Today, we see signs in many places that say, “Pray For America, or “Make America Great Again,” or even “Heal Our Land.” While all this is great on the surface, if we take a real look at God’s prophecies that are in His Holy Word, we are witnessing earth’s rapid advancement toward the end of this age. The Father’s prophecies are totally accurate and right on time. The next major events that will happen are the Rapture, the Ezekiel 38 war, and the 7-year tribulation. Other events such as the pandemic, increasing earthquake activity, increase in evil, open satanic activity, turning away from the Lord, and increase in hate are just preludes to the rise of the new world order and the introduction of the “lawless one” (2 Thessalonians 2). (ESV – all emphasis mine)
America is not alone in all the changes, as they are happening worldwide. Instead of looking to our Creator for the right answers, many humans believe the answer to their issues are right here, and they don’t need the help of an unseen deity. Problem is they’re following an unseen devil.
For a look at the obvious, from the moment of the first sin in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3), and all the way up to today, our ratio for death is 1:1. That figure will continue right up until the second that there is a “cry of command, with the voice of an archangel; and with the sound of the Trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:16b-17). There will be some who will never die.
We’re told in 1 Corinthians 15:52 that the above event takes place “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.” Those who were raised from the dead will receive new bodies, and those who were caught up while still alive will have their bodies converted into “immortal forever” bodies. Everyone that the Lord gathers up to meet Him will never face pain or death again. Also, with the shedding of our human bodies that are cursed due to sin, we will not be subject to fall into sin ever again.
1 John 3:2-3; “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who thus hopes in Him purifies himself as He is pure.”
Up to now, only two people left this earth without dying. They were Enoch in Genesis 5:24 and Elijah in 2 Kings 2:9-12. There are those who say that Jesus was also “Raptured,” and that is accurate. The difference is He fulfilled the actual reason He was on earth in human form to begin with, by offering Himself as the only sacrifice for our sins that the Father could ever accept.
Two points here; when Jesus was placed in Mary’s womb, His pure, sinless blood never mixed with hers, and He did not have the blood of Joseph within Him. He is truly the only human that never sinned and therefore maintained the pure blood required to pay for our sins. Even more personal – my sins.
While Jesus was in human form on this earth, He carried several different descriptive titles. He was known as the Good Shepherd, The Great Physician, the Christ (anointed One), the Son of Man, the Son of God, and numerous others.
In John 10, Jesus Himself claimed the title of “Good Shepherd.” In verse 11, He said, “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” That would be all who would receive and accept Him as their Savior. Also, He was not forced to die for us. As verse 18 states, He did so of His own accord. Going back to verse 16, Jesus made it very clear that He was here not only for the Jews but for all who would, “Listen to My voice.”
As the Great Physician, Jesus healed countless people from every disease and disability imaginable. He drove demons out of people who were possessed, and He even raised several people back to life that had died. While this was absolutely wonderful, each one that He brought back to life ultimately died again, including His friend Lazarus.
While someone may think this was a cruel irony, we take heart in the parable of the rich man and the beggar Lazarus. Anyone who died and was in the will of God before Calvary went to a place of peace, comfort and joy. It would be hard to imagine that any of the souls that Jesus brought back to life would not believe in Him afterward, and right up to the time they died again. All who have accepted Him from Calvary forward will be with Him forever.
There are a couple of good songs today that describe our Great Physician. One by Casting Crowns is called “Healer.” It is the most current and reflects today’s world as needing Hope and Strength that we can only find in Jesus. As an example, the refrain is, “We need the Healer; we don’t need another Hero. We need the Healer, deep down every hurting heart knows. We need the Healer, and only Jesus is the Healer.”
One other song is titled “The Gentle Healer” By Michael Card from 1985. It seems like a very simple song, but the meaning runs deep. In fact, the last verse is from John 14:6, which happens to be my life verse.
1.) The Gentle Healer came into our town today. He touched blind eyes, and the darkness left to stay. More than the blindness, He took their sins away; the Gentle Healer came into our town today.
2.) The Gentle Healer came into our town today. He spoke one word; that was all He had to say. The one who had died just rose up straight away. The Gentle Healer came into our town today.
3.) Oh, He seems just like an ordinary man, with dirty feet and rough but gentle hands. The words He says are hard to understand. And, yet, He seems like just an ordinary man.
4.) The Gentle Healer, He left our town today. I just looked around and found He’d gone away. Some folks from town had followed Him; they say that the Gentle Healer is the Truth, the Life, the Way.
Whether it’s on a worldwide, national, or individual level, there’s only one solution to our healing. That would be our Creator, which includes Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit. John 1:1 is a testimony about our Savior; “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
Numerous Bible passages tell us that if we have Jesus as our Savior, we have the Father and eternal life in Heaven. The song gives the first part of John 14:6, and the last part is, “No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Consider this: our Heavenly Father sent a precious part of Himself to our sin-filled world to die a cruel death on a cross so that everyone could have a pathway to paradise. Is it not fitting and just that He requires us to do just three things? 1.) Admit we are sinners in need of a Savior and cannot save ourselves. 2.) Believe and have faith that Jesus is that Savior and our only pathway to the Father. 3.) Call on the name of the Lord to be saved (Romans 10:9-13; Romans 3:23 and Romans 6:23).
He gave us a gift that is impossible to match by any earthly means, and all we have to do is receive the gift and accept Jesus as our Savior. To try and add to or change any part of this would be to imply that the gift was and is incomplete and would be a total insult to our Lord and Savior.
The only unforgivable sin right now is to reject the Savior and not have Him in your heart when your “1:1 time” arrives. That puts those that do this in a very long line at the end of the Millennial Reign called the Great White Throne Judgment. That means hell, or the lake of fire forever. The second unforgivable sin will be during the tribulation, which will be to take the mark of the beast. True believers today never have to worry about that one as we won’t be here.
The absolute choice to receive and accept the Savior’s gift is up to each individual. God will respect either choice but hopes all would repent and accept His Son (2 Peter 3:9). Those who do not will have chosen to spend eternity in torment with Satan and all his followers.
Even though it seems like a simple choice, more will choose this earth over the Savior (Matthew 7:13-14). Be on that straight and narrow path, and you will forever rejoice that you were.
Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus.