The good pastor addresses his church congregation one Sunday morning:

“I want to be very up-front and straightforward with you! YOU are here for one reason and one only! You are to answer the question: “Will YOU accept the gift of life─Jesus Christ, or not? That is it!There is nothing else to consider! And there is no way around that question and you will…answer it! What happened with you in times previously to answering this question is of no concern, good or bad, or right or wrong! You have asked and wondered why you and the rest of us were created and are here. The answer is…YOU must answer that question…that is all there is to this life here on earth! For the life of me, I cannot figure out how, so very many people can get this part of life…so messed up!

I know the Lord has been very, very, kind to me and made these things seem simple. Maybe it’s because I was always a simpleton or just plain ignorant at times. It matters little, in light of what is the most significant question ever asked, “Why are we here?” The Lord chose for me to write for HIM, to spread HIS gospel, HIS love for all in this world and it was simple enough in the beginning. Then came all the researching, the praying for wisdom and discernment, the reading of the Bible over and over again, dissecting of words, searching the meanings in Strong’s Concordance. I have yet to understand Hebrew or to research some of the Torah─for better understanding of the Jewish people and their past. Yet for me, the Bible is sufficient! In my mind, everything other than the Bible is simply fluff.

The necessity for everyone through out all of time has always been this question “Why are we here?” And the answer is also so very simple, if one takes the time to realize that the question should be viewed simply. Don’t add or take away from the question! Don’t try and rationalize the question! Keep it as simple as you can and then answer it in the most simple of ways.

Why are we here?

Because God chose for us to be here, HE created us!

And so, why did HE do that?

Because HE wants to be our God and for us to be HIS people!

Then the question is:

Okay, if we become HIS People and HE is our God, then what? And the answer is: we will have life for eternity! And so the question is What happens if we choose not to be HIS people and HE is not our God? The answer is: Then you will die forever, over and over again! The question always comes back again, how will you answer?

And you are given sufficient time to answer until the Rapture or your death as a human. Now, there is a way that this salvation must be acquired, a statement if you will. You must ask Jesus Christ to cleanse you of your sin, through HIS blood on the cross. You must ask HIM to take over your life, so that you may live to do HIS perfect will in your life and then finish the statement, in Jesus’ name! At that moment, you are changed, you are no longer the same individual, you are a new creature and you belong to Jesus Christ!Simple!

Here are some things that you probably never see. Our lives and the answer to the question are played out in front of us every day and every- where we look. If you are in your house, then obviously you are not across the street, if you are standing up, then obviously you are not lying down!

Every question ever asked has a right or a wrong answer and it can be answered with a YES or a NO. So what is this telling you? That you and I complicate our lives by adding something to the simple equation and we call it “rationalizing.” STOP…rationalizing, stop making excuses, stop adding fluff to the situation!!

The Bible says in Matthew 5:37: “But let your communication be, Yea, yea [Yes is Yes] Nay, nay [No is NO] for whatsoever is more than these cometh evil.”

Now we already know the world that does not belong to God, will NOT understand this simple verse. As they stand before Jesus Christ at the judgment they will endeavor to make excuses for what they have done here in their life─for their SIN. They will look to see if their name is written in the Lambs book of life and again these people will say things like “Oh it has to be there, I was a very good person” and then a whole slew of admissions will start. The simple fact is this: If they never gave their lives to Jesus Christ, they will simply be led to hell for eternity!

The real problem is this that hey don’t want to have an authority of any kind, over them. If you remember why Lucifer was kicked out of heaven you will see that this is the exact same thing, once again. Satan has convinced them that they are a god or like unto God! And the exact same result will take place again─they will be cast down…again! Just like Satan!! Only this time, it will be into HELL for eternity.

Here again, we will hear them tell us we are the haters of the world, that we are “intolerant!” Here is what I say, according to the Word of God, “If it is sinful, if it is against the Lord, then it is WRONG, I won’t do it!!” And that is the name of that tune!

Again this is simple, don’t make excuses for it, don’t rationalize it and don’t add any fluff to it! That is what the Bible says!! It says in2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good work.”

If you are sitting there in your pew, your hands nicely folded on top of your Bible, with a sweet and pious smile on your face, then youbetter get on your knees and take into account that you are in the presence of the Lord God Almighty!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “That you are a sinner and you NEED Jesus Christ!! (Boom, on the pulpit!!)  “That you NEED to be washed in HIS blood from the cross!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “Anything else will get you hell fire and eternal damnation!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.)

