The Tribulum

One of the many things I love about the church I attend is our pastor's teaching. He dives deeper into the text than most pastors I've heard. This past Sunday we were just beginning Romans 5, when he paused after reading this verse: 

"And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance..." - Romans 5:3

Then he said something like this: "Tribulation comes from the Latin word tribulum or tribula. A tribulum was used for treshing out the grain."

Really? That's interesting. During the tribulations we go through in our lives, WE are the grain. Here's another verse dealing with threshing grain.

"His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” - Matthew 3:13

We are the wheat, unbelievers are the chaff, the barn is heaven, the threshing floor is earth, and the winnowing fork is Jesus at The Judgement.

I'm thinking that being "wheat" is better than being "chaff." Being burned up "with unquenchable fire" just does not appeal to me.

The picture above is what rhe underside of a tribulum looks like. The white things are jagged rocks embedded in the wooden planks. Imagine getting THAT dragged over you until your skin comes off. TRIBULATION!!

The tribulations that we face today pale in comparison to those of Jesus' day. Crucifixions, 39 lashes, or being burned alive. Yet, burning for all eternity is what awaits those who sin (all of us) and have not repented of those sins and made Jesus their Lord. By making Jesus LORD, then He becomes our SAVIOR. And we ALL need one of those.

And boy, do we all need Jesus!

The Unrequiting

The term unrequited means "unanswered; not returned; not reciprocated; or not repaid," according to The American Heritage Dictionary. "The Unrequiting" are those people who choose not to return something or reciprocate in any way.

An example of this can be found in the relationship between my wife and her cat. Normally their interaction during the day is very loving. My wife feeds the cat and pets it, talks to it, and picks it up and cuddles it. However, at 4AM my wife my is very unrequitive, wanting to sleep just a bit more.

The cat tries to get beyond the closed bedroom door with clawing and mournful meowing but my wife ignores the cat,  choosing sleep over requiting. Poor kitten.

We humans can be the same way in our relationship with God, if a relationship even exists. Most who don't know God are just fine without Him, even though HE might "stand at the door and knock."

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." - Revelation 3:20

But even those of us who believe can go through times when we ignore God. That usually doesn't end well.

"Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah, son of Amittai, saying, ²“Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before Me.”

³Jonah, however, got up to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD." - Jonah 1:1-3

That didn't go so well for Jonah. He ended up on a beach in a pile of fish vomit.

People who refuse to hear the Gospel or ignore the knocking of God at their door, are destined for a fate far worse than Jonah on the Ninevah beach - eternity in Hell.

What should we do then, for the unrequiting; for those who are unwilling to return the love of God and His offer of forgiven sins and eternal life? All we can do is pray for them. If they refuse Almighty God's knocking at their door, do we think they will open up for us?

It hurts when those we love refuse to even consider a relationship with Jesus. Why? Because we know what awaits them. And that, for all eternity. How incredibly sad.

“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’" - Matthew 22:13

The Parable of The Dumpsters

Monday is garbage day at our house. We put the trash bins out Sunday night because "the boys" come early. And we don't like having to go outside in the early morning to do so. Wimps!

The picture above is of our dumpsters. Everyone in our subdivision has a pair. Aren't they lovely? They are both empty and waiting to be taken back into our garage.

As I was walking down our driveway to retrieve them, a thought came to mind. What a perfect picture of the choice we have to make regarding Jesus.

On the right we have the absolute trash. The used kitty litter and Kleenex, the potato peels, and bacon grease. It's future rests in the ground. Eternally buried under a big pile of dirt, never to see the light of day again.

On the left we have the green-topped recycle bin. The stuff that gets put in there actually has a future (theoretically). It gets sorted and separated. The paper goes one place; the plastic goes somewhere else. These then get made into different things. They get transformed.

Isn't that analogous to our own post-life future? Those who have trusted in Jesus will be transformed. We will receive new glorified bodies and live forever with our Lord, Jesus.

"For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." - 1 Corinthians 15:52

Speaking of the earthly body, Paul writes,

"It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. ⁴⁴It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body." - 1 Corinthians 15:43-44

Those who have wasted their opportunity here on earth with sinful living and debauchery, denying Jesus, will go into the abyss - the black dumpster.

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” - Matthew 25:46

Therefore, from this moment on, I will be renaming our dumpsters 'Heaven' and 'Hell'.

The Dead In Christ

According to the Apostle Paul, meeting the Lord will be like this:

"¹³Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. ¹⁴For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. ¹⁵According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁶For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸Therefore encourage one another with these words." - 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

I have some questions . . .

