I've actually been thinking a lot.
About God, His Word and the things that we should be concerned with as Christians and the things that we are ashamedly concerned with, even though we are Christians.
Have been watching a series of sermons by a man called Paul Washer, who is a Southern Baptist minister, but delivers a message that isn't popular, because it isn't a 'nice message'.

Have gotten several 'ideas' or rather, personal revelations. Because the ideas come from God's Word. But I'm sure that I'm going to upset some people or draw opposition. I'm not preaching, but just sharing. So maybe some of my friends might understand why my face is quite dark and I'm not that happy.

The first and foremost thing that I wanna say is that, men are evil. We are evil in nature, thought and deed. From birth. In God's sight, we're worthless and to quote 'all our great works are like filthy rags before Him'. We have sinned.
Romans-"all men have sinned and fallen short of God's glory".
I go bolder to say, we will never make God's standard.
Not nice isn't it? I am very depressed by that.
God calls us to be Holy like Him. But we're not going to be able to.

Hating God

The next thing is that we all hate God. There are many people who immediately say, "NO! I don't hate God! I love God! Why would I hate Him?" But the thing is, many people (I'm primarily talking about Christians here) do. We blame God for the bad things that happen, we are unhappy with 'some bits' of God, and there are times where we grow especially frustrated with Him. We wished that there had never been this 'God thing' in our lives, when life is already so hard. I find myself feeling that. I think everyone might agree.
But then, some people will still argue, "No I don't! I love God. He died for us!"
My sister said that. But then, like many young Christians (spiritually young), she had a poor understanding of the full nature of God.
When I show her the other bits of God that aren't so nice, when he destroyed people and cities, and did so seemingly 'unreasonably', she said-"God is not like that!" and something like 'God loves us.'

God does love us. But not how we think He does. (for later)

Christians should still be indignant now. But wait. The God you love is actually an image of the God you have in mind. The God who died for you and bought your way into heaven, loves you for what you are and values you, and the God who is pleasant. So. Is the God who destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah; the God who destroyed the world with a flood; the God who told David to fight wars and men to kill men; the God who scattered His people, the Jews and let all sorts of bad things happen to them...Is that God your God?

Or has God suddenly become nicer after the Gospel came, when Jesus came to Earth?
I hear voices-"God has changed His ways of doing things now".
Has He? Our God, if the God you have in mind, my God, the God is unchanging!
He has been the same from the beginnning, and He hasn't turned sweeter just 2000 years ago!
So it is impossible that the God that you believe in is infinitely forgiving and nice.
God is not a warm fuzzy soft toy that we go sobbing to. He is the Creator and Judge. God is love, but he is also Holy and evil-hating. There is also this side of Him.

People must already be very unhappy at this point.
My sister turned really upset and threw me this, "God has a unique plan for each everyone of us". This is one of the statements that draws people to Christianity. Other than the persistent touting of churches and 'Christians' and also other than the pretty girls that go to Church.
People think that they are important and that they matter in this world, and that they matter to God and His plans.
We like to hear and believe in a God that values us and employs us in His plan.
We do not like to believe that our worth is lower even than nothing in God's sight.
They believe that God 'has a plan for each and everyone of them' and that they are precious to God.
Oh, people love to hear pleasant things.

God isn't always nice. He is unchanging in Character and Thought, and no bit of His plan has changed. His plan wasn't developing. His plan was already in motion. We have been living out His plan from the moment God started creation.
Do you think that what we do affects any bit of His plan? God is sovereign, and we are nothing to him. His plan is absolute and nothing we do can influence it or affect the outcome.

We do not 'feature' in God's plan. Instead, God uses us in His plan.

So. Up to here. Is the God that you go to church and service to praise and hear about, the same God that the Bible says, the same God that Moses and Elijah have seen?

GOD'S PLAN?

Then, after we think about God, then we need to think. What is this plan that God has been going on about, and what are the things He is going to do?
Most Christians have no idea of God's plan. But God has made clear His plan in Ezekiel 36:22:

22 Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone.
23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Sovereign LORD, when I show myself holy through you before their eyes.
24 'For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.
25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.
26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
28 You will live in the land I gave your forefathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the corn and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you.
30 I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.
31 Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices.
32 I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign LORD. Be ashamed and disgraced for your conduct, O house of Israel!
33 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: On the day I cleanse you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins will be rebuilt.
34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it.
35 They will say, This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.
36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the LORD have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.'
37 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Once again I will yield to the plea of the house of Israel and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep,
38 as numerous as the flocks for offerings at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

God's plan is to glorify His Name and make known to all that He is the Lord.
I showed my sister this, and she ran off. She didn't like to believe that God is like that.
One might argue that God is speaking to only the Israelites and the Jews. But He is speaking to the heirs of His kingdom. Not just the Israelites. This is what is found in Galatians 3:26-

"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew, nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. "

There!

