Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. (Matt. 25:46)
I saw thIS post on Facebook: “I’d rather believe in God and be wrong than not believe and find I was wrong.” In today’s global society of tolerance for all faiths, Christianity is becoming increasingly unpopular. Gone are the days when everyone went to church and the stores stayed closed on Sundays, at least until after noon. Now children’s sports activities are held on Sunday mornings, and mega-sales draw more people into the discount stores than the church bells draw into worship. Being faithful means swimming upstream, against the currents of society.
While our faith, not our works, saves us from damnation, Jesus makes it clear we are to be His hands and feet, drawing others to Him by first taking care of their physical and emotional needs. That makes sense. If we hug a stranger and say God loves him or her, that is nice. But if we offer a meal and say that we do this out of our obedience to God, because He loves this stranger as well, how very different!
Our faith makes us stand out so we can do good works and glorify our Father in heaven (see Matt. 5:16). Christ told us the world wouldn’t get it. That doesn’t mean we should give up trying. Lives are at stake, including ours, for eternity.
Choose to live today as if it mattered for eternity.
Julie B. Cosgrove is a widowed Christian author and speaker who lives in Fort Worth, Texas. She is involved with women’s and outreach ministries.
