Happy January 2011 from Inspiration from a Blind brought to you monthly by www.ShirleyCheng.com
There was a foolish man who lived a lavish lifestyle and squandered all he had. When he died, the only inheritance he left his five children was heavy debt. Unable to pay off the debt their father had accumulated, the children were forced to live and work on the streets. One day, a wealthy business man happened to pass by. Seeing them shivering in the cold, his heart moved in him. He took them to his home, served them hearty meals, and sold one of his companies to pay off all of their debt. Then he offered all five children jobs in his remaining business, instructing them to follow all his rules. Even though they had made many mistakes, three of the children worked diligently, learned from their mistakes, and used their hard-earned money wisely, so he promoted them to be his own assistants. The other two, on the other hand, refused to go by the rules and spent their money on whatever they wanted. They never got promoted.
What does this parable of mine teach us? It, albeit not perfectly, helps us better understand humankind's plight and the solution Jehovah God has offered all of us to rescue us from our situation.
Let's look at the allegory:
Adam, our very first ancestor (the foolish man), made a choice that caused him all that he had and all that he could have. When he had children, all of his offspring, including us (the five children), inherited the consequence of his bad decision. Adam's foolish decision was to deliberately rebel against Jehovah, his Creator, even though he knew that the penalty of such rebellion was death. After he rebelled, his offspring followed in his footsteps. Thus, through him, sin (rebellion against God) entered the human race, and death entered as well, because death is the penalty of sin (inheritance).
Since every child of Adam has inherited sin and death from him, each one is destined to die (debt). We have, in a sense, been living on the streets, trying to find meaning in our lives. But what purpose could there possibly be if we are going to die someday anyway? So regardless of what great accomplishments we have ever accomplished, we will all die, and our accomplishments will die with us. Thus, all is vanity, a chasing after wind (Ecclesiastes 1:14).
Think about it: no matter how great a life we live or how miserable our lives are, all will end someday. No one can escape death. Death is the fate of all humans. While we eat and drink and have a great time, our good times will all pass, not even to be memories. True, some of our legacies will live on, but what meaning does that serve us if we are not here to know about it? What an utterly empty life!
A purposeless existence seems to be the destiny for the entire humankind. "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die" seems to be the eternal song of life that all are destined to sing (1 Corinthians 15:32, WEB.)
But good news: we can choose to stop singing that sad tune today!
Seeing our plight, Jehovah (the wealthy business man in our parable) rescued us, not because we did anything to deserve it, but it was out of His love and grace toward us. He let His only Son, Jesus, die for us. Through his substitutionary death, Jesus died in the place for all humans. He took up our own penalty for sin, which is death, so that every person has an opportunity to live forever, as it was meant to be at the beginning of God's creation of humans.
All of our debt has been paid, and we are offered a position in God's family (the business man's business), even though we did not do anything to earn it. Those who appreciate God's gift of rescue (the three diligent children) will be promoted to live an eternal life. Those who refuse to appreciate what God has done for them (the two children) will not get promoted.
Jehovah fairly gives everyone what they want. Those who expect to die forever will receive what they ask for: eternal death. Those who love Jehovah and His Son and want to be with them will also get what they want: an eternal life with Jehovah and Jesus in God's Kingdom after a future resurrection of all those who have died. The choice is up to each and every person. No one will get what they did not ask for. God will not make the decision for us. There is no force on God's part; He freely lets us choose.
What will you choose? Will you choose to continue singing the tune "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die," or will you choose to be promoted to be God's own eternal child? This is the most important decision you will ever make. Your eternal future depends entirely on this one decision. Decide wisely. Make this your New Year's resolution—to receive eternal life! You won't find a better gift!
~*~Q&A with Dr. Shirley~*~
Question: The Bible says, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16) Does this mean that anyone who believes in Jesus will have eternal life?
Answer: Yes and no. Yes, anyone who believes in Jesus will be saved (have eternal life). But we must understand what "belief" in Jesus means. The important doctrine of "believe and you will be saved," is often not fully grasped. The problem lies in the concept of "belief."
To begin to understand "belief" for salvation, we must ask ourselves: What does believing in Jesus really mean? Will those who simply acknowledge Jesus receive eternal life?
Well, let's consider the demons. During Jesus' earthly ministry, the demons fell down at his feet trembling, and acknowledged him as the Son of God (Mark 5:7). Indeed, the demons most certainly believe Jesus. But are they going to be saved? No, unless they repent.
