Paul Washer - The Truth About Salvation

Eternal Perspective – Infrared Goggles [Revised]

Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Philippians 3:17-21

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

1 Corinthians 4:16-18

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

Colossians 3:1-3

The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.

1 Peter 4:7

Beloved, we are citizens of heaven, and not of this world. We belong to a heavenly kingdom, not the kingdom of this world.

As of late I’ve been feeling quite convicted regarding these passages. It seems as though we, the church in North America, have either not understood or not accepted these truths. These are few of countless passages in the Bible that express the same principle: Time is short and we should be spending our lives on what is eternal/important, not what is temporary.

Do we believe what God has said about our time and our purpose here on earth? If we did, would we spend countless hours sitting in front of an electricity powered piece of plastic and glass? Would we spend these precious hours in life reading empty and worthless pieces of tree with ink on them? Would we pump our ears full of empty and meaningless waves of sound? Would we waste our time rolling plastic cubes and moving little figurines around a piece of cardboard? Would we invest countless hours in our week in order to attain pieces of paper that will help us improve our “quality of life”? Consider what Peter wrote in his second letter to the churches in Asia:

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.

2 Peter 3:10-12

All of our pieces of paper and plastic and cardboard are going to be destroyed. What have I done with all of the time that I’ve spent staring at a piece of plastic and glass?! All that time is irredeemable. It’s gone! And it will probably amount to nothing in eternity.

Did you notice the reason that Peter gives for why the Lord appears to be slow in returning? He is patient, not wanting any to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. One reason why all our TVs and RVs and cars and boats and houses and patios and cell phones and computers are still around is because God is waiting for the salvation of lost people. Isn’t it ironic that we, the church in North America, are spending so much time with these temporary things to no eternal value, when the reason they haven’t been destroyed yet is because God is waiting for people?

How we have missed these critical verses which say, “Since everything will be destroyed this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.”

Beloved, our lives ought to be focused on two things and two things alone: God and people. Everything else destined to destruction; All of God’s law is summed up in two commands: Love God and love your neighbor (Matt. 22:37).

Several times I’ve heard the reasoning, “Well, there’s nothing wrong with spending my time in this particular activity.” Where did we ever get the idea that we should decide how to spend our time by whether it’s wrong or not? We’ve been asking the wrong question! We should not be asking “is this wrong for me to spend my time on?” (negative); we should be asking, “is this the best way to spend my time?” and “is this the right way to spend my time?” (positive). This is a wide application of what Paul is talking about when he says, “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial” (1 Cor. 6:12); “Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive. No one should seek his own good but the good of others” (1 Cor. 10:23-24).

There are two things that are eternal to which we are called to give our lives to: God and people. Jesus life is the perfect example; His whole life, ministry, and mission were centered on his Father and the people he came to save. And his parables tell us to keep watch and to be at work for when he returns.

There’s a subtle lie that has crept into the church’s thinking and it’s called “You need to take time for yourself.” No you don’t. You were called to die to yourself (Mk. 8:34-36). Lie # 2: “But if I don’t take time for myself to rest, I’ll get burned out and be ineffective for God.” Yet Jesus has said, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28 emphasis mine) and has modeled very well for us what it means to rest in God and to take time alone with the Father. Our rest is supposed to be had in God, not in distracting ourselves from the pressure of life with temporary pieces of glass and plastic and metal.

One of the most dangerous statements there is with regard to how we spend our time is this: “God has given us these things for our enjoyment.” It’s true that everything that has been given to us has been given by God. But none of these things was ever meant to distract us from the One who gave them and his purpose for our lives. God hasn’t called us to live a life void of pleasure. But with regards to our time, we, the church in North America, daily trade the greatest pleasure of knowing and living in relationship with God and working for him in people’s lives, for the infinitely inferior things of this world (which by implication are not of the world to come).

Some may suggest that we have been given these things as the means by which we can rest in God. Again, we need to be cautious. Are we satisfied to rest in God alone? Do we expect these things in order to rest? Have we fallen in love with the gifts? Are they distracting us from more meaningful communion with the Giver?

The practical outworking of this truth is far less cut and dry which is probably a reason that we struggle to accept it and live it. This is how I challenge you to apply it:

Spend your life on God and people. Orient everything else in your life around these two. Then what are the temporary things and the means you must use to accomplish God’s purposes for your life? Every waking moment of your life ought to be focused on bringing glory to God by living in relationship with him and with people. It is my conviction that a life lived like this will bring deeper joy and satisfaction than any of the temporary pleasures of the world ever could.

Beloved, endeavor to see the world as God sees it. Just like infrared goggles (used in military) are programmed to let you see only things that give off heat. Put on your eternal perspectacles which enable you to see what emanates with eternal value and what is entirely void of it.

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 6:19-21

Come, Follow me!

When for the fifth or sixth time I found myself glued to chess tactics server online, chess set set in front of me, chess books opened all around me, scribbling furiously in my chess notebook; not having said much to God and having spent little time with him in several days; I knew I had a problem. For those of you who know me from high school or PRBI, you know how much enjoy playing chess. But these last few days there have been several moments where I have gone off the deep end!

Coming to this realization started with a concert believe it or not. David Nasser spoke at the Starfield concert here in Regina and his message could hardly have been more pointed at me. He preached on the rich young ruler in a way that I had never heard before! The thought process began in my mind when David asked the question, "Why did Jesus ask the rich young ruler to sell all his possessions?" I had always thought the answer was simply "because he struggled with the love of money."

But David challenged that flat out for me. Jesus actually asked two things of the rich young ruler, but we often miss the second one because the first one seems so important. He asked him to sell all that he owned and to come follow him.

This wasn't just some helpful advice to inherit eternal life! This was a call to be Jesus' disciple! Jesus answer to the question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life was not simply, "overcome your struggle with wealth"...it was "come be my disciple! Come follow me!"

And here is where it hit home for me...all this talk about being rich and the wealth of the rich man and selling his possessions is all there to illustrate one thing: the cost of discipleship.

What does it cost be a disciple of Jesus? What does it cost to inherit eternal life?

Everything...

Go and sell all you have (aka. give up everything; all that stuff that is now your life) and follow me. As David put it so well, Jesus doesn't just want to be another thing on your shelf or even the thing on the top shelf of your life...he wants to be your everything. That's the cost of following Jesus.

With this stewing in my mind over the last few days, it became very obvious to me that I had set up chess as an idol in my life and it was stealing what God is jealous to have in my life. When I began to think of taking a break from chess or giving it up, I met all sorts of opposition within. That's when I realized it has to go!

Now I realize that chess is not inherently evil. I realize that is something that God has given me for my enjoyment. But God hates it when we fall so in love with the gift that we forget about Him who gave it to us. I don't know when I will play chess again. But I am willing to give it up in the meantime until I can play it with confidence that I am doing out of a pure heart.

Already I felt more freedom than before. My time with God is where it should be again, uncontested! And I am more satisfied in this than any moment I had before with the chess.

I strongly encourage you (the reader) to ask yourself some of these questions. Is there anything that I am not willing to give up to have Jesus as my everything? Am I willing to pay the price of true life?

If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. Mk. 8:35-36