#1.) Who are "the dead in Christ?"

According to GotQuestions.org, the dead in Christ are those believers who have died before the second coming of Jesus. Billy Graham qualifies in that regard. So does Stephen, the first martyr. Believers who have died before the Lord's return "will rise first."

Next question - #2.) Will the dead in Christ rise physically or spiritually?

The reason I ask this question is that when Jesus died on the cross several dead people rose physically from the grave.

"⁵²The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. ⁵³They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people." - Matthew 27:52-53

A foretaste of things to come? Hmm.

Here's an interesting truth. Paul writes to the church in Corinth, about being "away from the body and present with the Lord." A lot of people have gotten this verse wrong. Including me. Paul doesn't say WHEN we are away from the body we are present with the Lord. Read the actual verse and see.

"⁸We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord." - 2 Corinthians 5:8

Various translations use the words 'rather' and 'prefer.' None say WE WILL. Be careful out there. So where do we go when we die?

When Jesus spoke to the thief on the cross He said, "²³Today you will be with me in paradise." - Luke 23:43

Read this additional comment from GotQuestions.org:

There has always been a separation of believers and unbelievers after death (Luke 16:19-31). The righteous have always gone to paradise; the wicked have always gone to hell. For right now, both paradise and hell are “temporary holding places” until the day when Jesus Christ comes back to judge the world based on whether or not individuals have believed in Him. The first resurrection is of believers who will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ to receive rewards based on meritorious service to Him. The second resurrection will be that of unbelievers who will stand before the Great White Throne Judgment of God. At that point, all will be sent to their eternal destination—the wicked to the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15), and the righteous to a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21—22).

Note that it says we who believe will go to PARADISE' when we die, not heaven. Interesting distinction.

Does it really matter who rises first? I don't think so. But meeting "the Lord in the air" will be spectacular!! THEN we will be with the Lord forever. That's all that matters.

Who Are The Dead In Christ

- Gotquestions.org

The Biggest Word

When words get to the five-syllable point I usually give up and look them up in the dictionary. FYI - 'propitiation' is a big word - too big for Samsung's spell checker feature on my phone. I wonder if that is by design? Hmm.

Propitiation is defined by Merriam-Webster as "the act of gaining or regaining the favor or goodwill of someone or something." Perhaps I should use it in a sentence . . .

"And He (Jesus) is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." - 1 John 2:2

In other words, Jesus is the means by which we become righteous in God's eyes. As it says in the Book of Romans . . .

"The wages of sin is death." - Romans 6:23

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." - Romans 3:23

God is a just judge. There is no getting off because it's your first offense. There's no liberal attorney general opening the jail doors for the guilty. There's no trial. God knows we've sinned! And we must die as a result.

The words "wrath of God" appear 43 times in the ESV. It's a very real thing. There's no escaping it. Unless . . . of course . . . someone serves our sentence for us . . .

That's huge!!

Oh, Lord Jesus! We're so sorry. Thank you! Thank you for dying as a propitiation for our sins. And thank you God for raising your Son Jesus from the dead. Your incredible love on display for all to see.

Oh, what a gracious God we serve! 

Road Trip - Part 2

"For the wages of sin is death," - Romans 6:23

Last time we learned that no one is good and that there is no amount of good things that anyone can do to earn entrance into heaven. As the disciples once asked Jesus, "Who then can be saved?"

Not only are we not good enough to get into heaven, no matter what we do, but our sins will result in our ultimate eternal "death." Even if we think we've been good.

Wow! This is really depressing. And here we thought that EVERYONE goes to heaven when they die. We've been lied to.

What a dismal future we all have. If only God would have mercy on us.....

It has been said that "It's always darkest before the dawn." That's especially true when it comes to our sin.

We were born sinful. In darkness, if you will.

"The wicked are estranged from the womb; These who speak lies go astray from birth." - Psalm 58:3

But God....provided a way for us to live and to gain entry into heaven. Just like He provided a way for His people to leave Egypt and to enter The Promised Land. Zurely God had given us a reason to have hope in this ever-darkening world.

More on that next time.

[Come back on Saturday to find out just what happens. This short series on the Romans Road to Salvation DOES have a happy ending, but sadly, only for some] 

Our Deliverer

Have you ever listened to a reading of the Bible? Try it sometime. You don't have to spend time figuring out how to pronounce all those names (like Mephibosheth) and you just might 'hear' something you missed when simply reading it.

