“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2).

What a wonderful future home to look toward. What could possibly make a person not want a mansion prepared by Jesus? Pride. Pride causes many people to reject God, and thus reject God’s free gift of salvation. Only by believing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ can we obtain that free gift. Pride is what got in Lucifer’s way and it’s the stumbling block that still stops people from seeking God’s grace.

“The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts” (Psalm 10:4).

Using God’s name as profanity doesn’t count as keeping God in all our thoughts. For some people the thought of being humble before God is unthinkable. Why? Is it because they cannot see Him or touch Him? The truth is that when you humbly bow before God and turn your life over to Him, you realize just how real He is. The Holy Spirit indwells you and His presence cannot easily be ignored.

Unfortunately, when some folks hear the question, “Are you a believer?” their pride is activated and they answer with a resounding “No.” These sad souls are perishing because of their pride. They believe they are “good enough” to get to heaven by their own merit. It saddens me when I hear someone say “I don’t fear your God.” Pride is the culprit and many lost souls will find this out the hard way.
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).

Jesus is the example we need to follow. Do you have any idea what it cost Him to become our only way of salvation?

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9).

Stop and think about this for a minute: Jesus is God and He is the Creator of the universe. He humbled Himself and chose to leave heaven and become one of us in order to purchase our salvation. You are that important to God.

“Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of god and our Father” (Galatians 1:4).

He suffered much, but did it willingly because He loves you and me. No one is excluded from receiving the free gift of salvation, but the gift has to be accepted in order to give you eternal life. To reject Him is to condemn yourself, and you will never receive that mansion He is preparing for believers. When you look toward home, you will have no hope.

Satan fell because of his pride, then he confronted Eve with lies. First he confused her and caused her to question God’s Word.

“…And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1b).

And then he blatantly lied:

“And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:4).

If Eve had stood firm on what God truly said, Satan would not have been able to deceive her. Finally he promised something that was a flat out lie, but it tickled her pride:

“For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5).

Adam and Eve lived in Paradise, but because of Satan’s lies, they were expelled from their perfect home that had been prepared for them. It is still pride that causes a person to reject God’s truth.

“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10).

Stop listening to Satan’s lies and come humbly before the Lord. If you have already accepted Him as your Savior then don’t allow pride to get in your way of serving Him.

We can do nothing to earn salvation, but it should make a difference in our way of life. As a Christian looks toward Home, pride should melt away and a desire to live for Christ should cause us to reach out to those in need and witness to those who have rejected Christ. Adam and Eve may have lost Paradise, but Jesus is preparing a mansion for us.

As Christians, we look toward Home and have something marvelous to look forward to. Not only will we be eternally in the presence of the perfect love of our Savior, but living in a mansion prepared by Him. Since we are limited by human understanding it is impossible to know exactly how beautiful it will be, but remember that it is being built by God who loved us enough to die for us.

On the other hand, imagine the hopeless feeling of those who remain in prideful rebellion to God when they close their eyes in death. It is at that point that they will regret their pride and know that they should have humbled themselves before the Lord. If you haven’t accepted Christ’s sacrifice as atonement for your sins it makes no difference if you are a sweet and kind person or a rascal; you will never occupy the mansion He is preparing.

When the end comes, all who believe death is the end of all things will be greatly surprised; death is in no way the end.

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

Paul was not being morbid, but stating what every Christian should know; he was looking toward Home. Death is just an excursion into a whole new realm. Yes, it’s the end of life on earth, but not the end of our existence. It is the end of all earthly problems, worries, materialism, bank accounts, favorite cars, family matters, and all that’s worldly.

When we die, all earthly treasures which we built up over a lifetime instantaneously belong to someone else. The nice house you live in will be less than a shack compared to the mansion Christ is preparing for Christians. For the lost, though, it won’t be so nice. Not only will they lose everything they had acquired while alive, but they will also lose their souls to an eternal existence in the lake of fire.
Facing an eternity in hell is a horrible thought. It’s nothing to make light of.

“And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15).

I can’t imagine any of my brethren wishing anyone that type of eternal existence. All Christians have a great opportunity to share Jesus with the lost and to explain the difference between an eternity in heaven and an eternity in hell.

