Tag: Angel

Eternal consequences

Psalms 112:10  The wicked man sees it and is angry; he gnashes his teeth and melts away; the desire of the wicked will perish!

Isaiah 65:13-14     Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, my servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; behold, my servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; behold, my servants shall rejoice, but you shall be put to shame;  behold, my servants shall sing for gladness of heart, but you shall cry out for pain of heart and shall wail for breaking of spirit.

Luke 13:28     In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.

Psalms 37:12    The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him,

Matthew 22:13     Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Revelation 16:10-11    The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish  and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds.

Proverbs 10:28    The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.

Proverbs 11:7     When the wicked dies, his hope will perish, and the expectation of wealth perishes too.

Luke 16:24-26     And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’  But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.  And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’

Revelation 20:11  Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.  And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.  Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.  And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

I have heard it said “we don’t get out of this world alive”.  That is true.  What doesn’t get talked about much is the fact that there is consequences for our actions, choices, thoughts, intents.  These are eternal consequences with two totally different outcomes.

Joh 3:16  📝  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Choosing to reject the gift of eternal life through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ is choosing to be unforgiven and your soul found wanting on the day of judgement.  There is no second chance once breath has ceased in this life.  All that is waiting for the person who rejects Christ, is eternal punishment.   We come to Christ for salvation, redemption, joy, peace, strength, hope, refuge, and love, by and through faith (believing, trusting in, relying on, and clinging to) Him alone.

Securing an eternal redemption

“Remember his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,”

Psalms 111:9  He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name!

 Psalms 130:7-8    O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.

 Exodus 15:13    “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.

 Isaiah 44:6    Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.

 Isaiah 63:9    In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

 Matthew 1:21    She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

 Luke 1:68     “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people

 Ephesians 1:7    In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,

 Ephesians 1:14    who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

 Titus 2:14    who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

 Hebrews 9:12     he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

 1 Peter 1:18-20     knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold,  but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.  He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you

 Exodus 15:11     “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

Our redemption came at a cost, in an act of love, full of grace and mercy.  What action would you associate in the form of thankfulness for this great gift of remotion? Would it come in the form of trust, hope, patience, love, faith, and peace?  Would it inspire actions of good works.  Would it come out in the from of praise?  Would it sing songs of praise?  Would it speak kindly? Would it seek to be nearer and nearer to God’s presence?  Would it promote forgiveness?  It does us good to consider all that is found in Christ and live so that His light is seen.

By your blood

Psalms 103:4  who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

Psalms 34:22     The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Psalms 56:13     For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

Psalms 71:23     My lips will shout for joy, when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which you have redeemed.

Job 33:19-30     “Man is also rebuked with pain on his bed and with continual strife in his bones,  so that his life loathes bread, and his appetite the choicest food.  His flesh is so wasted away that it cannot be seen, and his bones that were not seen stick out.  His soul draws near the pit, and his life to those who bring death.  If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him,  and he is merciful to him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom;  let his flesh become fresh with youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor’;  then man prays to God, and he accepts him; he sees his face with a shout of joy, and he restores to man his righteousness.  He sings before men and says: ‘I sinned and perverted what was right, and it was not repaid to me.  He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit, and my life shall look upon the light.’  “Behold, God does all these things, twice, three times, with a man,  to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be lighted with the light of life.

Revelation 5:9     And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,

James 1:12     Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

2 Corinthians 4:16     So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.

To have sins forgiven is more important than physical healing.  What does it profit the soul to have perfect or good health if the soul is rotting away?  We tend to put blinders on when it comes to the health of our soul.  It is understandable why this can happen.  We can see and feel our physical state.  Our physical body is designed to let us know something is not right.  We feel pain.  We see the effects of something not being right.  Sometimes it is others who see it.  When it comes to our soul, how are we to know? The word of God.  In and through His word we are able to gain understanding of His holiness and our sinfulness.  His word is a light into our soul.  His word exposes the cancer that is eating away our soul.  His word brings healing to our soul.  Physical health has benefit for this life but spiritual health of our soul has benefit for eternity.

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!

Clean hands and pure heart

“For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

Psalms 85:9  Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land. Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.

Psalms 24:4     He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.  He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

Psalms 50:23     The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”

Psalms 119:155     Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek your statutes.

Mark 12:32     And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.  And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Acts 11:13     And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter;  he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’

Zechariah 2:5     And I will be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the LORD, and I will be the glory in her midst.’”

