Is Your Name in the Book?

#1 · March 25, 2007, 5:35 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on March 25, 2007, 5:35 pm
Posted by: <@...>
"And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life... And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:12, 15 ESV)

A dangerously deceptive myth has permeated our society - the belief that all people - except perhaps the very worst of people - go to heaven when they die. But Jesus' words stand in direct contrast to this myth. "Jesus answered and said unto him, 'Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3 KJV). It could be called the most controversial statement Jesus ever made during His earthly ministry. Men have debated and tried to refute it for centuries, but the truth remains eternally established: "...unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God."

Nicodemus wanted to know what it meant to be born again. "How can a man be born when he is old?" he asked. "Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?" Jesus explained that it was a spiritual, not a physical, rebirth. "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:4-6).

Nor is this rebirth a matter of the will. Our best behavior cannot impress God enough to earn us heaven. Paul told the church at Ephesus, "God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it" (Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT). Salvation is the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit within a man or woman who gives their heart to Jesus as Savior and their life to Jesus as Lord. Jesus declares in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me." (Notice that the door must be opened from the inside; Jesus only comes in where He is invited.) That sovereign work is then lived out in daily obedience to God's will as expressed in His word, the bible.

What if I don't agree? Remember that the words in these verses are not spoken by me, but by Jesus. Are you willing to stake your eternal destiny on the gamble that the Son of God doesn't know what He's talking about?

But I'm a good person; isn't that enough? Isaiah declared: "We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6 NLT). In other words, our best is not enough; that's why we need a Savior. Even the apostle Paul, who came from a particularly strict Jewish sect called the Pharisees, tells the Galatians: "We know very well that we are not set right with God by rule-keeping but only through personal faith in Jesus Christ... Convinced that no human being can please God by self-improvement, we believed in Jesus as the Messiah so that we might be set right before God by trusting in the Messiah, not by trying to be good" (Galatians 2:16 The Message).

But how can a loving God send good people to hell? God doesn't send people to hell; people send themselves. Jesus left heaven, came to earth, lived a sinless life, died a cruel death, spent three days in hell, rose from the dead, appeared to many, then ascended to heaven - all to be the way to eternal life for you and me. "I am the way, the truth, and the life," He told Thomas. "No one can come to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). The price has been paid, your freedom has been purchased, but it does you no good until you accept it. Is your name in the book?

If you've never asked Jesus to be your Savior and Lord, I invite you to pray this prayer with me right now and mean it from the depths of your soul.

Dear Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. I've lived my own way, but now I see that I need you. I ask You to forgive me of my sin. I turn my back on my old way of living and I turn to you, Jesus. Jesus, I believe that You are the Son of God, that You died for me and paid the price for my sin, and that You rose again to give me eternal life. I open the door to You and ask You to come into my heart. Be my Savior and Lord. Please redeem me, Jesus, and cleanse me by Your blood. I give You my heart and my life. God, You're now more than my God, You're my heavenly Father. Thank You for loving me and receiving me into Your family. Please help me to live for Your glory all the days of my life. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, then Jesus did what He said He would do - He came to live in Your heart. You are a brand new creation! Your spirit man needs to be fed daily from the bible in order to grow, and you need to surround yourself with a good church family who will teach you and help you grow spiritually. Welcome to the family of God!
  To subscribe:  <adevotionalgroup-subscribe@welovegod.org>    To unsubscribe: <adevotionalgroup-unsubscribe@welovegod.org    If you have questions: <adevotionalgroup-owner@welovegod.org>  

Posted by: <@...>

"And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life... And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:12, 15 ESV)

A dangerously deceptive myth has permeated our society - the belief that all people - except perhaps the very worst of people - go to heaven when they die. But Jesus' words stand in direct contrast to this myth. "Jesus answered and said unto him, 'Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3 KJV). It could be called the most controversial statement Jesus ever made during His earthly ministry. Men have debated and tried to refute it for centuries, but the truth remains eternally established: "...unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God."

Nicodemus wanted to know what it meant to be born again. "How can a man be born when he is old?" he asked. "Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?" Jesus explained that it was a spiritual, not a physical, rebirth. "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:4-6).

Nor is this rebirth a matter of the will. Our best behavior cannot impress God enough to earn us heaven. Paul told the church at Ephesus, "God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it" (Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT). Salvation is the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit within a man or woman who gives their heart to Jesus as Savior and their life to Jesus as Lord. Jesus declares in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me." (Notice that the door must be opened from the inside; Jesus only comes in where He is invited.) That sovereign work is then lived out in daily obedience to God's will as expressed in His word, the bible.

What if I don't agree? Remember that the words in these verses are not spoken by me, but by Jesus. Are you willing to stake your eternal destiny on the gamble that the Son of God doesn't know what He's talking about?

But I'm a good person; isn't that enough? Isaiah declared: "We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6 NLT). In other words, our best is not enough; that's why we need a Savior. Even the apostle Paul, who came from a particularly strict Jewish sect called the Pharisees, tells the Galatians: "We know very well that we are not set right with God by rule-keeping but only through personal faith in Jesus Christ... Convinced that no human being can please God by self-improvement, we believed in Jesus as the Messiah so that we might be set right before God by trusting in the Messiah, not by trying to be good" (Galatians 2:16 The Message).

But how can a loving God send good people to hell? God doesn't send people to hell; people send themselves. Jesus left heaven, came to earth, lived a sinless life, died a cruel death, spent three days in hell, rose from the dead, appeared to many, then ascended to heaven - all to be the way to eternal life for you and me. "I am the way, the truth, and the life," He told Thomas. "No one can come to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). The price has been paid, your freedom has been purchased, but it does you no good until you accept it. Is your name in the book?

If you've never asked Jesus to be your Savior and Lord, I invite you to pray this prayer with me right now and mean it from the depths of your soul.

Dear Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. I've lived my own way, but now I see that I need you. I ask You to forgive me of my sin. I turn my back on my old way of living and I turn to you, Jesus. Jesus, I believe that You are the Son of God, that You died for me and paid the price for my sin, and that You rose again to give me eternal life. I open the door to You and ask You to come into my heart. Be my Savior and Lord. Please redeem me, Jesus, and cleanse me by Your blood. I give You my heart and my life. God, You're now more than my God, You're my heavenly Father. Thank You for loving me and receiving me into Your family. Please help me to live for Your glory all the days of my life. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, then Jesus did what He said He would do - He came to live in Your heart. You are a brand new creation! Your spirit man needs to be fed daily from the bible in order to grow, and you need to surround yourself with a good church family who will teach you and help you grow spiritually. Welcome to the family of God!

  To subscribe:  <adevotionalgroup-subscribe@welovegod.org>    To unsubscribe: <adevotionalgroup-unsubscribe@welovegod.org    If you have questions: <adevotionalgroup-owner@welovegod.org>