Rev. Patrick Vincent
“After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands,” – Rev. 7:9
This is a peek into Heaven. Who will be there? A great multitude of people of all nations.
God shows no distinction.
There is no segregation in Heaven.
Race is a nonissue.
People of ALL ethnicity are before the throne and before the Lamb.
“Whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside Thee.” – Psa. 73:25
The chief end of Man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Enjoying God is twofold: one is in this life and the other is in the life to come.
There is no substitute for God.
On Him, our heart’s affections are centered.
“If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait, Till my change comes.” – Job 14:14
“For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” – Job 19:25-27
Looking to Job we see questions that we have all asked; like what happens after death?
And then we see answers; Our Redeemer lives!
When our days on this earth are over, the elect shall see Him face to face.
For this our hearts yearn within us!
If someone asked you how to get to Heaven, you’d probably say “by grace through faith in Jesus (Eph. 2:8-9),” right? So why did Jesus give the Law to the rich young ruler when he asked the same question (Mark 10:17-22)?
This passage used to scare me. Will I have to sell all my stuff and give it to the poor?
No, no – that’s not the point.
The point is Jesus was exposing where the young ruler put his faith and it was IN HIS ABILITY TO KEEP THE LAW. (The Law THEN was the 10 commandments, NOW is any human effort or religious tradition). He thought rule-keeping was his ticket. His faith was in himself.
I’m not rich, young, or a ruler – but I identify with this guy, don’t you? Self-righteous, works-based faith is a constant struggle. What would Jesus say to me? “Throw away your device and follow Me.” Abraham was asked to give up Isaac (Gen. 22). What would He say to you?
The Law cannot save (Gal. 4:21). It’s not faith-worthy. It’s a ministry of death bringing God’s wrath ( 2 Cor. 3:7 & Rom. 4:15). Likewise today, putting your faith in your works, only brings God’s wrath. The Law is there to reveal our sin and point us to Jesus (Rom. 6:14). Like a mirror: it reflects you (warts & all), but cannot clean you. No one uses the mirror to clean their face. The mirror just shows you how dirty you are (Rom. 3:20). The Law crushes self-reliance, it is not a reason for it.
Mark 10:21 is a tender moment: Jesus looks at the young ruler and loves him. He’s trying to take him from Sinai to Calvary. He does the same for us. He knows us the best and loves us the most. After all, we’re all little Prodigals and Pharisees.
The young ruler boasted in keeping “all” the Law, so Jesus showed how he had missed the FIRST ONE! (Exd. 20:3) He placed his possessions before God. Look, if you rely on human effort, there will always be cracks (Gal. 3:10). Like a chain holding you over a fire; remove just one link and it all falls apart (James 2:10). Anything you make into a Law and then use to condemn others – will be used to condemn you.
“Everything that isn’t gospel is law. If its not rooted in the good news of the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus is damnable, crushing, despair-breeding , Pharisee-producing law. We’ll get either shallow self-righteousness or blazing rebellion or both.” – Elyse M. Fitzpatrick, Give Them Grace
This passage doesn’t scare me anymore. I am not under the Law. It is obsolete (Heb. 8:13). I am under GRACE (Rom. 8:2). Relying on tradition & religious rituals makes Jesus of no effect (Mark 7:13). It blinds us with a veil that only Jesus can remove (2 Cor. 3:14-16). Jesus came to set us free from this nonsense (Gal. 5:1).
Luke’s account says when the young ruler left, Jesus was saddened (18:24). Jesus didn’t force anything. It was his choice. Jesus loves us enough to let us reject Him. However, if we do, it grieves Him.
Please don’t make the same mistake as the rich young ruler. Put your faith totally in Jesus today.
I took Mary kayaking this weekend. Typical of a 2-year old, she wanted to “do it myself!” Needless to say, we didn’t get very far and she ended up pretty frustrated. Truth be told, she was a hot mess and I apologize to anyone who was expecting a peaceful afternoon on the water, but was instead subject to a full-blown temper tantrum that I’m sure was heard far and wide.
I kept thinking: If she would just relax and let her father do the rowing, we could have fun zipping all over that lake. Instead, she huffed & puffed and sweated & cried. Instead of going somewhere, we went nowhere. Instead of fun, it was… torturous. I was reminded of the disciples on the Sea of Galilee.
“Then He saw them STRAINING AT ROWING, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.” – Mark 6:48 (NKJV) [Emphasis mine.]
“Straining” doesn’t do that Greek word justice. Basanizó literally means TORTURING.
They were literally torturing themselves by not relying on Jesus! Likewise, you and I are literally torturing ourselves by not relying on Jesus too.
Whenever we try to earn our salvation by being a “good person,” we are straining at the oars. Whenever we try to save ourselves with religious rituals, we are straining at the oars. Whenever we try to do ANY of the rowing, we will inevitably be straining at the oars.
Thinking you have anything to do with your redemption is the opposite of the gospel. Paul says that teaching telling you otherwise is not even a gospel; it is distorted and accursed, twice! (Gal. 1:7-9) Listen: we are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, by His blood, through faith. Period. (Rom. 3:24-25)
We are all in a tempestuous sea. The wind is against us. No matter how furiously we strain, ROWING IN OUR OWN STRENGTH will never get us to shore. Aren’t you tired of rowing in circles? Aren’t you tired of torturing yourself? Jesus can easily step in if we would only let Him. He calms the sea, silences the wind, and gets us safely to the other side.
But we must first hand the oars over to Him.