John 1:14     And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Exodus 34:6    The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,  keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

John 1:17     For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ

Romans 3:25     whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.  It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Guilty, iniquity, wicked, transgression, sin, do not seek, false, deceit, and unclean heart are all words used to describe the heart and condition of man without Christ.  Now look at what scripture says of God and what is found through Christ to those who believe; good, steadfast love, salvation, faithfulness, righteousness, peace, clean hands, pure heart, thanksgiving, understanding, strength, saved, grace, truth, forgiven, and justified.  Open your heart and mind to His word and seek Him in times of peace and trials.  There is no other place to find truth, happiness, and hope for eternity.

For, Against, Abstain

“Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

John 7:40  When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.”  Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee?  Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?”  So there was a division among the people over him.  Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.  The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?”  The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this man!”  The Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived?  Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.”  Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them,  “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?”  They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

Matthew 10:35   For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

Luke 12:51     Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.

Acts 14:4    But the people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews and some with the apostles.

Acts 23:7     And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided.  For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.  Then a great clamor arose, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees’ party stood up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong in this man. What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?”

1 Corinthians 1:22     For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,  but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.  For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.  But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;  God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,

Acts 6:7    And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

Scripture is clear on the fact that there are going to be people who see, hear and believe.  There are also those who are on the fence and those who are hard set and will not believe.  Division will come because of this.  Once our heart, mind and soul has been awakened to the truth a choice will be made.  The problem is that many do not see the magnitude of the choice they are making.  This choice has eternal consequences.  Forever with Christ or forever separated and tormented day and night. Just because a person can say it will not happen and that it is all fantasy does not make this a fact of truth.  Many educated and worldly wise people have taken hard stances and declared the thought there being a God, creation, and need of salvation, FOOLISHNESS and being SIMPLE MINDED.  Others take a path of complacent neglect and commit to what seems to be a place in the middle but unfortunately the results are the same.  They may not speak out against God but they do not acknowledge Him or their sin and in need of Christ. Their choice is still not to believe.  In meetings there are those who can vote for, against, or abstain. However with this decision here is no middle ground. Abstaining from making the choice to believe, humbly serve, honor, follow and obey is to deny God and the need for your sins to be forgiven.  The result of choosing to abstain is forever separated and tormented day and night forever.  Those who choose to believe and see the need for redemption come to Christ with broken hearts and wanting forgiveness of sin.  Their heart and mind have been opened by God and they are drawn by Him to this place of decision.  They rely on, trust in and cling to Him for they know there is absolutely no other way to be right before God but by through the redeeming work of Christ.  They can walk in His light, His purpose and know their eternal destiny.  Acknowledge your sin, seek and trust in forgiveness through Christ, and humbly serve Him.  Jesus Christ came into the world to seek and save the lost.  John 3:16   “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.  And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.   For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.  But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Alive but Dead

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins”

Joh 5:25  “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

Revelation 3:1   “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.

Ephesians 2:5    even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

Colossians 2:13    And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,

1 Timothy 5:6    but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives.

James 2:26     For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Hebrews 4:1    Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.  For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.

Dead but still alive? Walking with God through our life should have God honoring and glorifying life to it. Some might set the expectation for this very low and say because I don’t do certain things I am honoring and glorifying God.  I don’t think it is about doing or not doing but rather a deep heart desire to be lead by God and seeking to hear His whispers of guidance and commitment to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey.  If the spirit of God is not present in our life we are dead though we live.  Our best plans, thoughts and actions are of no good if they are not foundationaly set in seeking and desiring to honor and glorify God.  There is so much we are bombarded each day and we need to be careful to set our heart, mind and soul in His word keeping our ears, eyes, and heart open to see, hear and do that which brings true honor and glory to Him alone.

Deceiver and Accuser

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

“Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this.”

“May the good LORD pardon everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD”

“For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.”

Zechariah 3:1  Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?”   Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.”

Job 1:6  Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.  The LORD said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the LORD and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”

Luke 22:31   “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat,

Revelation 12:9  And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.  And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.

Isaiah 64:6     We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

“They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

It does not take much time reading God’s word and reflecting on our lives to be reminded of our unrighteousness and sin.  Guess who is standing right there when these thoughts come.  Satan.  He is the prince of lies, the deceiver, and accuser.  He tells us that we are unclean, unholy, unworthy, a failure, and unforgiven.  He attacks our faith in Christ’s redemption telling us these lies.  He whispers these lies to defeat what should be a victorious fruit filled God honoring life.  “Resist the Devil and he will flee from you”.  Our resistance is through the promises of God found in His word, faith in God and trusting fully in what He has said.  What God has made clean no one can make unclean.  We are children of the Creator and in His hands we are secure.  Recognize Satan’s whispers of accusation and deception.  Stand firm In God’s promises.  Our lives should be a light of hope to others that is seen through what we say and do for the honor and glory of God.  As the children’s song states “Don’t let Satan blow it out” “I’m going to let it shine”

Awesome Power and Might

“Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.”

