The Heaton File

A prayer of Moses, the man of God. “Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.” (Psalm 90:1-2)

Moses Knew God

Prayer is the effort of feeble man to reach an infinite God. The act of prayer is to petition the Creator of the world for blessings undeserved, unmerited, and unearned. Nothing that man has done deserves the mercy of God. It is only by the eternal nature of a forgiving and compassionate God that man can come into His presence and speak to his Maker. Prayer teaches man the need for humility. The bended knee does not lend itself to pride, as one must submit oneself to a higher being. Prayer is where the pride of man is incompatible. A proud heart and a bent knee cannot be from the same person.

Moses was a great man of faith. The Holy Spirit said that Moses was more humble than all men who were on the face of the earth. Prayer was a significant part of Moses’ life, driven by his devotion to the glory of God. Moses knew that everything in life was dependent upon God. There was nothing that he had which did not originate with God. All blessings came from above. Moses lived in the opulence of the Egyptian glory, but he could see that all the trappings of the world could not be compared with the knowledge of the one true God. His trust was in God. He knew the God he served was everlasting to everlasting. As Creator, God existed before the world was formed and man was created. What Moses believed was the greatness of God and his own smallness.

Faith in God must begin with understanding the place of man and the place of God. Man was created by God, not the other way around. The pride of man wants to believe he is the greatest power on earth. Moses knew that God was the reason the world existed and continued from generation to generation. Faith begins in acknowledging that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The sun, moon, and stars remain in place as the Lord designed. Everything about the world testifies to the creative hand of an eternal God. Moses believed the Lord was God.

The prayer of Moses was a testimony to his faith and the glory of God. Moses knew God not just intellectually, but personally. Moses could see God everywhere in the world. Each day testified to who God was. That is where true faith comes from. It is the realization that no matter what, God is the everlasting God who existed before the world began. The eternal nature of God declares His power, His infinite presence, and His unending wisdom. When a man prays to God, he declares dependence upon an eternal being that is so far above anything he thinks or can understand. Prayer develops in the heart a knowledge of God so that man can say, “I know God!” Do you know God?

For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance. (Romans 8:24-25)

Hope

G. K. Chesterton wrote, “Hope means hoping when things are hopeless, or it is no virtue at all. As long as matters are really hopeful, hope is mere flattery or platitude; it is only when everything is hopeless that hope begins to be a strength.” The nature of man is to find courage in the face of hope when times are darkest, and when there are no answers visible. A man who is lost knows the danger of uncertainty, and only with the hope of being saved can he know the power of courage to keep on seeking life in the face of death.

Salvation is the key ingredient to the relationship between God and man. If a person is lost and does not realize it, they do not fear and feel confident in their surroundings. There is no need to be saved because there is no knowledge that the path taken leads to danger. A man wandering in the woods aimlessly, refusing to acknowledge he is lost, does not change the reality that he will die. If a person does not believe in God and the need for salvation, they will go through life confident that they are well without fearing the consequences of where their path will take them. Denying God does not remove God from the equation; it just makes the man a fool because the fool has said in his heart there is no God.

A drowning man does not question his condition. He knows that if someone does not come to save him, he will die. No one needs to convince the man that he is in danger of drowning. He hopes that something or someone will rescue him from his impending doom. He struggles mightily against the course of the water, trying to sweep him away. His fight is a struggle with the fear of death. The hope of salvation in the heart of a drowning man is vibrant and strong.

Until a man comes to the reality of the consequences of sin, he will die in his sin. The first thing a man must know is that he is a sinner and that without hope in God, there is no rescue. Denying sin does not remove sin any more than denying a raging current will save a drowning man. Man’s greatest question is what he must do to be saved. God’s greatest gift is the answer to that question. When a man knows he is lost, then, and only then, does hope have real meaning. In Jesus Christ, hope brings life to a lost soul and brings peace. A man will not know hope until he knows the gift of eternal salvation. Hope in God. Find peace in the love of God.

