LESSONS from the days of Noah and Lot - Luke 17:26-30 (2)

‘’And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son of Man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.’’ (Luke 17:26-27)

‘’ likewise also in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.’’ (Luke 17:28-30).

Lesson 2   -   Rejecting the Ark of Salvation

God always warns men about an impending judgment and destruction for sin. Are we listening and heeding His calls to us for the salvation of our souls? He sent Prophet Jonah to warn the inhabitants of the city of Nineveh about the need to repent from their wicked ways or else they would perish in their sins. 

Repent or you perish in your sins is one of the messages of the Gospel (Luke 13:3). God warns men to repent because He is a merciful God who is not willing that men perish but that they come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). He is merciful and more willing to exercise mercy than judgment (James 2:13).

In the days of Noah, God created an Ark for the salvation of men based on repentance. Unfortunately, only 8 persons entered into the Ark and were saved from destruction while the unbelieving multitudes that refused to repent perished in the 40 day floods due to their disobedience and unbelief in God’s Word.

The Ark of salvation that God has created to rescue men from eternal death in this Last Days is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus is the sacrifice for the sins of men. He is the one who died at Calvary, was buried but rose again from the dead and is living forever more (Revelations 1:8). Jesus’ resurrection conquered death and sin and is the assurance of eternal life to anyone who believes in Him.

As God warned in Noah’s days, He is warning and calling for all men to repent and be converted in this Last Day. He has set aside a day to judge this present world on account of sin and that day is the Day of Judgment also called the Day of Wrath or Day of Reckoning (Acts 17:30-31). 

Man born in sin is estranged from God and doomed to eternal separation if he dies in sin. He must be reconciled with God first before he can spend his eternity with God. The reconciliation is what salvation is all about i.e. sin and death must be conquered in the lives of men which Jesus Christ did for all men by His resurrection from the dead.

If men reject the salvation which God offers the world through Jesus Christ, there are several reasons as there were in the days of Noah and Lot. In the days of Noah and Lot, many doubted God’s calls for repentance and salvation. Therefore, one of the reasons is unbelief in God and what He says (His Word).

Unbelief was one major reason why the multitudes perished in the days of Noah and Lot. Many who perished in the days of Noah doubted the reality of the flood just as some today are denying the reality of Hellfire as an eternal place of punishment and torment for lost souls. Some even deny that God and Heaven are real.

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 1:18-20 that the preaching of the Cross of Christ is foolishness to those that are perishing but to those that are saved, the message of the Cross is the power of God unto salvation.

The unbelief of men in the Word of God does not invalidate God and His Word (Romans 3:3-4). Salvation is personal and an individual decision as every man will render a personal account of his life before God on the Day of Judgment.

There are many false doctrines that are circulating, blinding the eyes of men from seeing the truth. ‘Rather than diligently seek for the truth that sets free, many are seeking and following after popular opinions instead of convictions and are being led astray by false doctrines.’’ (Warren Wiersbe).

The Bible writes in 1Timothy 4:1 that in the Last Days, many shall fall victim to seducing doctrines of demons that leads astray. Men are falling for other ‘gospels’ or ‘teachings’ that are contrary to the teachings of the Gospel of Christ.

Some deny the death, burial and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some deny that Jesus is the Son of God. Some do not accept that Jesus is God who came in the flesh. Some deny the existence of the Trinity. Some do not accept the reality of the Holy Spirit as one of the Trinity.  Some do not believe the virgin birth and the deity of Christ.

Some believe in the false doctrine of eternal security or ‘Once saved, forever saved’ and the doctrine of good works which is religion without salvation. Some do not believe the reality of Judgment saying that because God is Love, He cannot cast unrepentant sinners who died in sin into Hell. They seem to forget that the God of love and mercy is also the God of Judgment (Isaiah 30:18)

Some deny the existence of a Heaven and a Hell. Some believe in a place called Purgatory where they say they would go after physical death to be cleansed of their sins and from there would be transported to Heaven. Some do not accept that Jesus is the Saviour of the world and that He died for the sins of all men. Some do not believe that the Blood of Jesus cleanses one from sin.

False and strange teachings of demons are one reason why many doubt the Gospel of Christ and are rejecting the Jesus Ark of salvation as in the days of Noah and Lot. These false doctrines are a leaven that corrupts the whole in the lives of those who believe them. False doctrines are a reason why those who subscribe to them will not be allowed into the Ark unless the leaven is purged out of them.

