Eternity: October 21, 2013

TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY OCTOBER 21, 2013.

ETERNITY

DEFINITION: 

Infinite time; duration without beginning or end; endless period of time.

SCRIPTURE:

That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:15.

For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Have you ever tried to imagine what eternity is like? It is very difficult for our finite minds to grasp the concept of our life going on and on with no end. On earth, things have a beginning and an ending. Sometimes when we have to stand in a line we say it seems like an eternity. It may seem long but really it is relatively short and it has an ending. Our life on this earth has a beginning and an ending, but when we leave this earth we have an eternity ahead of us with absolutely no ending.

So the question we must ask you is: "Where will you spend your eternity?" This is a question we all have to answer and it is the most important decision you will have to make during your entire lifetime. We both personally answered that question before we were ten years old.

These two verses, written above, clearly present the choice we each must make about eternity.  The one choice you have is to accept Jesus as your personal Savior and receive God's gift of eternal life. God freely offers this choice to you because Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins and now He is in heaven preparing a place for you for eternity.

The second choice you have is to do nothing about Jesus and ignore the issue. Ignoring the issue does not make the issue go away. A non-decision about Jesus is still a decision. There is no in between. If you do not accept Jesus free gift of salvation you then have made your choice to spend an eternity in Hell. We hear it said over and over again, “I will make that decision later," but later may be too late.

And the third choice is to reject Jesus and God. This choice comes with a price, as the verse above says, "the wages of sin is death" so without that personal relationship with God you will spend an eternity in Hell. It is that simple and clear, so the decision is yours.

You do not hear many sermons in church today about Hell. It is not a popular subject to talk about and pastors are fearful it will turn people away from church. People just do not want to face the fact that their un-forgiven sins will bring condemnation to them. It is impossible to preach the gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ and ignore the fact that there is a real hell. But many pastors do preach on Heaven and Hell and their churches are growing because the message of Heaven or Hell stirs people to acknowledge they are sinners and to make a decision for Jesus. Those who accept Jesus as their Savior desire to stay in the church so they can grow in Christ.

People are searching for real hope and peace in their lives and the only way to have real peace and joy is to know where one will spend eternity. The decision of accepting or rejecting Jesus is the most vital decision one can make today. Nothing is more relevant than eternity. Our question to you today is: "Have you made that choice?" Your eternity is at stake. Will you spend eternity with Jesus in Heaven or with the devil in Hell?

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Galatians 2:21.

I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.

PRAYER:

Dear Lord, thank You that I can be certain that I will spend eternity with You in heaven because I have accepted you as my Savior. May I also be diligent today to share my faith with my family, friends and associates so that they may know that they have a decision to make on where they will spend eternity.