One of the things that I would like to talk about today is that God gives the true believer many assurances in the Bible. When we truly become a child of God, when God has done a work of salvation in someone’s heart and we are truly saved, God has given us many assurances in the Bible that we are safe and secure in Christ. It is a wonderful thing to know that when God has truly saved us, we are saved eternally.
As true believers, we desire this also for our loved ones. Our heart goes out to them. It makes it more difficult if we have to live with someone who is unsaved. We can see their rebellion against God and this grieves the true believer; but we know that we are secure in Christ and that we do not have to be afraid of May 21, 2011. Many people are worried about this, but the true believer has nothing to worry about.
Let us look at a beautiful passage in 1 Corinthians 15. We do not have to be afraid of the earthquake that will come on that day, an earthquake like this earth has never seen before. We do not have to fear this earthquake, because God is in control. God tells us here in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52:
Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep…
There are going to be plenty of true believers here and still living when God comes who had never died physically, and so He says:
Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye…
Whether the true believer experiences a second of this earthquake, or whatever it could be, we do not have to fear this day. Those who are not saved should fear this day. They should be terrified of it, and yet God tells us in the Bible that unsaved man does not fear God. When you give them this information about May 21, it does not register. It just goes right over their heads. Some laugh at it. Some scoff at it. But for the true believer, there is nothing to fear about this day, nothing at all. Even if we experience a second of the earthquake, we will be changed at the snap of a finger. We will be in our glorified spiritual bodies and we are going to be caught up to be with Christ.
For the wicked, the ones who remain, they should be terrified, though they may not fear now. On Judgment Day, which will be on May 21, they will fear and they will be very frightened. This is because we are talking about Almighty God who is going to turn His attention to punishing those who are left behind. They will fear, but all hope will be gone then and there will be no possibility of salvation. At that point, unsaved man is going to have to face the wrath of Almighty God.
What will this be like? We do not know. All we know is that this is going to be horrible, because when we look at Psalm 2:4, which is just one verse among many that addresses this, it says:
He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.
It is going to be a terrible time for those left behind to face the wrath of God. At that point, this world is going to become hell. It is going to be nothing but a curse. It is a curse even now, but there are still blessings.
On May 21st, where are you going to find food to eat? Where are you going to find all of these physical things that you need, these physical blessings from God? They will no longer be here. God will then be finished with mankind, so to speak, even though He will not be completely finished with mankind until October 21st. At that point, He will be done with mankind and He will pour out His wrath.
It is easy for us to see the devastation that an earthquake will bring. If you want to frighten unsaved man, put him through an earthquake. He thinks that he is not afraid, but let an earthquake strike Delaware and see what happens. Let the earth start to shake and unsaved man will be beside himself. He will see all of his hopes and dreams come crashing down on him. He will stand there in fear because all of his dreams and aspirations are in this life. We know that on that Day of Judgment, he will be afraid. There will be no hope for him then.
Let us turn over to Romans where God gives the true believers great assurances. God just goes on and on and on about how safe we are in Christ when God has given someone a new heart. When He has saved someone, they are safe and secure in Christ. This is a familiar passage. He tells us in Romans 8:35-39:
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?…
This is a question. If you are truly saved, what in this life could ever separate you from the love of Christ? Nothing could do this, and now God is going to list all of these things. It continues:
…shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death…
Death is something that is the enemy of mankind. We hear people proclaim when they are very ill or when they are in some type of accident, “I do not want to die!” Why is this? Unsaved man says this. Why? It is because death is the enemy of mankind.
So God tells us that not even death will separate us from Christ. As we know, when the true believer dies, their spirit instantly goes home to be with Christ. The physical body dies because of the curse of God. It goes back to the grave and it decays, and yet God has even given us the assurance that physical death cannot separate us from God, as we continue to read:
…neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Wow! What a comfort the true believers can take from these verses! No matter what we could think of, there is nothing in all of the earth that could separate us from God. Once we are truly saved, we are saved forevermore. There is no need for us to fear Judgment Day. As true believers, we should not. We should be looking forward to this day.
Throughout the Bible, God has been speaking about this one day when our salvation will be completed and we will be with Christ forever. How wonderful this is! As true believers, we take great comfort in God’s Word. God’s Word is a comfort to us.
Look at Psalm 119. This is not a study in comfort, but for the true believers, God’s Word is a comfort to us. It is the absolute truth. God has the ability and the power to bring to completion and fruition His promises to His people. This is the absolute truth. He is going to do what He says He will do. There is no question about this. The true believers trust this with all of their hearts, because God has given to them a new heart. We read in Psalm 119:49:
Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope.
