Every time your heart beats, somebody dies on this earth and slips into eternity. Your heart beats over 100,000 times per day. The spirit and soul of a person who dies separate from their expired human body. The body is taken to the mortuary and their name is written in the obituaries but that does not mean their name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
Traditionally in America and around the world, the family will plan a memorial service as they celebrate the life of the individual. In most instances, the preacher will talk about how the person is in heaven, only to comfort the family as they disregard the sinful lifestyle of the person and their lack of commitment to Christ.
I believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ is more compromised at memorial services than anywhere else. In the name of comforting the family, the absolute truth of the Word of God is suddenly compromised, causing many people to leave a memorial service numb to the spiritual finality of death and persuaded that most people are eternally secured in heaven. The most frightening and often ignored aspect of death is allowing the Word of God to be the ultimate authority concerning the reality of heaven and hell.
Many times, if we honestly took God at His Word and believed the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, then we would have to face the hard reality that those who slipped into eternity without Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior are not rejoicing in heaven. They are not resting in peace; they are not resting easy; they are not singing with the angels and kicking back with their homies! They will be tormented in the fiery flames of hell for all of eternity forever, separated from the God of heaven that loved them so much that He sent His Son to die for them. But they chose to live their lives rejecting Him with their lifestyle.
The Word of God warns of deception taking place in the earth as one of the end-time signs before the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew 24:3-4 (NKJV) says, “Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you.”
Losing a loved one on this earth is never easy but losing them in the realm of eternity is far worse. This is why we must preach the uncompromised Gospel of Jesus Christ to our families and friends. As much as we want every person we know that dies on this earth to go heaven, we must not be deceived concerning the realities of heaven and hell. Allow these seven verses to penetrate your heart beyond your opinions and beyond what the preacher may have said at a memorial service. May it go beyond what we may want to believe to what the Word of God really says.
John 3:3 says, “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'”
John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Matthew 7:14 says, “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
Luke 16:24 says, “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in the flame.'”
Matthew 13:41-42 says, “The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
Revelation 20:15 says, “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”
As you consider the Word of God as the ultimate authority, not the words of mankind and not the emotions of your heart, may it propel you to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those around you including your loved ones. The time is now for mankind to repent and get their hearts right with God before they breathe their last on this earth. The time is now for them to surrender their hearts to Jesus before it is too late. For further understanding and insight on this topic, be sure to listen to the powerful podcast on “uncompromised revival fire” attached to this article titled, “The spiritual realities of heaven and hell.” {eoa}
Dr. Caleb Cooper is the author of Pioneering Prophetic Patterns of Purpose, Jesus Focused: Awakening Endtime Prophetic Strategy, The Convergence of Revival and the King’s Arrival and The Call for Strong Godly Leadership, as well as a contributing author of Igniting Revival Fire Every Day. These books are available at calebcooperministries.com and amazon.com.
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