Give ‘em Heaven!
What does it mean to “give ‘em heaven?” Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount was his message from his Heavenly Father to give ‘em heaven. In the world around us, the message is, “give ‘em hell.” The devil, the god of this world, has blinded the eyes of those who are under the control of the power of darkness…. Those who do not have the gift of the holly spirt and are under the power of sin, death, condemnation, and hell. To counter the darkness and sin and death, God gave us his light in Christ… He gave us righteousness and life through his son’s payment for our debt of sin. Jesus Christ did not come into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.
Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount was summarized by the apostle Paul in Romans 12: “recompense to no man evil for evil. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Therefore, love your enemies, bless them that persecute you and despitefully use you. If they slap you on one cheek to shame you, then turn the other cheek. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ… for it is the power of God unto salvation, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile.
Love is the fruit of the spirit that is cultivated by abiding in the vine… in joining ourselves in proximity to our Lord Jesus Christ. For he is the vine, we are the branches, and our life is hid with Christ in God.
Do you measure your worth by how many you’ve led to Christ? Pete’s church encouraged him to share the gospel. Pete took this assignment to heart. He stopped by the 7-Eleven late one night to pick up some bread for his wife. The cashier was the only other person in the store. Intent on sharing the gospel Pete said to her, “If you died today, where would you spend the rest of eternity?” In a panic, she opened the cash register and bills and coins spilled out on the floor. Pete suddenly realized the cashier thought she was being robbed. He threw some money on the counter for the bread, ran to his car, and left before she could call the police.
Matthew 24 says that in this world there will always be wars and rumors of war. However, the song from Casting Crowns says, The world is not falling apart, it’s falling into place. Everything is unfolding according to God’s plan… he is still sovereign overall. Nothing surprises God… there is nothing that he didn’t see coming.
There is so much confusion in this world. The devil’s ploy is to divide and conquer… to separate our hearts from God’s heart. However, Jesus Christ came to reconcile our hearts with God’s heart. When Jesus saw the multitudes, his heart was filled with compassion… they were under subjection to the troubles of this world… they were beaten down by the enemy’s onslaught in the spiritual battle.
Jesus said, I always do my Father’s will. What was his Father’s will? Jesus came to open the eyes of those born blind, to bind up the wounds of them that have been bruised, to heal the broken hearted… to set at liberty those who are held captive by sin and death… to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Jesus Christ is the one who reconciles… he links heaven and earth… he reaches down with nail-pierced hands and says, come unto me all ye who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest… the rest is in salvation.. in the saving grace of God… not because of who we are, but because of who God is… For by grace are ye saved by faith, and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of works lest any man should boast.
Jesus said to his disciples, I have to leave so that the Holy Spirit will come. He will lead you to the all-truth. He said, the works that I do shall ye do, and greater works shall ye do because I go unto my Father. The greater works is salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Jesus Christ paid the price of our debt of sin… for he who was without sin was made the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in him.
Abiding in Christ is to be attached to the vine.. to be salt and light, we must abide in the truth of the Word of God and walk in the light as he is in the light… then the blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
In order to give ‘em heaven, Jesus said, treasure treasures in heaven and not treasures upon earth, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed three times, Father, if there be any other way, let this cup of wrath… of sin, death, and separation pass from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done. His Father’s will is not revealed in the gospels. God’s answer to Jesus’ prayer is in Hebrews 12: Jesus Christ for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame (of the wrath of God, of sin, death, and the power of the grave) and is set down on the right hand of the throne of Grace. The joy that was set before Jesus was his Father’s business…. Your redemption and mine. His joy was the joy of our salvation.
What does it mean to give ‘em heaven? It means to set others free from the bondage of sin and death. For Jesus said, if the son has set you free, you shall be free indeed. Therefore according to 2 Corinthians 5, we are ambassadors for Christ. As his emissaries, his non-secret agents, Our mission and our commission is to deliver a peace treaty from our home in heaven to a world lost in sin…. “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Cor. 5:20-21)
This is what it means to give ‘em heaven…. To build a bridge through our Lord Jesus Christ that ye may be reconciled to God…
…. That we may forever live to the praise of the glory of His grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael
