The Smell Of Smoke
Posted: March 4th, 2009, 5:24 am
HEALING SHELTER MINISTRIES #131ae Re-Written 04MAR09
Save Me Today—Part Thirty One: The Smell Of Smoke
by rev dave c
Matthew 6:19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (NIV). Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. First Corinthians 3:8 The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor (NIV). Ephesians 6:7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free (NIV). First Timothy 5:24 The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. 25 In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not cannot be hidden (NIV). Revelation 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done (NIV). Revelation 22:12 "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done (NIV).
After reading the above verses from throughout the New Testament (and knowing that there are many, many more like them) three things become apparent: 1) Christians are to do good deeds/works here on earth. 2) Christians will stand before Christ to be judged according to what we do, and how we live, in this life. 3) There are eternal rewards (or lack of them) in heaven for each Christian according to his/her life on this earth. Obviously, temporal activities have eternal consequences. While we know these things, I fear we too often think of our faith actualized as just some point in times past when we first cried out to Jesus (we were saved and declared a righteous member of God’s family through justification), and as some point in times future when we will be “caught up with the Savior in the air” (we will be saved as eternal resurrection through glorification in the very presence of the Son of God). In the meantime, we just “get on” with the mechanics of life lived today as needs are being met, wants pursued, emotions fulfilled, responsibilities discharged, and personal agendas advanced.
Today matters to God. Paul tell us in Second Corinthians 6:1&2, As God's fellow workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. For he says, "In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you." I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation (NIV). In Hebrews 3 we read: 7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, 9 where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did. 10 That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, `Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, `They shall never enter my rest.'" 12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness (NIV). The Holy Spirit was speaking concerning the Jews as God’s chosen people who were not living saved lives in the “today” of their generation some 3,500 years ago—and 2,000 years ago, the writer of Hebrews was writing to our Christian brothers and sisters of his generation who were not living-out saved lives.
If we agree that the written Word of God is speaking to us today as the living Word for this generation of believers, let us heed the truth of that Word. ...Godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come (1Ti 4:8; NIV). I am forgiven for my sins past/present/future: I am adopted into the family of God through justification, and I will enter into Christ’s resurrected eternal rest through glorification—but I must recognize that whenever I rebel against God’s Word and whenever I disobey God’s command to love Him, my neighbor, and my spiritual family; I am today throwing away rewards for myself and for those around me that could have been realized now and in the eternal future.
First Corinthians contains both an assurance and an exhortation: 3:12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames (NIV). If my house is on fire, wisdom tells me to run...don’t stop for “things” that might cost me my life. If I live a life today that is mindless of eternal consequences I may be saved tomorrow from the second death, but only the smell of smoke will accompany me as I run toward the gates of heaven. If all my treasures are stored in this world, I will enter the next life empty handed.
Save Me Today—Part Thirty One: The Smell Of Smoke
by rev dave c
Matthew 6:19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (NIV). Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. First Corinthians 3:8 The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor (NIV). Ephesians 6:7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free (NIV). First Timothy 5:24 The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. 25 In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not cannot be hidden (NIV). Revelation 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done (NIV). Revelation 22:12 "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done (NIV).
After reading the above verses from throughout the New Testament (and knowing that there are many, many more like them) three things become apparent: 1) Christians are to do good deeds/works here on earth. 2) Christians will stand before Christ to be judged according to what we do, and how we live, in this life. 3) There are eternal rewards (or lack of them) in heaven for each Christian according to his/her life on this earth. Obviously, temporal activities have eternal consequences. While we know these things, I fear we too often think of our faith actualized as just some point in times past when we first cried out to Jesus (we were saved and declared a righteous member of God’s family through justification), and as some point in times future when we will be “caught up with the Savior in the air” (we will be saved as eternal resurrection through glorification in the very presence of the Son of God). In the meantime, we just “get on” with the mechanics of life lived today as needs are being met, wants pursued, emotions fulfilled, responsibilities discharged, and personal agendas advanced.
Today matters to God. Paul tell us in Second Corinthians 6:1&2, As God's fellow workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. For he says, "In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you." I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation (NIV). In Hebrews 3 we read: 7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, 9 where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did. 10 That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, `Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, `They shall never enter my rest.'" 12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness (NIV). The Holy Spirit was speaking concerning the Jews as God’s chosen people who were not living saved lives in the “today” of their generation some 3,500 years ago—and 2,000 years ago, the writer of Hebrews was writing to our Christian brothers and sisters of his generation who were not living-out saved lives.
If we agree that the written Word of God is speaking to us today as the living Word for this generation of believers, let us heed the truth of that Word. ...Godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come (1Ti 4:8; NIV). I am forgiven for my sins past/present/future: I am adopted into the family of God through justification, and I will enter into Christ’s resurrected eternal rest through glorification—but I must recognize that whenever I rebel against God’s Word and whenever I disobey God’s command to love Him, my neighbor, and my spiritual family; I am today throwing away rewards for myself and for those around me that could have been realized now and in the eternal future.
First Corinthians contains both an assurance and an exhortation: 3:12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames (NIV). If my house is on fire, wisdom tells me to run...don’t stop for “things” that might cost me my life. If I live a life today that is mindless of eternal consequences I may be saved tomorrow from the second death, but only the smell of smoke will accompany me as I run toward the gates of heaven. If all my treasures are stored in this world, I will enter the next life empty handed.