I was listening to the Book of Exodus this week and the story of Moses and Pharaoh. Moses was trying to free God's people and Pharaoh wasn't letting the people go.

Here are a few of the key verses. 

Moses, the deliverer, was born as a baby (Exodus 2:2). Jesus, OUR Deliverer, was born as a baby (Luke 2:7)

Pharaoh tried to have all of the male Hebrew babies killed (Exodus 1:16,22). Herod issued an order to kill all the Hebrew boys who were two years old or younger (Matthew 2:16).

Is not Pharaoh a representation of Satan? 

Are not God's people in Egypt a representation of those who believe in Christ? Is not Moses a foreshadowing of Jesus, the Messiah? Will not Jesus deliver Christians from a spiritual 'Egypt', which is this sin-filled world we live in, just as God delivered His people through Moses?

Again and again, Pharaoh hardened his heart until those relentlessly pursuing God's people were 'drowned in the sea.' Just like Satan, and all those who follow him, will fight to the end against Almighty God and one day will be thrown into 'the lake of fire?'

We live in a spiritual 'Egypt' with Satan ruling over us. He is an evil and wicked taskmaster. We who believe in Christ have been set free from the bondage of our sins. And one day soon we will ultimately be delivered from 'Egypt' to our eternal 'Promised Land.'

Moses was an obedient deliverer for God's people in Egypt, just as Jesus, the obedient Son of the One True God, is OUR deliverer from Satan and the sin in this world.

Would you like to be delivered from death? Then place your faith and trust in THEE Deliverer, Jesus. Do that and you will live eternally with Him. But if you won't follow Him, then you have sentenced yourself to being thrown into 'the Nile.'

The choice is yours. It's all up to you. What will YOU choose?

The Consequences of Disobedience

When I first saw this picture I thought three things. One, look at that smile! Two, look at that hair! and three, look at those nails! Sadly, we won't be seeing any of those things in the upcoming Olympic games. Miss Richardson failed a drug test and was suspended

There are laws in this world and when people break those laws, there are consequences. At least that's part of the plan anyway.

There are some people who have broken the law that get away with their crimes. At least it seems like they to us. But God sees, ,and knows, all things. There is nothing that gets past His watchful eyes and His just judgements.

God has laws. People have been breaking those laws for thousands of years. One day, Jesus will judge the living and the dead. All people will have to face up to the things they've done. Everyone will be punished for their wrong-doing.

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," - Romans 3:23

There is an exception to God's righteous judgements however. God has made it plain to see that, if we place our faith in Hid Son Jesus, God will forgive our sins. Why? Because Jesus already paid for our crimes when died on the cross. He took OUR death sentence upon Himself and died in our place so we won't have to die when we are sentenced.

People sin in this world. God knows that. He set this whole thing up before the beginning of the world. Sadly, it cost God His Son's life to compensate for OUR sins. How merciful and gracious was that!?!

Look at that picture again. When we see Jesus in heaven one day, I think this is how we all will react, after all the things that He has done FOR us. Despite us. Won't we run to Him with open arms and give Him the biggest hug ever?

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." - 2 Timothy 4:7

Madness!

When I was growing up I remember watching the 1957 movie The Bridge on The River Kwai. Despite its length, there were a few scenes I remember quit vividly. The English prisoners whistling that song, Sir Alec Guinness falling and exploding the very bridge he built. Then, at the very end there was one prisoner who spoke a word, twice. It summed up the entire movie.

"Madness! Madness!"

But probably the most telling line came from the star of the movie, Alec Guinness. When he realized that he had, in his stubborn English pride, actually aided and abetted the enemy, he uttered these words . . .

"What have I done?"

In the Biblical story of The Rich Man and Lazarus there is a similar moment for the rich man, when he realizes the error of his ways. Unfortunately it was after his death. He pleads with Abraham to send Lazarus to him to give him some water, and to raise Lazarus from the dead that he might warn his brothers. Notice how the rich man thought of himself first? Then his brother?

Abraham replies to the rich man with words that we all should heed today because they were very prophetic in nature. Remember, it was Jesus that was telling this story.

“‘No, father Abraham,’ he (the rich man) said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

And then this . . .

31 “He (Abraham) said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’” - Luke 16:30-31

Oh, my. Jesus rose from the dead. And still people don't listen to Him.

Have we truly repented from our sins? Is there some moment from our past that we need to repent of today? We do NOT want to be having an Alec Guinness moment in hell when we ask ourselves, "What have I done?"

