In 1980 a country singer named Johnny Lee recorded a song entitled, “Looking For Love (In All The Wrong Places).  The theme of the song centers on the woeful lament of a man who vainly looks for lasting love in honky-tonks and bars.  His hope is that one day he will finally find his true love, even though he seems to understand that the places where he is looking are not the right places to find such love.

Most of us would agree that looking for true love in a honky-tonk or bar is an exercise in futility.  The reasons ought to be obvious because of the nature of the environment in such places.  While some may argue that these are simply places where adults can go for entertainment, the truth is that these are places where the opportunity for ungodly activity of various kinds is facilitated, if not encouraged.  It doesn’t make sense to look for sincere love in a such a place.

In a similar manner, it seems that many today are looking for God in the religious equivalent of honky-tonks and bars.  We hear much today of what it takes to attract the world to the church.  Church growth gurus have done studies and surveys to discover the kinds of things that appeal to the so-called “unchurched.”  Their suggestions to church leaders cover the spectrum of possibilities.  The result is what might be called a “theme park” approach to Christianity.

The people in the pews become consumers, and church leaders are marketers trying to win their patronage.  The surveys say the unchurched are intimidated by the formality of Christian worship.  So preachers wear blue jeans and T-shirts to preach.  Sermons become chat sessions or talk shows, complete with guests, Q&As, and applause.  Worship becomes a media-driven pep rally, replete with thumping rock music, albeit with Christian themes and words.

Lost somewhere in the mad rush to look for and to attract the unchurched is the simple message of Jesus Christ, who said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” (Jn. 12:32).  In 1 Cor. 2:1, 2 Paul said, “And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God.  For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”  The implication of these statements is that Jesus Christ and His death on the cross is the one and only attraction to bring people to faith in Him.

Many may try to justify their attempts to attract the unchurched by noting that Paul became all things to all people so he might win some (1 Cor. 9:22).  The fallacy of this argument is that Paul did not attempt to “Christianize” worldly activities in order to draw the world into the church.  Rather, he simply adapted his message and approach to preaching the gospel so that he would not personally be an impediment to faith in Christ.

The power to draw people to Christ and to change their lives is vested by God in His word.  James said it is the implanted word that saves us (Jas. 1:21).  Paul said that from childhood Timothy had been taught the sacred writings “which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15).  We an only find God in His book, the Bible.  We can only find salvation in His book, the Bible.  Let’s stop looking for church growth in all the wrong places, and return to God’s word.

Every year on April 22nd environmentalist groups observe what they call “Earth Day.”  The purpose for this observance is to raise awareness on environmental issues such as, climate change, pollution of our air, water, and oceans, and the effects of mankind on the plants and animals of the earth.  Originally the brainchild of a U.S. Senator in reaction to a massive oil spill near Santa Barbara, CA in 1969, the first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970.  It has grown through the years to such an extent that it is now observed in nearly 200 nations worldwide.

One may justifiably argue in opposition to many of the positions taken by Earth Day proponents, whose premise seems to be that the world would be better off if there were no humans on it.  One must certainly question a movement that in its earliest stages warned of the coming ice age, but which now claims that the earth is getting dangerously warmer.  This is especially the case when we understand that both dangers are said to be the result of the activities of humans.  In the late 70s and 80s, we were told that unless we changed our ways the world would freeze over.  In the 90s and now in the 21st century, the story is we must change our ways so the world will not overheat.  Both positions cannot be true, especially if attributed to the same causes.

More important than these issues, however, is the misplaced emphasis of the Earth Day crowd.  All their efforts are pointed toward one goal: saving the earth.  Whether it is a cessation of oil exploration and oil-based industrial output, or giving up incandescent light bulbs, or driving electric cars, the end purpose is the same.  The earth must be preserved, as though it is our only hope.

Notably absent in most Earth Day rhetoric is any mention of God and His eternal purpose.  Herein lies the major problem with environmentalism.  It excludes God from any consideration.  The most radical environmentalists speak of “Mother Earth” in terms that deify the planet, apparently unaware that in so doing they profess themselves to be wise, but become fools (Rom. 1:22).  Whenever we replace God with something of our own devising, even the earth He created for us, we are guilty of an idolatry that God’s word calls foolish.

