Freely Give

God is giving to us all of the time. There are times in our lives when we must freely give of ourselves to God. The times in our lives when we should freely give to God is every day. God freely gave us today. God freely gives us a life to live, to love, and to serve. Why don’t we freely give? Why don’t we give back a little to God? In 2 Corinthians 9:7, it says “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Matthew 10 says “freely ye have received, freely give.”

The falling leaves make me think of Halloween and our “Trunk or Treat.” It will be nice that our loop around the church can be used on Halloween. The kids receive every kind of candy very quickly. The kids don’t have to do anything to earn the candy. The kids just freely receive. The kids could just as freely give part of their abundance to others.

Instead, the kids dump all of the candy on the floor and sort it into piles. My kids each had a different strategy. Some had piles of candy organized in a favorite candy pile, a middle of the road pile, and a bad candy pile. Some organized by brand of candy. Some organized by type of candy. The lollipops would be in one pile. The chocolate bars in another pile. The kids would then start a trading process where they would negotiate Snickers Bars for Tootsie Rolls. I always liked Tootsie Rolls when I was a kid. I liked the candy that I didn’t get to eat during the year.

Regardless of how they organized the candy it would finally end up in their rooms. They ate a lot of candy the first week after Halloween. Slowly their appetite for candy slowed down. If you went into their rooms around Christmas, you could find a stash of Halloween candy that was unloved and forgotten. The kids forgot about the treats from Halloween because they wanted the new treats prepared for the holidays. Our family loves to make taffy and fudge and pecan pies around Christmas.

All of the kids who received a year’s supply of candy at Halloween could have turned around and shared their candy with so many people. They would have had enough candy to satisfy their sweat tooth and had candy left over. I bet very few kids ever think of giving some of their candy away to sweeten someone else’s life without doing a trade to get some candy back in return.

Jesus wants us to freely give our candy away to those that we meet along the road of life. He doesn’t want us to follow the Halloween example where people are willing to give only one day a year. Jesus wants us to give freely of the gifts that he’s given us every day of the year. Jesus also wants the people who receive the candy to turn around and share some of that candy with other people without asking to trade candy to receive a Snickers Bar instead of a Tootsie Roll. Okay, so what is God’s candy bar? God’s candy bars are his spiritual gifts. God gives his spiritual gifts to all of us just like we give candy to all of the kids on Halloween. God doesn’t pick and choose who is worthy of getting his candy bars. God gives his candy bars to all of us.

Jesus selected some very ordinary men to be his disciples. Jesus equipped the disciples with the spiritual gifts necessary to serve God. Jesus did not pick even one priest or religious leader to be one of the twelve disciples. The disciples were regular folks like you and me. The difference is that they received the spiritual gifts from God and then they were willing to freely give back to people.

The scripture for today starts with Matthew 10:1 “And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.” This indicates that the disciples could fight spiritual and physical battles in the name of Jesus Christ. The disciples received power to fight against unclean spirits. They were able to cast out demons from people who were possessed. They had the ability to heal people with any kind of sickness and disease all in the name of Jesus Christ. Let me repeat: the scripture states that they could heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. It didn’t say that could heal one thing but not something else. It said “all manner of sickness and disease.”

Matthew 10:1 easily explains that this power to fight evil, sickness, and disease was given to ordinary guys who were willing to follow Jesus. We can fight evil, sickness, and disease if we just believe that Jesus freely gave that power to us as well. It is interesting to me that we know so little about some of the twelve disciples. Some of them are easy to remember because they were very active in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Other disciples are not known at all. How many of the disciples do you remember?

The scripture continues by saying “Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; ⁴Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.”

⁵These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: ⁶But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. ⁸Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.”

Jesus gave us the same powers as the disciples. Jesus also gave us the same command. We are supposed to go into the world to find the lost sheep. Jesus is explaining that the impossible is possible. We can freely share the gospel of Jesus Christ and share the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

There’s so much that I want to you to consider. First, I want to share about tithing. In Numbers 18:26 it says "Speak to the Levites and say to them: 'When you receive from the Israelites the tithe I give you as your inheritance, you must present a tenth of that tithe as the LORD's offering.” This one verse is so powerful. If we actually listened to this verse and gave to God a tenth of our income or inheritance, we would see a huge change in our lives. We can’t out give God. I challenge you to try just once in your life.