The first message that Jesus preached at the start of his earthly ministry was, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" (Matthew 3:2) Repentance is a change of attitude that results in a change of action; if you only feel sorry about what wrong thing you've done without changing your action to do the right thing next time, you've not truly repented. Those who do not repent will perish (Luke 13:3), so eternal salvation requires a faith (belief) that entails repentance. Whenever we sin, we must confess it to God and He will faithfully forgive us (1 John 1:9).
Our faith in Jesus must be a working faith, for faith without works is dead (James 2:26), and "that by works, a man is justified, and not only by faith." (James 2:24). A faith is proven genuine by works. If you claim to have faith in God and not trust Him for your daily necessity, do you have genuine faith? By its very definition, "Christian" describes a follower of Jesus who is Christ-like in all they think, say, and do, by living according to the will of God. Being a Christian is not simply believing that Jesus exists; otherwise, we can call demons "Christians." Thus, if you don't live by faith, you aren't a Christian. And if you aren't a true Christian, you won't find the narrow road that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14).
Our belief in Jesus should involve not only acknowledging him as the Messiah and the only Son of Jehovah God, but also trusting him for our every need, knowing our need to be saved by him, that he is our only Savior (Acts 4:12), and that without his sacrifice, no one would receive eternal life—the entire human race would go on singing the sad tune of "Let's eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." And the belief of ours must be shown through our actions, and that's done by repenting and living according to Jehovah's teachings (Matthew 19:16-17). Our obedience to the Word of God should stem from our love for Him and gratitude for His gift.
Of course, our works and obedience will never be perfect enough to meet the righteous standards of Jehovah; this is why we can never earn salvation through our works (if we can earn eternal life by working for it, then Jesus died for us in vain). Salvation is a free gift to those who believe and repent through God's grace (undeserved kindness). but it's one thing to receive eternal life without working for it; it's another thing to abuse this gift by repeatedly and willfully committing evil acts without repentance. Rest assured, unrepentant sinners will not be saved even if they confess and profess belief in Jesus.
Jesus himself said it best: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will tell me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?' Then I will tell them, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.'" (Matthew 7:21-23)
So, those who faithfully follow Jesus will never perish (John 5:28-29; John 10:28-29). On the other hand, those who, like the demons, simply believe in Jesus without repenting of their evil deeds and without a genuine faith will not receive eternal salvation. Don't be deceived—God will not be mocked. Whatever you sow, that's what you'll reap. (Galatians 6:7; Hebrews 10:26-31, 38-39; Hebrews 6:4-8; 2 Peter 2:20-22; Romans 11:19-23; Revelation 20:9; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21).
Please, I implore you, if you truly want to learn about salvation or any other crucial topic, study the Bible yourself. Personal study and constant prayer to God will give you the truths. Don't just take people's word for it, because there are many different interpretations and false teachings out there.
If you need help in better understanding the gift of salvation, please e-mail me and I'd be more than glad to do my best to answer any questions you may have!
~*~A Biblical Wisdom Nugget~*~
"I see not as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but Yahweh [Jehovah] looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7)
How many times have you felt misjudged or mistreated by others who looked down upon you just because you didn't meet their personal standards of physical appearance, wealth, status, and health? How often have you felt belittled because you are "different"? Have you ever noticed a change in attitude toward you, for better or worse, whenever your appearance or status changes (i.e., lost or gained weight, laid off or promoted at work)?
Judging someone by their external values is no doubt unjust and wrong, yet much of humanity has unfailingly "judged a book by its covers," so to speak. But this partial judgment doesn't have to continue. If we follow in the example of Jehovah, who only looks at the heart (internal values), we will be able to live a life that's marked by true happiness, for only when we live justly will we live happily and in peace with one another.
So next time, if you meet a man in fine clothing and a poor man in filthy clothing, treat them the same way (James 2:2). For "if you show partiality, you commit sin, being convicted by the law [of God] as transgressors." (James 2:9) Be the person you want others to be!
May the grace and peace from Jehovah God and Jesus Christ be with you.!
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Best regards,
Dr. Shirley Cheng
Award-Winning Author with 27 Book Awards
Proclaimer of Jehovah God's Good News of Salvation through Jesus Christ
Author/Contributor/Editor of 32 books by age 27, Poet, Motivational Speaker, Self-Empowerment Expert, Advocate
Board member of World Positive Thinkers Club http://www.shirleycheng.com
Having a bad day? Then meet Shirley Cheng, A.K.A. the modern day Helen Keller, to inspire, empower, and motivate you to go for the gold medal in life!
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