At the same time, thinking of the earth as our final destination is equally foolish.  The scriptures are unquestionably clear that this world is not destined to last forever, no matter how mankind treats it.  In 2 Pet. 3:10-13 Peter said that the entire physical realm will be destroyed by fire.  This will not be the result of a man-made nuclear holocaust, or an environmental doomsday, but will happen in accordance with God’s divine will.  All of the physical realm will cease to exist when God sends His Son, with the angels of heaven, in flaming fire, to deal out retribution to those who do not know God, and who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus (2 Th. 1:7, 8).  At that time, the saved will be ushered into a new and spiritual heaven and earth, the glorious heavenly city where God manifests His presence, and where His Son has prepared a place for the saved (Jn. 14:1-3).

These things being true, should we not care what happens to our land, air, and water?  No, not at all.  No one wants to live in a dirty environment.  We should be good stewards of the earth and all its resources, because these are the gift of our God for our benefit while we live on the earth.  God has made the earth with sufficient resources to sustain life on it until time ends (Gen. 8:22).  We should use all that He has given us in a responsible manner and not wastefully, but we should use it.  At the same time, we must not worship “the creature rather than the creator who is blessed forever.  Amen.”  (Rom. 1:25).

“I serve a risen Savior, He’s in the world today; I know that he is living, whatever men may say; I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer, and just the time I need Him, He’s always near.  He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!  He walks with me and talks with me along life’s narrow way.  He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!  You ask me how I know He lives; He lives within my heart.”

These are the words and refrain from the first stanza of one of our popular hymns.  It was written by Alfred H. Ackley in 1933, and it proclaims what sets our faith in Jesus apart from all other religious systems.  Whatever one may feel about the poetic license employed by Mr. Ackley, the fact that Christians serve a living Lord is entirely unprecedented among world religions.

Millions of Muslims make the annual pilgrimage to the birthplace of Mohammed, where his remains are enshrined.  There is no question that he is dead, and has been for nearly 1500 years.  His tomb is occupied, and everyone expects it to be so.

Millions of Mormons owe their faith to their “prophet” Joseph Smith.  He, also, is dead, and has been for over 150 years.  His grave is occupied with his earthly remains, as everyone would expect it to be.  So it is, as well, with all other religious leaders, whether western or eastern.

It is decidedly different for Christians, however.  the Lord predicted not only His death, but also the fact that after three days, He would rise again (Mt. 16:21).  That His disciples did not initially believe Him is immaterial to the issue.  When, after He had been crucified and buried, His tomb was found empty on the third day, their disbelief began to weaken.  When the Lord appeared to them on several occasions thereafter, their disbelief was gone forever.

It is here that the fact that the Lord was alive had its greatest impact.  For when the apostles stood up to preach on the first Pentecost after His resurrection, they proclaimed that He was alive.  In Acts 2:32 Peter said, “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.”  They had seen Him, touched Him, spoken with Him, and even eaten with Him for some forty days after His resurrection.  These men knew that Jesus was alive.

Beginning on that day, as recorded in the book of Acts, the message of the apostles, and all others who preached the gospel thereafter, was that Jesus was indeed alive.  As He had promised, He had risen from the dead, and had ascended back into heaven where He was exalted by God the Father to His right hand.  Paul said it best in Rom. 6:8, 9, where he said, “Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.”

Not only did Jesus rise from the dead after His crucifixion, but He continues to live forever more.  Because He lives, we who are Christians have hope for eternity, if we remain faithful to Him.  We do not serve a dead master.  There are no remains in His tomb.  There is no marker showing where His body lies, because it is not there.  We indeed serve a risen Master, and in the words of the song, we may rejoice because, “He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!”

Near the end of the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord made a statement that has far-reaching application to us.  He said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks, finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Mt. 7:7, 8)  In the context, the Lord was talking about the faithfulness of His Father in heaven, who unfailingly gives good gifts to His people in response to their prayers.  This statement reinforced  the Lord’s teaching about prayer in Mt. 6:5-15, included in which was His observation in v. 8, “for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”

Obviously this truth has great import with regard to our prayers to God.  Even though He knows our needs better than we do, He wants us to express those things to Him.  Then He will faithfully grant those things that are best for us, and which are consistent with His will.  We can take great comfort from this truth, and should avail ourselves of it every day.