The Rich Man and Lazarus
The Bridge On The River Kwia Ending

And Then The End

It seems like every night on the news I see stories about California being on fire. Nasty fires burning thousands and thousands of acres. Sometime during the news story I usually say, "And then the end will come." Why?

I got those words from this passage of scripture in the Book of Matthew. See if this doesn't sound like California.

"Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." - Matthew 24:9-14

It certainly seems like we are nearing the end of things, especially if you live in California. Here in Wisconsin however, we just received our first snowfall. Everything was a beautiful snowy white yesterday morning. So peaceful. Almost the exact opposite of what it's like in California.

From my point of view it's hard to figure out why anyone would want to live in California these days. Yes, it can be beautiful (when it's not smoldering or shaking) but it is also a hot bed of some of the most radical behavior and beliefs on the planet.

The Bible talks about things like what's going on in California and then it says that "all these things have to happen." The earthquakes, famines, wars, the increase of wickedness. All these things are a foretaste of things to come. And it will no doubt be even worse than it is now.

How do I know that this is not really the end of the world? That's an easy question. It's the Christians. We are still here! But imagine a world with all these natural disasters going on and even more evil in it. And no Christians! No churches, no faith-based relief organizations. Imagine a world so desperately in need of Jesus.

And then the end will come.

If you are not a believer in Christ, please consider becoming one today. People die everyday on this planet, most of whom do so quite unexpectedly. Those who die without placing their faith in Jesus will get to spend eternity walking through fires like those blazing in California.

Or, you could spend it in a place filled with peace, the air will be crisp and clean, and there will be no more war, forever. Which would you choose?

California's Burning - Tom Caves

Survival Guide

My wife and I have been watching this show on The Weather Channel called SOS: How To Survive. It's a fairly lame show about people who do really dumb things, get themselves into trouble and almost die. But then, through some freak turn of events, some miracle, they get rescued.

The host of the show, Creek Stewart, gives tips on surviving whatever conditions these people encountered. He tells all of us how we can survive in a world that seems as if it's out to get us. That's where you and I come in. We need to tell people. about Jesus as if their lives depended on it. Because it does.

Fact #1: Everyone is going to die. There's no escaping that. But some people will die twice. The "second death" as John describes for us in the Book of Revelation.

"But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." - Revelation 21:8

The unbelieving get to spend eternity separated from God in a fiery lake of burning sulfur. Nice. So, here are some tips on how to survive that.

There are four basic elements needed for survival. Water, Food, Air, Shelter.

Water - 13Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” - John 4:13-14

Food - “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry." - John 6:35

Air - "He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things." - Acts 17:25

Shelter - "For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock." - Psalm 27:5

To survive in this world we need a survival kit containing these four essential elements needed to sustain life. Our survival kit. Everything we need, all wrapped up in one. Jesus!

Our survival kit is all wrapped up in Jesus. He is the one who judges whether of not we live or die the second death. Our survival is based upon our belief in Him. That's it. If we believe He is the Son of God, if we repent our sins, turning from our wicked ways, we will be saved.

It is that simple yet, for some, it seems like to most difficult thing to do. Love them, pray for them. Surviving this world is easy IF we have our survival kit with containing the essentials of life - Jesus.

Breathe - Michael W. Smith

Sheol

After someone dies we who remain are usually showered with a myriad of condolences, well-wishes and comforting words like, "She's in heaven now" or "He's in a better place now." Are we sure? Where DO we go when we die?

Every religion has their own beliefs and theories about life after death. Even the Christian faith has differing opinions, depending on your denomination. So what is true? Everyone can't be right. Let's go to the Bible to see what we can find.

There are three different beliefs within the Christian faith. GotQuestions.org describe these differing "camps" this way.

Within the Christian faith, there is a significant amount of confusion regarding what happens after death. Some hold that after death, everyone “sleeps” until the final judgment, after which everyone will be sent to heaven or hell. Others believe that at the moment of death, people are instantly judged and sent to their eternal destinations. Still others claim that when people die, their souls/spirits are sent to a “temporary” heaven or hell, to await the final resurrection, the final judgment, and then the finality of their eternal destination.

Sheol is a Hebrew word used throughout the Old Testament. Sheol means "place of the dead." When the Old Testament texts were translated into Greek (200 BC) this word became Hades. It means "the place of the dead." That's where we go when we die - Sheol. Not heaven.