There are more to the above, but I need to get my thoughts in order and reference with both scripture and God. There are things about sin, God's sovereignty and many other things that the Churches are either not fully saying or they left out.

The final thing I want to talk about is Salvation.
People 'become' Christians also because they are drawn by the idea of eternal life in heaven and all that. But I am not sure that this Salvation is received easily. Churches and pastors and ministers use scripture and prayers to assure people of their Salvation and all, claiming 'by faith'. But who else apart from God can assure us that we have salvation? Who else can declare us saved, other than the One Who has extended His Hand to save us?

My question: Are you sure you are saved?
And if you think so, are you on the right track in getting to heaven?

Matthew 7 is a very important chapter.
Especially the bit about The Narrow and Wide Gates into heaven.
"small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it".
I think an explanation is due. The gate being small and the road narrow means that not many people will find it and be able to walk on it. Why does Jesus mention not just the gate, but also the road? The road is narrow. Narrow: precarious? The road that we have to walk is not easy. Few will find it. Simply: The road into heaven is not easy to follow and very few people will make it.

In the following bit, Jesus says:

21 Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 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 perform many miracles?'
23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

Who is Jesus refering to? Jesus isn't talking to just any normal Christian. He is talking to people who prophecy and drive out demons, and perform miracles! He is talking to ministers and church leaders. Are they doing the will of God the Father? Are they even on the narrow road?
And can we follow their lead?

Because of this, I am disappointed in Churches and Church leaders. They are not concerned about the right thing. They are now more concerned about 'saving people', aka amassing bigger numbers of church goers. But the people they've already brought to church-are they saved? Are the evangelists and active preachers, are they saved?
They should take out the plank in their eyes, before removing the speck in their brother's eye, to quote Jesus in Matthew 7 still.

The thing is, I can look at the obituaries in the newspaper and read all those outstanding Christian epitaphs which read:
"So-and-so was called to be with the Lord on when-and-when"
Hold on! Are you sure this man/ woman was in God? Did he receive his salvation?
I think I can strike off most of the people who are Christians and featured in the obituaries as unsaved.

This would make a lot of people even more unhappy.
We believe by faith that in believing and following in Christ Jesus, God's Son, we are saved and will be with Him after death.
But have you been following and believing in Him?

The procedure for salvation is simple. Repent and believe in Christ. Keep the commandments and walk as Jesus did.
But it isn't a one time thing, where you say the prayer that asks Jesus to come into your heart and then, you have a stamp, guaranteed chop that'll you have a place in heaven. If it's so, millions have earned their place in heaven. Why did God say that few will find the way to heaven?

Salvation is not a matter of going to church or being godly. And no one can tell you you are saved. Only God can promise you that. Repent and believe in Christ. Sounds easy.
But why then, we can't 'make it' into heaven?

Looking at the example of the man that was crucified next to Jesus.

39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. Don't you fear God, he said, since you are under the same sentence?
41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.
42 Then he said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.
43 Jesus answered him, I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.

His salvation was guaranteed. This is one man I can assure that he is saved. Because Jesus Himself told him. He is a prime example to look at.
What did he do?
He recognised that he sinned and he repented. He feared God. He believed in Jesus.
That was all.

Is it so simple?
It isn't today.
But let's think, provided you have the patience to stay through the length of things I've been saying, and haven't think that it's 'not right' or nonsense.
What does it take to earn salvation?
Am I on the narrow road?
Is the God that I'm following the God of Abraham, the God of Issac and the God of Jacob?

Look to the Bible for guidance. Even if it doesn't outrightly seem helpful.
Because God said, "heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away."

Me, I'm not sure I'm saved. I think I'm heading to the wide gate. But whatever it is, God is our God, and we must love Him even if He casts us into hell.
Hope what I said is helpful and relevant. If I spread the wrong teaching, I'm doubly responsible for distorting God's Word and misling His sheep.
So, I didn't start writing this at whim.

I appreciate your amazing tolerance.
Praise God.