A major deception of Satan

LAST week, my article in this column was titled “God did not freeze time.” Let’s thank our Lord God that life is not frozen in time. That sense of urgency to strengthen our spiritual relationship with our Lord God, our Creator and our Savior, as well as the urgency to share the gospel with others would not be appreciated and would be taken lightly if life were frozen in time. Yes, we will be lured to complacency and we will procrastinate our time and effort to strengthen our spiritual relationship with our Lord as well as our sharing the gospel with others.

Many of us are so busy nowadays that admittedly, we do not have the time to examine our spiritual life. Many of us pour out our talents, our energy, apnd our time to worldly matters as if material wealth is all that counts. Many of us think and act as if there is no eternal glory and eternal damnation. This is a major deception of Satan. Unfortunately, many of us are easy prey for Satan’s deception.

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Let me share with you a message received by e-mail from a Bible-believing Christian who is reminding us to spend some time to strengthen our spiritual relationship with our Lord God, our Creator and our Savior. The message is written in a very light and practical manner. Here goes:

“Funny how a P100 ‘looks’ so big when you take it to church, but so small when you take it to the mall.

“Funny how long it takes to serve God for an hour, but how quickly a team plays 60 minutes of basketball.

“Funny how long a couple of hours spent at church are, but how short they are when watching a movie.

“Funny how we can’t think of anything to say when we pray, but don’t have difficulty thinking of things to talk about to a friend.

“Funny how we get thrilled when a baseball game goes into extra innings, but we complain when a sermon is longer than the regular time.

“Funny how hard it is to read a chapter in the Bible, but how easy it is to read 100 pages of bestselling novel.

“Funny how people want to get a front seat at any game or concert, but scramble to get a back seat at church services.

“Funny how we need 2 or 3 weeks advance notice to fit a church event into our schedule, but can adjust our schedule for other events at the last moment.

“Funny how hard it is for people to learn a simple gospel well enough to tell others, but how simple it is for the same people to understand and repeat gossip.

“Funny how we believe what the newspaper says, but question what the Bible says.

“Funny how everyone wants to go to heaven provided they do not have to believe, or to think, or to say, or do anything.

“Funny how you can send a thousand ‘jokes’ through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. “FUNNY, ISN’T IT? “Are you laughing? “Are you thinking? “Spread the Word and give thanks to the Lord for He is good!”

The above message is a gentle reminder to all of us that we must be serious in matters relating to our spiritual relationship with our Lord. This opportunity to seriously attend to our spiritual life as well as to share the gospel with others ends when we breath our last. Also, every day, our friends, relatives, and officemates go one by one to the “other” world. We are shocked. And soon, it will be our turn too. We are all living on borrowed time. Nobody here in this world can reverse this cycle of life and death. Only God can.

One may ask, what is the gospel that has to be shared with others? Where is the gospel found in the Bible? The gospel is found in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 of the Bible which says “…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, King James Version)

There is only one who can save us from our sins and eternal damnation. His name is Jesus. Acts 4:12 says: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name (Jesus Christ) under heaven given to man by which we must be saved.”

Again, in Acts 16:31, the Bible says: “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” The word “believe” simply means to have complete trust or to have complete faith in Jesus Christ. It is mentioned more than 150 times in the New Testament that we must believe in Jesus Christ to receive eternal life.

Finally, the Bible says in clear terms that “The Lord is my salvation” (Psalm 27:1). Let us all pray (because death comes anytime) this short prayer which we can also lead others to pray after sharing the gospel with them: “At this time, I would like to confess my sins of body, mind and heart. Forgive me, Lord. I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. But I believe with all my heart that Jesus Christ, your Son, died, was buried and rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures to pay the full price for my sins. Cleanse me from all my sins. I surrender my life to you right now, and I receive Christ Jesus Your Son as my Savior and Lord. Help me to live this newly-committed life for your glory by your Holy Spirit. Teach me to trust you each day and to know Your Holy Word, the Bible. Thank you that I am now a child of God and am now assured of eternal life that is in Christ Jesus. Thank you, Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

This column continues to give out copies of the Holy Bible for free to those who cannot afford to buy their own copies. If interested, please send your letter-request to Ms. Nelly Favis Villafuerte, 5233 LRV Building, Fahrenheit St., Palanan, Makati City. Kindly mention if it is the Tagalog, English, Cebuano, or Ilocano Bible that is preferred.

Be joyful and forgiving! (Comments may be sent to Ms. Villafuerte’s email: villafuerte_nelly@yahoo.com)

Spread the Word and give thanks to the Lord for He is good!