Your Worst Life Now!

If Heaven is glorious, perfect, and complete, a place of eternal joy, peace, and love, we must then be living our worst life now! Anything short of perfection is imperfect. As Christians, no matter how great our life is here on Earth, we must know that this is only a small measure to what our lives will be in Heaven. By the same token no matter how troubled and difficult our lives are on Earth we must also know that this is as bad as it will get. In Heaven we will be free from all our troubles. If this is the case, why then are many of us living in this life as though we were here forever? Why have we allowed ourselves to be so entangled with the things of this world? The Bible says that friendliness with the world is enmity with God and that we ought to separate ourselves from the world though we live in it. Why? Because the world and its system is filthy, contaminating and corrupting. When the Israelites went to war under the leadership of Joshua, God instructed them not to bring any abominable things back to the tent. However, a man named Achan disobeyed those instructions. In the end, he and his family were stoned to death (Joshua 7:1-26). This is how serious God views “idols” or things that will take us away from Him. What are the abominable things in our world? Fame, power, and wealth. There is wealth from God and wealth from the devil. God’s wealth makes us appreciative of who God is. It brings us into a place of deeper worship, love, gratitude, and humility, knowing that every perfect gift is from Him. The devil’s wealth on the other hand leads us to greater pride, inordinate seeking of more wealth, greater dependence on self and ultimately to a greater fall! One might ask, is it wrong for Christians to be wealthy? Absolutely not if the person has rightly appropriated his wealth by following the commands in 1 Timothy 6:17-19 which states,” Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone. But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and should give generously to those in need, always being ready to share with others whatever God has given them. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may take hold of real life.” An example of an inordinate love of wealth is described in Luke 12:16-20 where Jesus tells the rich man that though he had stored up treasure for years to come, God told him his soul was required that very night. This man was entangled in the things of this world, not caring about the things of God. For a true believer, his riches are an opportunity to reflect God’s generosity and love to a needy world. But even in his riches, he is still living his worst life now. Just like a bird caught in a snare, his life also could be required of him at any moment. How about fame and glory? Should true believers pursue them? This also could be problematic. God does not like to share his glory with any one. If God himself has given you fame, He still expects you to accord to him all the praise and glory. The bible gives us an example of how King Herod failed to do so in Acts 12:21-23 which states,” and an appointment with Herod was granted. When the day arrived, Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his throne, and made a speech to them. The people gave him a great ovation, shouting, "It is the voice of a god, not of a man!" Instantly, an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness, because he accepted the people's worship instead of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed with worms and died.”. Therefore, we must always remember to give God the glory in our fame. But, even if you were the most famous and honored person in the world, you are still living your worst life now. Why? You could be killed in a sudden car crash and all that fame will dissipate like a vapor! Now, let’s look at power. The bible says that all power belongs to God and he assigns it for some time to an individual for his own purposes and glory. Romans 9:17 talks about the power God gave Pharaoh. That power was supposed to show to the world who God was but Pharaoh erroneously thought that his own means had garnered him all this power. His disastrous end proved who the true owner of the power was; God alone. How about the power given to the Apostles- to heal, to deliver, and to cast out demons? Upon their death, all their power disappeared. All this is evidence that even when we have been accorded great power, it is still our worst life now since all that power vanishes ultimately. The Bible says this world is passing away along with its lusts, fame, wealth, power, honor, and beauty. It is passing away so that the real power, wealth, and fame can be permanently established. In the story of Lazarus and the rich man, Lazarus was poor and he suffered much humiliation and disdain from the hands of many. He did not share in any of the riches of this world. However, upon his death, he went on to glory, a place of eternal joy. The rich man on the other hand, enjoyed all the goods, power, fame, and prosperity in the world but upon his death he ended up in Hades, an abominable place. (Luke 16:19-31) How about you? Are you considering where you will spend eternity? Are you entangling yourself with the things of this world, thereby forfeiting your opportunity to invest in the next world? You don’t have to be a poor beggar to enter Heaven. Neither do you have to be wealthy to forfeit it. What is required is your heart. Where is your heart? Is it in your treasures here on Earth or in Heaven? If your heart is in the right place, you will end up in the right place, Heaven. But if your heart is in the wrong place, Earth, you will end up with the rich man in the lake of fire! The choice is yours. Choose to live for the things of Christ today. Invest wisely, knowing that your best life is yet to come, in Heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To God be the glory!!