What, Indeed?

I once was handed a flourescent pink business card from a gentleman whom I never saw again. He didn't say much, but let me share the text of that card with you.

If we meet and you forget me, you have lost nothing.
But if you meet Jesus Christ and you forget Him, you have lost everything.
This raises some questions, I am sure, about what you can lose. I can offer just a few short passages from the Bible to describe this. The Lord is much better than I am at this!
Tips, Tricks and Shortcuts? Not here, but read these directions often!
The Rich Man and Lazarus
19 "There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.
20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, full of sores,
21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The Rich man also died and was buried;
23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And he called out, 'Father Abraham, have mercy upon me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.'
25 But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that you in your lifetime received good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.
26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.'
27 And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house,
28 for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.'
29 But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.'
30 And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'
31 He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if some one should rise from the dead.' "
—Luke 16: 19 - 31, RSV
In the above parable, Jesus seems to be very sure that there will be a place of torment. And I believe that one should definitely take the Lord's words to heart. Whether your vision of Hell is a literal cavern of fire and brimstone or a more figurative one such as eternal darkness and separation from God, Hell is a place to avoid, in my book. But it is very easy to get there... and I confess I have had many, many instances of running directly down that path! Let me bring you a few more passages from the Holy Word:
The Narrow Way
13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
15 "Beware of false prophets, whocome to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
17 So every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit.
18 A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 Thus you will know them by their fruits.
21 "Not every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?'
23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.'
24 "Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like the wise man who built his house upon the rock;
25 and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
26 And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand;
27 and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it."
—Matthew 7: 13 - 27, RSV
We Need To Talk-- God
Brrr... I feel a chill running up my spine at the Lord's convicting words. Let us explore what Jesus Himself says in John regarding judgement.
Lost in the translation? Try an NIV for even more 'down-to-earth' language.
Taking Up Your Pallet
21 [Jesus said] "For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will
22 The Father judges no one, but has given all judgement to the Son,
23 that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
24 Truly, truly I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgement, but has passed from death to life.
25 "Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself,
27 and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man.
28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice
29 and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.
—John 5: 21 -29, RSV
How can this be? The final Bible passage for this page again uses Jesus' words to tell us how such things can be done.
Threading Camels
24 And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!
25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
26 And they were exceedingly astonsihed, and said to him, "Then who can be saved?"
27 Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God."
—Mark 10: 24 - 27, RSV
Really. Anytime.-- God

I just wanted to share that with you all. Please feel free to go back to the main prayer index and learn more about the Narrow Way!

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