Admission into the Ark of Salvation is by faith in Christ. To inherit eternal life in Christ which is the only solution to eternal death, one must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and make Him his Lord and Saviour.

One must confess Jesus with his mouth and believe in his heart that He was raised from the dead and is alive forever more. One must surrender his heart and life to Jesus Christ and allow Jesus to be the director and controller of his life going forward (Romans 10:9-10) (Revelations 3:20).

Ayodele Adegbulugbe
www.xtianrace.blogspot.com.ng.
Lagos Nigeria
Phone:+2348035978352

Lessons to learn from the lives of Zecharias and Elizabeth (Luke Ch.1)

Lessons to learn from the lives of Zecharias and Elizabeth (Luke Ch.1)

Zecharias and Elizabeth were the parents of John the Baptist

Luke 1:6 says ‘’ And they were both righteous before God walking in all the commandments and the ordinances of the Lord blameless’’

Lessons to learn from this godly Jewish priest and his wife are

1)    They took God and His Word seriously seeking to obey it and were faithful in obedience to God. They had a special prayer request just as many of us have. For Zecharias and his wife, theirs was a lack of children but the long delay in having a child did not separate them from their love for God and His Word. Despite this adversity that lasted for many years, they never wavered in their worship and service for God.

Do we allow adversities to discourage us from being faithful to God? Have we turned back from following the Lord because we have seemingly insurmountable challenges?

We should not allow anything to separate us from the love of Christ (Romans 8:35-39). God makes all things beautiful at His own time (Ecclesiastes 3:11) and delay is not denial. With God, nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37).

2)    When an Angel of the Lord appeared to Zecharias to tell him that his prayers had been answered and assuring him that a son would be born, he doubted the Angel and asked for a sign. The Angel gave him a sign – dumbness until the child was born (Luke 1:18-20).

Do we doubt God and His Word? Do we doubt his promises? Doubting God and His Word has always been the problem of man which often has caused ruin to him. The first couple, Adam & Eve doubted God’s warning not to touch the forbidden fruit. Their disobedience plunged the human race into sin and death – physical, spiritual and eternal death.

In the Noah era in Genesis Chapter 6, the majority who doubted God’s call to repentance were destroyed in the flood with the exception of eight persons who entered into the Ark. Likewise the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah in Genesis 19, the majority who disbelieved God’s Word perished except three persons who believed and were saved.

We should endeavor to accept God’s Word as it is, believe it as it is and continually ask for the grace and the power to walk by it.

3)    As husband and wife, they were united to do God’s will

When their baby was born, their relations pressurized them to name the baby in accordance with family tradition which they resisted and insisted on giving the name that was received from the Angel. For this, God honored them.

As husbands and wives, are we united in doing God’s will? Or do we go separate ways and directions when it comes to honouring God and His Word?

We should be united in the spirit of one accord and make a decisive stand for God and His Word in our marriages and the Lord would surely honor us for our stand. God says in 1 Samuel 2:30 that He will honor those who honor Him and will despise those who despise Him and His Word.

Ayodele John Adegbulugbe
www.xtianrace.blogspot.com
www.maritalsuccessresource.simplesite.com

Why Are You Hesitant to Return to God? Learn From Rahab

Why Are You Hesitating to Return to God? Learn from Rahab

The story of Rahab is found in the book of Joshua 2:1-21. She was one of the four women mentioned in the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ. The other three were Bathsheba, Tamar and Ruth. Rahab married Salmon and Boaz was born. Boaz married Ruth and their great-grandson was King David from whose line Jesus came.

Before Rahab became an Israelite, she was a citizen of Jericho where she lived as a pagan and prostitute. Thus her status in Jericho made her a most unlikely candidate for the blessings of God. Further, the city of Jericho was doomed, having been marked for destruction. But she worked her way into the blessings of God.

When the conquest of Jericho was about to commence, spies were sent ahead to view the land. Rahab accommodated and protected the spies and helped them to escape when the King of Jericho sent men to arrest them. She made an agreement with the spies that rescued her and her entire family from the destruction of the city of Jericho.

The lessons to learn from this remarkable woman are as follows:

1)      Her faith: Her recognition of the mighty acts of Jehovah God in the past formed the basis of her faith in Him. She was aware of how God dried up the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross over on dry ground. She was also aware of how God empowered the Israelites to utterly destroy the strongest Amorite Kings, Og and Bashan and their kingdoms. Obviously she was aware of the ten plagues in Egypt which brought that world power to its knees and the total destruction of the Egyptian armies in the Red Sea.