“I didn’t say it─God Almighty said it!!

Brothers and sisters, there is only ONE way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ! There is only one place that you should goand that is the cross of Jesus Christ! And only HIS blood, there on that cross has the power to save you!! If for one moment, you thinkthe situation is different for you, then YOU’RE WRONG!! My Daddy used to tell me, “Son…use your head for something other than a hat rack!” And that is exactly what I am, telling you right now! GO TO JESUS CHRIST AND BE SAVED…BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.)

The church walls resonated with the sound of that boom, every eye was wide-open. All that the pastor could hope was that each and everyone understood what he was saying! There was a slight pause and he took a drink of water and cleared his throat.

2 Corinthians 6:2: “For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee. Behold,now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation,” (emphasis added).

The preacher continued:

“Don’t wait! Don’t think for one moment that you can go about your business and that someday─or sometime─you will think on this and that MAYBE at that time you will call upon the Lord. YOU may notget that day or that moment!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “The Lord may call you home tonight, in your sleep, when you aren’t paying any attention! He may call you home!! And where will that home be?  In: Hell?” (Boom!! on the pulpit.)

And again the sound resonated around the now quiet sanctuary!

If you want to call me intolerant…FINE!! If you want to call me a HATER…FINE!! But the one thing you can’t tell me…is that I am going to hell…for eternity!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “Every single day and night, I am on my knees asking my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ to forgive me of my SIN…that’s right!! I’ll say it again…SIN!!That is what separates you and me from Jesus Christ and salvation, from Heaven…SIN!! God did NOT SIN…YOU DID!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.)

“Jesus Christ…Who is God…died on that cross…YOU didn’t!! You’re a puny little person, just like me and we do NOT deserve to be forgiven! It is the LOVE for us, by Jesus Christ…who is God…that has made the way for us to be cleansed and made perfect before God and then to enter Heaven! You didn’t do squat!! YOU can’t do squat to get there!! You alone aren’t enough…it is a relationship…which requires two or more!! It is Jesus Christ, first and always!! Then…comes you and me! Let’s bow our heads in prayer:

My Lord and Father in heaven, we come to you humbly beseeching your grace Father. We come in all humbleness, Father asking for mercy, for we are a fallen people, a sin-filled people, Father. Speak to our hearts Father, maybe there is someone here this morning Father, that needs you to cleanse them and make them whole. Maybe someone is in desperation over an illness, Father, someone is starving, someone is at the end of their, rope Father. We humbly ask you, Father to intercede on their behalf. We ask for your healing hands, for love like no other, Father! Cover and touch us Father and bring us to you. In Jesus’ name we pray, Father. Amen.

Keeping our heads and hearts in quiet prayer for just a moment or two, I want to ask if there is anyone that would like to approach the alter of God and give your life to Jesus Christ, please come forward. If there is anyone that has a need they wish to bring before the Lord, please come forward right now. I will meet with you and you can tell the Lord the contents of your heart and as we kneel before our Lord and Savior, we will pray together.”

Once, at a tent revival this same preacher shared these thoughts:

“I always thought, that if I went to the cross of Jesus Christ, I’d never find it, for all the bodies and disease and SIN that was left there by so many that had given their lives to Christ! Then one day the Lord told me, that spot is clean as a whistle!

And ya know why? Ya know why? Because all those bodies of all the people that nailed their old bodies to that cross and all their SIN and degradation, all the disease and anything else was continually wiped away by a loving and forgiving, Lord and Savior and God. It is continually ready for the next person who wants a life with Jesus Christ, who wants to go to heaven, who wants to leave their SIN there!! Then they walk away a new person, in Jesus Christ!

Don’t tell me how good a person you are, YOUR JUST LIKE ME…FILTHY!! (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “Tell me when and how you accepted Jesus Christ and then let’s PRAISE HIS NAME TOGETHER!! ANYTHING ELSE…is of this world and it ain’t worth SQUAT!!” (Boom!! on the pulpit.) “Can I get an Amen?”

A drink of water and a wiping away of his sweat, his tent revival sermon continued. Sort of funny, at a tent revival in those fields, you could hear him as the words traveled for miles! The again…isn’t it how it should be??

Praise the Lord always!!

