Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
--2 Corinthians 5:17
Did you know that each and every one of us will give an account of our lives to a holy God one day? It’s true. That’s why it’s worth thinking about the kind of life you’re leading.
Accountability and judgment play a vital role in every aspect of life. Every employee is evaluated on their job performance. Sports teams are judged on their ability and performance. The leaders of our government are held accountable by the people who elected them. And the same is true for you as a Christian!
If you’re a believer, you’ve been given new life in Christ. Which means that you will be evaluated and rewarded according to what you’ve done with that life the God has given you.
Does this mean you could lose your salvation as a result of what you do or don’t do after you accept Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? Absolutely not. Because that was settled at the cross.
What it does mean, however, is what you do with the life God’s given you on earth will have repercussions for eternity in heaven. So let me ask you today, what are you doing with your life for Jesus? Are you just living for the pleasures of the day or are you living for Him?
What are you doing with the spiritual gifts Christ has put in your heart by the Holy Spirit? Are you serving Christ with those gifts?
What about the talents that God has uniquely given to you? Are you using those to bring Him glory and extend His kingdom… or are you letting them go to waste?
Today, ask God to help you honestly evaluate how well you’re utilizing the life He has given you. If you can say that you’re living for His glory, praise God. But if you’re not, it’s my prayer that you will begin… today… to use your unique set of gifts and talents to bring honor and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.
WHAT YOU DO THIS LIFE WILL HAVE REPERCUSSIONS IN HEAVEN.
Friday, September 13, 2019
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day. Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us; That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.”
1 Samuel 8:18–20
God had made it clear to the people of Israel that He intended for them to be different than other nations. One of the ways in which that distinction was shown was that Israel was to have no king. But in the latter years of the prophet Samuel’s life, the people insisted on having him select a king to rule over them. Samuel warned the people about all the things that would happen if they had a king—many of them consequences they would not like. Yet despite his words of caution, they insisted on having their own way. Many times in the years that followed under the reign of weak or evil kings the people suffered, just as God had warned them through His prophet.
There are times when we genuinely do not know what the best course of action is, and at these times, we should pray for God’s direction. But there are many times in our lives when we already have God’s clear direction through the instructions in His Word, but we simply do not want to follow it. When we do this, we set ourselves up for destructive consequences. Proverbs 5:11–13 describes the person who rejects God’s Word and then later wishes he hadn’t: “And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed, And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof; And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!”
Today's Growth Principle:
God’s warnings are given for a reason, and we should heed them!
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