For the true believers, God’s Word is our hope and, therefore, Christ is our hope, because you cannot separate the Word of God from Christ. He is the Word of God.
Then Psalm 119:50 says:
This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.
This is referring to the Word of God. For the true believers, it has made us spiritually alive.
Then it says in Psalm 119:51-52:
The proud have had me greatly in derision: yet have I not declined from thy law. I remembered thy judgments of old, O JEHOVAH; and have comforted myself.
The true believers take great comfort in God’s Word. We rest in His Word. The Word of God is truth and we love it because God has given to us a brand new heart. Because of this, we are going to love the Bible.
Read through Psalm 119, through the whole 176 verses, and ask yourself how you relate to what you read there. Do you love the Word of God? Do you delight yourself in Christ? This is what the believer delights in. He delights in God’s Word. He delights in doing what God says. Read through Psalm 119 and you will see how the true believer delights in the Word of God.
Turn to Romans 15:4. He says here:
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Through the “comfort of the scriptures,” which is the Word of God, we have hope. We have hope, because we know that God’s Word is the absolute truth.
Then we read in Romans 15:5-6:
Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We take great comfort in the Word of God, because it is the truth. What He says, He will do. He has written in the Bible His promises to His people and He will do them.
God tells us in the book of Hebrews that it is “impossible for God to lie”; and so when He declares that Judgment Day is a certain month, day, and year, then this is so. It is so. God even tells us in the Bible that we are not supposed to trust in our own understanding. Do not trust your own heart. Do not trust your own thoughts or your own ideas. We are sinners; do not do this. We only put our trust in God’s Word, the Bible. We do not trust a man. We do not trust anything but God. We trust God, because God is true. The Word of God is the absolute truth. This is why what He says, He will do.
Turn over to 2 Corinthians 1:3. It says:
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
No matter what you are going through in your life, whether it is an illness or whether or not you are in a difficult situation, no matter what it is, He is:
…the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
We go to God’s Word for strength and for comfort. We are comforted in it.
Then 2 Corinthians 1:4 says:
Who comforteth us in all our tribulation…
Unsaved man does not go to God’s Word for comfort. When unsaved man is going through difficulties in this life, he turns to alcohol or to something else for comfort. These things do not help; but the true believers go to Christ for comfort.
So we read in 2 Corinthians 1:4:
Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
We are comforted by God through His Word. We are comforted by sitting at the feet of Christ and feeding on the Word of God. We have great comfort and delight in God’s Word.
Then 2 Corinthians 1:5-6 says:
For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.
So we take great comfort in God’s Word, the Bible. There is great hope for us in God’s Word.
Look at 1 Thessalonians 4, which is very familiar to us. Starting in verse 14, God speaks of how the true believers are going to be resurrected to life on the Day of Judgment. Then He says in 1 Thessalonians 4:18:
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
That great day is coming when our salvation will be completed. Look how close it is now. Look at how close the salvation of the true believes is. It is almost completed. We have six months from today. Look at how close we are! Our salvation is going to be completed six months from today. We will then be with Christ forevermore, and so we take great comfort in the fact that our salvation is soon to be completed and that we are eternally secure in Christ.
Back in Noah’s day, although he warned the people of that day, they did not listen. God prepared an ark, which was a picture of Christ. Noah’s family was saved on that day, which was a picture of the fact that the true believers do not come into condemnation because they are safe and secure in Christ.
This is the wonder and the beauty that May 21st will be for God’s children. Although all of this destruction is going to be happening, the true believers are not going to be here to see it. They are going to be taken up right away.
Throughout the Bible, He always takes His people out before He brings destruction. These are great examples for us. The flood of Noah’s day was an example. Sodom and Gomorrah was an example. Lot came out and he was a true believer. He did not get caught up in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah. Before He brings destruction, God always takes His people out. He warns them and then He takes them out. He takes them out, which is a picture of us being safe and secure in Christ. We do not come into condemnation.
We know now that before the foundation of the world, God had already paid the penalty for our sin. We are safe, and so there are a few verses that I would like for us to look at. These verses tell us how safe we are in Christ. It is amazing that He does not tell us this just once in the Bible. He tells us many, many times throughout the Bible that the true believers are safe and secure. We have nothing to worry about. As far as coming into Judgment Day, we have nothing to worry about. We are eternally secure in Christ. God just goes on and on and on to tell us this.
