Posts Tagged ‘heaven’

There is a friend who used to call me “the Church Lady.”  It was because I was always at church. If I wasn’t at Sunday services I was at a committee meeting or a homeless shelter helping to serve a meal, or taking my children to choir practice. My life revolved around whatever was happening in that congregation.

One Sunday morning a visiting Pastor taught that everyone is a sinner, that there is no one righteous. I left the building suggesting to God that if that man was right, He would have to show me.

Over the next few weeks that is what the Lord did. He pointed out my foul language, my selfishness, greed, and pride (which was the worst of all of them).

What happened next was a human attempt to save myself from Hell.. I went to work. I upped my charity and started doing anything in the church I was asked to do; teach Sunday School, run the VBS program, sit on another committee.

Looking back I can see that I was trying to get my good works to outweigh the bad.

Slowly, but surely, the Lord showed me that more works was not what He was looking for. Because that church did not teach the truth about salvation, I did not learn that God had provided a way out of my fear of His judgment on my sin. God kept showing me the sin but now He was giving me His solution. (I still thank God for Christian radio!)

Learning that I was a sinner and “the wages of sin is death,” I understood that I was destined for Hell. But, God showed me that the “free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

In my childhood I heard that “Jesus died for our sins.” I never understood that His death was to substitute for mine if I put my faith and trust in Him. (Romans 10:9, 13)

The way I was taught back then, was that salvation was a done deal for anyone who didn’t get pregnant outside of marriage, didn’t take the Lord’s Name in vain, and who went to church – at least at Christmas and Easter.

God steered me to a Bible believing preacher and gave me a desire to study the Bible for myself (both were gifts from Him). He has shown me that faith and faithfulness are what He cares about.  This has always been true.  As far back as Abraham we’re taught  “For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.’” (Romans 4:3).

In our current set of circumstances (COVID 19) and Easter coming this week, I have been depending on that faith to remain peaceful and even joyful in these circumstances. Reminded that the suffering of Christ on the Cross is greater than any suffering I will ever face, it is obvious that He does know and understand our pain, loss, and fear of death…because He was a man and suffered as we suffer.

The Lord took me from Church Lady to faithful believer. He has repeatedly shown that He knows our sorrows and our fears and is worthy of glory and honor and praise.

As He took the punishment for our sins in His death, He gives us freedom and peace in His Resurrection.  Church ladies do not receive these benefits. He is looking to give the gift of faith to grow His Kingdom of faithful believers.

Have you examined your own heart lately? Church lady or faithful believer?

 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.             1 John 1:6-10