DON’T FORFEIT ETERNAL LIFE

Monday 24 March

For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26 (NKJV)

The most important thing anybody can attain in this life without question, is salvation in Christ. Did you know everybody is meant to receive eternal life? Sadly, not everybody will because not everyone will accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour.

‘In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,’ Ephesians 1:11

This is God’s will for everybody not just a select few. Predestination is ultimately found in God’s salvation plan for mankind not God excluding anybody. These ideas are based on incorrect teaching.

Salvation of course is an act of your will. When Jesus made this statement in Matthew 16:26 He was pointing out the futility of man’s existence devoid of eternal life. Our soul and spirit were created to live on beyond our physical body with the eternal life that we are to receive in salvation.

When a person does not receive eternal life, there is no capacity for their ‘living soul’ to be eternal. You may have been told that every soul will live forever either in heaven or hell but that is not actually what the Bible teaches.

Jesus Himself said in Matthew 10:28 ‘And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.’

This tells us the the body and the soul can be completely destroyed. Notice the words ‘destroy’ and ‘hell’. The destruction will take place when ‘death and hell are cast into the lake of fire which is called ‘the second death’.

This has not even happened yet. There is no suffering of souls for eternity. There is eventually destruction for the unsaved and eternal bliss for the saved.

So sin brought death which is seperation. What Jesus was zeroing in on however was the ‘second death’ which is destruction. How do we know this? Matthew 16:26 says ‘what would it profit a man if he gained the whole world and loses his own soul?’

The word lose is ‘zemioo’ in Greek. It does not imply a misplacement of an item but rather a casting away or rejection. The inference is to forfeit your life. In this case, you forfeit eternal salvation in Christ that was supposed to be your life beyond this world.

All the material gain you can acquire without the gift of eternal life is absolutely pointless. As I mentioned earlier, you’re only existing without this kind of life.

‘Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?’

Do you know that God is the rightful owner of every soul? He paid for it with His blood on the cross.

In Ezekiel 18:4 God says ‘all souls are mine’. We all belong to Him but we all have a choice in the matter as to whether we will appropriate His salvation by confession and belief in Jesus Christ.

When all is said and done there is no amount of money or possessions in this world that can purchase a soul that is of inestimable value and worth to God. In other words there is nothing you can give to purchase your soul.

The good news is you don’t have to. Jesus already did it 2,000 years ago and all we have to do is accept His free gift of eternal salvation and we are exempted from future destruction.

No wonder Apostle Paul said ‘I count all things but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ.’ If you have Him, you are set for life. This life and the life to come.

APPLICATION

Thank the Lord for the eternal life that has been made available to everyone through Christ and place a higher premium on spiritual blessings than on material gain.