Choose Whom You Will Serve
14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” ~ Joshua 24:14-15 (ESV)
On this past Tuesday, during our summer Bible Study, we were talking about the terrible events that unfolded in Charleston, SC, involving the Dylann Roof and the 9 Martyrs that he killed inside of their church. We talked about how hard it would be to forgive him of what he did, and yet, we found out that not only did the families of those wonderful people forgive Dylan Roof, they also told him that they would be praying for him, for his salvation.
Additionally, during all that happened in the aftermath of that horrible tragedy, not once did we hear of riots, of anger, of hatred, of retaliation killings, none of that. Instead, we heard of prayer vigils, in Charleston and elsewhere, of sports personalities coming to Charleston to show their support, and to honor those that were lost and their families. In the midst of our discussion, it occurred to me that the families of those taken so quickly from them, they told the world that day that they serve the Lord, not by the words out of their mouths, but rather, by their actions.
Fast forward to Friday, and the Supreme Court ruling regarding same-sex marriage. When I heard the decision, I wasn’t surprised at all. This is, after all, a fallen world, and every day the world is going to get worse and worse until that day when Jesus returns to set things straight. Until that Glorious Appearance, when Jesus comes and places all things correctly in order, the world is going to get worse each day.
At the end, we are all going to be judged by God for our actions, both Christian and non-Christian. We are all going to acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Savior, and regardless of where you stand on the issue of same-sex marriage — and I believe you know where I stand — regardless of where you stand, your stance on that pales by comparison to whether you Believe that Jesus is Lord, and that He died for our sins, was resurrected from the dead, and now lives in Heaven with God the Father. Your decision to ask Him to forgive you of your sins (or not to ask) will determine where you go when you die.
The choice is simple, and the choice is yours to make. Do you choose to go to Heaven, or do you choose to go to Hell?
In the end, the decision by the Supreme Court, while extremely disappointing to most of the Christian Community, does absolutely nothing to alter where we will be spending eternity after we die. That decision, fortunately, is not between us and the government — that decision is made between us and God.
Now, please pray with us the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray:
Our Father, who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done,
On earth as it is in Heaven.Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever and ever. Amen.
As we said, this world is fallen. It is in the control of Satan, who walks over the earth, spreading his evil lies wherever he goes. This world is not going to get any better until Jesus comes again in final victory. But take heart! We have the words of Jesus to turn to for reassurance:
33I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” ~ Jesus {as spoken in John 16:33 (ESV)}
