DAY 37: ENTERING THE KINGDOM

DAY 37: ENTERING THE KINGDOM

SCRIPTURE:

We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God Acts 14:22

Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! Luke 18:24

OBSERVATION:

The disciples in the early church knew that it was not easy to enter the kingdom of God. They knew they had to encounter many hardships for the kingdom. They knew they had to give up much and lead holy lives until the end and finish the race. Even the great Apostle Paul was careful to examine himself constantly to ensure that while he had preached to others, he himself would not be disqualified.

Like the seed that fell on shallow soil, some receive the word at once with gladness, but once trouble and hardship come, they fall away. It is not how well we start the race, but how well we finish that truly matters. The Christian life has always been one of perseverance, to continue fighting the good fight, to press on, to follow Christ to the end in spite of all trouble and hardship.

The fundamental truth of the gospel is that we are saved for a purpose, and that is to serve God and to serve others for His glory. We are not saved to continue living our lives as how we please. Just like the Israelites were first delivered from Egypt and then taught how to live right before God, we too have been delivered from sin and death for the purpose of living right before God and serving Him. Moreover, He even gives us the Holy Spirit to help us that the Israelites did not have, so we really have no excuse. We are to live in dependence on the Holy Spirit’s leading according to God’s Word, and keep our hearts open towards the Lord to do His will.

Nevertheless, we are still exposed to myriads of temptation and need to be constantly on guard lest the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth or desires for other things come in and choke the Word in us, making us unfruitful. The Lord already warned us that every branch that does not bear fruit will be cut off.

APPLICATION:

We need to remember that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and it is the fear of the Lord that will keep us safe on the narrow road that leads to the Kingdom. The moment we lose the fear of the Lord, we are already on very dangerous and shaky ground. In the story of Pilgrim’s Progress, there was a poignant scene where the pilgrim’s friend did not dare to cross the final river just before the gates of Heaven and turned away. Pilgrim then realized that there was a road that leads to Hell even at the gates of Heaven.

We are thus reminded that we need always to guard ourselves, and keep ourselves in the Lord, sincerely desiring to follow Him and avail ourselves to be led by the Holy Spirit and God’s Word. As long as we know in our hearts we are for the Lord and have set our hearts to please Him, we know that we are safe in Him, and have full assurance of His salvation. However, if we allow ourselves to be dragged away and let other things become our gods, we then move away from solid ground to murky waters. Hence, we should always do well to consider both the sternness and the love of God.

PRAYER:

Dear Heavenly Father, we entrust ourselves and our families to you. Keep us safe we pray O Lord in Your purpose and Your plans. Lead us not to wander away, but give us the deep desire and hunger to press on in You, to grow in knowing You, in serving You, in loving You. Forgive our sinful inclinations we pray, but help us allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate our hearts to grow deeper in love with You, and allow the things of the world to fade away from our lives. May Your name be praised forever precious Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.