Tomorrow we drive to Long Island for a memorial ceremony for my late father-in-law, Robert Bob Sven Jaderen. Although I was never really close to Bob, I grew to understand and appreciate the kind of man he was. Sure he was set in his ways, but what 70+ year old man isnt? He was a kind man. He was a loyal husband and he was a good father. After one of his incidents where his health turned to the south, I knew he would not listen to a phone call so I wrote him a Love Letter. Here is what I wrote to Bob only months before he passed away. January 15, 2014 Bob, I am really not sure how to start this letter. I have wanted to write for quite some time now, but every time I begin I simply stop writing for fear of saying something that would make you angry. For many years now I have been praying for you. I have been praying for your physical, but more importantly, your spiritual health. For a year or more I have been hearing from Lynda that your health is getting worse. In your last bout , you ended up with another stay in the hospital and I believe as I type you are checked in to some sort of physical therapy in patient care. So, at risk of totally losing any relationship with you whatsoever, here goes. I heard a song a year ago that I wished many of my family and friends would slow down long enough and actually listen to and take to heart. It was written by a young man who was terribly convicted by the spiritual condition of family members. Here are the lyrics. If You Died Tonight I don’t have it all together. Sometimes I find myself asking why oh why. But I know we don’t have forever. So I’d be a fool to let this moment pass us by. So at the risk of sounding crazy let me ask you. If you died tonight, where would you be? Where would your soul spend eternity? Jesus gave His life. If you’d just believe it changes everything. If you died tonight. You can call me narrow minded. But I believe that in your heart there lies the proof. And if you look down deep you’ll find it. An empty place that is pointing to the Truth. You can hear His voice inside you. Gently asking. Say “I need You”. “I can’t live without You”. “Come and fill my life with Your glory, God”. You see Bob, there is a very real heaven and there is a very real Hell. It is my fear based on what I have learned through God’s Word and have been guided by The Holy Spirit that there are people in this world that are completely oblivious to this. People that are right under my nose. There are people on this planet that simply believe that if they are a “good person” and if they believe in God that they will spend eternity in heaven when they pass. According to God’s Word, this is simply not true. Who is a “good person”? This is what God says in Romans 3:23; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, The creator of the universe is HOLY. God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 1Jn 1:5 (KJV) He has set laws in place for his creation to obey. What are these laws? They begin with the 10 Commandments. While you might consider yourself ‘good’ compared to most people, how do you measure up against God’s law? Have you ever told the smallest lie? Then you are a liar. “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” James 2:10 (NIV) Disobedience to God is sin. Bob, all means ALL. I have sinned. You have sinned Nancy, Janet and Lynda have sinned. All means ALL. Some would say, “Paul, that is simply your opinion”. I would point you back to God’s Word. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. So, if ALL have sinned what is the big deal? Well, the Apostle Paul in Romans goes one step further. In Romans 6:23 God tells us: 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Disobedience to an infinite eternal God deserves an infinite eternal consequence. God shows us His character and his laws in his creation, the world around us. He has also written his laws in our hearts… on our conscience. He has also given us his WORD the Bible. No good judge would let the guilty go free, the criminal go unpunished. Neither can a holy righteous God allow sinful man to go unpunished… but God LOVES man whom he has made in his image and He has provided a way of escape by sending his only son to die in our place. But, there is hope. Would a God who loved us so much simply let us die? Look at Romans 5:8. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Jn 3:16-NKJV While he died on the cross, he was mocked, spit upon, and cursed. Yet Jesus cried out, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do…” (Lk 23:34-KJV) With such love, Jesus died in your place… knowing every evil act, word, and thought you would commit. What powerful love! He loves you unconditionally even to the point of death when you are at your worst! At this point if you are still reading then you may be wondering if Christ died for you or not. Only if you can honestly look at Romans 10:9-10 and believe IN YOUR HEART. 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. You can never be saved by trying to be a good person, nor can you be saved through any amount of ‘good works’. Ephesians 2:8,9 says “For by grace have you been saved by faith. And that, not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works. Lest any man should boast. (KJV) You and I can be saved only by confessing our sins and placing our faith in God’s son, Jesus Christ who died and paid for our sins on the cross. We must also surrender our life to His lordship… placing him in charge of every area of our life because we now belong to him. You may ask, “How do I know God hears me?” Look at Romans 10:13, 3 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” God promises that “to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (Jn 1:12 NIV) Yes, God does hear and accept ALL who come to put their faith in Him. There is no need to fear death any longer because Jesus BROKE the power of death on the cross with his own blood. The price has been paid in full and it is God’s promise to receive all who come to him by placing their faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Bob, Jesus said that He is the ONLY way to heaven and to The Father. If you have not surrendered to Him and asked Him to come into your heart, you will spend eternity separated from Him. Don’t let this happen. Repent and surrender. How long is eternity? In the hinterlands of Pomerania, there is a mountain made of the hardest diamond. Its one hour deep into the earth, one hour up toward the sky, one hour long and one hour wide. To this mountain comes a little bird, once every hundred years, to sharpen its beak. And when this bird has worn away the whole mountain, the first second of eternity has passed. I pray that my words reach a soft and open heart. If I did not love you I could have very easily ignored all and simply allowed you to start your eternity without these words of love. I pray that if you have strength that we can write occasionally. With love, Paul Everyone has a BOB in their life. Dont let them get away before you share The Gospel with them............
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 00:43:03 +0000