This is the sum of the years of Abraham’s life which he lived: one hundred and seventy-five years. Then Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people. (Genesis 25:7-8)

An Old Man Full Of Years

Few Bible characters stand out in scripture as Abraham. The genesis of Israel began with Abraham, who began the promises made by God and fulfilled through Jesus, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. Through the lineage of Abraham, God preserved the Seed to be realized in Jesus. The spiritual promises of eternal salvation, begun with Abraham, were completed in Jesus. Abraham’s faith exemplifies the character of faithfulness to the Lord, whether under the Law of Moses or not. Jesus Christ brings Gentiles and Jews together as the fulfillment of the seed promise made in the Garden of Eden.

God called Abraham when he was 75, telling him to go to a land that He would show him. Abraham left without knowing where he was going. It was not crucial for Abraham to inquire of the Lord because he trusted completely in the word of God. God promised Abraham a son, and at the age of 100, Isaac was born. Later, God told Abraham to offer his only begotten son as a burnt offering. Again, Abraham did not hesitate, rising early in the morning to carry out the task given him by the Lord. The character of Abraham was one of complete trust and faith in God’s plan. He was not a perfect man, sometimes fearing what the world might do to him. Abraham grew in his faith daily to become one of the great examples of godliness.

At the end of life, what is said of one’s character speaks volumes to the measure of a man. Some men die with a questionable past. There are those remembered for ungodliness, cruelty, and shame. Some men die with notable lives, giving to others and leaving a mark on society that is remembered in the annals of history. And then there is Abraham. His epitaph was a simple gesture by the Holy Spirit in recognition of someone who gave their life wholly to the Lord’s purpose. No fanfare. Abraham did not have monuments built in his memory. He lived 175 years, breathed his last, and died in a good old age.

The Holy Spirit says that Abraham was an old man, and full of years. What better words can sum up the life of a godly man of God? He was blessed with many years beyond the normal. His years were complete. He had lived a full life of devotion to God. As death approached, Abraham was content with his legacy, which brought honor to God. Abraham did not live to make a name for himself. His life was dedicated to the glory of God, to be remembered in the pages of God’s word. History would not have remembered Abraham without the Bible. He was a great man, but not in the eyes of the world. That was not what he lived for. He served God, looking for a city with foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Abraham breathed his last. The language of the Holy Spirit is beautiful. Abraham was gathered to his people. He went to his long home. A man of God laid down the armor of righteousness and rested in the bosom of eternal glory. In a poignant depiction of eternal rest, Jesus describes the blessing of eternal salvation as the “bosom of Abraham.” The son of Terah died an old man, full of years, looking at life with the joy found in walking in the footsteps of God’s word. What does it profit someone if they gain the whole world and die in fear and misery? Only in Jesus Christ can a man die with the peace of Abraham.

The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. (Genesis 6:11-12)

Man Without God

The pride of the human heart is a contrast of wisdom where men seek to be their own gods instead of submitting themselves to the will of the one true God. A child left to their own devices with no boundaries begins with an innocent heart but soon learns that they can do anything they want, demanding that others cater to their needs. As the child grows, his hunger for self-indulgence grows, and he has nothing stopping him from whatever his heart desires. What the child does not realize is that he is being deceived into believing his path of self-discovery will bring him happiness.

Over time, the rebellious child grows into adulthood, where he has greater license to pursue a life of self-indulgence, demanding that the world give him what he wants. He realizes there are more like him, and he joins forces with them in raucous fulfillment of the fleshly desires. Because there are no boundaries, there is no morality. Without morality, anything and everything goes. Sexual deviation is accepted as pleasure. Rage and anger are the answers to conflict. The killing of another is an acceptable answer to silence critics. Children become the targets of deviant behavior in their innocence. Political power is corrupted. The world is filled with violence. A corrupt moral standard is how men are judged. Death becomes a release from the misery and horrors of life.