There is another aspect to this principle, however, that is also important to us.  It is the idea that God rewards those who seek Him.  The writer of Hebrews said that we must believe this truth in order to be pleasing to God.  In Heb. 11:6 he said, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”

It only makes sense, of course, that God would reward those who seek Him.  After all, it is His eternal purpose that we should live with Him forever in the place that is prepared for us in heaven.  This is why He sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Our sins separate us from God (Isa. 59:2), but by the blood of Jesus Christ we are reconciled to Him through obedience to the gospel (Eph. 2:14-16).  If we seek God in accordance with His inspired word, He will reward us with salvation and eternal life.

The principle of seeking God was attested by Paul when he spoke to the Athenians on the Areopagus.  In Acts 17:23-28 he revealed to them the “unknown God” whom they were worshiping in ignorance.  Among the things he told them was that God made every nation of mankind to live on the earth so they would seek Him, although He is not far from each of one of us (v. 27).  In other words, God does not come looking for us to drag us, screaming and kicking in protest, into His kingdom.  He expects us to seek for Him, and He has left evidence of Himself all around us so that we will know He is there and will want to seek Him.

Creation tells us that God is there, but it is His word, the Bible, that tells us what He expects of us.  If we are serious about seeking God, this is where we must look, for no other source will guide us to Him.  James, the Lord’s half-brother, urged his readers to “in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls” (Jas. 1:21).  Therefore, if we wish to find God, we must look into His book and make it a living part of our lives.

Our Father in heaven wants to give us everything of eternal value so we will live well here on earth, and will live with Him in heaven in eternity.  But like any good parent, He requires us to put forth the effort to please Him in order to receive these blessings.  This is what seeking God is all about.  It is putting Him and His kingdom first in our lives (Mt. 6:33), and submitting ourselves in obedience to His will until He calls us home.  There is a wonderful reward awaiting each of one of us, if we will only ask, seek, and knock.

The story is told about a chicken and a pig walking down the street together.  As they walked along, they decided that they would have breakfast.  The pig asked, “What shall we have for breakfast?”  The chicken replied, “How about ham and eggs?”  The pig responded, “That won’t do, because for you ham and eggs requires nothing more than a contribution, but for me, it’s total commitment!”

This little story illustrates how some people view being a disciple of Christ.  They like the Lord and they like the idea of a reward in heaven.  They may even like the church, but when it comes down to the hard work of living for the Lord, they are happy to make a contribution, but they are not willing to make a total commitment.

The Lord spoke about this attitude in Lk. 14:26, 27.  In this place He said, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.  Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be my disciple.”

It is clear in this statement that the Lord’s perspective on discipleship is very different than some people teach.  We so often hear preachers speak about accepting Jesus as one’s personal savior, as though the Lord is meekly standing alongside the road, hoping that we’ll take Him in.  Such an idea is rebutted from the Lord’s own mouth.  It is we who must be accepted by Him in order to be His disciples, and He made no bones about the fact that He expects a lot of those who follow Him.

When the Lord spoke of hating one’s family members in order to be His disciple, He was using an idiom of that time to show what must have priority.  That which was of most importance was spoken of as being loved.  Everything else was spoken of as being hated.  Thus, the Lord intended that He, and the requirements that He established for being a disciple, must be the number one priority in our lives, even above our families.  If we are unwilling to make this commitment, then we cannot be His disciples.

This is what total commitment is all about.  It means that our Lord and Savior occupies first place in every aspect of our lives.  We work at our jobs with Jesus Christ as our first priority.  We go to school with Jesus Christ as our first priority.  We live with and interact with our neighbors and our community with Jesus Christ as our first priority.  In everything we do and say it is clear that being a faithful disciple of the Lord must be the most important part of our lives.

In the Sermon on the Mount the Lord spoke of His disciples as being salt and light in the world (Mt. 5:13, 14).  In order to have the influence that salt and light are intended to have we must be different from the world.  We cannot simply make a contribution toward being salt and light.  We either are salt and light, or we are not.  If we are totally committed to the Lord, we will be salt and light, and we will do the good works that will cause others to glorify our Father in heaven.

The Lord’s call for us to be totally committed to Him is not unreasonable, for He was totally committed to God’s eternal plan to save our souls.  Our Lord had to make a total commitment to go to the cross, to bear our sins, and to give His life as a ransom for our sins.  He made that total commitment for us while we were yet sinners.  Thus, it seems only reasonable that we should offer the same total commitment to Him as disciples.

