“No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” – Luke 13:3

Well, there’s a hard word from Jesus! He isn’t pulling any punches or avoiding giving offense. At the risk of hurting your feelings, “all” means “all”. You’re included. So is everyone you know and love. Every person is born a sinner and automatically bound for eternal damnation and suffering in hell. That’s why we MUST repent. This isn’t a happy, gentle, or tender message. It certainly isn’t popular in 2024. Nonetheless, it was the message of Jesus and it remains true and relevant today, even if it hurts your feelings.

Unless you repent…. That word describes a radical mindshift that completely rejects the selfish, sinful choices of your past, asks forgiveness, and commits to live differently in Christ. This isn’t about a shallow apology that means nothing to you. This isn’t about defending, excusing, or explaining away your sinful past. This is about recognizing your sinful rebellion against the Most Holy, Almighty God, being truly sorrowful for it, begging God’s forgiveness for it, and believing that Jesus died and rose from death to pay the penalty for it.

When you repent and trust in Lord Jesus, you are saved! Eternal life is yours and you will not perish in eternal damnation. If you don’t repent, you will end up where you’re already headed. If you need to repent today, repent! Don’t avoid, explain, excuse, minimize, or ignore. #FollowJesus

“Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.” – Luke 12:37

Jesus is emphatic that He’s going to return and that His followers (the servants in this parable) must be ready! We don’t know when He’ll return – it could be today or thousands of years from now. When Jesus returns, He will hold His followers accountable. Not just for showing up weekly and comfortably identifying as Christian. He will hold each of us accountable for having served faithfully in His long absence and being ready for His return.

How can you stay awake, alert, and prepared to receive His reward? Be consistent in worship. Be diligent in Bible study and meditation. Be constant in prayer. Be actively, sacrificially serving His Kingdom. Be faithful in sharing the good news of Jesus with others. The work He’s given you to do in His absence is to make disciples by sharing the Gospel with unbelievers, welcoming new believers into baptism, and guiding believers to spiritual maturity. This is the work Jesus will evaluate upon His return. What will He say about your work?

Are you awake or asleep? Are you busy or on a long-term coffee break? Jesus is clear that everyone who serves diligently and faithfully will enjoy extraordinary blessings. Does the idea of having Jesus invite you to sit back and relax while He takes care of you sound amazing? Then serve Him faithfully, diligently, and joyfully. Devote your life to Jesus above and beyond all other priorities. Serve Jesus out of love for what He’s done for you and in the confident expectation of eternal blessings. #FollowJesus

“And you said, ‘Behold, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man still live. Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us. If we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, we shall die.’” – Deuteronomy 5:24-25

God blessed Israel by bringing them into His presence. He invited all His people to Mt. Sinai to hear Him speak the Ten Commandments. Afterward, they went to Moses to explain that while they appreciated the experience they never, ever wanted it to happen again! Thanks but no thanks, they said. They were terrified and overwhelmed by God’s presence and begged to keep their distance from Him at all times. What a tragedy!!!

Their request set the course for the rest of their history throughout the Old Testament. From then on, God increased His separation from them. Even when His presence dwelt in the middle of their camp, they were shielded from it by heavy curtains. Only their one designated representative would approach God or hear from Him. That’s how they wanted it because they feared to be too close to God’s presence. They asked for separation from Him and they got what they asked for. It’s hard to imagine how different their history would be or the enormous blessings they missed out on because they feared and avoided God’s presence!

Things are different now. When Jesus died on the cross, the curtain inside the temple was torn from top to bottom. There no longer needs to be that separation because Christ lives within His people. We don’t have to be like the people of Israel. Nonetheless, we often still avoid God’s presence. We still avoid rather than seek the experience of His overwhelming, manifest presence. Our busyness, our distraction, and our addiction to entertainment and trivialities serve to keep us far from God’s presence.

Stop doing that! If Jesus is your Savior, then seek to draw ever nearer to God. Ask Him to reveal His presence to you. As you meditate on His Word and pray each day, take time to focus on His presence. Claim the promise of Jesus that He is always with you. Know that God’s Spirit lives within you. Listen for His voice. Claim the promise of the torn curtain – there is now no separation! Draw near to God and trust that He will draw near to you. #FollowJesus

“And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, ‘Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’” – Luke 10:25

This is the question at the heart of every human religion. What must we DO to please God (or the gods), to be forgiven for whatever we’ve done wrong, and to enter into eternal life or avoid eternal punishment? Every human religion offers a different answer about what we should DO. Perhaps there are five pillars to try and get on God’s good side. Perhaps hard work is necessary. Perhaps courage in battle. Perhaps living a virtuous life. Perhaps emptying one’s mind or heart or life of attachments.

Jesus is emphatic that the question itself is wrong! Salvation isn’t about what we do because we, who are imperfect, can never do enough to enter the perfection of God’s heaven. We can’t DO anything to earn or inherit eternal life! Jesus DID everything necessary when He sacrificed His perfect life on the cross, died, and rose from the dead. All that’s required for your salvation and eternal life is to BELIEVE. Believe in the risen Lord Jesus and repent of your sins.

Humans naturally like to try and DO things to save ourselves. We like to be in control. We don’t like to be in debt to anyone. We want to be masters of our own fate. We can’t be! Any religion that says otherwise is a false one created by humans in our image. Reject the demand to DO and embrace the invitation of Jesus to BELIEVE. Love God. Love neighbor. Believe in Jesus. #FollowJesus

“The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.” – Luke 10:16

We are messengers. King Jesus has appointed each of His followers to be messengers. That means, we have a simple task – to deliver the good news of His life, death, and resurrection, calling people to repent of their sins and submit to Him in faith. Not everyone will appreciate or accept that message, but that’s OK. When we live and act as messengers, we can rest in the assurance that rejecting the message isn’t so much about rejecting us as messengers but rejecting the King Who sent the message.

However, we must make sure that we are faithful messengers. That means we must know what the message is and how to accurately present it. We must actually deliver the message. It also means that we must make sure that we aren’t interfering with or distracting from the message. We must make sure that our actions don’t distract or undermine the message. We can’t make the message about us and we must make sure that our character and conduct are consistent with the message. If our words or actions repel people so they won’t even listen to the message, we’ve failed as messengers. If our politics or posts keep people from hearing the message, we’ve failed as messengers. If our sin, hypocrisy, or unpleasant personality keep people from hearing the message, we’ve failed as messengers.

Take time to reflect on your lifestyle, activities, attitudes, and words – in person and online, in public and in private. Are you an effective messenger or is there something you need to stop, start, or change in order for the message to be heard? Whatever you need to do to become a more effective messenger for Jesus, do it! #FollowJesus