When a lost man leaves this world, he finds himself in the midst of the inconceivable judgment of hell (Luke 16:19-31). Yet, when a saved person leaves this world, he finds himself in the glorious presence of the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8) and in the midst of inconceivable joys (Psalm 16:11). Most Christians have heard about the many mansions in the Father’s house (John 14:2), but the Bible also speaks of the absence of tears, death, sorrow, and pain because “the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4). Not only is eternal life going to be great for the believer because of the absence of these things, but even more so because of the presence of the One who died so that believers might have that life.
Man does not change in order to be saved, but true salvation always brings about an evident change in the life of the new believer. Perhaps the change is less noticeable in some new believers and more noticeable in others; however, no change means no salvation. The change is not always an immediate outward change because it involves a change of the inward nature. A person who trusts Christ for salvation becomes a new creature (Galatians 6:15). It might be best to consider how this could be likened to a dog (Matthew 15:26-27) becoming a sheep (John 10:16). A new man now dwells within the new Christian to help combat and defeat the old sinful nature (Ephesians 4:22-24). Salvation is not merely the turning over of a new leaf; it is a new birth (John 3:3) where one is passed from spiritual death to spiritual life (John 5:24).
Man made himself the enemy of God when he chose sin (Romans 5:10), but God had no desire to remain man’s enemy so He provided the ultimate solution. Instead of returning man’s hatred, the Bible says that “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The Lord knew man could never justly find salvation through his own merits and works (Titus 3:5). God knew man could never be reconciled on his own. Rather than simply allow countless multitudes to go to hell without hope, the Lord determined to provide Himself as the sacrifice for man’s sin. Man would not be dependent upon his own faulty righteousness, but on the righteousness of the spotless Lamb of God (1 Peter 1:18-20).
God demands righteousness, and when man fails to meet His standards, He calls for the shedding of blood for the remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22). Throughout the Old Testament, sacrifices majored on the blood of animals, but these animal sacrifices could never take away sins (Hebrews 10:4). God, in mercy, sent His Son to give “himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour” (Ephesians 5:2). Unlike the Old Testament sacrifices, the Lord Jesus was a single onetime sacrifice that offered forgiveness of sin for all and to all. In shedding His blood, the Lord Jesus Christ became man’s sacrifice, and man need look no further than the shed blood of Christ for the means by which God is satisfied.
God has called the saved to be His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20), and as such, Christians are to take God’s truth to a lost and dying world. This message must be communicated. Due mostly to man’s ever increasing dependence upon technology, Christians have lost their effectiveness in communicating with others. This may seem insignificant, until one considers how it has weakened our ability to communicate our faith. Fewer people today will knock on a door and tell a stranger that he must be born again. Even fewer will stand upon a street corner and communicate the words of God to those who pass by. The saved must once again become willing to go forth and tell family and stranger alike that Jesus saves.
Sometimes the Bible conveys some disheartening truths including man’s inability to love the Lord during difficult times. Regrettably, believers are easily offended and sometimes even scattered from the Lord because of a lack of resolve. The Lord prophesied in Zechariah 13:7 concerning His followers’ reaction to His rejection. Though the Lord knows the future, consider how this rejection must have grieved Him when it actually transpired. At a time when any faithful disciple should have been loyal to his Master, those closest to the Lord were instead scattered. The One that fed them when they were hungry (Mark 6:35-44), healed family members when ill (Mark 1:29-31), calmed the troubled waters during the storms (Mark 4:37-41), and taught them many wonderful truths was now the cause of their offence.
Man is made up of three parts: spirit, soul, and body. Death takes place when the soul (Genesis 35:18) and the spirit (Genesis 25:8) leave the body. This event happens to everyone regardless of the individual’s spiritual state at death. Saved or lost, a person’s spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 3:21; Ecclesiastes 12:7). However, the soul’s destination is based upon whether or not a person has trusted Jesus Christ as Saviour during this life. There exists no midpoint between earth and heaven (or hell) to purge one’s sins, including places invented by religions to do so. For a saved person, the Bible declares that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Unfortunately for the lost, this same outcome is not true. Following death, the Bible reveals that the lost man’s soul immediately goes to hell (Luke 16:23).
Should prayer be kept private or can it be done in publick? For various reasons, some believers have grown increasingly concerned about the appropriate places to call upon the Lord. In Matthew 6:5-6, the Lord rebuked the publick prayers of the hypocrites and suggested that His people should enter into their closets to pray. The Lord Himself followed this pattern by seeking a “solitary place” in which to pray (Mark 1:35). Does this mean that the Lord opposed all publick prayer? It is important to consider the whole counsel of God. Obviously the Lord was not displeased with the publick prayer meeting held by believers in the early church – He answered their prayer by freeing Peter (Acts 12:12). Furthermore, the Lord expressed His will – for men to “pray every where.”
At first glance, this passage appears to be less expressive than many others which cover a wider range of study. After all, a single reading of our passage proves that nakedness is the opposite of being clothed or covered. This truth is confirmed by other similar passages as well (Leviticus 18:6; Job 24:7; Isaiah 58:7). However, this subject is much more complicated than merely whether someone is covered or not. It is important to understand the full context. For example, is nakedness the failure to cover every part of the body or are there parts of the body considered secret or private (Isaiah 3:17)? Though there are certainly other secret or private parts, the Lord plainly declared that uncovering the legs and thighs was nakedness (Isaiah 47:1-3). For this reason, the priests were told to wear breeches to cover these parts under their priestly attire (Exodus 28:42).
The Bible points to the unsaved man as an enemy of God (Romans 5:10). Fortunately, those who have trusted Christ as Saviour have been reconciled to God through the blood of Jesus Christ (Romans 5:10; 2 Corinthians 5:18). This reconciliation transforms the enemies of God into His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20). What a wonderful salvation! But there is more! The Lord Jesus has given the ministry of reconciliation to all those who have been reconciled. As such, we are to submit ourselves to the work of telling others how they too can be reconciled to God. Paul understood this and declared that he was a “debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise” (Romans 1:14).
