If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?
Would there be people who would step forward to say that you shared the Gospel, the plan of salvation with them?
Would there be people who said you prayed for healing or deliverance for them?
Would there be people who said you lent them a listening ear and a caring heart when their life was broken by the death of a loved or a gut-wrenching divorce?
Would there be children who would say that you touched or inspired them when you taught them a lesson in Sunday School?
Would there be a married couple who would come forth to say that you helped save their marriage when you imparted words of knowledge when they were deeply troubled or on the verge of divorce?
As you look back on your life, how will you be remembered?
Do you feel fulfilled because you have served the Lord and done what He has asked you to do?
Would you be at peace if you knew the Lord was calling you home to Heaven today knowing that you had fulfilled your mission?
Jesus declared in Matthew 7:13-14
New King James Version
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because[a] narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
Here, Jesus made it clear that there would be more people who don’t make it into Heaven than do, which is a tragedy, because Hell was intended for the Devil and his demons, not human beings. Tragically, too many people choose the way of destruction by the life that they choose to live apart from God. They allow their pride to guide them rather than the Holy Spirit, who lives inside of everyone who confesses Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and chooses to live for Him.
Philippians 3:20-21 New King James Version declares,
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.
All who know Jesus have a deep desire to live with Him one day in Heaven. We are merely aliens passing through this earthly life headed for our ultimate destination.
Heaven Is for Real is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters Heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how “really big” God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit “shoots down power” from heaven to help us.
This story became a book and a motion picture that touched the lives of millions of people. Granted, as followers of Jesus Christ, we already have the hope that we will one day go to be with the Lord after our lives end here on earth. But when we hear of a story like this, it encourages us all the more in our walk of faith.
When I was in college, I had a wonderful friend and roommate, Michael Garcia, who came from a Catholic home. I met his mother on several occasions and she was a beautiful Christian-Catholic woman. Michael and I roomed together in the dorms and eventually moved out together to live in an apartment together until we graduated from college. Following graduation, we lost touch for several years as we began our careers.
A few years later, I ran into Michael and he shared with me that he was heartbroken because his mother had died recently. As I extended my condolences to him, he shared a special story with me. He said he was unable to be with his mother when she died because he had to work.
But two of his mother’s closest Catholic female friends were by her side at the hospital before she passed away. They would later share with Michael that when his mother finally died, her two friends saw angels come into the room and escorted her mother’s spirit to Heaven. As I heard Michael tell this story, I was excited as my spirit leaped, jumping for joy because I knew His mother was escorted into Jesus’ presence in Heaven.
True stories like these are so encouraging because it reminds me that as long as we choose to give ourselves to Christ and dedicate ourselves to living a holy life set apart to glorify Him, we have the hope and the promise that we will one day join Jesus for eternity. What a joyous celebration that will be!
(To be continued)
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