PREPARE TO MEET THY GOD The message you are about to read is based on a brief text found in the Bible. God says, Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God (Amos 4:12). This verse states an eternal principle with God. The words are invitation and a warning to every generation - prepare to meet thy God. Many years ago, the largest railroad company in a particular country saw the danger and death that so often resulted from the collision of its steel locomotives with cars and trucks at railroad crossings. And so the company offered a prize of $2,500 to the person who would suggest the three best words to be used as warning words at railroad crossings. The person wise and fortunate enough to win the prize offered three words which you have often seen: Stop, Look, Listen. Each of these words cost $833, but the words are of no avail whatever for the safety of persons crossing railroads unless they are obeyed. What good is the word STOP if people dont stop? What protection does the word LOOK offer if one does not look? What warning does the word LISTEN give if we dont listen? And just so, you can come in contact with much teaching about preparing for heaven, and still go to hell, unless you prepare. 1. NOTE THE SIMPLICITY OF THE WORDS - Every word of the text is extremely simple. The Bible says, Prepare to meet thy God. To prepare simply means to get ready - get ready for death, get ready for the judgement, get ready for the coming of the Lord. The Scriptures tell us that every person is born in iniquity or with a fallen nature that is prone to sin. All sins must be removed in order to meet God in peace. And the Bible is clear in declaring the fact that nothing but the blood of Jesus Christ can remove sin (1 John 1:7). The word prepare is very simple. It is not a mystery to anyone. The words of the text are not a problem in mathematics. Everyone knows exactly what they mean. Prepare to meet thy God means get ready to meet God - thats as clear as a path of tar scattered across a field of snow. And yet these extremely simple words are seemingly misunderstood. People get ready to marry. Some get ready to go on vacation trips. Most get their children ready for the first year in school. Some get ready for examinations. Many get ready for old age by taking out pensions. Infact, most people get ready for everything and anything - except for the most important thing in this life and in eternity: to meet God. Friend - listen to these simple words of the Bible - PREPARE TO MEET THY GOD. 2. THE CERTAINTY OF MEETING GOD - There is one thing certain - all must meet God. The rich and the poor, the old and the young, the learned and the unlearned - all will meet God. You may have cancelled lots of appointments here in this life, but there is one date you are going to keep. You will have to face the God who made you. The Scriptures says, So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God (Rom. 14:12). You might die suddenly and be ushered into the presence of God without any notice. For the Christian to meet God will be a thrilling experience. Apostle Paul, near the close of his life, said, I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. (2 Timothy 4:6). Death came shortly after he had uttered those words. But for the unbeliever to meet God, will be a frightening experience. The Bible says, It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:31). And again, The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty (Numbers 14:18). If you resist Gods love and refuse His salvation and despise His warnings - the day you stand before Him will be a dreadful day. 3. THE ABSURDITY OF PROCRASTINATION - Every one of us has offended God many times. Gods justice demands that we be punished for our sins, and Gods love has provided a remedy. That remedy is the death of Gods own Son. Isaiah says, The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. And in order for Christs death to become effective as an atonement for our sins, we need to receive Him into our hearts and follow His Ways. The tendency, however, is to procrastinate. To procrastinate means to put off until later or to postpone action. The Bible tells how Paul preaches to Felix (the Roman governor of Judea) about Gods plan of salvation, and Felix answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee. (Acts 24:25). Any of us might die before another minute - and such a statement is not an attempt to be funny either! We do not know when our moment of death is coming, but when God calls us, we are going to go. Some people have the idea that they are going to wait untill the eleventh hour before they give their hearts to the Lord. But many people who plan to wait untill the eleventh hour die at ten-thirty. They never get it done. Its always a dangerous thing to procrastinate. The clock of life is wound but once,/ And no man has the power/ To tell just when the hands will stop,/ At late or early hour. 4. THE FOLLY OF REJECTING OF CHRIST Salvation is a gift. It is not something that can be earned. The Bible says, For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23). Sin is picture as a master who pay wages. And the awful wages of sin is separation of body and soul from the presence of God forever. But if the wages of sin is death, we would be rather inclined to think that the second part of the verse should read, The wages of holiness is life. But it simply says, The gift of God is eternal life. Eternal life is a gift. God absolutely refuses to sell salvation. On the last page of your Bible you will find this final invitation: And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. (Revelation 22:17). Salvation is the free gift of God. Many are hoping that by works and good deeds and ceremonies and much church activity, they will be prepared for this meeting with God. But the Bible says that we are saved, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy (Titus 3:5). No man can ever stand up and say, Ive done so and so, and God owes me salvation. Good works are extremely important in the life of the Christian, but they will never atone for ones sin. We are saved through faith in Jesus, who came to the earth, shed His blood on Calvary, and took our sins upon Himself. By these acts, He secured pardon for our sins. This is favour that God did for us - and God offers this salvation as a gift to you. I am sure that you are aware of the fact that a gift is not a gift unless it is accepted, and that a pardon is not a pardon if it is refused. One of the strangest cases in American history centers around a man named George Wilson. He was sentenced by U.S. court in Philadelphia (back in 1830) to be hanged for robbing the mails and for murder. Andrew Jackson was president of United States. At the request of many George Wilsons friends (three weeks before he was to be hanged) Andrew Jackson issued a pardon for Wilson. But Wilson startled the world by refusing to accept the pardon and insisted that he be hanged according to courts decision. George Wilson declared the pardon was no pardon unless he accepted it. This was a point in law never raised before, because whenever a pardon was issued previously, it was always joyfully accepted. Should the sheriff accept the courts decision and hang Wilson, or should he accept the presidential pardon and release him? Since the law was silent on the point, President Jackson called on the Supreme Court to decide the issue at once. The decision read like this: A pardon is a paper, the value of which depends upon its acceptance by the person implicated. It is hardly to be supposed that one under the sentence of death would refuse to accept a pardon, but if it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must hang. And George Wilson was hanged. Most people would agree that Wilson was a fool for refusing to accept the pardon, and yet many these same people daily reject the pardon that God has provided for them. If you are unsaved today, and if you are a born again who is still living in secret sin, you are a sinner under the sentence of sin and condemned to die eternally in the outer darkness of hell. But today God is offering a pardon! He is saying that you dont need to die, because Jesus died for you. For why will ye die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 18:31). It is hardly to be supposed that any person in his right mind would reject the pardon of Gods love that Jesus purchased on Calvary - but if you do reject that offer, it is no pardon. Then you will have to suffer the consequences of sin yourself. GET READY NOW TO MEET GOD NOW! From Gods desk Rod and Staff & Pastor Oladiji Sunday Oladimeji.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 08:05:13 +0000