08/28/2020 —  
Tomorrow is promised, but not to any of us. The death rate in this world is 100 percent, so we need to be ready for what happens after we die. We need to come to an understanding of what God offers us in a relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ, and the consequences of rejecting that offer. Today is the day of salvation!
 
 
Romans 5:15-21
"Now, there is no comparison between Adam’s transgression and the gracious gift that we experience. For the magnitude of the gift far outweighs the crime. It’s true that many died because of one man’s transgression, but how much greater will God’s grace and his gracious gift of acceptance overflow to many because of what one Man, Jesus, the Messiah, did for us!
"And this free-flowing gift imparts to us much more than what was given to us through the one who sinned. For because of one transgression, we are all facing a death sentence with a verdict of 'Guilty!' But this gracious gift leaves us free from our many failures and brings us into the perfect righteousness of God—acquitted with the words 'Not guilty!'
"Death once held us in its grip, and by the blunder of one man, death reigned as king over humanity. But now, how much more are we held in the grip of grace and continue reigning as kings in life, enjoying our regal freedom through the gift of perfect righteousness in the one and only Jesus, the Messiah!
"In other words, just as condemnation came upon all people through one transgression, so through one righteous act of Jesus’ sacrifice, the perfect righteousness that makes us right with God and leads us to a victorious life is now available to all. One man’s disobedience opened the door for all humanity to become sinners. So also one man’s obedience opened the door for many to be made perfectly right with God and acceptable to him. So then, the law was introduced into God’s plan to bring the reality of human sinfulness out of hiding. And yet, wherever sin increased, there was more than enough of God’s grace to triumph all the more! And just as sin reigned through death, so also this sin-conquering grace will reign as king through righteousness, imparting eternal life through Jesus, our Lord and Messiah!" (TPT).
 
Job 23:8-17
“Look, I go forward, but He is not there,
    and backward, but I cannot perceive Him;
when He works on the left hand, I cannot behold Him;
    He turns to the right hand, I cannot see Him.
But He knows the way that I take;
    when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
My foot has held fast to His steps;
    I have kept His way and have not turned aside.
I have not departed from the commandment of His lips;
    I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
“But He is resolute, and who can turn Him?
    And whatever His soul desires, that He does.
For He performs what is appointed for me,
    and many such things are with Him.
Therefore I am troubled at His presence;
    when I consider, I am afraid of Him.
For God makes my heart soft,
    and the Almighty troubles me;
because I was not cut off from the presence of darkness,
    nor has He covered the darkness from my face (MEV).

• None of us knows when our time on Earth will end. We hope to live long lives and to enjoy the love of family and friends. But recent events, including riots in our major cities and the Covid-19 pandemic, have shown us that we don't know the day or the hour in which we will leave this existence and enter the next phase of life.

• In our busy-ness, it is easy to neglect the things of God, forsaking them in favor of the urgency of work, family and other matters that clamor for our attention. But the importance of the things of God remain paramount.

• Cultivating our relationship with God and truly knowing Him - not knowing about Him, but knowing who He is - requires a faith that renders us indifferent to all this world can offer us.

•  You may never be asked to renounce your faith in God. But if that happens, you need the dying kind of faith.

• The greatest statement of faith ever uttered in this word was the last statement of Jesus on Calvary, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit" (Luke 23:46). Jesus trusted His Father because He knew the Scriptures. He knew that God would not leave Him on the cross.

•  He won’t leave you either.

• Living how you want – reckless and free, ignoring His law, walking through His grace, trampling His blood to have it your way – won’t get you across. Only dying faith will do that.