Man without God is a failure. It has always led to destruction, misery, murder, sexual immorality, and ungodliness. The nature of man remains unchanged from the days of Noah. God gave man a standard to live by. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord because he lived by the moral standard of righteousness in a world completely given over to unrighteousness. Noah’s family protected themselves from the perverted world by clinging to the will of God. The earth had become overwhelmed with the wickedness of ungodliness, so violent that the only answer was the cleansing of life from the planet. God determined that the answer to sin was killing every human being on the face of the earth. He chose water to cleanse the world, and the rain came down, and the floods came up. Everything with the breath of life died on the face of the earth. Only Noah and his family were saved from death as God provided a means of escape. When the flood was finished, eight people were on the earth. Man without God failed.

The world continues to follow the path of corruption. Sexual immorality has become an accepted norm in society. A new agenda of deviation allows for the mutilation of the body for supposed physical gratification. Hatred is the answer to silence those who oppose immorality. Corruption is the business model. The lust for wealth permeates every part of society. Everyone seeks their own gratification without regard for the needs of others. The experiment of man without God fails again and again because man refuses to acknowledge his Creator.

God gave humanity His word to help them find happiness in life and to provide an answer for sin. A man without God is a man trying to deal with sin, ultimately failing. The only answer to Satan is God. When a man thinks he can outsmart and defeat the devil on his own, he becomes the fool of the god he serves. Righteousness exalts a nation because it is accompanied by laws that punish and protect. Only God knows how to deal with Satan. Man with God is a powerful formula that will defeat the wiles of the devil every time. A fool has said in his heart there is no God because that fool accepts the whispers of the one who will lead them to eternal damnation. There is no hope apart from God. You must choose—man without God or man with God. Eternity depends on the answer.

Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:12-13)

Putting To Death The Deeds Of The Body

To live is Christ, but in life there is death. Christ has set the soul free from the burden of sin through His blood. By the grace of God, sins are washed away. Through the infinite mercy of God, men can stand before the Father pure and righteous, cleansed of the guilt of sin. While the grace of God delivers one from the wrath of God, the individual must change their life. The price for the consequence of sin was the blood of the Son of God. There is nothing a person can do to repay the debt owed through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The measure of debt is beyond anything a man can do. What a man can do is to serve the Lord in obedience to the will of the Father.

A Christian is someone who has changed their life to serve the Lord in all diligence. The temptations of the flesh and mind try to persuade the Christian to live according to the flesh, living in carnal pleasures, seeking the pride of life, and exalting oneself above God. Living according to the flesh will bring death and separation from God. There is no value in seeking the enjoyments of life because they are all temporary. If a man gained the whole world, he would lose it in death. Pleasure will dissipate. Knowledge will not bring happiness. To live according to the flesh will bring eternal sorrow.

People of God grow in their faith, learning how to put death to the deeds of the body. Life comes from death. As the heart grows in its faith and trust in the Lord, the decisions of life are measured by the righteousness of the word of God. Putting to death the deeds of the body is not putting them to sleep or ignoring them. Death means there is no life. It may take time to put some things to death, but the goal and mission of godliness is to kill the desires of the flesh. People of God are not ruled by the passions derived from the wiles of the devil. Some passions may be a lifetime to kill. Drastic measures may have to be taken to destroy the desire, but measures must be taken. There can be no ignoring the design of killing the deeds of the body.

Temptation comes in many forms. Ignoring temptations will not make them go away. Talking to them will not deter them. Temptation is put away by killing them, putting them to death, taking the life out of them. If a man is tempted by things he watches on the internet, he needs to kill his connection with the internet. Jesus taught in the sermon on the mount that if the eyes or hands offend or cause one to sin, it would be better to pluck out the eyes and cut off the hand than to lose the soul to eternal damnation. Jesus did not mean literally plucking out eyes and cutting off hands. His point was clear – even if it is very precious (as eyes and hands are); it would be better to live without the internet than to struggle with pornography and lose one’s soul in hell.

The most important part of the Christian life is learning how to kill the deeds of the body. Anger must be destroyed. Gossip has to be killed. Hatred and prejudice must be slain. All the works of the flesh must be – must be – killed. There can be no life, no energy, and no resurrection of those things that are of the flesh. Put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. Life comes for those who learn how to kill the deeds of the flesh. In the place of the deeds of the flesh, grow the fruits of the Spirit. Life is of the Spirit. Grow thereby.

