THE HOLY BIBLE (The Contemporary English Version – Hebrews 4:2-3): We have heard the message, just as they did. But they failed to believe what they heard, and the message did not do them any good. Only people who have faith will enter the place of rest. It is just as the Scriptures say, “God became angry and told the people, ‘You will never enter my place of rest!’ ”
THOUGHTS: Over time many have continued the tradition of attending church on the day of their choice or conviction. Having grown up in church and now a regular attendee, it is very easy to assume that such dedication is bound to get you somewhere on the day you are faced with death to this world. This kind of assumption was assumed back in the day when the writer of Hebrews shared his heart with us in this passage of scripture. The reality of what is being discussed by the writer was very evident in the lives of the Israelites that were rescued from slavery in the land of Egypt and taken care of by God through 40 years in the wilderness. They were taken care of, but did they truly have faith in the One who cared for them? Of course not, every time that Moses left their presence they returned to their sinful acts of worshiping idols. Unfortunately, this sounds a lot like our church goers who attend to please mom, or spouse, or whomever, but have no personal relationship with the Lord. Friends, please be aware that church attendance is just the ‘icing on the cake’ for us, as it is a place that we go to join other like-minded folk who come together to celebrate the one main thing they have in common – the Lord Jesus. Just because you may find yourself enjoying the company of these folk when they meet to worship, does not automatically include you in the redeemed of the Lord who anxiously await His return. You see, having a relationship with the Lord will be evident in our lives every day of the week, and not just for the one hour that we feel an obligation to attend a worship service. So I believe that the litmus test is more about what your life appears to be Monday thru Friday, more so than what it looks like during your hour of worship. So what would someone who only knows you in the business world classify you as? A Christian/follower of Christ/born again child of the King/Christ-like? Have you personally asked for forgiveness of your sin and surrendered your life totally to the Lord Jesus Christ? Perhaps on this ‘Good Friday’, a day we remember the death of our Lord Jesus, there is no better time for you to seek His face and surrender your life to Him as your loving Savior and King. It’s time that you be honest with yourself and your relationship with God, or lack thereof. Do something about it friend.
PRAYER: Dear God, please help us, Your children, to not take You for granted. You went to the extreme of giving up Your only Son so that we might have eternal life. Please help us to never assume that by simply walking through the doors of a building on a Sunday or Saturday morning will take the place of that awesome sacrifice You made for us. You have carefully outlined in Your Word how we might be saved, and no part of it involves church attendance for a given number of years. Our only means of seeing You at heaven’s portals is through a personal decision and plea to accept Your Son Jesus, as our Lord and personal Savior. There is no substitute or alternative. Please open the eyes and hearts of Your children as they find a place of worship this Easter season. May they truly find, and accept the gift of eternal life – may they personally find and accept You as Lord, is my humble and sincere prayer that I ask in the name of the One that I call King, Savior and Lord of all, Jesus the Christ, my Lord, AMEN!
FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!
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