Dear Friends
I’ve noticed that Big Harry, my Alaskan malamute of “Don’t Climb That Fence!” fame has another attribute that seems to be common to most Christians. When I come up on him unexpectedly, he generally is ignoring the birds or squirrels or about anything else that may be eating his dog food or wreaking havoc in the yard, but if he sees me, he immediately looks around for something to bark at and run after. I honestly believe that the dog is letting all of his furry friends know that I am in the yard! Harry is a great dog if you are an intruder, and I would even dare to say that if Big Harry was a person, he would probably be a back pew sitting, Sunday bible carrying Christian that does not tell anyone about his faith during the week in order not to be offensive to anyone.
You might think that this particular lack of activity is no big deal, and, if it were not for the consequences of inaction, I might agree with you. In Harry’s case the squirrels ate all of my corn, and birds ate most of his food this summer (which I paid for!). My cure for Harry, at least as far as his food is concerned was to cut back on the portions so he would become more like his wolf ancestors and guard the scant rations from the marauding interlopers, but what about the church? Where is the incentive for lackadaisical believers to share Jesus with others? I found one in the book of Daniel this morning. “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” (Daniel 12:1) I suppose the obvious question would be: “What happens to those not found in the “book”?” The answer to that is found in the book of Revelation: “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Rev 20:15)
A question that I put to my extremely bright and outgoing young niece after a trip to The Billy Graham Library last week would be in order here also. “Who do you hate enough to see them in Hell, a place of eternal torment and constant agony where three million years of unbearable suffering is just getting started?” Her answer, of course, was the right one, “Nobody!”
The signs of the times are all around us, and I believe more than ever that Jesus is coming soon. Your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and even family deserve to hear about God’s Love from your lips. Remember our commission: “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” (Mark 16:15-16)
In His Grip,
Will Dallas