Victory247

“There was a rich man who lived in luxury. At his gate was a poor man named Lazarus who died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side (Heaven). The rich man also died. In Hell he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ Abraham replied, “between us and you is a great chasm, so that those who want to go across cannot. He answered, ‘Then I beg you to send Lazarus to my family to warn them of this place of torment.’”  Luke 16:19-28 

Jesus is telling a story about two men who died. I think one was rich and one was poor to illustrate that what we have in this lifetime doesn’t compare to what we have in eternity. I know He wasn’t condemning wealth and condoning poverty. He just used that to help drive home the point.

I was watching a show call “Beyond Scared Straight”. They take kids who are on the road to going to prison someday. The program starts out showing these kids thinking that going to prison wasn’t that big of a deal, so they didn’t care that their wreckless behavior of fighting, stealing, drugs, and truancy could lead to the State Penn.

These kids are taken to an actual prison. They go through the whole process, and get “talked to” by the inmates and employees. During the course of the show you can see the kids go from cocky to completely intimidated and afraid. At the end they show them back home with a whole new outlook on life. They started going to school again, staying out of trouble, and one kid even used his artistic abilities instead of doing graffiti.

If God, Jesus and heaven are real, then hell is real. Thinking about hell at times can actually give us a better perspective on our lives and how we use our time. If you are unsure of your eternal destiny, read “Start the Victory” atop victory247.org. If you are concerned for another, show it to them. It could change a life and an eternity for someone.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Heavenly Father, thank You for rescuing me from a horrible torment. Use me to lead others to Your gift of heaven. Make my life a blessing. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.