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance.  (Psalm 33:10-12)

God Among The Nations

President Woodrow Wilson said, “A nation which does not remember what it was yesterday, does not know what it is today, nor what it is trying to do. We are trying to do a futile thing if we do not know where we came from or what we have been about.” History is the great teacher, but few attend class. One of the constants in the story of humanity is its inability to learn from past mistakes to achieve a better future. Generations may separate one civilization from another, but all men are the same, no matter what place in history they live. The same needs, wants, and desires fuel the spirit of man. Technology may change, but the heart remains the same. Advances in science open the world to new discoveries, but there is nothing new under the sun.

Every nation begins somewhere, and whether it learns from its past will determine how long its future will last. Human character remains the same. Whatever made the nation great in the beginning is often discarded over time for a philosophy that will bring its downfall. The foundation of a people is governed by the values of morality that define it as a nation seeking the good of all men. Righteousness can only come from the word of the Lord because God is the one who brings nations to glory, and He is the one who destroys nations. A nation built on the belief of the one true Lord will find greater success than one established on hatred, prejudice, and immorality.

Israel was the greatest nation on earth. God blessed the Hebrews with His protection, blessings, and guidance. When Israel followed the Lord’s will, they experienced great success. What brought about the destruction of Israel was when they turned their back on God. Moses warned them what would happen if they forgot the one who delivered them from Egypt. It did not take long for the nation to forget where they came from, and God destroyed them. Israel is given as an example of what happens when a people forget where they came from and who delivered them.

Any nation that becomes a godless society will reap the whirlwind of God’s wrath. There is no respect of persons in the mind of God. God does not bear the colors of red, white, and blue. His word is truth, and only when a nation seeks to follow Him will there be any hope of a future. America will not be destroyed by an enemy marching on its borders. It is being destroyed from within because it has rejected the principles that made America great in the past. Learning from the past will teach us what the future will be. A nation that forgets God gives up its best hope of being a great nation. The word of God must be the foundation because truth comes from the word of God.

And let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful. (Titus 3:14)

Good Advice For People Of God

One of the qualities of those who follow Christ is the manner of life they share with the world, and the example they set in dealing with others. Jesus told His disciples to be lights in the world and to be the salt of the earth, seasoning their influence among others with the glory of God. No greater example of godliness can be found than those who love the Lord, showing their love for others. Paul admonishes Titus to help the Christians on the island of Crete to be full of good works, showing the love of Christ in their lives in serving others. The people of Crete had a reputation for being liars, evil, and lazy gluttons. They had an unrestrained indulgence of wild and ferocious passions. In the midst of such a world, the gospel of Christ needed to be presented with a clear and demonstrative light.

There was a concern that the influence of Crete could impact the faith of the Christians. The character of the Cretans could easily sway the hearts of the people of God to become like them. Paul wants Titus to teach the saints the need to be people full of good works. When the hand is busy with good works, the heart becomes a harder target for being slothful. Busy hands should characterize the lives of God’s people. There should be a conscious effort to fill each day with the work of the Lord, helping others, encouraging them, and engaging in good works in the world, so that the light of God can be seen in them. The people of God should be known as people of good works.

There were many needs to be met. Jesus taught the importance of serving others. When an urgent need arises, the people of God should be the examples of individual hearts extending the welcome relief of benevolence to those in need. The parable of the Samaritan helping a stranger emphasizes the importance of the people of God demonstrating their faith through their actions without prejudice. Learning to maintain good works and meet the needs of others helps the Christian grow in their faith so they will not be unfruitful. God does not want lazy, slothful children. When a person accepts life as a follower of Christ, they become a worker in the Lord’s vineyard. The purpose of working in the vineyard is to work. People of God are workers. They demonstrate this by engaging in good works and meeting urgent needs.

Paul emphasizes the importance of the brotherhood when he tells Titus to remind “our people” to care for one another. The family of God is bound by the love and fellowship shared through the blood of Christ. God’s family is a special group of people dedicated to good works. No greater light can be shone than when God’s people shine the light of love for others in a dark world. It is not the common goal of people in the world to be kind to others. Children of God practice good works, meeting urgent needs, because they know the debt they have in being called children of the Most High God is something that can never be repaid. Paul’s good advice is for God’s people to be full of good works, and when there is an urgent need, to fill that need.

