Daily Devotional for Thursday June 9, 2016
The World Mourns for Boxing Great Muhammed Ali
(2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Luke 16:19-31)
***DAILY PERSONAL PRAYER FOR YOU: Dear Lord, I know I have only one life, one life to live for you. This is my moment in human history. Please Lord, let me make the most if it. Use my life to do great things for you as I surrender it afresh to you each morning. When I take my last breath, let there be no regrets, no sadness, that I didn't use my life fully for your Glory! In the name of Jesus I pray...AMEN!
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, the greatest boxer of all time Ali, is now in hell for eternity!”
As the world mourns the passing of boxing great Muhammed Ali, the real mourning should be over the fact Ali chose to put his faith in the lie of Islam and died without Christ meaning he is now and forever in the fires of hell! As world renown as Ali was, as great an boxer as he was, the reality is when he took her last breath Friday and passed into eternity he stood before Almighty God. God was not impressed with his boxing career or all of the good works he did throughout his life.
Like each person who dies, the only thing God cared about was if Muhammed Ali knew Jesus as her personal Savior!!!
Some people may feel this is a very cold Devotional. Quite the opposite. It is because we have a generation of gutless pastors that I MUST share this message with you today. What I am sharing with you today is the most important issue in life, and one that needs to be discussed since death is a very real part of our life, and something each person reading these words today will experience in the future.
The Bible clearly tells us that tomorrow is promised to none of us. The fact is, the moment we take our last breath we will stand before God. At that instant, there is only one thing that will matter and that is whether you have accepted Jesus Christ into your heart and life by faith. At that moment, those who have accepted Him will be forever with God their Creator, those who have rejected Him will be forever separated from God their Creator.
It is impossible for us with our finite minds to even begin to comprehend the glory of Heaven, being with God our Creator for eternity. Likewise, it is impossible for us to even begin to imagine the horrors of Hell, being separated from God our Creator for eternity.
HELL IS NOT A BAD VACATION, IT IS ETERNAL SEPARATION FROM GOD YOUR CREATOR AND THERE ARE NO WORDS THAT COULD EVER DESCRIBE THAT HORROR!!!
The Bible, which is our final authority in ALL matters is very clear on death. It is final. There is no such thing as reincarnation, we are not coming back as a petunia. We don't die and go to some special place where people can pray us into Heaven over time. The moment we die our body is no longer of any use and our soul lives on for eternity, either forever with God, or forever separated from Him. That eternal destination is determined by only ONE THING, our relationship with Jesus Christ.
Being a member of a certain church CANNOT save you. Being baptized as a baby CANNOT save you. The faith of your parents CANNOT save you. Good works CANNOT save you. A pastor or priest simply praying over you while you are dying CANNOT save you. The ONLY THING that can save you is putting your faith in Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. It is a choice, a conscious choice, that YOU and YOU ALONE have to make BEFORE you die.
Sadly, based on his freewill choice, Muhammed Ali rejected faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible also tells us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." You see my friend, it is our SIN that separates us from a Holy and Righteous God, and why only faith in Jesus Christ, who paid for our sins can allow us to be reconciled to God. Taylor did many good works throughout her life. However, the Bible tells us in Ephesians 2:8,9 that good works will not save you.
No doubt a man as well traveled as Muhammed Ali, he had to come across many people over the years that shared with him that faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to Heaven. Only God knows our heart, and only God knows if at some point at the very last moments of his life Ali made a commitment to Christ. But let me reiterate, as great of a life as he lived, as loved as he was, it all meant nothing the moment he died!
I have no doubt that somewhere in the world, within a few minutes of the passing of Ali, a man that had accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior also died. This man was not known by the world, he did not have great wealth, but death is the great equalizer. If Ali died without Christ, this man that was known and loved by the world, this man that had all the wealth this world could offer, was instantly cast into eternal darkness.
At the same time, the man who DID know Jesus as her Savior by faith, who had no fame or fortune in this life, was instantly ushered into the presence of Almighty God for eternity. "What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, but lose his soul?" (Luke 16:19-31)
I love you and care about you so much. Being a famous person in this life does NOT guarantee you anything when this brief journey is over. Each person is responsible for their own eternal destination by their choice in regard to Jesus Christ. You see, it was Jesus that died on a cross 2,000 years ago for your sins and mine. That is why ONLY faith in Jesus can save you.
If right now, this very moment, you do not have the assurance that when your life is over, you will be forever with God, the Bible says that TODAY is the day of salvation. You never have to doubt or wonder again, Bow your head right now, ask God to open your heart, and read the words at this following link: http://www.liveprayer.com/plan.cfm
I will be praying for you as you make the most important decision that you will make in this life, where you will spend eternity!
***As we are 9 days into June, we still have the final $30,000 of our May operations to take care of in addition to the $65,000 we require for our June internet and TV operations.
Please take a few minutes today and pray about helping me with a gift today or by the end of the week towards these needs. If you can send a gift of $10,000 or more and could take the extra effort to wire the funds or deposit them directly to our Wells Fargo account, or if you could FedEx your gif, I will be happy to give you the information you need. Of course you can always put your gift on your credit card or through Paypal.
I refuse to back down or allow a few dollars to stop our efforts for the Kingdom. Now more than ever as you see the upheaval and unrest, the non-stop events both in our nation and around the world, .the time is indeed very short and we have our greatest opportunity to not just see souls won for Christ, but a legitimate opportunity to turn this nation back to God and His Truth!
God has used your faithfulness over the years and that of many others to use this ministry to impact tens of millions of lives worldwide. .He has always moved on the hearts of a few at critical times to send a major gift to help me. Please pray about making the sacrifice today and allow God to use you. Remember, His blessings flow from our obedience!
Please don't assume someone else will do what God is calling you to do!
***To make a special gift to Liveprayer, you can send your gift to Liveprayer on your major credit card at our website www.liveprayer.com under the "Donation" button, or you can give from your PayPal account by using my email address, bkeller@liveprayer.com , or you can mail it to: Liveprayer, 6660 46th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, Florida 33709. All gifts to Liveprayer are 100% tax deductible.
Thank you for your love, prayers, and sacrifices to help me. Together we are making a major difference in hearts and lives each day. Know that you and your family are in my prayers each day as we press on towards the prize!!!
In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller