Truth is Freedom, Knowledge is Power

True or False

1 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He replied, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' 3 and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah." Jesus then left them and went away. Matthew 16:1-5

As I sat and viewed a powerful testimony about Christians living in the final days, a shocking revelation was revealed to me. During that revelation, I came to understand how selfish I have been throughout my life, and even during my Christian walk. God broke down the wall of pride that I had constructed over the years, and pulled down the veil of blindness that covered my eyes. God exposed me for what I was, a broken down individual hoping to get by with just enough to edge my way into heaven. Wrong! There is no way to sneak into heaven. There is no way to half-way serve God. When you live for Christ it is all or nothing.

 

If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. Matthew 16:24

My Lord began to reveal to me that If I did not live my life as he commanded that none of my works would mean anything. The works I had done would be worthless and my life a waste on the day of judgement. This scared me greatly. God showed me that though my intentions have been good, my motives were not pure. Immediately, I fell on my face to repent to God for my actions. I repented for everything I had done that was outside the will of God, but most importantly I repented for hurting my heavenly Father. I repented for selfishly asking God to take me from this life so that I might be with Him, when I still had much work to do and lives to impact. After the rebuke of the Holy Spirit, the shame left me and Jesus reassured me that through Him all things were possible. I prayed that He would give me the ability to overcome my shortcomings, live righteously, and that my life would not be in vain. 

God reminded me that we are beings of free will and that He could not force anything upon us. Though I had disappointed the Lord greatly and He had strongly chastised me, He again reminded me that It was not too late to do what was right.  He expects me to do right.

For the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes each one he accepts as his child. Hebrews 12:6

God reminded me that I did not realize just how much I was caught up in this life, though I was certain that I had given up on this world. He showed me that I still had a great desire for material things, a yearning to fulfill my own purposes and agendas, and lived a double life. This was deeply unsettling to my spirit and very frightening. Still, I am glad that God has dealt with me on this matter while I am still in this life, rather than casting me into hell. He made it clear to me that all those who claimed to be Christians would not enter into his Kingdom.

 Enter through the narrow gate, For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:7-8

 I was also afraid that I too would not enter into God's kingdom if I did not change.

We serve and worship the Lord with our actions, not with our words. Real worship comes from within your heart Anyone can profess anything but that does not make it true. It does not mean that person truly stands behind the assertion either. On multiple occasions Jesus reinforces the importance of being doers of the word and not hearers only. Ultimately, this is the only true way to discern real Christians from the false ones. 

 

Those who actually do God's word and obey his laws are the only ones who will inherit his kingdom. Do not be fooled by Satan and his new age philosophy of "live how ever you want because you are god." Your enemy wants you to believe that you do not have to be held accountable for your lifestyle because you have said a prayer of salvation since Jesus died for you. Wrong again! God clearly warns us that to continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the gospel is refute the powerful purpose of salvation. Sadly this is the false doctrine that has been spread through many of today's churches. It is a doctrine that has created a false sense of security and stirred up the wrath of God who shall return with a vengeance. We as followers of God are completely accountable for our lives, and even more so than non-believers because we have been made aware. We are comfortable living in any manner and thinking that this is OK with God.

We must all examine ourselves to be certain that we are living as true followers of Christ. Could you imagine the horror of standing before God as He says, "depart from me I never knew you!" 

 

Many will say to Me on
that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in
Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME,
YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'" Matthew 7:21

 

It would have to be the most horrible thing imaginable. As believers we should rest assured in our salvation, though that does not mean becoming Luke-warm as stated in the book of Revelations. If you know that you have been living half way as a Christian, there is still time to make things right with God. First, examine yourself and your motives pertaining to your walk. Then go before the throne of God humbly and repent if you have lived a life that would dishonor God. He is just to forgive you if you are sincere. When you repent God will wipe the slate clean and you can start over, but you have to live as a true Christian to the best of your ability each day. 

 Christianity is not a lifestyle, it is actually a state of being. The holy spirit lives with you and you should always reflect Christ. A lifestyle can change and be altered but a state of being is constant. Just as you are "alive" right now, that is a state of being. As a Christian you should be a living, breathing, reflection of Christ, meaning that you do not turn this off and on at will. If you act one way around certain people, and totally different around others, then you have not fully made Christianity your state of being. We have all been guilty of this at some point or another. The point is to move beyond that old false way of living. When we stand before God we want to be able to approach His throne without spot or blemish. Most reading this message have accepted the gift of salvation, but have not learned to exist as a true Christian should. The good news is that God intended this message for you. You still have the time to make things right and become a doer of God's word and not just remain as a hearer. 

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does. James 1:22-25

Take up your cross daily and walk with Jesus. One thing that may help is to ask yourself, if Jesus was right here in the room with me, would I do this certain action? If the answer is no, then turn away from whatever that behavior is that is causing you to sin. Live your life as if Jesus is physically right beside you every where you go. He lives within us, but sometimes we find it easier to allow ourselves to make poor decisions because we do not physically see Him all the time. Just like you would not do certain things if a police officer were with you, who could arrest you and take away your freedom, you should also honor the Lord and live righteously. The best way to honor God is to obey His word because it shows that you truly love and follow Him. 

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is lie it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. Matthew 22:37-40

I don't know about you but I want to enter God's kingdom and dwell with Him for eternity. I surely do not want Him to turn me away on that day stating that He never knew me. I do not want Him to disapprove of my works either! That would be terrible. It is a bad feeling to let God down after He has done so much for me. Be sure you are living truly as a Christian, and not a Luke-warm one.

"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write : The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this : 15 'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot ; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 'So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. 17 'Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. Revelation 3:14-17

 I am making a commitment to God to do just that. Saints, let us lift up one another in prayer that we may be able to stand in the day of judgement and be accepted into God's kingdom. Will your works be found out as true or false?

 As always, Truth is Freedom, Knowledge is Power!