There also appears to be two parts to Sheol. Open your Bibles to Luke 16:22-23. The words of Jesus:

"22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side.6 The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side." - Luke 16:22-23

We can tell quite a few things from this text. Lazarus is physically higher than the rich man, yet they are both in near proximity because they can see each other. There appear to be two "places" in Hades, one where there is torment and the other without torment. What determined their destinations in Sheol? Their faith.

Then there are these words from Jesus to the thief on the cross - the thief who believed that Jesus was the Son of God. Both were about to die and Jesus said this.

"Today you will be with me in paradise." - Luke 23:43

So, do we go to heaven when we die. The answer seems to be no. Is their indeed no more pain after death? That all depends upon our faith. How is your faith these days? None of us knows for sure where we will end up. That decision is in God's hands. We can say we believe but do we really? There is one thing we DO know however . . .

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Blessed be the name of the Lord!

What Happens After Death - Got Questions.org

Death

I think I had counted all of the rivet heads on the back of the semi trailer ahead of me at least a dozen times, or at least it seemed like it. To say that traffic was moving rather slowly would be a massive understatement. We were not moving AT ALL!

We usually don’t get too many traffic jams up here in north central Wisconsin, so when we do, it's usually something bad. Like one time a cattle truck tipped over near Fleet Farm in Waupaca. That was a much smaller traffic jam and was kind of fun actually, weaving back and forth between all the cows like a slalom skier at the winter Olympics. This time wasn’t nearly as much fun. 90+ degrees, diesel fumes, overheating cars and absolutely no air movement whatsoever. Joy.

 

I was on my way to visit a young friend in Oshkosh who had been struggling a lot lately. I had hoped to see my friend around 5:00 so I could also make my daughter-in-law's birthday party. And it was beginning to sink itnthat I probably wasn't going to make ANY of those meetings.

As I sat there in my little car, sandwiched between two smoke-belching semi's, I texted a few friends about my predicament and word of what was happening ahead of me on the road began to filter in.

There was a police stand off ON the road in front of us. Apparently, two people had robbed a nearby liquor store and police had them surrounded under an overpass on the highway a few miles down the road.

I kept watching the clock, watching the minutes tick by. Minutes I would not be spending with my young friend or my family. Suddenly a car passed me on the right, which was weird because I was in the right lane! They had clearly grown tired of waiting and were willing to take a chance by passing cars by driving on the shoulder. Probably illegal. Jerk.

Well, I sat there for another half hour, still thinking about my friend who was waiting. I REALLY wanted to see her so . . . I became that jerk and took off down the shoulder. I didn't get too far. A couple of rather large trucks were playing traffic cop and had pulled to the right, trying to prevent people from doing what I was doing. Well, they should have tried harder. I dropped two wheels down into the ditch and passed them. Ha! And then I had to stop. Log jam. Three lanes of rush hour traffic (and my fourth lane) were all exiting at once. Not good but I finally made it though the mess to see my friend. Only an hour and 45 minutes late. Seeing the smile on my friends face made all the days frustrating events disappear. It was all worth it.

Later that night, after arriving back home I discovered that the two armed robbers that had caused the traffic jam had killed themselves in their car rather than face prosecution and prison. How incredibly sad. And do you know what I was thinking? The first thing that popped into my head was, "I wonder if they knew Jesus?"

It's bad enough to rob a liquor store. It was bad enough that they "held up" thousands of people by their actions. It was bad enough that things got to the point where, suddenly, death seemed like it was the only option. Yet, for as bad as all those events and actions were, they simply do not compare to facing death without a saving faith in Jesus Christ - eternal separation from God.

Are you familiar with the story of Lazarus? Not the one where Jesus raised him from the dead. That's another good story and one I could have easily referenced here. No, I am talking about the other Lazarus story - Lazarus and The Rich Man. You can read the whole story here. But the verse I want to hi-lite today is verse 27. The Rich man had lived out his life, not caring about his fellow man, only about himself. But when the time of his death came, he found himself in hell - eternally separated from God. The rich man pleaded with God to send Lazarus to warn his brothers about what awaits them if they don't repent.

"27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’" - Luke 16:27

Who, in your life today, does not know Jesus? Are you content in the knowledge that if SOMEBODY doesn't introduce them to Jesus, they're going to be standing next to The Rich Man in hell? We have to at least try!

About a year ago a young man from our town named Austin took his own life. I don't know if he knew Jesus or not. Many of his friends still grieve massively over the loss of their friend. How many of them have I told about Jesus? A few I guess. But have I really pressed the issue? No. My friends, I can almost hear Jesus asking me, "Why not, Bob? After all that I have done for you? I am STILL not worthy of a word to those that are perishing?"