By her knowledge of the past events, she acknowledged the power of the Mighty God of Israel over all the nations on earth. She stated to the spies that ‘the Lord your God is God in Heaven above and in earth beneath’.

2)      Her insight: Based on her knowledge of the mighty acts of the God of Israel and His wonders, she was truthful and intelligent to foresee the total conquest of, and destruction of the nations of Canaan including the city of Jericho. She was sure that any resistance from Jericho against the impending invasion would be useless.

3)      Her ability to take risks: Having foreseen how events would turn out in Canaan, she planned for the escape of herself and family from the impending conquest and destruction. She obeyed her own part of the agreement to the letter. She could have chosen to remain loyal to the King of Jericho by giving up the spies. But she did not and rather made a clear decision not to sink with the doomed city. She took the risk to work her escape from the destruction and by that effort; she worked her way into the blessings of God and became a member of the Israelite nation.

How does the Rahab story apply to you?

1)      She made a clear decision to turn her life over to the God of Israel. She chose to be saved rather than to be destroyed along with the multitudes in Jericho. Out of the many families in Jericho, only her family was saved. Matthew 7:13-14 says that few shall be saved and many will be lost and we see this occur in Jericho. It also occurred in Sodom and Gomorrah where only 3 persons escaped the destruction of the two cities. Also only 2 persons of the generation of 600,000 men who started the Exodus actually entered into the Promised Land. The others perished on the way in the wilderness.

Rahab escaped the destruction because she did not allow any traditional loyalties to Jericho to hinder her from submitting to the God of Israel. Do you allow any traditional loyalty to your environment or any religion; parents, relations, friends or peers to hinder you from turning to the God of Israel for salvation?  You must take a decision not to follow the ways of the multitudes in the world (Exodus 23:2). You must decide not to perish with the perishing multitude. Determine to be among the few who will make it to heaven (Luke 13:24) and take the right steps like Rahab.

2)      There is a direct link between knowledge, faith, action and commitment. Rahab’s knowledge of the power of the God of Israel formed the basis of her faith to trust in Him for her future. Based on her faith, she took action and committed herself to that action without looking back.

You know the power of the God of Israel; what He has done; what He is doing and what He can do based on His promises. You are aware from the Scriptures that God destroyed the first world because of sin; He destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah for their sinfulness, and has promised to destroy this present doomed world at a future date but is warning you to flee for your life now by accepting his free gift of salvation that will secure your soul from damnation (2 Corinthians 6:2).

You know that death and judgment are certain (Hebrews 9:27) (2 Corinthians 5:10). You know that the world and its systems rooted in darkness and iniquity will pass away (1 John 2:15-17). You are aware of the reality of heaven and hell. You know that your life on earth is very short (Job 14:1). You know that there is an urgent need to accept Jesus Christ now as Lord and Saviour, before it becomes too late to do so (2 Corinthians 6:2).

Then, unlike Rahab why are you still hesitating to take the right decision? Why are you remaining a prospective victim of Hell despite the enormous information starring you in the face warning you to flee for your life? (Matthew 24) (2 Timothy 3:1-5).

May be you have accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour but like Lot’s wife, you have looked back into the world. Lot’s wife was already out of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah before she looked back into the world and was destroyed.  You laid your hands on the plough but have you looked back into the world from which you were called out of? (Luke 9:62) (1 Corinthians 1:1-3). James 4:4 says that whoever is a friend of the world is an enemy of God. If you are an enemy of God, how can you make it to Heaven? Hell would be your home.

Hebrews 10: 26-31 warns that it will be much worse for anyone who tramples upon the Blood of the Covenant by which he was saved. You ought to repent and take a firm decision to follow the Lord to the end (Ruth 1:16). Without a solid commitment and loyalty to the Lord, no one will make it to Heaven!

You have a role to play in the salvation of your soul, go and play your part...

Knowledge of what God can do is not enough. Faith to take the risk, action and commitment are also required. Work your way into God's Kingdom by accepting Jesus as Lord and Personal Saviour now and stay committed to your decision to the end.

Ayodele Adegbulugbe

www.xtianrace.blogspot.com

www.relationship4growth.blogspot.com

Phone: +2348035978352

Email: ayodeleade2002@yahoo.com

Christian titles by the author:

Riches: A Blessing or a Snare?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GFRAN9K

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00GFRAN9K

Solutions to Sexual Abuses in Marriage

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GS4SVZI

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00GS4SVZI