Look at John 10:22-26. It says:
And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch. Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you…
Jesus is telling them that He had told them. It continues:
…I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
There are people who are having trouble with May 21. If they do not believe this, God is telling them that they are not of His sheep. This is why they do not believe it.
He goes on in John 10:27 to say:
My sheep hear my voice…
For the true believers, God gives them spiritual ears to hear. When He saves them, they will hear. It continues:
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them…
God knows all of His elect. Then He says:
…and they follow me:
Then He continues on to say in John 10:28-30:
And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish…
The true believers will never perish because God has given them eternal life. He has saved them and He knows each one of His people.
He continues:
…neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one.
Can you see what God shows us here and what He has given to us? No one is going to snatch us away from God. This would be impossible. God says that He has given to us eternal life. We shall never perish. The unsaved will perish. They will perish forever. They are going to be destroyed. It does not matter who they are. They can be a child or an adult—it makes no difference—but the true believers will never perish.
Do you see how God is emphasizing this? He knows them, they will never perish, and no man is able to pluck them out of His hand. This is because when you are saved, God has you; that is it. He cannot lose you. This would be impossible. You cannot fall away.
The churches coined the phrase that someone can fall away. If someone does, then they were never saved to begin with. But here God tells us that no one is going to snatch us away from God. This is impossible, absolutely impossible. “Neither death, nor life…nor principalities,” whatever it is in this life, it can never snatch us away from Christ because He has us. God’s Holy Spirit indwells us. He has given us a new heart.
He tells us all of these things. He just goes on and on to tell us all of these things. God, who is the Almighty, the One who is all-knowing, all-wise, and all-powerful, has given us all of these assurances to tell us that this could never happen. Once we become a child of God, this could never happen. He will never lose us. He will never forsake us.
No matter what you are going through in this life, a life that is difficult at best, no matter what trials you are in, you name it, God will never forsake His people, because look at what is ahead. The action is not in this life. It is on the other side. It is in the new Heaven and the new earth, a place where this world will be forgotten.
Do you see how unimportant this life is? It is so unimportant that God tells His elect that when we get to Heaven, this world will not even come into mind anymore. Do you see how unimportant the riches of this life are or anything that this world has to offer? Whatever this world has to offer, the Bible says that it is “vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” The little trials that we go through in this life compared to the new Heaven and the new earth, they do not compare. They will not even enter into our minds. This world will be completely erased from our minds. It will all be gone.
Can you see the wonderful blessings that lie ahead for God’s people? This is what we desire for our loved ones, but they cannot see this for dust. They cannot understand this. They have a spiritually dead heart and we cannot save them, but we can see from these verses that no one can pluck us out of God’s hands. We are secure in Christ forever.
This word “pluck” that we find in John 10:29 is also used in Matthew 13 where we read of the parable of the sower. In Matthew 13:19, we read:
When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart…
This is the same word that was translated as “pluck.” No one can snatch us out of God’s hand. They cannot pluck us away from God’s hand. He has us. We cannot lose our salvation.
God goes on to tell us how safe we are in Christ by using other phrases in the Bible. For example, turn over to Luke 10. Luke 10 goes on to give us more information. Let us start in verse 17. God had sent out the seventy with the Gospel. Then we read in Luke 10:17:
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
Then Christ says to them in Luke 10:18-20:
And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.
When did God place the names of His people there? He did this from way back into eternity past. We are known in the infinite mind of God from way back into eternity and our names are written there. God has placed our names there.
Do you see how safe and secure we are? We know that God had to create a world and bring us into this world, and so forth. We had to be born to our parents. God worked out all of this in time, and He tells us these things, but our names are even placed in Heaven.
Look also at John 14:1-3. It says:
Let not your heart be troubled…
He is speaking to the true believers. We do not have to worry about things. We do not have to worry. If you are a child of God, all is well. It continues:
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 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. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again…
Then He says:
…and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Do you see the promise of security that God has given to us? He says that where He is, there is where His people will also be with Him forevermore. These are all wonderful verses that God has given to us in His Word.
Turn to Psalm 147:1-4. We read there:
Praise ye JEHOVAH: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely. JEHOVAH doth build up Jerusalem…
He is building up Jerusalem with all of the true believers. They are the ones who build up Jerusalem. It continues:
…he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars…
Who are the “stars” in this context? They are the true believers. He is not speaking about the literal stars in the heavens. He says:
He telleth the number of the stars…
There are a certain number of people whom God is going to save. Then He says:
…he calleth them all by their names.
