Don’t Put It Off

Last weekend, I flew up to New England where I’m staying with a minister and his wife. Earlier this week, a man sleeping in the room next to mine unexpectedly passed away. Michael was only 52 years old. We previously met in 2012 at a house church in Haverhill, Massachusetts where he was living at the time. Like myself, Michael was a former nightclub disc jockey. 

Michael and I hooked up again this past Monday when he and another man came over to work on my hosts’ house. Eventually, Michael offered to buy us all dinner and also got us coffee at Dunkin Donuts. Later that evening, my hosts were praying and worshipping the Lord with Michael in the living room. I mostly stayed in my bedroom working on my laptop until it was quiet enough for me to get to sleep. Michael went to bed sometime after midnight.

The next morning, my host knocked on Michael’s door but there was no answer. Michael was then found lifeless on top of his bed. Paramedics and the police arrived a few minutes later. They spent the next couple hours investigating and asking questions. A coroner later removed Michael’s body for an autopsy. A memorial service was held yesterday in Windham, New Hampshire. 

Michael’s death should serve as a reminder that we must be ready for eternity. Many people think they have all the time in the world and yet their lives can suddenly end without warning. Perhaps one of the policemen who showed up at the house thought about that as I led him to the Lord. James 4:14 says, “Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” 

Too many Christians allow worldly activities to consume their attention. Those who proudly believe in “once saved, always saved” face the risk of backsliding and missing the Second Coming. Look at this passage in Matthew 24…

48 “But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’

49 and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards,

50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of,

51 and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

In response to the Apostle Paul’s preaching, the Roman governor Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.” (Acts 24:25) There’s no record of Felix ever repenting. When the philosophers at Athens “…heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, 'We will hear you again on this matter.’” (Acts 17:32) It’s possible some of the “others” never had another opportunity to respond to the gospel.

Hell is full of people who kept procrastinating the decision to be born again until it was too late. Michael was saved and is now in heaven. What about you? Are you ready to meet your maker if your life ended right now? If not, I urge you to make Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior right now. Don’t put it off!

“Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.” - Matthew 24:42

Get Off The Fence

A lot of people have a tendency to put things off until the last minute. Unfortunately, that includes receiving salvation. Examples of procrastinators in the Bible include Pharaoh delaying deliverance from the plague of frogs in Exodus chapter 8. When the Apostle Paul presented the gospel to Felix in Acts 24, the governor’s reply in verse 25 was to meet again “at a convenient time.”

When you are out evangelizing, you’ll encounter people that claim they will get right with God at a later time. Some have this idea they must clean themselves up first before they can commit their lives to the Lord. Yesterday in Lincoln, Illinois, the Lord led me to approach a woman sitting by herself on a park bench. This woman used to go to church but had backslidden and admitted to having an affair with a married man. I reminded her of various Scriptures including Hebrews 13:4, “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” After ministering to her for a few minutes, I asked if she would let me pray a blessing over her. She agreed and so I prayed for her and bound the devil. Then I offered to lead her to salvation. This time she was receptive and asked Jesus back into her heart. Praise God!

Jesus said in Luke 14:23, "Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled." Of course, we are not to beg or pressure people to come into God’s kingdom. In Luke 18, Jesus did not make another appeal to the rich young ruler who wouldn’t forsake all to follow Him. However, people need to realize it’s dangerous to resist the drawing of the Holy Spirit because it will harden their hearts (Hebrews 3:7-15). The Bible says in Genesis 6:3 that God "shall not strive with man forever."

Unless the Holy Spirit leads me otherwise, I like to point out to procrastinators that they are gambling with their eternal destiny. If they get killed instantly in an accident, terrorist attack, or shooting (I often cite 9/11 or the Virginia Tech Massacre as examples), then it's too late for them to say a quick prayer of forgiveness. There are no guarantees for tomorrow.

As stated before, a tool that I sometimes use to help procrastinators “get off the fence” is offering a prayer of blessing. Another time while evangelizing at Union Station in downtown Toronto, I approached a young man who was standing around smoking a cigarette. Sean heard the gospel before but hadn’t given much thought about what would happen to him after he died. So I asked Sean if I could say a quick prayer for him. When he agreed, I prayed, “Father in the name of Jesus, I ask you to bless Sean and make yourself real to him. I bind all spirits of the enemy that would hinder Sean from making the right decision in receiving salvation.” Then I asked Sean, “Would you like to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” He replied, “Absolutely” and got born again.

Do you know people who need to get off the fence regarding their eternal destiny?

"And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” - Joshua 24:15