I might as well be pulling the trigger myself.

I would encourage you today to take that step, in faith, and show someone how much you love them by telling them about Jesus. Show them the love of Christ by revealing the light that shines within you. We who have been saved are no longer of this world. Why do we still act like it?

 

"23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.” 25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” 27 They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. 29 And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” 30 As he was saying these things, many believed in him." - John 8:23-30

Cleavage

Okay. Now that I have your attention . . . let's talk about Jesus. Ha ha! I AM actually going to be writing about cleavage here, just not the kind most people think about when they hear that word. To give you a hint about the ultimate destination of this blog post, let's make a quick stop over at Merriam-Webster's web site to check out the meaning(s) of this provocative word - Cleavage

Cleavage is initially defined and "the splitting" of something. To the geologist, therefore, cleavage is "the quality of a crystallized substance or rock of splitting along definite planes." To the biologist, cleavage is "the splitting of a molecule into simpler molecules." To the homemaker who has a stopped-up kitchen sink, an over-weight plumber bending over to fix the problem presents an entirely different meaning to the word. Sorry about that mental image but (no pun intended) you get the picture, right? For most of us humans though, cleavage has only one meaning . . .

Seinfeld - Cleavage

So, what am I doing writing about cleavage in a Christian blog? Well, as you have seen there can be many different meanings to words. Cleavage is NOT only about women's breasts, splitting cells or rocks or even about that nasty, vertical smile from Joe, the plumber. To show you what I mean I'd like you to read a parable, which by definition is a STORY with more than one meaning - both an earthly AND a heavenly meaning. This story is from the Book of Luke, the 16th chapter. It is the Parable of the Rich Man and the Beggar.

“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house - for I have five brothers - so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” - Luke 16:19-31

Well, there's an example biblical cleavage for you - the "splitting" between heaven and hell, between God and man, and between sin and righteousness. And that is why I am writing about "cleavage" in a Christian blog post. If that rich man had only known what awaited him - the reality of an eternal split he was to face between himself and God. If he only had taken the time and made the right choice when he was here on earth.

The way I interpret the Bible, we ALL will live forever. It's just a matter of where. Separated from God in hell? Or living in His Glorious presence forever. Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Yet, most of the people I know don't give the afterlife a second thought. Even many of the "Christians" I know! "I'm too busy living my life to think about that stuff. I'll get around to that when I'm older." Have you ever heard the saying that "The road to perdition (hell) is paved with good intentions." Good intentions don't count for much when you're on the outside, looking in.

Here's one of my favorite sayings. "If 'ifs' and 'buts' were fruit and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas." Grave yards (and hell) are both filled with lifeless corpses who never got around to making a decision for Christ. "If only I had more time." "But I just didn't have enough time." Too busy? Are you kidding me? Too busy to make the most important decision anyone could ever make? Yet, in this fast-paced, live-in-the-now world, we LOVE putting things off to the last minute.

I'm the prefect example. President of the local procrastinator's club. My wife and I just recently met with a lawyer and began formulating our Last Will & Testament. That would be a smart thing for a young family to do. Well, we put that off for quite a while. I'll be 60 in a few weeks! We just never got around to it. Not too smart looking back on things from where we are now. Making a basic faith decision sets the foundation for your entire life! Make it early! Have you considered it yet? If you haven't asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, please, do it now!

Before I close I'd like to tell you about another kind of cleavage. One that makes all the definitions we've been talking about unnecessary and unimportant. It can be found in the book of Deuteronomy.

"Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him." - Deuteronomy 13:4

Hmm. Cleave unto him. Do yo know what that means? While the first definitions of cleaving are all about a splitting apart, this particular definition of cleaving that Moses was talking about in the Bible, is all about "clinging too" or "sticking together." The English language is SO confusing.

Here is something stupid to try this week, if you up for an "X-games" type of evangelism. Walk up to someone and say, “I was hoping you could tell me about cleavage.” Or, better yet, “Would you please describe cleavage for me? Is it the kind that separates or is it a cleavage that clings.” Yeah . . . that probably would not be a good idea. Maybe leave the word 'cleavage' out of the conversation all together. But it is ALWAYS okay to talk to someone about the eternal separation found between heaven and hell.

For the Christian, there is only one kind of cleaving that matters - cleaving to God. Whether it is in His Word, the Bible, or through His Holy Spirit, "cleave unto the Lord." Jesus, Yeshua, is our Lord and Savior. Recognize that. LIVE that. And cling . . . cleave . . . unto God. For He is good.