This time we are going to look at a few things that many seem to miss in the Bible. One of these is the times when the Lord God deals with His people Israel. Many times God told Israel that they must be righteous and upright in their lives; some were and some were not. Problem was, when those that failed to follow the law of God, it started out small with one individual and then escalated to more and more people. Making note of this (keeping it on a back burner as it were) we can see how time would pass and the situation would become worse. In my view, I see this like a disease, specifically a virus. It begins with just one person…Over time…it infects more people.

That is the part that I see that so many people are missing when reading the Scriptures─they sort of skim across that point. God did not say “some things” were relevant in the Bible, HE said “all” things were relevant. Changing the way we look at this “time issue,” changes many things we read in the Bible later on in time. If we take note of this “time issue,” we understand why Israel spent 40 years wandering around in the wilderness. This also shows, please make note of, that the Lord never does anything without giving everyone a way out and the time to do so.

We talk about the coming Rapture and Tribulation. We speak about the need to get as many who are willing to listen to become born again, that there is a need for time and yet we know that the time is short. But if we look at this “time issue” again, we must note that the Bible has been around some 3000 years. What has everyone been doing in all this time? We also note:

“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8, emphasis added).

Again, we must note the time frame of God is not the same as our time frame. There has never been a single person ever born on this planet who has lived a thousand years (Methuselah lived 969 years). Therefore we do not know how to equate that sort of time frame in our little minds.

Our Lord and Savior, our Father in heaven, tells us continually what will take place and at a specified time. Yet because of HIS Love for us, HE allows sufficient time to change and return to HIM. Why else would you receive 70-80 years to live? Is that not a sufficient amount of time to accept HIS gift of salvation? Have you never once wondered why there are prophecies in the Bible? Does this not lay claim to the events we see taking place today, all around the world?

As we walk down the road of life, we see signs foretelling the future of what to expect next, of what will happen in the near future. It must be understood that God never says something without following through! This must be understood as the “perfect plan” according to God and it affects each and every one of us. Therefore when the Bible is talking about a “fool and his folly” He is talking about a person that will not take HIS holy Word to heart and become wise.

So here we are contemplating and looking forward to the Rapture of the church of Jesus Christ─a very real and important event to come. Why is this so important all of a sudden when it has been in the Bible for such a long time? It is because we are living this situation and will happen in our lifetime. We know this by way of the “signs” that the Lord prophesied in His holy Word to us. Please note, this has been there ever since the Bible was first written and if we read the Word of God correctly, it was part of God’s perfect plan from before the universe was created. It is understandable when anyone asks, “Why is this a shock?”

God is the Creator of all there ever is or ever will be and HE decided that if there is a beginning then there definitely is an end, as well. We know this as truth in that all things, even you and I, will one day be no more on this earth. We know this because the Bible has told us so and yet, it is confusing to me how so many people now days are not able to comprehend this simple fact. In my mind, I see birth and death as:      “Give Me’s.”

Everything else in life are choices made by us, decisions wechoose! For example, how we choose to spend our “time” every day. Point being, to know that the Rapture is soon to take place we must make a decision concerning OUR Salvation through Jesus Christ. In my estimation, if it is written in the Bible then God said it and I believe it but what about the “unsaved” people of this world?

We see and know that the vast majority of people today have chosen to live and die in their sins, which means they are against God. We know that in the Bible, God has said that will turn HIS back on those who have rejected Him at the time of the great white throne judgment and HE will send them into the lake of fire!

Simply put, He has given everyone the Word of God and then the chance to understand what is written in there. He has given everyone the exact same choice, to follow Jesus Christ and live or follow the other guy and die! All He did was leave that choice up to you. So let me say this as well: Everyone understands what is expected of them, they know right from wrong, there is no deception in this. Everyone is given a sufficient amount of time to choose. In the end, it is either Jesus Christ or eternal death! To me, that is pretty cut and dry.

At some point in time, as noted in the Bible, God is going to say, “Alright, enough of this foolishness” and He is going to bring everything to an end. My Dad was sort of unusual for his sayings, though funny at the same time, “Alright! I asked you to do one thing! Now you have spent enough time, farting around and you haven’t done what I asked you to do!” But the exact same principal is taking place today, people acting like children, disobedient at best. And now we see the “signs” marking the “end of times” as stated in Revelation.

The Rapture of the church is very close to taking place and what are people doing? The vast majority, are not taking God seriously and what is worse, they are turning their noses up at Him and being disobedient. There will be some serious disciplinary action to follow and yet, HE gives us time to see this coming and to change our outcome, concerning HIM. HE, our Lord and Savior, gives us the opportunity to humbly come before HIM and confess our sin and ask for HIM to forgive us. That one, single sentence makes all the difference to HIM and will save us from HIS anger and wrath!

