My child, the world and all that it offers is fleeting. The pleasures, the riches and the prestige all result in emptiness apart from Me. I hold your heart. I created you for intimacy with Me. Anything less will result in emptiness of soul.
What Must I Do to be Saved?”
As the Apostle Paul sat chained in a Macedonian dungeon singing praises to God, a massive earthquake occurred. His shackles miraculously fell off and the prison gates flew wide open. Witnessing this, the terrified jailer cried, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Paul’s reply was simple, yet very explicit: “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved…” Acts 16:25-31.
Could it really be that simple? What about all the ritual and penance one must perform to become acceptable in God’s eyes? Not necessary, Jesus says. It’s as easy as believing God’s promise. But what does believing really mean? The Bible is always the starting place when exploring the meaning of belief. Yet few bother to investigate it, much less understand it.
The Bible is true! Proof of this is the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who share the same experience of life-changing transformation—just as attested to in its pages.
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?
Have We Actually Advanced?
Because knowledge of the physical world is increasing exponentially, some think that man’s evolution has somehow sped up. Who could have predicted that we would daily be using such technological marvels, or that millions would routinely be jetting from one end of the globe to the other? Yet 2,500 years ago the prophet Daniel, speaking of events to occur near the end of time, predicted these very things: “…many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.”
The fact that our knowledge is increasing doesn’t mean that human nature itself has changed in any meaningful way. Just look at the people in the Bible. There’s not a shred of difference between them and us, except for the trappings of modern culture. They experienced all the strengths and weaknesses that we recognize as being normal to our nature. And the Bible offered the same solutions for them as it does for us today.
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?
Glory
Glory, “signifies God’s magnificence, worth, and the manifestation of His divine presence, encompassing honor, praise, and worship due to Him.” Definition of Glory when you Google it.
“The glory which You have given Me, I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one.” John 17:22
Only One Way to God
All creation was brought into existence through Jesus Christ. Everything was created “for Him,” –all for the glory of God. This is His intent for everything we see before us. Since mankind is the zenith of God’s created order, we possess a supreme purpose. What is it exactly? Our reason for existence is to be united with God—to share eternal life with Him. This theme is repeated time and again in the Bible.
Yet as staggering as God’s promise of eternal life for all mankind is, not everyone will get to share in it. Quite the opposite really; it is reserved for God’s chosen few. Not one of us will ever experience God’s ultimate purpose without first receiving what Jesus has so generously provided. Those who claim that there are many roads to God are flatly mistaken. “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” Jesus Christ claims, “no one comes to the Father but though Me.”
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?
The World as a Stage
Skeptics often ask why our planet could be of any relevance in a universe so vast. How could this world, insignificant as it appears to be, harbor the setting for such an epic struggle between good and evil. This idea is widely accepted as the message of the Bible. But it’s just plain wrong.
The core of the Bible is not about the battle between good and evil. Even a brief look at Scripture tells us that God’s victory over evil is no contest at all. No, this seemingly irrelevant stage we call Earth isn’t about the ultimate dominance of good over evil. It’s about singling-out God’s chosen few—the welcoming of the children of God into eternal life with Him. This is the underlying theme of practically every book of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments. For achieving of such an amazing purpose, no stage could be too large!
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?
Content
My child, be content today. Content in who I made you to be. Rest assured I have your future securely in the palm of my hands. You do not need to fear. Live today to the full. “This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24
Stake Your Life on It!
Scholars recreate historical documents from copies which exist today. Not more than a dozen copies remain for most ancient writings, often more than a thousand years older than their original. Yet we routinely depend on their accuracy. So, what about the Bible? Is it reliable? Can it really be trusted?
The New Testament was written in Greek some two thousand years ago. Think about this: biblical scholars have scads more copies to draw from than even the best works of antiquity—more than five thousand, in fact. And they are much closer in age to the original texts. If that were not enough, almost the entire New Testament can be reassembled from other documents quoting from the originals lost to history. In short, there is a virtual storehouse of information available for scholars to crosscheck. This is an uncontested fact among all scholars. The Bible trustworthy? You can bet on it!
From: The Path through the Maze—Answering Life’s Ultimate Question: What Happens After We Die?
Kingdom Living
My child, I have gladly chosen to give you the Kingdom. This earthly life is temporary. Think eternal. Live Kingdom minded. Life here is but a breath compared to what I have in store for you. “Do not be afraid little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the Kingdom.” Luke 12:32
Prize It above All Else
Our freedom in Christ is described in the Bible as a prize—a gift to be cherished. The Apostle Paul fought hard to make sure God’s people would not be fraudulently stripped of their prize of freedom. But free for what? Not free to continue in sin, but free to enjoy unbroken relationship with God without having to work for it. Satan himself is behind the fraud of works righteousness—a deception which runs rampant throughout the church today.
Don’t be fooled into believing you’re not good enough to enjoy God’s goodness—that you must always do better to earn His love. It’s simply not true. “As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,” Colossians 2:6 says. Which of us was worthy of Him, in and of ourselves, when He first saved us? Yet God counted us worthy. And if worthy then, let’s live in Him as worthy now.