We struggled with tithing when Missy and Carrie were babies. We had more bills than our paycheck would pay. Susan and I were sitting around the table trying to figure out how we were going to pay all of the bills. I made the suggestion that we use our tithe to church to pay other bills. Susan wouldn’t have anything to do with my suggestion. She said that we would give to God first. It didn’t make sense logically. The church doesn’t send a bill to you to pay. It is up to us to decide what to give in the offering plate. Today, I understand why tithing is so important. The closest thing we come to a bill from our church is reading Numbers 18:26.

Second, I realized one day that everything that I had did not belong to me. It all belonged to God. We are just stewards of God’s gifts and blessings until we go onto heaven. Once, I realized that fact. It made me realize that I could be more generous with my time and money because I was using God’s time and money, not my own. Every day that we spend on this earth we have received from God. If God has freely given us this day, then why can’t we freely give this day back to God? If God has freely given us our finances, then why can’t we freely tithe part of our finances back to God? Matthew 10 says “freely ye have received, freely give.”

Peter 5:13-20 tells how important it is to freely give of ourselves to meet the specific needs of others. “¹³ Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. ¹⁴ Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. ¹⁷ Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. ¹⁸ And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. ¹⁹ Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, ²⁰ let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.”

The greatest thing we can do is to give ourselves fully for God. God has freely given us all that we have so it is not that hard to suggest we must freely give ourselves to helping others know God. If someone needs prayer, we need to pray. The fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. If someone needs to learn about God, we need to tell them about God. Let’s change our mindset to believe that God has freely given us this day and everything that we have. Let’s freely give of our time and resources to serve God.

Stop, Listen, Speak

It is smart to stop, listen to God, wait, think, and then speak. It takes patience to think about what needs to be said before it is spoken. It is actually polite to listen to someone’s conversation before we add our own two cents. Our tongue is perhaps the most valuable and most dangerous part of our body.

The scripture from James 3:1-2 explains about the risk of false teaching about God. It says “¹Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. ²We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.” Teachers are judged at a higher standard because God expects teachers and preachers to explain God’s word accurately and with truth. The worst thing would to be a false prophet who leads people away from God using false teachings to confuse them.

The next verses starting of James 3-10 explain about the power of the spoken word or tongue. “³When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. ⁴Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.”

“⁵Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ⁷All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, ⁸but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.”

“⁹With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. ¹⁰Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.

We are so easily controlled by the spoken word. We say things that hurt others and ourselves. We say that we will trip and fall and yet we are surprised when we actually trip and fall. We talk about our family and friends in a bad way without thinking that those words will last longer after the sound has ended.

Your children or friends will remember the words you spoke to them. Those words can be a treasure or they can be a curse. I’m going to give you two examples:

“You will not amount to much. You are a mean and bad boy.”

---- or -----

“I thank God that you are becoming such a fine young man. I see how you are showing respect to your teachers at school and working to complete your homework. I appreciate your help around the house. You bring joy that God blessed me with you as my son.”

You may think that the first comment may seem to be true, but the pain that it causes is the same pain as a knife in the back. It may make you feel good as it is spoken, but the damage cannot be repaired. It will move that young boy onto the wrong path because it states that you believe that he will not amount to much in his life. You have given him a verdict that his own parent does not believe in him.

The second comment requires that we stop, think, and speak words with love and faith. The young boy may not finish every homework assignment or do every chore to your liking, but the words are spoken with faith. The young boy will spend his life trying to live up to those words spoken in faith. The young boy will strive to try to please and figure out what you see in him that others have not found. Both comments only took a few minutes to speak, but they will last a lifetime.

The words spoken about church members can also harm or strengthen a person. We can ask why it is taking so long for someone to gain the skills required to do the job or we can thank God that they are growing everyday into the person we need to get the job done. If we keep bringing up the weaknesses of people, they will soon believe that they do not have any strength.

In Hebrews 11:1-3, the scripture instructs us about faith. “¹Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ²For by it the elders obtained a good report. ³Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”

These words are so powerful. It tells us that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. These words make the positive statement about the son make sense. The boy can become the man described by the words of faith. Verse 2, says that by faith the elders obtained a good report. We spoke for a few minutes about a boy in both instances. It only took a little time to speak those words. One set of words condemns and frightens a young man. The other set of words encourages, strengthens, and lifts up a young boy to become a man who works hard and has faith in God because his parents thanked God for his qualities even when they were unseen when the words were spoken.

Does that make sense? Does it make sense that just thirteen words and two sentences can change lifetime? Does it make sense that words spoken in faith about a person can change a life dramatically. Our tongue is very small, but it works just like the rudder on a large ship. A small movement of our tongue can change a person’s life.

