By Justin Edwards
teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.- Titus 2:11-14
Whether by the return of the Lord Jesus Christ or by death, our days are numbered. The question is, are you ready? Please contact me or comment below with any questions or concerns.
Do you serve the god of this world, or the One True God of the Bible?
If you serve the god of this world (Satan), the world will love you. If you serve God, the world will hate you (John 15:18-19; 1 John 3:13).
If you serve Satan, you try to serve two masters. You may profess to know God, but He takes a back seat in your priorities. Your money, your will, your control, your desires - they are your master. If you serve God, you serve Him alone (Matthew 6:24).
If you serve Satan, the idea of submitting to the lordship of Christ is repulsive to you. You desire to hold on to your sin, while receiving the benefits of salvation. You think you can receive Christ as Savior, but not as Lord. You are proud, and God resists you. If you serve God, you humble yourself before the Lord, donning the yoke of Christ, and with meekness, you commit to serving Him all the days of your life (James 4:6-10; Matthew 5:5; 11:29-30).
If you serve Satan, you love the world and the things of this world. If you love the world, the love of God is not in you. If you serve God, you hate the things of the world because you love God and His love abides in you (1 John 2:15).
If you serve Satan, you are friends of the world. This makes you an enemy of God. If you serve God, you are not conformed to this world (James 4:4; Romans 12:2).
If you serve Satan, your closest friends are of the world and they corrupt you. If you serve God, you are not yoked to unbelievers, rather, your closest friends are born again believers (1 Corinthians 15:33; 2 Corinthians 6:14).
If you serve Satan, you take pleasure in unrighteousness. You love fornication and idolatry. If you serve God, you flee sexual immorality and idolatry and you hunger and thirst for righteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:12; 1 Corinthians 6:18; 10:14; Matthew 5:6).
If you serve Satan, you do not obey the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you serve God, you obey the Gospel (1 Peter 4:17; 2 Thessalonians 1:8).
If you serve Satan, your mind is set on earthly things. If you serve God, your mind is set on heavenly things (Philippians 3:18-19; Colossians 3:1-2).
If you serve Satan, you are a slave to sin. If you serve God, you are slave to righteousness (Romans 6:17-18).
If you serve Satan, you are most concerned with the affairs and cares of this world, you seek to fulfill your fleshly desires, you love money, fornication, and drunkenness. If you serve God, you have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires (1 John 2:16; Galatians 5:24).
If you serve Satan, you walk in the flesh and are controlled by the works of the flesh. If you serve God, you walk in the Spirit and are controlled by the things of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-23).
If you serve Satan, you stand condemned as you have from the beginning. If you serve God, there is no condemnation in you (John 3:18; Romans 8:1).
If you serve Satan, you are controlled by him and he has dominion over you. If you serve God, you have been freed (2 Timothy 2:26; 1 John 5:19; Ephesians 2:2; Colossians 1:13; John 8:36).
If you serve Satan, you are blinded by him. If you serve God, He has shined His light through you (2 Corinthians 4:4-6).
If you serve Satan, you justify and/or deny your sin. You give yourself excuses to live any way you want to, and expect God to just forgive you. You call God a liar, and the truth is not in you. If you serve God, you confess your sins and He cleanses you from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:8-10).
If you serve Satan, you profess to know God but you still walk in darkness. You claim to have fellowship with God, but your lifestyle confirms otherwise. You do not practice the truth, and you are not saved, although you think you are. If you walk in the light, however, you are a child of God and have fellowship with the brethren, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ (1 John 1:5-7).
If you serve Satan, you do not keep the commandments of God or the teachings of Jesus. If you serve God, you love Him, which means you obey His commandments and teachings (John 14:15; 2 John 1:6; 1 John 2:3-5).
If you serve Satan, you hate the brethren. You have no fellowship with the brethren, for you'd rather hang out with your worldly friends. You have no actionable desire to fellowship. If you serve God, you love the brethren and seek fellowship with them (Hebrews 13:1; Hebrews 10:24-25; 1 John 3:14-15; 4:20-21).
If you serve Satan, you rely on your self-righteousness to get you to heaven. You believe good works, church attendance, tithes, and being "good enough" will ensure your eternity in heaven. If you serve God, you realize there is nothing in you that is good, no amount of good deeds can save you, and it is by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone that you are saved (Romans 3:10; Revelation 3:14-22; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:8-9).
If you serve Satan, you call Jesus Lord but you do not do what He says. If you serve God, you confess Christ as Lord and you do the will of His Father (Luke 6:46-49; Matthew 7:21-23; 12:50).
If you serve Satan, you practice sin as a lifestyle. If you serve God, you practice righteousness as a lifestyle (1 John 3:4-9).
If you serve Satan, you cannot please God and you walk in the flesh. If you serve God, you walk as Jesus walked (Romans 8:6-8; Ephesians 2:2; 1 John 2:6).
If you serve Satan, you wallow in your sin and you love your sin. If you serve God, you purify yourself as He is pure, and you become holy as He is holy (1 John 3:3; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Peter 2:15-16).
If you serve Satan, the commands of God are burdensome to you. His expectations are just to high for you. If you serve God, you love His commandments and they are not burdensome (1 John 5:2-3).
If you serve Satan, you follow his voice as a false shepherd. If you serve God, you do not follow strange voices, but you hear and know the voice of your Shepherd, and you follow Him (John 10:1-30).
If you serve Satan, you are still dead in your trespasses. If you serve God, you have been made a new creation in Christ (Ephesians 2:1; 2 Corinthians 5:17).
If you serve Satan, you may have received the Gospel with joy and continued for a time, but when trials and tribulations came, or when you desired the cares of the world, you fell away and were choked out by the pleasures of life. If you serve God, you received the Gospel with a noble and good heart, and go on to produce fruit (Luke 8:11-15).
If you serve Satan, your idea of repentance is being sorry because you got caught. Your sorrow is of your flesh, and the guilt you feel is that of feeling guilty of the consequences. If you serve God, the repentance you know is wrought from godly sorrow, for you are sorry for offending God. This causes you to hate the sin that offended Him, and by His grace, you turn from it, which leads to salvation (Matthew 5:3-4; 2 Corinthians 7:10).
If you serve Satan, you refuse to forgive those who offend you. If you serve God, you forgive everyone, no matter what they have done to you (Matthew 6:14-15; Luke 17:3-4; Ephesians 4:31-32; Colossians 3:12-13).
If you serve Satan, you hate your enemies. If you serve God, you love your enemies and bless those who persecute you (Matthew 5:21-23; 44).
If you serve Satan, you create a god in your own image, one that is not holy, just, or righteous, and one you believe is only love and will forgive you no matter what kind of lifestyle you live. This gives you license to sin and you trample on the grace of God. There is no actionable desire in you to love and serve the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength. If you serve God, you know the holiness, righteousness, and justice of God, and because He loved you first, you can love Him. You yearn to serve and love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength (Jude 1:4; Exodus 20:3-4; Psalm 45:7; Deuteronomy 10:12; 30:6; Mark 12:30; 1 John 4:17-19).
If you serve Satan, you will perish in the Lake of Fire for all eternity. If you serve God, you have eternal life (Revelation 21:8; John 17:3).