Let God help you.
How many times have you been told, “now, don’t take this personally, but…”? Well, I want you to take this personally: Jesus is THE ONLY WAY to God.
The postmodern ear may bristle at that, but that doesn’t make it any less true.
Jesus, Himself said that. Not me. Not anyone else. JESUS.
“No one comes to the Father except through me.” – John 14:6
Either you believe that or you reject it. There is no riding the fence. John Duncan called this argument, “inexorable” (meaning unbending, unyielding, & unstoppable). It is black or white, one way or the other, but it can never be both or neither.
For a much more eloquent argument, look up C.S. Lewis’s “Lunatic, Liar, or Lord” trilemma in Mere Christianity.
Exclusive claim? Oh Yes. The claim is indeed, exclusive,but the invitation to accept it is 100% inclusive and universal (Gal. 3:28)!
So, please take this personally! In fact, it doesn’t get any more personal!
How do YOU answer the very same question that Jesus asked His disciples: Who do YOU say I am? (Matt. 16:15)
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Ref:
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (1952; Harper Collins: 2001) 51-52.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis%27s_trilemma
http://merecslewis.blogspot.com/2010/11/deciding-about-jesus-liar-lunatic-or.html
You are rich. You live in America, which means:
You knew all that.
I’m not here to give you a guilt trip over your stuff. Who am I to talk? I’ve watched “Hoarders” and thought… how close am I to that?! I’m also not here to tell you to sell all your stuff and give it to charity (but you gotta admit: that would be pretty epic).
I’m just trying to get you to see your stuff for what it is: stuff.
Even though you have all those things, and even though (by the world’s standards) you are rich, if you don’t have Jesus, you don’t have diddly-squat.
WITHOUT JESUS – you are completely bankrupt. WITHOUT YESHUA you are as broke as a joke.
Jesus said, “apart from Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
The world’s wealth indicators could be lost in an instant: one fire, one flood, or one thief. If your happiness and sense of accomplishment were tied to those objects, then – there it goes.
If you lose all your stuff and even if you lose your health, but you HAVE JESUS, then – you are rich beyond compare:
32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? – Rom. 8:32 (also note Rev. 3:21!)
Real wealth is knowing the LORD and being known by Him (1 Cor. 8:3). Real riches are only found in Him (Matt. 6:19-24).
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Ref:
Come on now, we’ve all felt like the odd-man out. We’ve all felt like we didn’t know the secret handshake. We’ve all felt left out. But I promise you, there is a place where you belong.
There is a home for you with Jesus.
“If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” – John 14:23
Don’t just skim over that: the God of heaven & earth and His Son, Jesus the Christ will make their home with you. That seems pretty substantial. Give it some serious thought.
Your heart is God’s. He made it. Return it to Him. He doesn’t exclude you. He invites you. He meets you where you are and elevates you. Turn from your former life and run to the Savior. Keep His word. Be changed from the inside out.
17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted & grounded in love, – Eph. 3:17
There is a place you belong. There is a home for you with the Lord.
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Inspired by X Ambassadors, “Home.”
If it were against the law to be a Christian, would there be enough evidence in your life to arrest you?
Or would you be released with a warning?!
Is there fruit in your life that Jesus is your Lord? Is there hard evidence that you are a follower? Would your life convict you? Are you convicted right now? (See what I did there?)
Christian-ese would be: Is there proof in keeping with repentance (Matt. 3:8; Luke 3:8; Acts 26:20)? Would your case be thrown out due to lack of proof!
How hard would the prosecutor have to look for clues of your Christianity? How many witnesses would have to take the stand to corroborate your faith? How long would the jury have to deliberate; a week? a day? an hour?
Testimonies are crucial. They can sometimes sway the jury. What would yours do?
Finally, it all comes down to this: The verdict. Are you guilty or innocent of being a Christian? I would want to be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, wouldn’t you? Then what are you waiting for? Start leaving behind evidence!
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The road in front of our house was nothing but ice, so of course Charlotte wanted to go ice skating on it. We were crossing the street & she stopped to play around. I let her do that for a little while, but then I told her to come in. Like any other kid, I had to tell her multiple times before it got through that I was actually serious. Eventually, I had to go get her. For some reason this was all a great surprise to her & she appropriately made a big fuss.
Here’s what WAS going through my head:
Here’s what was NOT going through my head:
Someone who has not accepted Jesus, is like that kid playing in the street. There are cars coming. There is ice everywhere. The sun is going down & it is getting dark.
Love isn’t sitting complicit as they are play. Love is warning them to get out!
Of course, we can’t physically go get people out of the street like I did with Charlotte. We lovingly tell them the truth (Eph. 4:15). We tell them how warm the house is & what a wonderful feast there is inside (Isa. 25:6). We tell them how we also used to play in the street until our Father beckoned us safely away (Luke 15:32). We pray that message pierces their hearts as it did ours (Acts 2:37). But then, it is up to them to turn away from the street & to the Father (Deut. 30:19).
You know what? I did go over there & ice skate with Lovey. Sorta. I held her hands as she scooted across the ice. I walked along beside her & held her up. She slipped a few times, but I never let her fall. I just reassured her, “I got you. I got you. Don’t worry.”
Then after a bit, I carried her inside & we had hot chocolate. God will meet you where you are & if you let Him, He will walk along beside you & hold you up. When you slip, He will never let you fall.
He has you (Isa. 49:16). He has you (Heb. 13:5). Don’t worry (Phil. 4:6).
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