What should be your reaction?
1. Honestly and ruthlessly get your heart right with Jesus Christ. Look at your life through the eyes of the Holy Bible. Ask God to reveal ANYTHING that exists in our lives that would keep you from being truly saved.
2. Separate your daily lives from this sinful world. Revelation 18:4: "Come out from (the evil system) so you may not share in her sins, neither participate in her plagues." Look carefully at your daily life, identifying anything that you are doing that might be objectionable to Jesus Christ.
Now that you have changed your heart and life so you rigidly conform to God's Plan of Salvation, then you are prepared to meet Jesus Christ, your Creator, face-to-face.
Perhaps Jesus will return just before He executes His righteous judgment upon America--calling His saints home, and sparing us from the nuclear holocaust.
But, what if Jesus' plan is to WALK WITH US THROUGH THE FIRE rather than to deliver us before it occurs? As we look back in history, out of which trial did God ever keep His people from passing? None. But, in every trial, God's Holy Spirit went through the trial with the believers, delivering them to glory. Isaiah 43:2: God promises, "WHEN you pass THROUGH the waters, I will be with you; and THROUGH the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; WHEN you walk THROUGH the fire, you shall not be burned or scorched, nor shall the flame kindle upon you. For I am the Lord your God."
"The judgment that damns the lost, saves the meek and holy! We have something much better planned for us; we get to be glorified...Why can't we see that a holocaust can only dissolve this earthly body; but that very dissolving brings us into a celestial one? It will be instant glory."1
In getting prepared, you will rearrange
your priorities now toward the eternal. You will eliminate those
things which are not eternally worthwhile. You will also become
`on on-fire' for Jesus Christ. Remember Jesus' words in Revelation
3:15? "I know your [record of] works and what you are doing;
you are neither cold or hot. Would that you were cold or hot!
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will
spue you out of My mouth!" I do not want to have Jesus reject
me, because I am LUKEWARM toward Him!
The matter which we have been studying is a study in logical thinking. We have stated certain facts, and from these facts, we have drawn certain logical conclusions. Consider again these few pertinent facts:
1. God is never-changing. Thus, God WILL act in today's age in EXACTLY the same manner as we have observed Him acting in history.
2. ALL of God's attributes are perfect and limitless. God acts through His attribute of Holiness to protect His creation against the type of sin and/or the extent of sin which would threaten its existence. This action is similar to that of a surgeon removing a life-threatening tumor. "EVERY WRATHFUL JUDGMENT IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD HAS BEEN A HOLY ACT OF PRESERVATION (OF GOD'S CREATION)."
3. God gave Israel far greater spiritual understanding than He gave to any other nation. He holds nations and people more accountable when they have been given grater spiritual understanding.
4. When the nation Israel began to turn dramatically away from God's commandments, God patiently began to warn the people to turn back to Him. God's Mercy also dictated that people be told in no uncertain terms what their punishment would be if they did not turn back to His commandments. Then, God's punishments had to fall and fall in a terrible manner, exactly as prescibed by His nature.
5. God has also given great spiritual understanding to America. This light is through Jesus Christ. Therefore, our spiritual light is greater than that which the ancient Jews possessed. Furthermore, we have efficient tools of mass media by which we have spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout this land in a very thorough manner. Since God holds people to a greater accountablity who have been given greater spiritual light, He will hold America to a greater accountablility.
6. America is currently turning away from the truth of the Gospel. We are sinning in greater manner than did ancient Israel, and we are sinning in greater measure than the nations which surround us.
7. God has foretold, in Revelation 18, of a great economic nation that will be destroyed in a special, horrible, judgment, with "special power". When God foretells that this angel will destroy this great nation in one single hour of one single day, there is no weapon known that can wreak such devastation, except nuclear weapons. Further, the many details that God gives concerning this economic nation seem to fit America like a glove.
8. God uses people and nations with which to carry out His judgments. He uses a more wicked nation to carry out a judgment of war against the nation which had sinned against the greater spiritual light. Then, He turns around and destroys that first nation for its own sins.
9. God has foretold that Russia will receive her judgment directly from God when she invades Israel during the `latter years'. Ezekiel 38-39.
10. End-time prophecies do not even mention America--the greatest, most dominating nation in the Twentieth Century, and possibly in history. It is as though America does not even exist during the time of Russia's invasion of Israel.
Given all these facts, you can see that it requires no great leap of "faith" or "conjecture" to believe that America's judgment is certain, will be horrible, and will be exactly those which God outlines in Revelation 18.
Ask yourself this question: If you
were to die tonight, do you have the ABSOLUTE assurance
that you would go to heaven? If you do not possess this assurance,
you are not saved.
1). Jesus stands ready to GIVE you eternal Heaven as a FREE gift. Romans 6:23--"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus..."
2). This wonderful gift is not earned, nor is it deserved. Ephesians 2:8-9--"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."
ALL people are guilty of sin. Romans 3:23. "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
3). Because every person has sinned, no one can EARN his way to Heaven through doing ANYTHING on his own. Many people believe that they can earn their entrance into Heaven by being "good enough" through good deeds, to offset their bad sins.
4). First, God loves you dearly. 1 John 4:8b says "God is love." However, the same Bible which says "God is love" also says that God must punish sin. Exodus 34:7 firmly teaches that God cannot leave sin unpunished. This creates a problem which God solved through His Son Jesus Christ.
5). Jesus Christ is God Himself. Jesus created the universe through His mighty power (John 1:1, 14). Jesus God became Jesus Man. He was 100% God and 100% man at the same time. Therefore, He lived a PERFECT life; Jesus was tempted as all men are tempted but He never committed sin. When Jesus was unjustly killed on the cross, He became a perfect sacrifice which God the Father could accept on behalf of every person in the world for all time. Jesus' death paid the penalty for your sin, so that you would not have to endure eternal punishment for them. Jesus DECLARES you to be "righteous"--in right standing with God, and therefore, fit to enter Heaven.
How, then, can you receive this wonderful free gift for which Jesus paid such a high price?
6). The key which unlocks Heaven's doors is called "Saving Faith" in Jesus Christ. Saving Faith is trusting in Jesus ALONE for your salvation (Acts 16:31).
7). If this makes sense to you, then you are ready to reach out your hand to accept this free gift of Jesus Christ. In summary:
* You will TRANSFER your trust to Jesus to deliver you to Heaven for eternity.
* You will receive the resurrected and living Jesus.
* You will receive Jesus as the Savior of your sins.
* You will receive Jesus as your Lord (Master) of your life from this moment on.
* You will repent of your previous
sins and you will turn your life completely around, to where you
now will live your life according to Jesus' commands as the Bible
teaches.2
"Lord Jesus, I want you to
come in and take over my life right now. I am a sinner, and I
have not been trusting in you alone for my salvation. But now,
I place my complete trust in you. I accept you as my own personal
Savior. I believe you died for me. I receive you as Lord and Master
of my life. Help me to turn from my sins and obey you. I accept
the free gift of eternal life. I am not worthy of it, but I thank
you for it. Amen."3
PRAYER OF COMMITMENT
"I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit power. The dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His.
"I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.
"My past is redeemed; my present makes sense; my future is secure."
"I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals."
"I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity."
"I no longer have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded."
"I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power."
"My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear."
"I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed."
"I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity."
"I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ."
"I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me."
"And, when He comes for His
own, He will have no problems recognizing me--my banner will be
clear."4