Eternity
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ti83 on
1/1/2009 9:56:10 PM
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August 1st, 2006
By Chris Carlson
www.rtochris.com
Imagine that we are 10,000 years into the future. Im dead, youre dead, all our friends and family are dead. We may have descendants but we wouldnt recognize them. They would have mixed far too much to have a similar DNA to us. Except that they are human. Imagine that all your deeds and material possessions have been enveloped by time. No one on earth will care whether or not you went to church last Sunday. No one will care if you were an organ donor, unless they dig up your remains and find that you are missing some organs. No one on earth will care what good things you did. They will have forgotten. Even the very language we speak will likely be extinct. Have your doubts? Try reading Shakespeare. They call it Old English for a reason. Its OLD! But, there are choices you make on a daily basis that affect eternity. You have been given choices that will forever alter human history. We each are given daily choices that can effect all of eternity. The secret is to understand the scope and far reaching depths of these choices. Each day we are all given two choices. The first choice is whether or not to choose to make Jesus Christ Lord of your life. At first glance, this seems contrary to who we are as a democratic society. We dont have kings or lords like they did in the middle ages. We are the people that it talks about in the constitution. We put people in office to serve and protect us. But do you know a politician that has your best interests at heart? What politician do you know that would be willing to die to pay your debt to society? What politician cares that much for you? Jesus Christ isnt a politician asking for your vote of faith. Jesus Christ died to pay a debt we all owe. But you say, Yes, I may owe a little on my credit card. I may have a mortgage and even a car payment. But what do I owe anyone that death is needed to pay for it? Let me be absolutely clear. Im not talking about a monetary debt. This debt is more like a debt to society. In many states the death penalty can still be given if the crime is severe enough. Imagine a serial rapist and murderer is captured and convicted. He has a debit to society that can only mean death. That is what justice demands in that situation. As hard as it is to hear, this is the kind of debt we all owe to God. But where does this debt come from? After all, I know I havent ever killed or raped anyone. Chances are you havent either. This debt comes from the everyday choices we make to disobey God. When we look into the Bible we find that this disobedience separates us from God. What happens when you unplug a lamp from an electrical outlet? It stops giving light! It has been disconnected from its source. It is incapable of doing what it was designed for. It is, for what life is to it, lifeless. By disobeying God, we willingly disconnect ourselves from God. We call this lifelessness or death upon ourselves. This is our debt to God. Every time we disobey God, which is called sin, we give a good firm yank on the chord of life. In that way, we are guilty of murder. By cutting ourselves off from the source of life, we bring a form of spiritual death upon ourselves. But, Jesus experienced the consequences for us. Only he is capable of plugging in the power chord again. He has experienced all the payment to God that we should have experienced. This is why I say that Jesus Christ died to pay off our debts. With the choice to make Jesus Lord of your life, we are asking him to provide us with what we need most in order to live. What we need is a connection, or relationship, with God. In this way, Jesus Christ, has served us more than any other human can. But, count the costs. This means that Jesus Christ is the only Lord of your life. Not money. Not power. Not our own desires. Nothing else! This is not a decision to be taken lightly. To make Jesus Christ Lord of your life means to follow him despite the costs. I will not lie or dilute the truth! Many have died because of their allegiance to Jesus Christ. Many more have suffered unmentionable horrors. But they were convinced that a life without Jesus Christ isnt worth living and a life with Jesus Christ is worth dieing for. They have one thing in common. They have an eternity with the source of life. Even though their body may be maimed or destroyed, their spirit is plugged in to God. They made the choice that affected human history. They choose to follow Jesus Christ no matter the cost, even when those around them choose to remain unplugged from the source of life. What will you choose? Each and every one of us has a body that will die. But only those who choose to connect to the source of life while their body lives will be connected to it when the body dies. All others will receive what they asked for, independence from God. They will be freed from the source of life to experience eternal death. What will you choose? But this is only the first choice that we make every day that can alter the course of human history. After we have made the first choice, we must make the second choice. The second choice is to tell others of the first choice. The eternities of other people will be affected by plugging into the source of life, in the same way our eternity is forever affected by plugging into the source of life. 10,000 years from now, people on earth wont remember that you made Jesus Christ Lord of your life. They wont remember those whom you told about Jesus Christ. But because you told others, who told others still, who yet told others, and on and on down through the generations. They to will have the opportunity to choose to be plugged into the source of life. By making these choices on a daily basis, each of us affect not only our own eternity, but also the eternity of all those around us. Can you stand the thought of eternal death? If the answer is no, then dont adopt the label of a Christian unless you want Jesus to become Lord of you life. Only then will you be free from the debt or consequences of having chosen to unplug yourself from the source of life by disobeying God. Cant stand the thought of those around you experiencing eternal death? Do you want to have an impact on the course of human history? Help them understand the two choices they make everyday. Before you decide, picture where you would like to be 10,000 years from now. Weigh the costs and decide.
