I have something real important that I need to share, something that I desperately plead for you to hear. You may readily dismiss this as something of actual urgency, or even worse, believe that it is foolishness and none of your concern altogether. But I tell you, it weighs heavily on my soul; I am grieved and terrified over how you might respond. There is a terribly reality that exists for millions upon millions of people, a dreadful thing that I do not wish upon any person let alone those I love. And that is why I write to you now--with urgency--and despite potential rejection and ridicule.
For virtually everyone who lives in America, the name of Jesus is well-known, though the reality is that many do not know the person of Jesus of the Bible. The majority of American church-goers, in particular, would probably shut off right about now, but please... don't. It is the most important message you will ever hear. It is the only thing that matters.
Do not be deceived: heaven is not the default destination, and merely going to church (no matter how frequent) does not generate salvation.**
Hell is real... Hell is forever... and after ten billion trillion years, those in hell will scream saying, "I WANT TO DIE! I WANT TO DIE!" That's all. Not even for a drop of water. They just want to die. And the answer comes again and again and again: "You shall never die, you will never die." That is the fate of multiplied billions on planet Earth. [K.P. Yohannan]
Stay with me, please. And if your experience with God ends within the walls of a church building, then first forget what you think you know before reading the rest of this message.
This is the reality about humanity. We are each born with an evil, God-hating heart. Genesis 8:21 says that every inclination of man's heart is evil from childhood... we are slaves to sin... we can't even see Christ because of the depth of our spiritual blindness. The Bible describes us as enemies of God and objects of His wrath. We are spiritually dead and eternally separated from God... no man who is a slave can set Himself free, no woman who is blind can give herself sight, no one who is an object of wrath can appease that wrath, and no person who is dead can cause himself to come to life. We can't manufacture salvation... we can't produce it. We can't even initiate it. God has to open our eyes, set us free, overcome our evil, and appease His wrath. He has to come to us. [David Platt in Radical]
Keep in mind that no matter how moral we believe ourselves to be, that so-called goodness doesn't even come close to registering before Holy God.
Why was [Jesus] trembling in the garden, weeping and full of anguish? We can rest assured that He was not a coward about to face Roman soldiers. Instead He was a Savior about to endure divine wrath. Listen to His words: "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me." The "cup" is not a reference to a wooden cross; it is a reference to divine judgment. It is the cup of God's wrath. This is what Jesus is recoiling from in the garden. All God's holy wrath and hatred toward sin and sinners, stored up since the beginning of the world, is about to be poured out on Him, and He is sweating blood at the thought of it.
What happened at the Cross was not primarily about nails being thrust into Jesus' hands and feet but about the wrath due your sin and my sin being thrust upon His soul. In that holy moment, all the righteous wrath and justice of God due us came rushing down like a torrent on Christ Himself.
One preacher described it as if you and I were standing a short hundred yards away from a dam of water ten thousand miles high and ten thousand miles wide. All of a sudden that dam was breached, and a torrential flood of water came crashing toward us. Right before it reached our feet, the ground in front of us opened up and swallowed it all. At the Cross, Christ drank the full cup of the wrath of God, and when He had downed the last drop, He turned the cup over and cried out, "It is finished." This is the Gospel.
We have taken the infinitely glorious Son of God, who endured the infinitely terrible wrath of God and who now reigns as the infinitely worthy LORD of all, and we have reduced Him to a poor, puny Savior who is just begging for us to accept Him. Accept Him? Do we really think Jesus needs our acceptance? Don't we need Him? [David Platt in Radical]
So, I plead with you: do not harden your hearts, let yourself be shaken, seek God, and pray for faith; don't simply go through the motions, pray for a relationship with Jesus... just as I pray for you, all the time.
Love,
J
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** Matthew 7:21-23
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
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