As Christians look toward Home we should desire that everyone who crosses our path knows Christ. Death isn’t on the minds of most folks; most give no thought whatsoever to where they will remain for eternity, even Christians. It should be in everyone’s thoughts, because everyone is one heartbeat away from their eternal home.

The most important choice you make in this life, is where your eternal life will be spent. Most Christians understand that heaven is our future Home, but can you explain to a non-believer the difference between our eternal Home and where their eternal home will be if they continue to reject Christ?

Believers can see the end rapidly approaching and our hearts turn toward our eternal Home. The lost don’t see anything different from day to day, except maybe their retirement portfolios declining, and don’t think about eternity in hell except as a joke. “Well, I’ll be partying with friends” they say and everyone laughs. We should never laugh at that sorry quip.

It will not be a huge kegger in the park with friends, but that’s how so many of the lost souls of this world see hell. Hell is terrible, painful, sorrowful, extremely hot, and worst of all, completely void of the existence of God. No one will want to stay there after they realize the truth, but the choice has to be made while living in this life. Once there you cannot change your mind and hell will be your home for eternity.

Salvation by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ is all we need to avoid that horrible place called hell or Hades and the eternal lake of fire.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

What a precious promise. There are no prideful works involved and it’s available to every atheist, agnostic, and secular humanist. It’s even available to all those who are wrapped up in cults such as the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses. It’s available, but has to be accepted.

All can come to Jesus for salvation while they are still alive, because He died for everybody. Nobody will have an excuse for rejecting Christ.

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

Creation is evidence of the Creator, so nobody has an excuse for rejecting Christ. Have you been deceived through Satan’s lies? Will you set aside your pride and believe the truth? Only you can answer those questions for yourself. Salvation is personal and it’s offered to everyone, but it only comes from the one true God, the Lord Jesus the Christ and you have to accept it.

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3).

When you look toward Home, do you see a mansion prepared by God where you will be with Him forever, or do you see a lake of fire where you will be eternally separated from Him? Don’t let pride cause you to make the wrong decision.

God bless you all,

Ron & Nathele Graham

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

It seems that Christians in America, and indeed throughout the worldignore the power given to them by Christ. On all fronts, Christians are in a battle. Simply because we profess Christ as our Saviour, we become targets for mocking and anger. But we become victims because we don’t stand strong for our Lord. Brethren, we must deny temptations of the flesh that are worldly desires, and take up our cross, and wholeheartedly follow Jesus.

We must draw the line, then stand firm on God’s side of the line. For too long, Christians have stood with at least one foot on the side of the world. Unless we firmly stand on the side of God we compromise Him and our faith. By compromising, we side with the enemy. If we don’t stand with Christ then we stand against Him.

“He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad” (Matthew 12:30).

The other side of the line is where the powers, principalities, and minions of evil in high places have dominion. Satan leads the enemy forces as the battle rages into God’s finale. It’s our flesh that battles against our spirit. But how long are we going to allow the flesh to cross the line? Ultimately we know who wins the war, but if we yield to temptation and cross over the line, we side with Satan.

God’s Word tells us that we are to live inthe world but not be of the world. That takes determination. When we draw the line and stand on the side of Christ, the worldly people around us cannot understand why we won’t compromise our faith. They don’t understand that we are sojourners just passing through on our way to where God has prepared a wonderful mansion for each of His children in heaven.

Of course those who reject Christ are also just passing through this life, but they don’t have a peaceful eternity to look forward to. When the line is drawn and we claim to stand on the side of God, how can we ever turn our backs on God’s truth and cross the line to live like those in the world? The secular world needs to see Christians stand on God’s promises without compromise; and we need to reflect God’s one and only Son in our daily walk.We are to be as a guiding light.

“That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15).

It isn’t always easy to stay true to God while we live in this “crooked and perverse nation” but that needs to be our desire. We need to make a daily choice to stand on God’s Word without compromise.
“Abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22).

In other words, don’t even look like you are crossing the line into enemy territory.

“A sonhonoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you” (Malachi 1:6a).

Indeed, where is His honor, and where is the fear of the Lord? Standing firm is hardly spoken of among the throng of apathetic Christians in today’s society. There are too many so-called Christians preaching apostasy and living like the secular world. New Age lies, the false gospel of the “name it and claim it” crowd, the heresy of the teaching that all faiths worship the same god, and many other lies of the devil confuse Christians who don’t study God’s Word.

