It is well there is One who is ever the same, and who is ever with us. It is well there is one stable rock amidst the billows of the sea of life. O my soul, set not thine affections upon rusting, moth-eaten, decaying treasures, but set thine heart upon Him who abides for ever faithful to thee. Build not thine house upon the moving quicksands of a deceitful world, but found thy hopes upon this rock, which, amid descending rain and roaring floods, shall stand immovably secure. My soul, I charge thee, lay up thy treasure in the only secure cabinet; store thy jewels where thou canst never lose them. Put thine all in Christ; set all thine affections on His person, all thy hope in His merit, all thy trust in His efficacious blood, all thy joy in His presence, and so thou mayest laugh at loss, and defy destruction. Remember that all the flowers in the world's garden fade by turns, and the day cometh when nothing will be left but the black, cold earth. Death's black extinguisher mus t soon put out thy candle. Oh! how sweet to have sunlight when the candle is gone! The dark flood must soon roll between thee and all thou hast; then wed thine heart to Him who will never leave thee; trust thyself with Him who will go with thee through the black and surging current of death's stream, and who will land thee safely on the celestial shore, and make thee sit with Him in heavenly places for ever. Go, sorrowing son of affliction, tell thy secrets to the Friend who sticketh closer than a brother. Trust all thy concerns with Him who never can be taken from thee, who will never leave thee, and who will never let thee leave Him, even "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever." "Lo, I am with you alway," is enough for my soul to live upon, let who will forsake me.
You can not lose your salvation but you can lose rewards in heaven for our deeds on Earth.
“But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.”
Colossians 3:25
This portion of the Word of God is teaching about the relationship between servants and masters. Servants are taught to obey their masters with the right heart attitude, serving as unto the Lord and not unto men. The servant who thus performs his duty is promised a just reward from the Lord. God will righteously reward those who are faithful in their service and obey Him and others. However, those who do not obey will also be compensated. The context ends with our text, “But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done.” Wrongs that are not properly made right will result in definite retribution. We should all be thankful that Christ died on the cross for our sins, that we might be forgiven through the mercy of God the moment we trust Christ as Savior. We are likewise promised that when we sin, after we are born again, we can confess that sin to God and receive His gracious forgiveness. However, the same Bible that reveals these glorious truths also teaches us that God is a just Judge, and God Almighty will one day judge wrongs that are not made right. One day, we will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ and give account for the deeds that we have done. Too many people choose to ignore this aspect of God’s justice. They live as though they can disobey God’s Word and never suffer any consequences or chastisement. Many seem to believe that God is always ready to reward good deeds, but is somehow unconcerned about “he that doeth wrong.” But the Bible teaches otherwise. The same God who rewards the doing of right, also rewards the doing of wrong. One may do wrong and somehow avoid being detected by others, “But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done.” God sees everyone and everything, and He will punish for acts of rebellion, regardless of who it is. “There is no respect of persons” with God. The fact that God recognizes and blesses the right choices and also judges wrong actions should motivate us to live in such a way as to please Him. We ought to be reminded that sin is serious and must be dealt with properly. Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
“For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
II Corinthians 6:2
The Savior has come. Salvation has been provided for us by Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross and His resurrection. “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” God wants men to be clear about this. He is ready to have mercy, to hear our prayers, and to show compassion to mankind. There is truly NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT. We must learn to recognize and walk in the reality that God deals with us in the present. He is presently all that He has ever been. Psalm 46:1 says He is “a very present help in trouble.” It is common for some to spend too much time on the past and future, without attention to the reality of the now. For instance, many are plagued with the memory or regret of past failures or mistakes, even in cases where these sins have been confessed. Because they have a tendency to live in the past, they assume that God is likewise focused on what occurred in days gone by. However, the Bible makes it clear that when God forgives, He does not hold it against us. In Jeremiah 31:34, God says, “I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” If God is able to forget our past and concentrate on the present, we ought to attempt to do the same. Also, the God that has worked mightily on behalf of His people in history is the same today and forever. There is nothing that God is not able to do. We limit God’s power in our lives when we think of Him in terms of being able to work wonders in the past, but think He is powerless in the present. Our faith in God is based on the sound truth that “he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). He is presently all that we need. Another application of this lesson has to do with our future. As God’s children, our future is bright. We have been promised everlasting life in the wonder of Heaven. There we will see Him in His glory. We sing songs that refer to the victory and worship that will permeate our eternal home. As marvelous as this is, and every bit true, we cannot live in the future. God is everything now that He will be then. We do not live in the past or the future. Now is our time to live and serve, and there is NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT.
“But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”
Psalm 73:28
The seventy-third Psalm, like many of the Psalms, records some of the common struggles we all encounter. This is one of the reasons we appreciate the Psalms so much; we can identify with the emotions and difficulties of the writer. In this Psalm, the writer acknowledges that the prosperity of the wicked troubled him, and he even questioned whether his personal devotion was in vain. When the writer finally got into God’s presence about the issue, he understood that he had been foolish to have such an attitude. Finally, he closes the Psalm with our text verse, saying, “It is good for me to draw near to God.” It is so true. “It is good for me to draw near to God.” Isn’t it a great joy to know that we can draw near to God? The only way that we can approach our Holy God is through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ. Thank God that a way has been made for us to draw near. Imagine a sinful man being able to approach the holy presence of God. Only through the blood of Christ is it possible. But, because of our faith in Christ and the fact that the blood has been applied to our lives, we can draw near to Him. It is another amazing thing that we would want to draw near to God. This too is the result of His work of grace in our lives. Before Jesus came, we had no interest in being near to God. To the contrary, we would distance ourselves from everything that was holy and righteous. But now, all that is changed. Like the newly converted demoniac from Gadara, we want to be near our Lord. We need to draw near to Him. First, we need to because we owe it to Him to show our love to Him. He has shown His love for us in many ways, but none greater than His death for us at Calvary. He wants us to love Him supremely. Secondly, we need to draw near to God because there is something about the fallen nature of man that is inclined to drift away from God’s perfect place for us. Because we are naturally prone to slackness in our devotion, we must discipline ourselves to habitually draw near to Him. Our text instructs us on the way to draw near to God. “I have put my trust in the Lord GOD.” We draw near to Him by faith. By faith, knowing He loves us and wants us near, knowing the way has been provided for us, we daily draw near to Him.