There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always. (Acts 10:1-2)

He Was Not Saved By Prayer Alone

Cornelius was a very religious person. As a Gentile, he was an unusual example of someone who believed in God and demonstrated his love for God through his life. He was a devout man trying to show the world that he was a person of faith. Somewhere in his life, he learned about the one true God and feared Him with a reverent fear. His position as a centurion brought a certain amount of prestige and honor and afforded him some measure of wealth. Cornelius used his possessions to help others, giving alms generously to those in need with a benevolent heart full of charity. A key ingredient to this life was a constant prayer life to the one true God.

The world around Cornelius was filled with idolatry and the worship of many gods. As a Roman citizen, he would have been inundated with worship of a multitude of deities from an early childhood. Learning about the one true God changed his life and made him a different kind of person. It must have been difficult for him to maintain his persona of faithfulness in such a dark world. If there were any who challenged him for his faith, the scriptures do not reveal. It is certain that while the world may have taken notice of Cornelius and scoffed at his faith, the one true God took close examination of his heart and allowed him to discover a deeper faith.

Cornelius was a deeply religious man and a man of prayer. The Holy Spirit says that with all the good deeds done by the centurion and all his prayers, Cornelius was lost. His good deeds did not save him. All of his prayers were heard, but they did not save him. An angel appeared to Cornelius, but that did not save him. The angel instructed Cornelius to send men to Joppa and ask for a man named Simon (Peter), who was lodging with a tanner by the name of Simon. They would find the house by the sea. The angel tells Cornelius that Peter would instruct him on what he needed to do. Later, when Peter recounts the story of his meeting with Cornelius, the apostle says that when he came to the house of Cornelius, the centurion said the Lord instructed him to send for Peter, who would tell them words by which he and all his household would be saved.

Cornelius was a devout man, but he was lost. He was a man who feared the Lord, but he was lost. Giving alms to the people was a noble gesture, but Cornelius was lost. All the prayers offered could not save Cornelius. The words Peter spoke to Cornelius and his household are what the centurion found out to do to be saved. Praying did not save him alone. Offering a prayer could not and did not bring the blood of Jesus into the heart of Cornelius. God never promised anyone salvation by prayer alone.

Many in the religious world believe salvation comes from what is called the “Sinners’ prayer.” This has been rebranded as the “Salvation prayer.” Individuals are encouraged to seek repentance from their sins, ask God for forgiveness, and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. That is all that is needed for one to be in a saved condition. This prayer marks the beginning of their Christian walk in fellowship and covenant with Jesus Christ. What is tragic is that this prayer is never found in Scripture, and thousands of people, like Cornelius, are very religious yet very lost. There is no example of anyone praying the sinner’s prayer in the Bible.

If anyone could have been saved by praying, Cornelius was the prime example. The angel could have instructed Cornelius on how to be saved, but he did not. He told him to send for Peter. The apostle Peter said that Cornelius was lost and needed to hear the words whereby he could be saved. Peter gave him those words. Cornelius and his household heard the word and were baptized into Jesus Christ for the remission of their sins. Uttering the sinner’s prayer will not save you. Failing to do the will of the Father will condemn a person because they follow the teachings of men, and not Jesus Christ. Find one example of a person saved by the sinner’s prayer. You will not find it in the Bible.

But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.” (Romans 4:5-8)

Forgiven

In a cemetery not far from New York City is a headstone engraved with a name and a single word: Forgiven. There is no date of birth or death. Nothing else is included. The message is simple and unembellished. Nothing else needed to be said for this individual because the sum total of life can truly be defined, whether one is forgiven or not. Whomever the deceased was, they believed in the grace and mercy of God to remove their sin. It did not matter how much wealth they gained in life. The measure of their happiness was not governed by what they enjoyed in this life. All the things that mattered to the world were lost on this person. They had one desire in life, and that was to be forgiven.

