Theme of the year 2023: “ Accomplishing our God-given purpose and preparing to be successfully accountable to God.”
Now that we have, with full evidence, reached the end of days, it becomes imperative that we all think about the manner in which we manage our lives and time in hand.
Though there are still many people who don’t believe that we have reached the end times,It has come to my attention that many Christians are solely observers and analysts of what’s going on around them. In other words, they have solely dedicated themselves to act as ‘watchers’ instead of ‘acting’ in these end times.It’s okay to watch and to be on the lookout for every end times signs and I thank God for all the ‘watchmen and watchwomen’ giving us warnings on the internet regarding the troubling signs of the end times. However, the end time signs should not become an excuse to cancel our God given purpose and to adopt inaction until Jesus returns.
In the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25: 1-13, Jesus said:
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
“Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
“‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
In the above mentioned story, all the virgins were supposed to play their roles as they were heading to the wedding. They were all supposed to prepare themselves by buying oil with their lamps.
The wedding is symbolic of the event where we will meet the Lord and the ten virgins represent the Christians. However, as the story depicts, some Christians are actively doing what they are supposed to do while others are not doing what they are supposed to do.
The foolish virgins were supposed to be actively finding oil before going to the wedding but instead, they went haphazardly to the wedding.As you can see in the story, ‘Being a virgin’ was not a good reason to be allowed in the wedding…
Many Christians live haphazardly, without a sense of organization on what they are supposed to do and they just hope to be received in the Heavens on the Last Day.
It saddens me to say that, though there will be many people entering Heaven on Judgment Day, there will also be many people who will miss Heaven (like the foolish virgins) because they will be caught lacking on what they were supposed to do all their lives…
With all the signs we are experiencing, we have to be aware that the Day of Judgment is coming and when that Day comes, we will account to God on what we did and on what we were supposed to do with our lives.
You see my friend, many things are being said about Judgment Day. However there are two key passages I would like you to read and memorize:
Matthew 7:21-23:
““Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
As mentioned above, on the Last Day, there will be many people who will say to God that they had prophesied, performed miracles and driven out demons in Jesus Name but Jesus will deny knowing them.
Let me explain Matthew 7:21-23: “ you see my friend, for many years, various theologians had concluded that the people to whom Jesus spoke in Matthew 7:21-23 were never Christians, while it is not the case. Jesus denies knowing them because He is Sovereign and also free to decide whom he knows and whom He does not know. In reality, it is possible for a Christian to be gifted with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and at the same time commit sin and various evil acts. It is possible to be a pastor, evangelist, preacher, prophet, or an engaged church member and at the same time live a life characterized by evil deeds. On the Last Day, evil deeds will cancel out entrance to the Kingdom for many people and God will demand an account for our lives,as it is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”
So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.
(Romans 12:10-12)
As humans, we are not allowed to pass Judgments on others and, except for the tribes of Israel (ref. Luke 22:28-30), we shall all be judged by God. And as the Apostle Paul mentioned , we will give an account of our lives to God.
Here is another passage from Paul taken from Ephesians 5:8-16
“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:
“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Notice that the Apostle Paul urges us to find out what pleases the Lord in our lives (that is a reference to our God-given purpose), then he exhorts the sleeper to wake up (that is a reference to the people who absent from their God-given purpose) and then he tells us to make the most of every opportunity because the days are evil (the evil days are a reference to the current times we are experiencing). We all have to make the most of the time that God has given us so that we may have a good report to give Him on Judgment Day.
I will leave you with two points to meditate:
First, certain people won’t make it to Heaven because of their evil deeds (ref. Matthew 7:21-23).
Secondly, in 2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Paul writes:
“ So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad”.
We will appear in front of the Judgment seat of Christ where we will receive rewards in eternity for the things done in the body. It means that the manner in which you live here on Earth will determine the quality of your life in Eternity. Therefore, we cannot underestimate our current times and remain idle. Since we have reached the end times, let us all make the most of every day until the near return of Our Lord Jesus Christ.