In the Bible, the true believers are sometimes known as “stars.” Christ is also known as a “star,” but He is telling us here that there are a certain number of people whom He is going to save and He calls them all by their names. He knows every one of His people.
Turn over to Daniel 12 where the true believers are talked about. Daniel 12:3 says:
And they that be wise…
This is referring to God’s elect. It continues:
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
So in one sense, “the stars” are speaking about the true believers. He calls us all by our names, every one of us. We are individually called by God and we are secure and safe in Him forevermore.
Let us now look at the unsaved in the world. The only security in this world is Christ and His salvation. When He has saved us, He has given us eternal salvation and we are safe and secure in Christ; but the unsaved of this world find their security in this life. Their names are not written in the Book of Life. Their portion and their lot are in this life. They find their security in riches and in what they have. Their security is in their money, their home, their education; it is in all of these types of things. This is their security.
I was speaking to someone once who was looking for a potential mate. They were telling me the qualifications of whom they were looking for. They wanted this person to be financially secure. They were looking for their security in money and in the things that this other person might have to offer.
For the true believer, this is not so; but for the unsaved, they find their security in this life. However, according to the Bible, we know that anything that we see in this life is vanity. It is vanity. It does not bring happiness, even though they think that it does. This is because they have been deceived by these things, but this is all that they are going to get.
Let us look at Psalm 49. Psalm 49 tells us about the unsaved. Their lot is in this life. God tells us what their trust is in. We read in Psalm 49:6-7:
They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:
God goes on to tell us about the unsaved. They trust in the things of this life. This is what they trust in. This is their lot and this is all that they are going to get.
Look at verse 16 where God is speaking to the true believers. We read in Psalm 49:16-17:
Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased; For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away…
I was present at the birth of my children. When they were born, they did not come into this life with a handful of riches. They came into this world with nothing. God tells us that it is certain that the unsaved will leave this world with nothing. Although they amass wealth and riches in this life, they will leave this world with nothing. All of this is vanity, and yet this is their trust and this is their security.
It goes on to say in Psalm 49:17-19:
For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him. Though while he lived he blessed his soul…
God has blessed the unsaved. He gives them a beautiful day. He gives them good health. He gives them riches. He gives them all of the things of this life, but this is all that they are going to get. This is what they trust in. It continues:
…and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself. He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.
Where are his riches? In the Day of Judgment on May 21st, no matter how much unsaved man has had in this life, what good will his money be to him in that time of judgment? It becomes worthless in that day, does it not? What is he going to buy then? What good will his mansions do him after May 21st? His home is going to be destroyed along with everything else.
So we read again in Psalm 49:19:
He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.
Then it says in Psalm 49:20:
Man that is in honour, and understandeth not…
Remember that the unsaved do not understand. It goes on to say that man who does not understand:
…is like the beasts that perish.
He is like an animal. He is going to die just like an animal. He will cease to exist in that Day of Judgment.
So, you see, what good are these things that are his security? They are nothing; but for the child of God, we come into the most wonderful blessing that there is. Is this not true? We will be in the new Kingdom. We will be in the new Heaven and the new earth forever. We will be with God forever. What more could we ask for? This life is “but for a moment,” is it not? This is only “but for a moment.”
Someone could be healthy and young, and yet who could say that they could not die tonight? Any one of us could die this night. God is in control. We could be young and fit and healthy with muscles, but let a mosquito bite you with the West Nile virus and your health will decline instantly. Before you know it, you are in the emergency room where the doctors will be trying to administer all kinds of medicine to you to keep you alive. Yet if God has made a decision to take you, then you will be gone and you will be dead. God can take any one of us at any given moment.
I often use the example of a friend of mine where I work. She had a 14-year-old son. He was just 14 years old. He was on a basketball court where he was playing with his friends and shooting some hoops. He was just playing around when, all of a sudden, he felt sick. Before that moment, there was nothing wrong with him. He was as healthy as a horse. He was just 14 years old. They rushed him to the hospital. Within about six hours, this 14-year-old boy was dead. Just like that. He just collapsed on the basketball court.
After this when I was able to speak to his mother, I asked her if he had been ill. She told me that he had not been ill. He was a smart kid. He had just received a scholarship to go to the University of Pennsylvania. His future was bright and he was making plans, and yet God had other plans for him. He collapsed on a basketball court and he died. This happened a year or two ago. I recently spoke to his mother and she is still in shock. She still cannot believe this.
