Reading your Bible for Today September 30

September 30: John 3:18-21

Key Verse: John 3:21
But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.

Devotion:
It is true that each of us has a choice as to what we are going to do with our lives. Those choices may not seem like fair choices because we either choose to follow others rules, or follow our own rules. But it is not the here and now which we should be concerned about – and we seem not to be, until it is too late!

We have been reminded many times (such as in Mark 13:33) that we do not know when Christ is going to return. So if we know not, then we need to be prepared right now! And in order to be prepared, we need to know what is in store for us in the future. Christ explains it in fairly simple terms, we are either not condemned or we are condemned! That gives us a fairly simple choice to make because it is black or white!

It is that first choice which many find hardest to take – to be able to put the world behind them and to step forward into the arms of Christ. We have a hard time letting go of our surroundings because we have built up what we think is a safe surrounding. We don't want to leave those safe surroundings because we think by leaving them we will fall into deeper problems... but what can be any deeper than being condemned by Christ! For as long as we continue to hide in the darkness, we fool ourselves into believing we are safe from our surroundings... just because we cannot see them!

This is why we have our Bibles – so we can gain an insight into what is there waiting and lurking where we cannot see. We not only start to realise what is there that we should be afraid of, but what is there which we can rejoice in! Once we find out the difference in the world around us with and without Christ, we can seek the truth (Christ) and put our faith and trust in Him – thereby gaining access to everlasting life. So the only way to make sure we are ready is to open our eyes to the truth and grab hold of all of it with Christ's help!

Points to Ponder:
What do your friends do that scares you?

Are you ready for Christ's return?