I grew up eating trash can omelets, my daddy’s way of cleaning out the refrigerator. We just called them omelets. During college, our late night study group frequented a local diner where I discovered the name on a menu. Somewhat less original, Tupperware included a recipe on their website for “Clean Out-the-Fridge” Veggie Strata – Tupperware Brand that is actually very good. As the lone veggie lover in my family, I struggle with having on hand the things I enjoy while not letting anything spoil.
Fresh produce, the most perishable items in my refrigerator, often gets overlooked because of the convenience of the crisper drawers. Something meant to save my fruits and vegetables is actually largely responsible for their demise. How much is modern religion, especially what is readily available via technology 24/7, doing the same? The world is more linked yet more isolated than ever. Saving faith that is lived out daily by people who love the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind and strength and love their neighbors as themselves as Jesus commanded thrives in Christian community and it is not meant to be hidden away even for a minute. It must be shared with the world. “Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)
“Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.
And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””
Matthew 28:18-20 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.28.18-20.NLT
“John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
(Jesus promised every true believer the filling of the Spirit and the book of Acts highlights how God kept the promise even among Gentile believers.)
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.
And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.””
Acts of the Apostles 1:5, 8 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/act.1.8.NLT
These are our marching orders in Christ. When we surrender our lives to our Commander in Chief, for this is the essence of Lordship, we acknowledge Jesus before men as we take up our cross daily and follow Him. (Matthew 10:32, Luke 9:23) Since He determined beforehand when and where we should live, (Acts 17:26 NIRV) then your Jerusalem and mine is wherever you find yourself today but it does not end there. It continues on to the ends of the earth and the end of the age, and we have the promise of His presence with us always. Would you sit idly by as roughly 121 souls leave this world in the next minute? That translates to over 174,000 per day and 63.6 million this year alone. This is reality. It is not a scare tactic for I assure you that though many of these souls belong to Christ by faith, many reject Him outright and will perish apart from a saving knowledge of Him.
God appointed Ezekiel as a prophet to the people of Israel already in exile in Babylon as well as those who remained behind in Jerusalem. He was to at once warn and encourage them as a watchman on the city wall would during battle and God gave him a powerful visual reminder of the seriousness of his task.
“After seven days the Lord gave me a message.
He said, “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel.
Whenever you receive a message from me, warn people immediately.
If I warn the wicked, saying, ‘You are under the penalty of death,’ but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins.
And I will hold you responsible for their deaths.
If you warn them and they refuse to repent and keep on sinning, they will die in their sins.
But you will have saved yourself because you obeyed me.
If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die.
And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins.
None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths.
But if you warn righteous people not to sin and they listen to you and do not sin, they will live, and you will have saved yourself, too.””
Ezekiel 3:16-21 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/ezk.3.16-21.NLT
“Then he added, “Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first.
Listen to them carefully for yourself.
Then go to your people in exile and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’
Do this whether they listen to you or not.””
Ezekiel 3:10-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/ezk.3.10-11.NLT
Our great commission issued by our Lord Jesus to go into all the world and preach the gospel is no less serious. His command also stands whether they listen or not. The responsibility for sharing the good news falls on me and I will answer to Holy God for failure to take His instructions seriously. God requires obedience of His disciples. For too long we have focused solely on God’s love and mercy without acknowledging His sovereign authority. I want to draw attention to Peter’s choice of words as he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. (II Peter 1:20-21, II Timothy 3:16-17) I am intentionally including three separate translations in order to focus in on the inherent truth in this teaching without casually reading through it.
“The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think.
No, he is being patient for your sake.
He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”
2 Peter 3:9 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2pe.3.9.NLT
“The Lord is not slow to keep his promise.
He is not slow in the way some people understand it.
Instead, he is patient with you.
He doesn’t want anyone to be destroyed.
Instead, he wants all people to turn away from their sins.”
2 Peter 3:9 NIRV
https://bible.com/bible/110/2pe.3.9.NIRV
“The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”
2 Peter 3:9 AMP
https://bible.com/bible/1588/2pe.3.9.AMP
Peter does not say it is not God’s desire for any to perish but for all to come to salvation. We understand that in Christ, this is of course what God is offering, both in this world and the next and His offer stands as long as this life lasts but Peter is explicit. God wants repentance. So what is repentance? Repentance is not merely regret or remorse. Repentance involves turning away from sin and specifically turning toward God with our hearts and minds and continuing toward Him, laying aside every encumbrance including the sin which so easily entangles us. (Hebrews 12:1) Jesus said to His first followers, “If you love me, obey my commands.“ (John 14:15) James, half-brother of Jesus, son of Joseph and Mary, while preaching against favoritism, gave us a good word about faithful obedience to God.
“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions?
Can that kind of faith save anyone?
Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing.
What good does that do?
So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough.
Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.”
But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds?
I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.
Good for you!
Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.
How foolish!
Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.”
James 2:14-20, 26 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jas.2.14-26.NLT
Good works do not earn salvation. That argument strikes me as simply a way of avoiding the idea of repentance and owning sin. Good works are purely evidence of faith when they are done as unto the Lord and as an outpouring of His Spirit’s work in me.
“God saved you by his grace when you believed.
And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.
Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
For we are God’s masterpiece.
He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/eph.2.10.NLT
“Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.
For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”
Philippians 2:12-13 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/php.2.13.NLT
“You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts.
Use them well to serve one another.
Do you have the gift of speaking?
Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you.
Do you have the gift of helping others?
Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies.
Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ.
All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.”
1 Peter 4:2, 10-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1pe.4.2-11.NLT
“And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God.
And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ.
He is the only true God, and he is eternal life.
Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.”
1 John 5:20-21 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1jn.5.20-21.NLT
John 3:16 https://youtu.be/Kqfyu7bTrPA?si=PsU3xVG5dK9Fjk8H
The Commission ~Cain https://youtu.be/XkJniP87XdQ?si=CWRIdupbIT3GjFR9
The Great Commission https://youtu.be/SMAr9OkhokY?si=-VDjv4gAbIGvTm3Q
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