Why don’t we say what is really on our minds in a positive way? A spark from a small match can start a forest fire that can burn thousands of acres of forests and homes. It does not seem possible that a small match could do so much damage. It also does not seem possible that a small tongue in our mouth can harm those that we love so much. The spoken word can also hard us.

Guard your spoken word as if each word was worth a million dollars. Craft your sentences so that each word spoken is a gift of thought and love. Speak with the words of faith, not with the words of doubt. Speak with the words of love, not with the words of hate. Speak with the words of encouragement, not with the words that discourage. Speak with that can be fulfilled in a good way, not with the words that condemn a person to a terrible future.

Proverbs 6:2 warns us that “Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.” Our words are powerful. Our words uncover the thoughts of our mind and the dreams of our heart. Our words will fulfill God’s plan for us or we will be snared with the words of our mouth. How can words trap us? How can words change our lives? It is simple, if we speak words from the Bible those words have power. If we speak words from Satan those words have power, too. We have a choice which way our tongue will be used. We must speak with faith, love, and hope.

Proverbs 12:13 tells us “The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.” We should celebrate the rainbow that will come out of the storm while we are in the middle of the storm. If we speak that the storm is the biggest storm in our lives. If we speak that the storm has made us weak and afraid, then we will be weak and afraid. If we speak that we can see the rainbow and the storm is ending, we will live to see the rainbow and the future blue skies. The future is in our spoken word. We have a choice how our tongue will be used. Will it be used by God or by Satan?

Psalm 120 reads “¹In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me. ²Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue. ³What shall be given unto thee or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue?

In our distress we can cry and pray to God. God does hear our prayers. God does answer our prayers. We can also pray that our tongues be delivered from lies and deceit that trap us and those that we love into a life of pain and hurt. It may be that we believe that we are saying only what is true, but Psalm 120 asks us to be delivered from our lies. Satan lies to us that we are no good. If we rebuke that lie, we are okay. If we speak that lie as a spoken word, then we are snared or trapped by that lie. If Satan lies to us that we will always be sick and we speak that we have bad health, then that spoken word will come true.

On the other hand, if we speak words from the Bible about our health, our hope, and our loved ones, those words will come true. We can pray that we thank God in advance for our back to be strong, our feet to carry us where we need to go without falling, our tongues to sing of God’s glory, and our mind to understand God’s word. Remember the words from Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

It is not logical to speak words of faith. We haven’t seen the evidence of things hoped for yet. We are speaking of things hoped for BEFORE it happens. In fact, it is better to thank God for things hoped for BEORE it happens. Anyone can thank God after they see the results of God’s work. Only the faithful can thank God before the evidence of things hoped for are visible.

Proverbs 22:1-6 has a lot of wisdom. It talks about choosing a good name and trusting in God’s favor. I talks about being humble and fearing God. A good name follows from words spoken in faith, love, and hope. It says that snares are only for the wicked. It also has a very well known verse about raising our children. Listen to these words:

¹ A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
Loving favor rather than silver and gold.
² The rich and the poor have this in common,
The LORD is the maker of them all.
³ A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself,
But the simple pass on and are punished.
⁴ By humility and the fear of the LORD
Are riches and honor and life.
⁵ Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;
He who guards his soul will be far from them.
⁶ Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.

Tell the story of praying for rain in Wungu. Tell the story of praying for provisions: 1) The albino twins in Zangum Zuga 2) money counted and it increased to meet the need 3) walking onto a plane to travel to Ghana when my back was in extreme pain. I have prayed for God to be in a place and experienced the power of the Holy Spirit overtaking that place.

I am pleading to you to stop, listen to God, and speak with faith. Please speak with a new found boldness that comes from knowing the Lord. We must have unity of faith to have the miracles happening right here at New Hope and Franklin County. I need your help. I am just a man doing the best I can. Lord, let the words that I speak and the actions that I take be your words and actions that you have called to take today and everyday. Let us speak with boldness and faith in unity to serve you in a mighty way.

Fiery Furnace

Hell is real. The Bible explains how to earn a ticket to hell. First, we can withhold love. Second, we can fail to serve and love our neighbor. Third, we have free will to not worship God. Fourth, if God lays a problem at your feet, just ignore the problem and God. Fifth, just violate some of the Ten Commandments, Six, if God gets you out of slavery or a bad situation, complain about the food and make yourself an idol. Seven, take advantage of a few temptations. Eight, stay in the darkness and avoid the light of Jesus Christ. Nine, take a few people away from God. Finally, if you can’t find three people to testify on your behalf on judgment day and you forgot to ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior, then you can get one free ticket to hell.

