For we know Him that hath said, "Vengeance belonged unto me, I will recompense," saith the Lord. And again, the Lord shall judge His people.  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.                                              Hebrews 10:30-31

This message is for the Christian people.  The Bible says God will judge His people. Not only is He a God of mercy, He is a God of justice also.  What’s wrong in thinking God will hold His people accountable?  Many of today’s Christians are way off base; but I want you to know God is watching. He’s not on vacation and He’s not taking a coffee break.  He is still on the throne.  You can hide things from your spouse; you can hide things from your family and friends; but you can hide NOTHING from God.  God loves us. He loves us enough to keep us in line. Without Him, there is no hope for the future.

It’s a fearful thing to fall into the hands of a living God. This means we should not so much be afraid of God, but to be very respectful of whom God is.  We must match our lives up to His way. Therefore, we must walk with Him in the full measure of grace.  You will never hear me downplay grace. Praise the Lord, grace gets you in the door of Heaven.  It enables you to talk-the-talk and walk-the-walk in the way God has chosen for His people to do.

The Bible plainly says there are repercussions for our actions.  Just as when your child gets out of line, so is God with His child.  He may warn you once; He may warn you twice; then that third time He may hold you accountable.  “Vengeance belongs unto me,” saith the Lord.

The worst advertisement for any church is what goes on inside the church.  We are supposed to act like Christians from the time we wake up in the morning until we lay our heads down at night, when we are on the job, wherever we may be and whatever we may do. To be a “just on Sunday" Christian is a mockery to God.

Acts 5:  In the early church the church was exploding. They were taking all their excess goods and selling them as offerings to the church. They brought the money and laid it at the disciple’s feet. A certain man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira had land they were not using, so they sold it and promised to give the money to the church.  After they sold it, they kept back part of their offerings.  When Ananias brought to the church his offerings, Peter asked, “Ananias, why did you sin against the Holy Ghost?”  You see, Ananias and his wife held back money they had promised to give the church.

Christians, we cannot hold back on God.  We must serve Him completely.  When you became a Christian it meant you gave your whole heart and mind to God.  You can’t serve Him only when you feel like it, go to church when you feel like it, and read His word only when you feel like it. If you are doing those things, you are holding back.  How can you be a productive Christian when you are a part-time Christian?

Ananias and Sapphire held back.  They lied to the Holy Ghost.

Preachers are fed a lot of “phooey” sometimes. One of the most used excuses we hear goes like this; “Preacher, I couldn’t go to church this morning because I was really sick.“ Yet, you ran into them at Wal-Mart that same Sunday afternoon on your way home from church.  You know how I respond to that.  “Bless your heart.” Lying to the Preacher is not the important issue; you are lying to God so that makes it an important issue.

Holding back does not make you a vessel God can use.  You are making room for the devil to enter your life.  We must always keep in mind that; we are going to be held accountable to God one day. Excuses are lies. Granted, there are some good excuses. Having a job that requires Sunday work is an acceptable excuse. I’ve seen what happens when people get out of church.

 “Wow!  Preacher, you are busting my bubble this morning!”

Well, I would rather destroy your bubble, than have you go on sinning.

We as a church need to do some soul searching.  We need to come clean.  Are we a perfect church?  No!  Far from it.  There is always room for improvement.

Sin in your past--you can’t help that and you are not held accountable for those sins if you are a Christian.  But now as a Christian, you can help what you do and you are accountable for those actions. His word says, “You will be judged by a living God.”

Matthew 5:13...We are the salt of the earth.  If salt loses its flavor what good is it?  It is good for nothing.  I don’t want to be a good-for-nothing Christian, do you?  Christians, God is holding us accountable and know this -- every eye shall see Him; every ear shall hear Him; every knee shall bow before Him and every tongue shall confess to Him.  With Him, I will take my chances. I will hook my horse to the Old Gospel Plow and go the straight and narrow way.  What about You?

Brother JR Fields........September 10, 2006.

Sermon edited by Mary King

To read excerpts from other sermons, click on this link to the
Archived Sermons Page