Luke 21:34-38 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.
1 John 2:9-11 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.
1 John 2:15-17 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world — the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does — comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.
Our God loves you, but a life lived for him by faith should be a pure life. James said, show me your faith by your works of righteousness. Paul said, The acts of the sinful nature: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21) A life of faith, a life committed to God, is not one focused on this world. Christians do not add Christ to our lives; He is our life. We do not enter the kingdom of God through faith and then go about our lives as if we are not kingdom dwellers. Jesus said, the kingdom of God is in you. But, if we continue life as we once lived, we are demonstrating we really don't believe that God has established the kingdom within us, or that we are part of the body of Christ.
Many Americans believe in the kingdom of God, but probably most are not in the kingdom of God. If you attend any of their funerals, they usually indicate the deceased loved one is in the kingdom of heaven, regardless how evil the person lived his or her life. However, this is not the scriptural. The impure, the unrighteous, and the faithless will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Having faith in Christ impels us to live pure and righteous lives through the power of the Holy Spirit. The FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT will always be a product of a true believer. Of course, grace and mercy flows to those who believe, but to those who really do not commit their lives to Christ, who believe only with their lips, they are still under judgment. In 1 John 2 we see that if anyone hates his brother he still is in darkness. We also see in John that if anyone loves the world or anything in the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Otherwise, we must love God more than anything else in this world. This is the message of the cross, the message of salvation.
Wow, how difficult then to please God? No, to please God we put our trust and hope in Christ. We illustrate that trust and hope by living a life of dedication and servanthood. Do we fail? Yes, often, but our hearts are saddened by our failures. But, we keep on living for Christ to the best of our abilities. This world and the things in it should grow strangely dim as we walk with Christ. His magnificence, holiness, and love should draw us closer to his breast. We should want to recline on his shoulder every day, interact with him with loving words. Our hearts should desire to pray and to sing songs to him constantly. He should be our everything, the very essence of our lives. If He is not, we need to seek a deeper walk with him. If we do not, the end of time for the world or for our lives will come upon us like a trap. One day we will be living and breathing in this terrestrial life and the next day we will be standing in the celestial before the Almighty God. What will our response be to him? Will we have to confess, "Yes Lord, I placed you in the back room of my life. I pulled you out on Sunday or special days. I brought you forth when I needed your comfort, but in general you stayed the background of my life." Or will we say, "Lord, my LIFE, my BREATH, my BEING, thank you for being near to me all my life. Thank you for being with me as I maneuvered life's pathways, thank you LORD that I am yours and you are mine."
The world believes in the kingdom of heaven, but Christians abide in the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, as citizens of another land, let us live our lives circumspectly. Be always on the watch that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man. A life of faith is a life of action motivated by Christ in us the hope of glory. No less will be accepted by God. Do you believe in the Kingdom of God? Good! But the demons believe also. To enter as a citizen of the kingdom of God, you must believe Jesus is the Lord and HE IS THE LORD OF YOUR LIFE. When you are presented to the Son of Man, you will be wearing your robe of righteousness because you trusted in Christ as Lord and Savior.
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