Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 1 John 5:12 NIV
Several years ago a new report came in about a man and his wife found frozen to death in their car after a blizzard dumped tons of snow, burying their vehicle. A note was found in the glove compartment scribbled by the woman before she died. The note read: “I don’t want to die this way.” Tragically, less than six feet from their icy grave was a stranded bus, whose festive passengers remained warm throughout the night.
The word ‘gospel’ means good news, but the gospel is only good news to those who receive it. Our heavenly Father not only forgives us of our sins but transfers all the good, holy and righteous deeds that Christ ever did to us. This is incredible good news!
If you refuse this gift you will not have eternal life no matter how many good works you have performed. If you accept and trust in Jesus as your salvation then the eternal life God offers to you in Christ is guaranteed! Though you may be a sinner, in God’s eyes you are now considered perfect, blameless and without fault. This gives us peace with God and allows us to stop worrying about our salvation.
I think we could agree that God paid too high a price for us to ignore His incredible sacrifice for us. Why not receive this gift today?
In The Weight of Glory, C. S. Lewis tells the story of a woman who gave birth to a son while confined as a prisoner in a dungeon. Confined to this dungeon with his mother for years, the boy had never seen the outside world, his mother tried to describe it by making pencil drawings. Later when he and his mother were released from prison, the simple pencil sketches were replaced by the actual images of our beautiful world.
People have many misconceptions about heaven, some visualize themselves playing a harp on some celestial cloud; others see them themselves walking around on streets of gold. But what does the Bible actually teach us about Heaven and what our relationship with God will be like?
John 1:12-13 says; Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
We become children of God when we believe in Jesus for our salvation, but what does it mean to be a child of God. Romans 8:17 and Galatians 4:7 says; Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory… So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are His child, God has made you also an heir.
Did you get that? We’re heirs! An heir is usually a son or daughter that will one day inherit all the father and mother own. If we are heirs of God and if Jesus is now our brother then this status is elevated to us in Heaven, everything that Jesus is promised belongs to us as well. What an incredible thought!
This was a transcript excerpt from my ‘Unplugged’ series titled Heaven; access the entire program by clicking on this link
‘Unplugged Heaven 07’
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. Psalm 19: 1-4 NIV
Matthew 23:37 says, - how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings… NIV
You know you can rent anything today, cars, houses, tools, plants, videos, babysitters and according to a report by Teresa Wantanbe in the Seattle Times on Wednesday May 13th 2009 you can ‘Rent-A-Family’
A couple and their 2-year-old son greet the wife's 70-year-old mother at the train station and escort her back to their home for an afternoon of Japanese noodles and warm conversation. Grandson kisses grandma and daughter holds her hand as they talk about all living together someday. Grandma's emotions may be real. But her "family" isn't.
They are professional stand-ins, hired by the grandmother at a cost of $1,125 so she could experience the warmth of even a simulated three-hour family visit. The woman's real daughter, a 37-year-old working mother of two, is too busy to see her mother regularly.
Something is wrong with the human family, you might be suffering in isolation but you’re not alone. God can bring surprise endings into our lives. We may be runaways, with our back turned away from God, but He loves us despite our mistakes, we are His family, His children, and He’s in search of each one of us.