Psalm 51 is David’s penitent prayer to God in the aftermath of his sin with Bathsheba.  In this psalm David pours out his heart to God in remorse over his sin and in his fervent desire that God would forgive him.  In v. 10 of this psalm David said, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”  These words summarize David’s realization that his only hope to be right with God was for his inner person to be changed.  They also reflect David’s awareness that it is by God’s power that this change takes place.

David understood that for his life to change his heart had to change.  This is why he asked God to create a clean heart within him.  The truth of David’s understanding is validated by the teaching of our Lord during His earthly ministry.  In Mt. 15, after His encounter with the scribes and Pharisees over the disciples not performing the ceremonial cleansing before eating, the Lord explained that the heart is the source of the evils that defile us.  In Mt. 15:19 the Lord said, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.”  He said in v. 20 that these are what defile a man, not eating with unwashed hands.

Since the heart is the source of evil thoughts and conduct, it behooves us to seek to have clean hearts, as David prayed in Psa. 51.  And, since it is God who creates clean hearts, it behooves us to seek His intervention in our lives to make this happen.  Having said this, however, we must understand that although God creates a clean heart in us, He does not do so by supernatural means, or without our participation in the process.

According to the scriptures spiritual cleansing occurs when we obey God’s will, first by being baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of our sins, and second, by repenting of our sins and asking His forgiveness each day once we have become a Christian.  The conversion of Saul of Tarsus, who became Paul the apostle, demonstrates the first cleansing.  In Acts 9:1-19 Luke tells us how Saul saw Jesus in a blinding light on the road to Damascus, and how he fasted and prayed for three days in the city waiting to hear what the Lord would do with him.  Some years later, as Paul the apostle, he told of his conversion in Acts 22, and quoted the message of the preacher Ananias, who said, “Now why do you delay?  Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.” (v. 16)  When Saul of Tarsus was baptized into Christ, he was cleansed of all his sins.

The second cleansing is for those who are Christians and we read about it in 1 Jn. 1:7.  John said, “But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”  In vs. 8-10 we learn that walking in the light involves confessing our sins so the Lord will forgive our sins.  This is how Christians continue to be cleansed by God.

At the heart of both of these cleansings, however, is devotion to God’s word, for without this, no one would ever have a clean heart.  In Rom. 12:2 Paul told the Christians in Rome to not be conformed to the world but to be transformed by the renewing of their minds.  In scripture, the mind and the heart are synonymous for the source of our thoughts and actions.  In order to renew our minds, then, we must focus on godly things.  In Phil. 4:8 Paul told us how to do so.  He said, “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”  If we dwell on God’s word, our minds will be renewed and we will not be conformed to the world.  If we dwell on God’s word, God will create in us a clean heart.

The essence of the Christian walk may be summarized in two verses of scripture.  In Rom. 12:1, 2 Paul said, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”  In this brief exhortation Paul gives both the positive and negative aspects of what it means to be a disciple of Christ.  He also tells us how to implement the positive aspect of discipleship in our lives.

The positive aspect of being a Christian is that we are to present our bodies as living sacrifices to God.  Paul says that this is our “spiritual service of worship.”  This means that it is a natural expression of one whose life has been hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).  The imagery of a living sacrifice draws from the Old Testament practice of worship, in which an animal was killed as a sacrifice to God, but with an important difference.  Christians die to sin, but are alive to God.  Our sacrifice is a living one, in which we show our devotion to God by our faithfulness to His word in our worship, and in everything we do each day.

Paul says that we implement this positive aspect of discipleship by being transformed by the renewing of our minds.  This transformation is effected by the word of God, which is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Heb. 4:12).  The word of God gives us the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15), and when we devote ourselves to its study, it makes us all that God wants us to be.

The negative aspect of discipleship, as stated by Paul in Rom. 12:2, is what we must not do if we wish to be pleasing and acceptable to our God.  He says that we are not to be conformed to the world.  Conformity means adherence to a recognized pattern, whether of speech, dress, conduct, or ideology.  In some respects conformity is a good thing, but in this instance it is not.  Christians are not to adhere to any of the things that characterize the world.  This means that we do not act like those who are in rebellion against God and His word.  In other words, we do not allow the world to pour us into its mold.

