“Our Daily Bread”     http://odb.org/

The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie    http://www.harvest.org/devotional

“Homily Grits Devotional”   http://www.homilygrits.com/

John 1:12-13…  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  (NKJV)

Can you imagine believing your whole life that you were a Christian, only to find out when it was too late (after you had died in your sins…John 8:24), that you were being turned away from the gates of heaven by the Lord, when He tells you…‘I never knew you’…and you are banished for an eternity in the “lake of fire” (hell) spoken about in…Revelation 20:11-14…   (Here is the link for this judgment scripture for unbelievers who die without God’s gift of grace… http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=rev20%3A12-14&version=NKJV;KJV )

I post the following scripture all the time, because God can use His living and powerful Word (Hebrews 4:12-13) to open the eyes of unbelievers to the truth found in the Bible…

Matthew 7:21-23… “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. ²² Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Yourname, and done many wonders in Your name?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”  (NKJV)

Every time I see this scripture, the Holy Spirit urges me to share this truth about God’s impending wrath, to those who don’t know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior…  I saw this eye opening scripture again the other day, in a 4 minute video, done by pastor David Platt…  He explains what it really means to become a follower (disciple) of Jesus Christ…  I urge every reader to watch this short video…  It will hopefully get you to thinking about your eternal destiny…is it heaven or hell ??    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wr-RvWSH9ng

Today, my heart grieves for all people who use the name of Christ by calling themselves Christians, when in God’s eyes they are not… The opening scripture is clear, that we don’t become a Christian because our parents called themselves Christians…“who were born, not of blood”…   We don’t become Christians because of mans will…“nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man”…  We become Christians because God wills it (but of God)… ‘He gave the right to become children of God’, by giving us His grace and mercy, through our saving faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ…

Ephesians 2:8-9… For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast.  (NKJV)

You cannot earn your way into heaven by all the good works you do in the name of the Lord…  No amount of church attendance…or charitable giving…or the good works done to help those in need…will qualify you as righteous in God’s eyes…   Re-read…Mathew 7:21-23…above, where Jesus warns us about this false works based salvation…

The apostle Paul pens this, in…Romans 3:23… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  (NKJV)   Paul also pens the fact that “there is none righteous, no, not one”, in…Romans 3:9-20…  This is why God had to send His only Son Jesus Christ…fully human, and yet fully God…   Christ became the sacrificial lamb of God (John 1:29), whose blood was shed to cleanse sinners who come to Christ, because they finally understand that they can in no way save themselves from eternal damnation…  This understanding, which changes our will to God’s will, is only accomplished by God first drawing us in…John 6:44…

God uses His Word, the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ which is shared by believers, to plant the seed toward salvation that only God can bring to fruition in unbelievers, by His grace through their saving faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ…

Jesus gives us the only way into heaven, when He teaches us this, in…  John 14:6… Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (NKJV)   The “way” is through understanding and obedience to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… (See link at the bottom for more on God’s grace) The “truth”is found in the Word of God, and it will set the sinner free from Satan’s chains of bondage to sin…John 8:32… “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (NKJV)   And the “life”that Jesus speaks about, is eternal life in heaven with His Father…

Heavenly Father, I pray that Your living and powerful Word would cut right to the very core of the soul of those who are falsely believing that they are already Christians in Your eyes, when they are not…  I pray Father that You would draw these unbelieving sinners to Yourself…and that their eyes and ears would be opened by You, to understanding and obeying the gospel of Your Son Jesus Christ…  I pray for Your grace and Your mercy for all of those in need, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…

Blessings in Christ,  bruce r mills

P.S. Here is a link for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, after first being drawn in by God…John 6:44…   https://godsmanforever.wordpress.com/2013/07/11/gods-group-thoughts-for-7112013-the-truth-about-sin/