only begotten son of
God. God is not willing for you to spend eternity in hell apart from
him. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.” (John 3: 16).
What will you do with Jesus
Christ? He is the only one that has the power to save you and give
you eternal life. What would you do with him if you knew that this
was your very last day on earth? Salvation is by the grace of God
alone, not by good deeds, nor good morals, nor by good intentions.
“For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man
should boast.” (Ephesians 2: 8, 9).
How can you be sure that you are
saved? Confess, and agree with God that you are a sinner by birth,
and by choice, and that you fall far short of what God intended for
you to be. Repent – be truly sorry for this fact and have a genuine
desire in your heart to change the direction of your life and live
forf God. Ask God's forgiveness, pray this simple prayer to God: -
“God, be merciful to me a sinner, and save me for Christ's sake.”
Gratefully receive by faith God's pardon. Appropriate to yourself
the atoning power of the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ for the
remission of your sins. Trust God to do the rest. What is the next
step?
Tell someone that you have trusted
in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation, it
could be your wife, your husband, your children, your parents, your
friends, or anyone. Write to us and let us know. We will rejoice
with you. The Word of God says: “That if thou shalt confess with
thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God
hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the
heart man believeth unto rigfhteousness: and with the mouth
confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10: 9,10).
As a newborn child of God, you
ought to seek the fellowship of other born again children of God,
preferably in an independent , fundamental, bible-teaching church,
for the purpose of worship, study, and service. Within the
fellowship of a local church, you ought to follow the Lord in
believer's baptism, by immersion, as a testimony of the death of the
old person, and resurrection to newness of life in Christ: going down
into the water in the likeness of Christ's death, and being raised up
out of the water in the likeness of his resurrection. You ought to
attend services on a regular basis In order to grow In grace and
knowledge of the word of God, and be a regular partaker of the
Lord's supper or communion as a memorial of what the Lord has done
for you. You ought to obtain a copy of a good translation of the
word of God, the bible, (I recommend the King James version), and
read and study it daily and allow the Holy Spirit to instruct you and
cause you to grow in the things of the Lord. May God Bless you in
your new Christian life.
Robert A. Searles
Visit www.telehelppublications.blogspot.com