I have stated in previous articles that Satan is an “opportunistic player,” the sort of individual who waits for God to do something and then tells everyone that God would never do this or that. He lies to us. He has told everyone lies, like we need to be tolerant of things that God says is an abomination. He twists the words in people’s minds to lead them to believe things that God has clearly said He will not put up with. Satan did the exact same thing to Eve, back in the Garden of Eden and look at us today!

The Bible tells us that we will experience famine, disease and drought at the “end of days.” I would suspect we are seeing this more and more today but is anyone doing anything about it? Are people coming to Jesus Christ and asking HIM to heal our country? Are there people of quality, according to the Scriptures in our government offices? Are people motivated to do what is right and correct according to God on the streets we all live on? You already know that the answer is: “NO!”

Our country’s economic situation is in the tank. We are experiencing severe droughts and increasing disease and crime levels never seen before in time. We have leaders that are looking to set themselves up financially at the expense of the citizens driving our economy into the ground. We see great multitudes of people out of work, struggling to save their homes and families and loosing the battle in droves.

Some of the cities are almost ghost towns concerning the foreclosures by big banking firms. Some families are living in their cars or in the shelters. And now the price of food is beginning to rise. The welfare system is at the point of breaking under the enormous numbers of people seeking assistance. How long do you think we can sustain this level of disaster before it all comes crumbling down?

I have a hard time understanding the logic of our leaders. The poor will forever be poor and their numbers will increase as the middle class falls apart and slides into the poverty level. With the situation of our taxation system, no one will be able to pay into it! Why? It has always been the middle class that has sustained this country, according to our present tax system and now we see the leaders destroying the middle class! Where is the “logic” in all of that?

One would think by looking at this situation as it is, that the leaders (called the one percenters) would be knocking themselves out to maintain the middle class, thus maintaining their “golden goose!” But we see them doing the exact opposite! Talk about confounding our thinking! Not only that but the drought we are experiencing is driving the price of feed and food up and up. What do you think is going to happen when people start dying from starvation?

Somehow and somewhere the leaders are saying that the thinning of the herd will be a good thing for those left behind. What? How do they think they are staying wealthy? Through those exact same people that will be dying for lack of food and if that happens, who are they going to get to do all the farming and other jobs that are required to sustain their wealth? They have lost their collective minds…literally!! These are the most “illogical” choices they could make. This is like living on beachfront property in a really nice home, but going underneath the home and cutting the stilts out! Duh!!!

Here is what drives me absolutely nuts to think about: The Bible is about 3000 years old, it is filled with prophecy and it even tells everyone what will happen and approximately when. Now if you and I were at the horse track and placing bets and someone came up to you and gave you some infallible information about one horse─that it would win─would you place a nice bet on that horse? Ah…YEAH!

You would be absolutely nuts NOT to, right? The same thing goes with the Bible. If God the Creator of everything and who has HIS hand in every situation tells you that at the end of days everything is going to go to hell in a hand-basket, what would you do? You would ask HIM if there was a way out of being in the middle of all that destruction, right? Well that is exactly what is taking place right here and right now!!

Let pretend for a moment: God says in the Bible, the world is coming to an end in 30 years, complete and utter destruction, nothing left! There is only one-way out of it: ask Jesus Christ to forgive you of your sin and to save you. What would everyone do? They would be asking Jesus Christ to save them, of course! Well guess what…that exact same thing is happening right now. All the signs are all around us, and taking place everyday. The “end is coming.” God said so and HE is giving you forewarning and there is still enough time to be saved. Yet, you look at the bandwagon and few are on it! What is up with that? Are we speaking some foreign language here that no one understands or what?

Let’s see now, the Jewish state becomes a nation 1948, check! The Bible has been written in every language, check! The Word of God is preached all across the globe, check! We are having more and more earthquakes, check! There are many areas in drought and famine, even in the USA, check! Diseases we thought were cured are coming back, worse than ever, check! Wars and rumors of, wars, check! Apostasy in the churches, check! Increase in knowledge, check! And there are more, check! It appears to me that all the signs are coming together and this world is on its way out─as in destroyed─right? Now take a minute and look around yourself and see if anyone is doing anything about that? You now see…what I see! Time is getting short!!