A mold is a form or pattern into which a liquid or some other malleable material is poured or packed in order to turn that material into the shape of the mold.  Every time material is poured into a mold it comes out looking exactly like that mold, and exactly like every other portion of material that has been poured into that mold.  If we are poured into the world’s mold, we will think, speak, dress, and act like the world instead of being living sacrifices to God.

Christians must not be poured into the world’s mold because the world is destined for condemnation.  If we allow ourselves to be shaped like the world, two things will happen.  First, we will not be living sacrifices to God, and will therefore not be pleasing to Him.  Second, we will suffer the same fate as the world at judgment.

The only way to be acceptable and pleasing to God is to be poured into the mold of His word, which transforms our minds, and by being a living and holy sacrifice to Him all the days of our lives.

Psalm 66 begins with these words: “Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious.  Say to God, ‘How awesome are Your works!  Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will give feigned obedience to You.  All the earth will worship You, and will sing praises to You; they will sing praises to Your name.'” (NASB, vs. 1-4).  This psalm is one of many in which worshipers are invited to offer praises and adoration to the God of heaven  It is also one of several in which the enemies of God also bow the knee to Him because of His awesome power and works.

An interesting aspect of this passage, as rendered in the New American Standard Bible, is in v. 3, where the psalmist says, “Your enemies will give feigned obedience to You.”  The NASB is the only English translation to use the phrase “feigned obedience” in this verse.  Most of the other translations speak of God’s enemies cringing before Him.  Admittedly, the idea of God’s enemies cringing is an appropriate and worthy image, given His majesty and power.  Nevertheless, the idea of them offering “feigned obedience” is textually supported and may be a more appropriate imagery, given the nature of human beings.

The intent of the original Hebrew language in this verse is to give forced praise, given from hearts that still resist God’s will.  In the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew text completed about 250 B.C., this part of v. 3 is rendered, “Your enemies will lie to You.”  This is because the Hebrew term in this verse most often means “to lie or to deceive.”  In this place it conveys the idea of forced or unwilling submission, and thus, feigned or hypocritical submission (Eddie Cloer, Truth for Today Commentary, Psalms 51-89, p. 259-260).

Feigned or hypocritical submission to God’s will was the primary flashpoint in the Lord’s conflicts with the scribes and Pharisees of the first century.  In Mt. 23 the Lord pronounced a series of woes on these leaders and called them hypocrites seven times in the course of twenty-one verses (13-33).  He did so because their outward piety was actually feigned obedience.  In Mt. 15:8, 9 as He dealt with their use of human traditions to set aside God’s law, the Lord quoted the prophet Isaiah and applied it to the scribes and Pharisees.  He said, “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me.  But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.”

The point, of course, is that the Lord expects genuine submission from His people.  Faith in Jesus Christ is not a matter of rote repetition of ritual.  It is a matter of a heart that sincerely seeks to do all that God’s word requires in every circumstance of life.  Paul spoke of this necessity in Col. 3:22-25.  He said, “Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.  Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of inheritance.  It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.  For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.”

It stands to reason that if we are supposed to give sincere service to our earthly masters, how much more so must we give sincere service and obedience to God our Father, and to our Lord Jesus Christ?  Feigned obedience is disobedience, and will result in eternal condemnation for all who practice it.

In Num. 20:12 God told Moses and Aaron that they would not be allowed to enter the Promised Land because they had failed to treat Him as holy when they brought forth water from the rock at Meribah.  Aaron died in the wilderness shortly thereafter, but Moses continued to lead Israel until they were encamped on the east side of the Jordan across from Jericho.  Before he died, Moses prepared a book in which he reminded Israel of all the things God had done for them to bring them to that place, and of everything He expected of them as His people.  We call this book Deuteronomy.

In the early chapters of this book, Moses recounted  the events that had taken place at Mt. Sinai, when God gave His law to Israel.  He reminded them of how frightened they had been when they heard God’s voice from the mountain and saw the smoke and fire that enveloped the mountain to signify His presence there.  At that time the people begged Moses to speak with God and then relay His message to them.  They promised that they would do whatever God told them to do.

In Deut. 5:28, 29 Moses related God’s response to this request.  He said, “The Lord heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me, and the Lord said to me, ‘I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken to you.  They have done well in all that they have spoken.  Oh that they had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me and keep all My commandments always, that it may be well with them and with their sons forever!'”