Hell is a place where there is no light, no hope, where the fire and heat are unbearable, and where you are always thirsty. Torment is constant and there is no chance of escape. Hell is a place where hate is the norm and you are removed from God’s love and peace. Hell is the place where all of the scary things that make you skin crawl are in your cell. Satan and his demons are in control. Hell is called the pit, the fiery furnace, the lake of fire, Sheol, or place of total darkness.

When we die, we will be asked if we loved our neighbor and loved the Lord our God. God has a huge capacity to love and to forgive after we have sinned, but mankind has the capacity to try God’s patience. Hell is a real place if we fail to serve and love our neighbor.

The scripture explains that hell is a place prepared by Satan and his fallen angels or demons. God does not want us to go to hell. In fact, God fights for our souls and our eternal life, but we have the free will and free choice to follow and worship God or to take the path that leads to hell. If we use our free will to follow Satan, we can definitely start down the path that leads to hell.

The following scripture explains that if God lays a problem at your feet you better find a way to solve that problem. In Matthew 25:41-47, "Then God will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

In Luke 16:19-31, the scriptures use a specific example that if you see suffering at your feet, you better solve that suffering. It is interesting that the beggar has a name while the rich man does not have a name. The story goes “¹⁹"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. ²⁰At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores ²¹and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

²²"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. ²⁴So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' ²⁵"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. ²⁶And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'

²⁷"He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, ²⁸for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' ²⁹"Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' ³⁰" 'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' Abraham said to the rich man, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

The rich man realized that he could have helped Lazarus during his lifetime. The rich man could have solved the pain and suffering if he had seen with the eyes of God. The rich man could have fed Lazarus and helped him to have a better life here on Earth. The rich man had to step over Lazarus to live his life. The rich man could have given Lazarus food when he was hungry. The rich man could have given Lazarus clothes when he was naked. The rich man could have given Lazarus water to drink when he was thirsty. Instead, the rich man walked past Lazarus every day of his life without seeing with compassion the needs of his neighbor. If you say you this does apply to you, then you are wrong. If you do not show love and compassion to your neighbor, then the fate of the rich man can also be your fate.

Two communities sinned so long and so blatantly that God brought judgment on them. Sodom and Gomorrah will always be known as two cities that were so corrupt that God destroyed the cities. Sodom and Gomorrah violated many of the Ten Commandments. They put their trust in sin and Satan.

The Israelites were taken out of slavery to travel toward the Promised Land. They had just seen Moses use his staff to part the Red Sea. In Exodus 14:29 it says “But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

In Exodus 16:2-4; 9-13, the scripture explains that the people just saved by God had the nerve to complain and grumble. This is the sixth point, if God gets you out of slavery or a bad situation, complain about the food and make yourself an idol. It says, "If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death."

"⁸ Moses also said, "You will know that it was the Lord when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord."

⁹ Then Moses told Aaron, "Say to the entire Israelite community, 'Come before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.' "¹⁰ While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the Lord appearing in the cloud. ¹¹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹² "I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, 'At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.' "¹³ That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. ¹⁴ When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor.”

This is the story of manna falling from Heaven. God saved the Israelites from slavery. God parted the Red Sea. God set the example that we should give food to the hungry and water to the thirsty. God sent food from Heaven, but it was not enough. They were tempted to create idols to worship. These people who had been blessed by God with everything had the nerve to gripe and complain. They were whining that freedom was hard and bragging that slavery provided all of the food that they could eat. They were in God’s light and they were asking to return to the darkness and fear of slavery. Hell is darkness and fear. You will be a slave to Satan in hell. They were living hell on Earth, but Satan made their hell appear good. Satan lies. He tries to make the good and Godly things look bad and the terrible things look desirable.

God will provide for our every need if we just let him. We must be thankful for God’s provisions. The people did not believe that God would provide food and water to drink. Water represents life. The people did not believe that God could provide life to them. They lost faith. They saw the Red Sea parted. They saw manna fall from the sky in the morning. They saw quails fall at their feet at night. They could not believe that God could provide the living water to cool their thirst. In hell, God will not be there to cool the thirst. Heat and fire will surround you and your throat will always be dry in hell.

We study the story of Jesus in the desert to learn how Satan tempted Jesus. The story is told in Matthew 4:1-4. “¹ Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. ³ Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” ⁴ But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”

Jesus sets the example for us to follow. Satan tempted Jesus quoting scripture, but Jesus quoted scripture back to him. Jesus could have been king of all of the earthly kingdoms, but Jesus said “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.” Jesus showed us how to avoid the temptations of Satan. If you want the free ticket to hell, just take advantage of a few of the temptations from Satan.

