đź“– Verse of the Day
“But those who are cowards, those who refuse to believe, those who do terrible things, those who kill, those who sin sexually, those who do evil magic, those who worship idols, and those who tell lies—they will all have a place in the lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
— Revelation 21:8 ERV
đź“š Lesson of the Day
In contrast to those who accept and genuinely believe, those who don’t believe will be placed in the lake of burning sulfur. These are the people who:
- Are cowards
- Refuse to believe
- Do terrible things
- Kill
- Sin sexually
- Do evil magic
- Worship idols
- Tell lies
You must be wondering if you fall in any of those categories. There are a lot of people who would consider themselves to be cowardly. Does that condemn them to the lake of burning sulfur? I feel afraid at times, maybe even cowardly. I can’t help what I fear, but God says in 2 Timothy 1:7 KJV: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” This means we don’t have to fear. The Holy Spirit will give us believers power, love, and a sound mind. The rest of the attributes are conscious choices. We can choose not to do terrible things, kill, sin sexually, do evil magic, worship idols, and tell lies. However, we can’t stop sinning just by our own willpower. In Philippians 2:13, Paul reminds us that it’s God working in us both to will and to do His good pleasure. The Holy Spirit gives us the power to turn away from those choices.
đź’ Encouragement
If you find yourself doing any of these things stop it and ask God for forgiveness. He will forgive you if you repent. To repent means to feel deeply sorry to the point where you will not continue that behavior. However, repentance isn’t just about feeling deeply sorry, but actually turning away from the sin and turning toward God. 2 Corinthians 7:10 talks about how godly sorrow produces true repentance.
There may be a time when you slip and fall, but be of good cheer because as a believer, your sins have already been forgiven by Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross. He died for us and took upon Himself our sins and endured the punishment to cover us for each and every sin in the past and in the future.
🙏 Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, what a wonderful God You are. You took upon Yourself our sins and You endured our punishment. That was not an easy plight. What kind of love does that? Your love. Your agape love. Oh how we love you for loving us so. We could never do enough to repay that debt. Forgive us when we fall short. Help us keep our eyes on Your Word and Your ways. May we do things that are pleasing to You and make conscious decisions to do what is right. Thank You for all that You do for us. In Jesus Christ’s name we pray, amen.