December 2, 2012 Jesus Loves You

Jesus Loves You Luke 16:24 “So (the Rich Man) called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’” I KNOW. You don’t need a description of Hell to inspire you. Life is troubled enough without this agonizing scene from the Good News of Luke. But maybe it is just what you and I need to be inspired. How many times have we warned someone about a danger or awful consequence if they do something wrong? “You’ll lose money if you gamble.” “Drinking and driving will kill you.” “Don’t text and drive, you’ll kill someone.” “Exercise, or you’ll get fat.” We say these things because consequences are real. We say them because we care about the people we warn. We say them, even in love, because we want our loved ones to live well. We know absolutely that if people purposely do bad things, bad things will happen to them. So, why don’t we tell people, “Believe in Jesus, or you’ll suffer the agony of unending thirst in hell?” Don’t we trust that the consequences of rejecting Jesus are really, really, really horrible? Do we think we might hurt their feelings, make them feel uncomfortable? Do we think they might not like us if we tell them the truth? The truth is, warning people about the true consequences of a life apart from Jesus is the most loving thing you can do. Are you inspired enough in your love for someone to tell them of Jesus? Do you love someone enough to point him or her to Jesus’ Heavenly promise? It’s True! Jesus loves you enough to warn you of Hell and promise you Heaven.