We must worship God and be true to Him. We have so many things that tempt us and take us away from God. We must be able to rebuke those temptations and put our trust into God. Sometimes, it is pride that takes us away from God. We believe that we can go it alone. Do we need the light of Jesus Christ in our lives? Is slavery better than freedom? Is darkness is better than light? Jesus Christ is the light of this world. We NEED the light of Jesus Christ in our lives today and every day.

We don’t experience true darkness anymore. We have exterior lights and the glow of a distant city. The Bible describes a darkness that could be felt. It makes me think of a thick fog that is difficult to see through. It is difficult to see a tree that is just a few feet away in a thick fog. It is difficult to see true evil in extreme darkness. Evil loves to hide in the darkness because it would be exposed in God’s light. If you want the free ticket to hell, just stay in the darkness and avoid the light of Jesus Christ.

I have seen Satan’s strongholds here on Earth. The people live in fear and extreme poverty. The people learn that everyone hates them. The people put their lives and trust in Satan’s hands. The people don’t know the love and hope of Jesus Christ. They live in darkness. They have not experienced the light of Jesus Christ. I have seen what happens when God’s word is preached in that place of fear and evil. I have seen the impact a church where people come together to sing God’s praises. I have seen God’s blessings replace the curses and fear of Satan. The people begin to pray to God. The people begin to place their trust and faith in God. The people see their children and grandchildren being transformed into children of God.

In hell, you will not rest from torments. The smell has to be terrible, awful, and foul. It says in Revelation 14:10b-11 that a person in hell “will be tormented with burning sulfur… 11 And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.” The scriptures tell of a time when we will have to choose to have the mark of Satan or to choose God. Hell is the absence of God’s goodness and love. You are also absent from people that you love. Hell is the absence of God’s blessings.

Jesus Christ died on the cross so that we could live life here on Earth and have eternal life. Salvation is a free gift. Salvation is freely given by God to us. We must confess our sins and ask Jesus Christ to be Lord of our lives.

Hebrews 10: 26-29 tell us “For if we willfully persist in sin after having received the knowledge of truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful prospect of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has violated the Law of Moses dies without mercy “on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” 29 How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by those who have spurned the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant by which they were sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know the one who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.” If you want that free ticket to hell, don’t get the testimony of three witnesses.

One of the greatest sins is to lead someone astray. We should bring people to God. False prophets are those who claim to be Jesus or one of his disciples, but their teaching is not of God. Their teaching is evil. It causes confusion and internal conflict. We must share the love of Jesus Christ and teach God’s Word written in the Bible. That is why it is so important to bring up our children in the church. That is why it is so important that we share our testimony about God whenever we can. Do you have at least two or three people who can testify on your behalf on judgment day that you showed compassion, shared the love of Jesus Christ, gave food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, and clothing to the naked?

The Bible tells about the lamb’s book of life. Are you sure that your name is written in God’s Book of Life? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? We do not know the day and hour of our death. It is too risky to wait until your final hour to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior to avoid going to hell. Are you sure that everyone that you love will go to Heaven and not hell?

I remember teaching about the faith chapter of Hebrews 11. I taught that Daniel had faith from an early age because he had faithful friends. A boy spoke up and told me that his name was Daniel, too. Daniel told me that he wanted to become a Christian on his last day on Earth. I asked him why he wanted to wait. He told me he was a Muslim. Daniel wanted to be able to do anything that he wanted while he was not a Christian. I told Daniel that he may not have time when he is dying to repent of his sins and to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Daniel prayed the prayer of Salvation and accepted God into his life with his friends that day.

The prayer of salvation is fairly easy, but you must believe it when you pray:

Dear Precious Lord,
I am a sinner. I have fallen short in my life. I am sorry and I repent. Please forgive me. You gave your only son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for me, so that I could have eternal life. I come to you now. Please take control of my life. I give my life to you. You are my personal Lord and Savior. Help me to live every day in a way that pleases you. I love you, Lord, and I thank you that I will spend all eternity with you. Amen.

Are you ready to pray the prayer of salvation today and start a new life with God the moment that you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? Salvation is a free gift. We can’t earn it. It is by God’s grace that we receive salvation and eternal life. We must ask God to forgive our sins and dedicate our lives to Christ. We have to give ourselves freely to God with our whole heart. Trust me, hell is not a place we want to visit or even risk the chance that we or someone we love may be going. The guarantee is to pray the prayer of salvation with faith and commitment. It is because God loves us that we give our love to others. Make a reservation for heaven instead! Amen!