We see in v. 29 God’s greatest desire for Israel.  He wanted them to fear Him and to keep all His commandments so He could bless them abundantly in the land that He was giving them.  It is important for us to understand that to fear God in this context means to revere Him and to respect Him in all that they did.  They were already terrified of Him, as evidenced by their reaction to His presence on Sinai.  That kind of fear, however, has no lasting effect.  God wanted them to have a heart that always esteemed Him higher than anything or anyone else.  The proof of their esteem for God would be their obedience to His commands.

God’s statement in v. 29 underscores a fundamental truth about human beings.  Our hearts are what dictate our thoughts and actions.  Our Lord Jesus Christ taught this same truth in Mt. 15:18-20, where He said, “But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.  For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.  These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.”  If we have a heart that does not fear God, we will be disobedient to His will.  This was the basis of the Lord’s condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees in Mt. 15:8, 9.  He said they honored Him with their lips, but their hearts were far away from Him.

The fact that our Lord taught the same truth that His Father expressed to Moses and Israel tells us that God has not changed His desire for His people.  He still wishes for people who will have such a heart that they will fear Him and keep all His commandments.  Knowing this, and knowing that this is the basis upon which God showers His abundant blessings on us, should motivate us to cultivate our hearts so they are exactly what God wants them to be.  Of course we can only cultivate such a heart by devoting ourselves to God’s word and by surrendering our will to His.  Oh that each of us would have such a heart!

The phone call with the news was devastating.  A dear friend had suddenly died after returning home from mid-week Bible Study.  One moment he was conversing with his wife and going about his normal routine before retiring for the night, and the next, he was gone.  He was seventy-five years old and was generally in good health.  His mental faculties were still intact, and he was engaged in important work for the kingdom of Christ.  His passing leaves a void, not only in the hearts of his wife and family, but in the congregation for whom he preached, and in the lives of thousands of brethren who read and profited from his many books and articles.

The pain that we feel when a loved one passes from this life is deep and lingering.  We often console ourselves by saying that time heals all wounds, but in some respects we never completely recover from the passing of a close family member.  The scriptures teach us that a faithful brother or sister who passes from this life has gone on to a far better place.  We understand this with our heads, but our hearts still struggle to grasp this truth.  Such are the limitations of our finite nature.

The sudden passing of a loved one reminds us of the frailty of human life, and of the necessity to be ready for this inevitable event.  In Heb. 9:27, 28 the scripture says, “And in as much as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.”

Two important truths are stated in these short verses.  First, it is appointed for men to die once.  This is a truth that has marked human life since Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden.  Someone once said that as soon as one is born he begins to die, and this is essentially the truth.  Every person who is born will die.  The only exception to this rule is those who are alive when the Lord returns (cf. 1 Th. 4:13-18).

The second important truth from Heb. 9:27, 28 is that judgment awaits all of us when we die.  This is a truth that permeates the entire New Testament.  When the Lord comes again, He will do so for judgment (cf. 2 Th. 1:5-8).  The imagery of the Lord and His angels dealing out retribution to those who do not know God, and to those who do not obey the gospel, clearly warns us that we must be ready to face Him when this occurs.

The time for preparation, however, is limited to the time we are alive on the earth.  This makes sense, of course.  We understand this in every aspect of life.  One cannot prepare for a test at school after the test papers have been distributed by the teacher.  One cannot prepare for an inspection or audit after the inspector arrives.  Neither can one prepare to face the Lord in judgment once he has passed from this life.  The story of the rich man and Lazarus (Lk. 16:19-31) makes this clear.

Since we know that these two inevitable events lie somewhere in our future we must make the best use of each day to be prepared for them.  The only way to adequately prepare for death and judgment is to be right with God before we get there.  The gospel of Jesus Christ requires us to believe in Him (Jn. 8:24), to turn away from our sins (Lk. 13:3), to confess our faith in Him (Mt. 10:32, 33), and to be baptized in order to have our sins forgiven (Mk. 16:16; Acts 2:38).  It also requires us to live faithfully until we die (Rev. 2:10).  There is urgency in the call of the gospel, however, because our lives are like a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes (Jas. 4:14).

One day each of us will pass away.  One moment we will be there, alive and well, and the next moment we will be gone.  Are you ready?