25/02/2011 - What a price!

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“For Pekah the son of Remaliah killed one hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day, all valiant men, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their fathers.” (II Chronicles 28: 6)

Ahaz, king of Judah, was mad when he abandoned the Lord to give in to idolatry, and witchcraft made the people of Israel pay too high of a price. So, God delivered him in the hands of the king of Syria and those of Israel and Pekah, the son of Remaliah, killed one hundred and twenty thousand men in one day, the best in Judah.

That was written to warn us of the following: Those who stop paying heed to the Word of the Lord to fall in sin will certainly pay a high price for such insane attitude and they’ll also carry on paying for that in eternity, forever and ever.

Do you really think deceit, the temporary pleasure of sin, the satisfaction of rotten flesh is worth the upcoming suffering? No, for the Most High states that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6: 23)! So, my brother, if you’re being tempted to sin or if you already sinned and temptation’s keeping your living in that dreadful state, don’t you think it’s high time you came back to our Heavenly Father and ask Him for forgiveness?

I’ve seen people behaving like crazy since I accepted Jesus as my Savior at the age of six. I’ve already had the unfortunate opportunity to meet greatly capable men of God who used to shake hell when ministering at the pulpit and they took crowds at the feet of the Lord; yet, they fell for sin. Sadly, I have to say that I saw their tragic end. Well, certainly sin isn’t worth it, after all, apart from hampering the divine plan – the Lord can’t use anyone in transgression – those who commit sin stop being sensible and, by doing so, they harm their own health. On top of that, their minds become a mess and their attitudes deplorable. Even their own family end up suffering the consequences and that, by all means, should never occur.

Yet, someone might ask: “What made Ahaz commit an error?” Well, he despised the Word of God and that’s the cause of any fall. The sin of taking for granted the divine warnings makes people fall – some in adultery, others in dishonesty; people become addicted, some are proud, others practice homosexuality and falsehood, and they tell lies, and so many other deviations.

Those who’ve been chosen by the Lord can’t afford to refuse doing His will. Nevertheless, those who don’t fulfil what God has stated as His commandments begin to walk in the way Satan built up. So, my brethren, I know nothing about your behaviour but if you’re not listening to the Biblical precepts, your life won’t be any different from that of Ahaz. Your family might be already suffering and your lack of success is empowering the devil to prevent your whole home from looking to The Truth. You and your household will perish unless you believe in the Lord with all your heart. You might bury your talent and give an excuse on the last day, however justifiable, but that won’t deliver you from condemnation (Matthew 25: 14 – 30). But if you really believe in the Lord Jesus, you and your house will be saved (Acts 16: 31).

In Christ, with love,

R.R. Soares