So not one of us is guaranteed another day. Whether the Lord takes us at age 10 or 14 or 20 or 50, if you are a child of God, you are safe and secure in Him; and yet not one of us is guaranteed another breath.
Let us look at a couple more verses. Let us look at Psalm 32. The true believers do not have to worry about physical death. To be “absent from the body” is to be “present with the Lord.” Whether we “wake or sleep,” we are the Lord’s; and so we do not have anything to worry about. Let us start reading from verse 6. God tells us here in Psalm 32:6:
For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found…
This says: “in a time when thou mayest be found.” God can be found now. Salvation is still possible. Anyone can be saved. No one is beyond the mercy of God. God can be found now. The door to salvation is wide open now, but the time will come when He will no longer be found. It continues:
…surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
This person is saved from God’s eternal damnation. The “floods of great waters” destroyed the world in Noah’s day, but the true believer is safe. The “floods of great waters” will not come near him because he is safe in Christ forevermore.
It goes on to say in Psalm 32:7:
Thou art my hiding place…
What do we need to hide from? If the police are trying to get someone, they will try to hide from the police; but we need to be hidden from the Day of Judgment. Christ will hide us from the wrath of God, which is coming very soon. It continues:
Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.
Then God says in Psalm 32:8:
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
We could say that God hovers over the true believers like an eagle. He is there guiding the path of all of His people.
Then we read in Psalm 32:9-11:
Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in JEHOVAH, mercy shall compass him about. Be glad in JEHOVAH, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Do you see how safe we are? He tells the true believers that they are safe in Christ, but “many sorrows shall be to the wicked.” He is going to destroy the wicked. For the true believers, they will not be destroyed.
Let us look at Psalm 46:1-3. It says:
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Then look at verse 7. Psalm 46:7 says:
JEHOVAH of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
God is our refuge. He uses all of these words in all of these verses to tell us how safe we are in Him.
Look at Proverbs 1:32-33. It says:
For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth…
Who are the ones who are going to hearken to the Word of God? It is those whom God has given “eyes to see, and ears to hear” and a “new heart.” It continues:
But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.
God indwells us when we become saved and we indwell Him. We are safe from the “fear of evil,” which is Judgment Day. We are safe from this. We will not be harmed by this day. We will not be touched, because we are safe in Christ forevermore.
Let us look at Proverbs 11:14. It says:
Where no counsel is…
We know that this “counsel” is the Word of God, and so this says:
Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.
The “multitude of counsellors” is pointing to God’s Word. There is safety in God’s Word, because God’s Word is true and because God is faithful to His promises and to the commitments that He has made in the Bible.
How wonderful it is for the true believers! There are many, many, many other verses. God just keeps going on and on and on about how safe and secure we are in Christ.
For the true believers, life can be difficult at best with one trial after another. Maybe we are the only saved individual in our household and it is difficult to live in this situation, but we go to God because God knows our situation. He knows it. It is difficult for a spouse to live with someone who is not saved. This is difficult, but God’s grace “is sufficient.” God’s grace is sufficient for whatever situation there is in this life. Just think of this. We only have to put up with these things “but for a moment.”
Turn to Ephesians 2. God tells us here in Ephesians 2:6:
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
When we are saved, we are reigning with Christ. Even though we cannot see this now, this says that we are seated with Him in the heavenlies. God’s blessings just go on and on for the true believer. We are seated with Him “in heavenly places” in Christ.
Very soon, just six months from today, God’s promises to His people will have been completed. All of the problems and the tribulations of this world will have been forgotten. They will be forgotten forevermore.
There are so many verses where God has given us this assurance to tell us that once we are saved, we are His. We are His. Just wait. Six months from now, we will be with Christ and we will be with Him forevermore. This world will be forgotten and nothing of this world will come into our minds. This will all be completely forgotten. It is worth it to do things God’s way.
If anyone is not truly saved, if you do not know that you are saved, the door is still open. You can still cry out to God for mercy. He is “the God of all comfort.” He is “the Father of mercies.” He is “full of compassion.” He is all of these things. He is patient. He is kind. God tells us in many verses about Himself, about who He is. When Christ walked the earth and healed people, He did not even turn away one individual. He would heal them. God tells us these things because He wants us to come to Him. He wants us to pray to Him. He wants us to come before Him and to plead to Him for mercy. He tells us these things so that we will know that He is gracious and that He is merciful.
Let us stop here.