Seeking forgiveness comes from the awareness and belief that one is in conflict with God. Many who pass by the headstone and read the inscription lose its significance. They may nod in agreement with the faith of the departed soul, but the impact has little value to their life. For a person who does not recognize a need to be forgiven places no worth on the blood of Jesus and the reality of the wrath of God. They live for themselves. Refusing to acknowledge the need for forgiveness does not remove the need because all men sin and fall short of the glory of God. Every person from Adam who walked in this world bears the burden of sin and the need for forgiveness. Jesus is the only exception as He died after more than thirty years in the flesh, yet without sin.

Forgiven means sin is real and the consequences are eternal. If a man denies there is such a thing as sin, there will never be a desire for forgiveness. As the person who left their testimony on the headstone recognized, death puts a person before God to be judged about sin and whether grace and mercy are to be given. Jesus said most people deny sin and will die unforgiven. That is the greatest tragedy. Very few tombstones can bear the word: Forgiven. Why? Because there is no belief in sin, and without that belief, there is no forgiveness. Most headstones bear the word: Unforgiven.

Jesus died to open the way of salvation for people to find forgiveness. The Lord said in the Sermon on the Mount that not all who say “Lord, Lord,” will be forgiven. Only those who have done the will of the Father will be forgiven. There are great epitaphs inscribed on marble that tell the stories of those who have passed on to eternity. At death, there is only one word that will make a difference: Forgiven. If that word cannot be inscribed on the heart of the deceased, there is no hope. What is on your tombstone?

Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?” And then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Not Everyone

Two words are found on the lips of Jesus that astound the world and change the reality for most people who make up the more than eight billion souls living today. Jesus did not come to bring a message of peace but of conflict. His words would be likened to those of a sword. The Prince of Peace came to set a man against his own household. God sent His Son to put a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. To be a follower of Christ will bring enemies into one’s own household. The war Jesus speaks about is when a man loves his father and mother more than Him. God has always demanded first place and will never take anything less. Refusing to take up a cross for Jesus Christ will disqualify one from eternal life.

At the conclusion of the mountain sermon, Jesus declared the division that would take place when the eyes of His Father looked into the hearts of all men. The world is filled with many people who are religious. There are many types of faiths that follow gods that are false and beliefs held on the shaky ground of human wisdom. Many believe Jesus is the Christ and follow a false belief in His will. The words of Jesus are startling to accept that not everyone who calls Him Lord will be saved. There will be many religious people who believe they are following Jesus who will never see eternal life. Salvation will only be given to those who do the will of the Father.

Jesus illustrates His point that not everyone will be saved when He refers to those who claim to have done wonderful things in His name. There are those who prophesied in His name who are lost. Some will suppose they cast out demons in the name of the Lord, but will be proven false prophets and teachers fooling the people. Many will declare the wonderful things they did in the name of the Lord, but never hear their names called from the Book of Life unto eternal salvation. Jesus shows that being religious and doing things in His name does not save. Only those who do the will of the Father can and will be saved. Not everyone is going to Heaven because most people are lost to perdition.

The greater tragedy is how unwilling God is to punish anyone. It is not the desire of the Heavenly Father for any of His creation to perish in the lake of fire and brimstone. He sent His Son into the world to open the way of salvation for all men to come and find peace in the eternal arms of the grace of a loving Father. The sadness is found that most people have no love for God and many follow false doctrines, man-made churches, deceptive teachers, and teachings that are not found in the word of God. Everyone is responsible for knowing and doing the will of the Father. Salvation does not come apart from keeping the commandments of the Lord. Because of His righteousness, God will punish the disobedient with eternal condemnation.

“Not everyone.” Incredible words to consider. Most people believe that most people R.I.P. when in fact most people do not because Jesus said they cannot. The commandments of the Lord are not burdensome. His grace gives man the eternal blessing of hope to be saved from a perverse world. Jesus died to offer mankind cleansing in His blood through obedience. Being a religious person will not save. Following false doctrines will not save. Being a good person will not save. Not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of Heaven. Those who do the will of the Father will be saved. Please do not be one of the “not everyone” – your eternal soul depends on it.