These people don’t even know where to draw the line, let alone know what it means to stand on the side of God. Works aren’t what saves us, but they reflect our heart. If you profess Christ as your Saviour your desire should be to please Him. The Bible is our guide. God gave us His Word to teach us His ways.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

Study God’s Word and apply it to your life. It is your guide so that you will not be ashamed of your conduct in this life when you stand before God. After all, it is God that Christians need to please.

How can we say we honor or fear God if we won’t even stand up for Him in a crowd or honor Him with our life? In chapter four in the book of Acts we are told about a time when Peter and John were arrested because they were openly preaching about Christ. They relied on the power of the Holy Spirit and they had no fear in speaking boldly for Christ. Their boldness brought many people to salvation through Christ, but it offended the Jewish leaders who refused to believe that Jesus is the Messiah.

Because these leaders stood on the side of the line opposite of Christ, they were offended by God’s truth. This same opposition is true today, but many Christians won’t stand up for Christ. Peter and John were brought before Annas and Caiaphas who commanded them to keep silent and to stop teaching in the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Peter and John knew which side of the line they were on, and they refused to compromise their faith. They would not cross the line to the enemy’s side.

“But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye, For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20).

Christians today face the same challenges from people trying to stop us from sharing our faith. Why is it that a gravestone of a Christian displaying a cross offends an atheist? Their protests cause the gravestone to be changed, yet Satan’s pornographic handiwork can be displayed on television, in movies, in music, and on billboards. But Christians don’t have a voice. Why are Christians silent?

The answer is that many Christians live on the enemy’s side of the line. They claim to be Christians because they want to go to heaven when they die, but they don’t let Christ affect their lives on earth. Can these people truly have accepted Christ as their Saviour? God knows, but I wonder.

We don’t need to riot against the evils of this world, but if we would stand firm with Christ and stop participating in sin by turning off TV, stop going to movies that promote unbiblical ideas, etc., our voices would be heard. Our children are being taught to accept sin through cartoons and school curriculum. Christian, if at all possible you need to home school your children.

At the very least you need to test what they are being taught by God’s standards and not allow your child to be confused by what the government thinks is okay. Brethren, draw the line and plant your feet firmly on God’s side.

If we love God, and I’m sure all true born again believers do, we need to stand up for our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We are to honor God with our lives, because He purchased us with His blood. There should be nothing more important in this life thanshowing ourselves approved by the only One who counts.
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not” (1 John 3:1).

In this verse the word “sons” comes from the Greek word “teknon” which is a neuter noun. Most translations today use the word “children.” God is our Father, we are His children. When that relationship is established, that’s when the line must be drawn…that’s when we need to stand on God’s side of the line. When we become parents we teach our children to respect and honor their elders and honor God.

As a parent, you need to live your life to reflect Christ because your children are watching. Do you give life-service or merely lip-service to the Lord? If you are standing on the wrong side of the line then you won’t be the Christian example your children need in order for them to know where they should draw the line. The secular people around you are also watching. Don’t compromise your Christian walk.

Born-again believers in Christ are saved by grace and we cannot do any act of religion to make ourselves more saved. The shed blood of Christ takes away your sin and we cannot add to that precious act of love. That doesn’t mean you should continue in sin.

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1-2).

We make decisions everyday that affect the way the world looks at us, and those decisions need to be made with godly discernment. We are to honor God with our lives; our lives should reflect Jesus. We belong to Jesus Christ and no matter what temptations come our way, no matter what kind of adversity is thrown at us, we must stand firm.

“Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away” (James 4:14).

The end of all things is swiftly coming on the scene. News headlines tell us that Bible prophecy is being played out daily. Whatever happens to us in this world shouldn’t bring fear or cause us to deny our Lord.Honor God with your life. In these “end times” Satan is becoming bolder in his attack on God by attacking His followers. Satanic laws are being passed that legalize sin, but that doesn’t change God’s truth. Satan is the ruler of this world and evil will only get worse.

Brethren, stand firm on God’s truth. Study Scripture and apply it to your life. Your life here matters, but your eternal life matters more.

Are you being led by the Holy Spirit or a satanic spirit? Which side of the line do you stand on? Where do you draw the line?

God bless you all,
Ron & Nathele Graham