Psalms 65:5  By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas; the one who by his strength established the mountains, being girded with might; who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples, so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs. You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.

Psalms 45:4    In your majesty ride out victoriously for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; let your right hand teach you awesome deeds!

Psalms 47:2  For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth.  He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.

Psalms 66:3     Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.

Psalms 76:3  There he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. Selah  Glorious are you, more majestic than the mountains full of prey.  The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; they sank into sleep; all the men of war were unable to use their hands.  At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned.  But you, you are to be feared! Who can stand before you when once your anger is roused?  From the heavens you uttered judgment; the earth feared and was still,  when God arose to establish judgment, to save all the humble of the earth.

Deuteronomy 4:34   Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

Deuteronomy 10:21   He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen.

Isaiah 37:36   And the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.

Revelation 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!  Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Revelation 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!  Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Isaiah 45:22    “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.

Matthew 28:19  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Psalms 22:27    All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.

God’s mighty and awesome deeds from history have been shared with us in scripture.  These awesome and mighty deeds include, creation, flood, protection, victory from enemies, signs and wonders, splitting of the Red Sea, water from a rock, fire from the sky, manna and quail, judgements on people, death of enemies, dead back to life, blind were given sight, deaf were able to hear, mute were able to speak, women without child were given children, virgin birth, seas calmed, feeding of 5,000, Jesus Christ birth-death-resurrection, and promises of eternity with Him for those who believe in, rely on, cling to and trust in Him.  There are hundreds of more examples recorded of His might acts.  Life has a way of blinding us from seeing and believing these acts of power, might, and love.  Life gets in the way and we explain away His awesome power and love with words of “I sure was lucky,” “what a coincidence,” “that was weird,” “I wish somebody could explain this to me,” “I see it but don’t believe it,” somebody was watching over them,” “such is fate,” and many more.   When our heart, mind and soul are more focused on this life rather than on God we see things in a different light – through a different lens.  God is not in focus and many of His acts are missed and we fail to recognize them.  It is impossible to honor and praise God when we neglect to commit our life to Him, spend time with His word, and give Him all our heart, mind, and soul.  Do you want to see these acts of power, might and love?  Change the way you do life.  Focus your heart, mind, and soul on Him.  Desire to humbly serve, honor, follow, and obey Him.  And as the old hymn says “the things of earth with grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

 

Pay Attention

“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.”

” let us not pay attention to any of his words.”

Psalms 56:5  All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil. They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life. For their crime will they escape? In wrath cast down the peoples, O God! You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.

Job 16:20   My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God,

Matthew 22:15   Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words

Luke 11:54   lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.

Jeremiah 18:18   Then they said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah, for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not pay attention to any of his words.”

Luke 22:3  Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.  He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them.  And they were glad, and agreed to give him money.  So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

Isaiah 63:9   In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

Hebrews 11:13   These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

Malachi 3:16   Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed his name.

Psalms 126:5  Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy  He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

Revelation 7:17    For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

It is obvious there are those who seek God and those who do not.  For those who do not, they have closed their ears, eyes, heart, soul and mind.  they have closed all of these to His creation, His word, and what He has placed within our heart about Him.  Their heart and mind have hardened to the point of not only rejecting God’s call but to reject, mock, and cause issue with those who walk by faith in the one true God.  In Romans it says that they have chosen to reject God because He has made it clear to them through creation and by placing initial knowledge of Himself in their heart and mind.  Romans continues to say that because they have rejected Him, He has given them over to this debase and eternally harmful mindset.  For those who have chosen to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey there is another course/path for their lives.  God is ever present in their heart, mind, and soul.  They know there is more to life than what is experienced this side of eternity.  They hold on to that which is promised – not seen. They come to God with their heart cry and know He is their strength, rock, refuge, joy, peace, and place of rest.  They live this side of eternity with hope and expectation of eternity promised with God.  Keep strong, stand firm, seek God, and CHOOSE to keep your heart, mind and soul focused in this life on Him.  Do not allow your heart and mind to be pulled away by things of this world and culture.  Do not get so busy that you lose sight of God and eternity.  Do not neglect His word.  Keep your life in check with His word.