AFTER DEATH THEN THE JUDGMENT

Proclamation:

“Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.”  Hebrews 9:27-28 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the unknown human author of The Book of Hebrews under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  In this chapter the author begins by discussing the early earthly tabernacle. (Hebrews 9:1-7)  Then he goes on to discuss the blood of Christ versus the blood of ceremonial animals. (Hebrews 9:11-14)  Then he presents the importance of the blood and concludes by stating that without the shedding of blood there can be no remission of sin. (Hebrews 9:22)  He ends the chapter stating that Christ did not offer Himself again and again as the high priest did by entering The Holy of Holies in the tabernacle each year. (Hebrews 9:25)  Christ came to earth once to sacrifice Himself for all sin. (Hebrews 9:26)  He will come again, but that time will not be to sacrifice Himself for sin, it will be to gather the believers unto Himself. (Hebrews 9:28)

Application:

As we think about the birth of Christ, we need to remember that He came to earth to redeem us and pay the price for our sins.  The price for sin is death. (Roman 6:23)  Jesus, The Christ, shed His blood and died for our sins. (John 1:29 and 19:30-34)  The next time that He comes it will be to gather His believers and we will meet Him in the air. (1 Thessalonians 4:17)  He will also come back again to bring judgment to non-believers.  Bible scholar J. Vernon McGee put it this way, “either your sin is on you, or it is on Christ.”  If you have not accepted Christ as your personal savior then you must pay the price for your sins and you will see Him after death as judge at the Great White Throne judgment. (Revelation 20:11-15)  Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 4:17)

GIVE TO THE POOR LEND TO THE LORD

Proclamation:

“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to The Lord, and He will reward them for what they have done.” Proverbs 19:17  The King James version of The Bible reads: “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto The Lord; and that which he hath given He will pay him again.”

Explanation:

King Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, wrote these words under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Solomon told the people that charity is a principal of good heart.  It is charity to do for the poor.  That shows compassion, concern and sympathy for the less fortunate.  Solomon also encouraged the people to be charitable.  He told them that giving to the poor is the same as lending to The Lord.  That which is given to the poor, The Lord God will place it to the account as lent to Him and He will repay it with interest.

Application:

As Christians, we should be kind to those who are less fortunate than we are.  All of the blessings that we receive were not meant for us to keep to ourselves.  We are to pass them on and share them with others.  Remember the rich man who would not share anything with the beggar Lazarus who sat outside his gates. (Luke 16: 19-31)  That selfish rich man ended up spending eternity in hell.  The Bible says that blessed are those who have compassion for the poor, The Lord will deliver him out of trouble, preserve him and keep him alive, and heal him when he is sick. (Psalm 41 1:1-3)  The Lord looks upon us as if we treat Him the same way that we treat the poor. (Matthew 25:40)  The Lord keeps a record of how we treat the poor and what we give to them.  He treats that which we gave to them as a debt which He has to repay.  And, when He repays us He pays the debt in full, plus interest.  We get more from God than we give to the poor.  We are abundantly blessed for being a blessing to the poor because The Lord repays us.

God Is Protection In Times Of Trouble

"The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.  Those who know Your name will trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You."  Psalms 9:9-10 (NIV)

This is The Holy Spirit inspired Word of God which was written by King David to encourage the people of God during times of trouble.  He begins this psalm with praise to God for delivering him from his enemies. (Psalms 9:1-6)  He knows that judgment is coming to the world, (Psalms 9:7-8), but the people of God will be protected.  The Lord God has never forsaken those believers who trust in Him and who follow His Word.

When we are in the midst of one of life's storms, we can always seek and find refuge in The Lord.  He will always shelter and protect believers in times of trouble. (Psalms 61:3)  He can protect us from our enemies. (Psalms 143:9)  He is our stronghold.  He puts a hedge of protection around us, and around our families because of us. (Job 1:10)  He will never leave us or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)  The Lord God is always present, and He is always there to help us in times of trouble. (Psalms 46:1)

 

The Crucifixion Of Christ Predicted

"But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.  We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and The LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."  Isaiah 53:5-6 (NIV)

This prophesy of the prophet Isaiah was regarding the crucifixion of Jesus.  It foretold of His suffering and punishment as a substitute for us.  He paid the price for our sins and iniquities so that we might be saved, because, like sheep, we had gone astray and were lost. 

Just as he had predicted the birth of Christ, more than four hundred years beforehand, (Isaiah 7:14), the prophet Isaiah also predicted the crucifixion of Christ for our sins.  The suffering that Christ endured, the verbal and physical abuse, being spat upon and beaten, being wiped and scourged, the crown of thorns, being nailed to the cross, being pierced in His side, and dying upon the cross was all done for our sins, transgressions, and iniquities. (Matthew 27:27-35 and Mark 15:15-26 )  We had turned away from God and each of us was doing what was right in our own eyes. (Proverbs 12:15)  We were lost, and He came to save the lost. (Matthew 18:11 and Luke 19:10)  Christ bore the sins of the world upon Himself and paid the price our sins so that we could have a chance at salvation. (John 1:29, John 12:27, John 18:37, and 1 John 2:2)  He suffered the chastisement of God for our sins in order to procure our salvation.  This is what Isaiah predicted would happen, and he predicted this long before Christ was born.  However, salvation from the penalty of sin is only available if we confess and believe. (Romans 10:9-10)