Romans 3:23 - "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death"

One scripture tells us that no one has lived a perfect life and the other tells us what our just payment will be for our crime - death.

Since no one I've ever known has escaped physical death I wouldn't waste time arguing about degrees of sinfulness, after all everyone's getting the same payment - death. We may not have any control over our first death (physical) but we do have control over our second death (spiritual). So the question is not in regard to the degree of our sinfulness, the real question is: where do you want to spend eternity?

THE COURTROOM PARABLE
(Romans 2:16 This will take place on the day when God will judge men's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.")

I have no doubt that our final day of judgement will mirror that which we are highly familiar with in our own court systems.

You are in the final courtroom of life and you have come before God to be judged. Satan confidently marches in followed by several people pulling wheel carts straining under the weight of boxes stuffed full of papers. The boxes are delivered to the front of the Judge's bench and Satan smugly states that he would like to submit them as proof of all the sins that you have committed during your earthly life.

God, already aware of every item on the list, looks to you and asks, "what do you have to say for yourself child?" Standing in the presence of God's Holiness you know full well you can't fool Him - even your own soul screams "guilty".

Will you be making a feeble attempt to defend yourself or will Jesus be your defense attorney?

If you will be defending yourself there's not much you can stand on. You can't tell the judge how he will run his courtroom, and you sure can't rewrite the laws while you're standing there. It is what it is. You are responsible for the full weight of the punishment that will be handed down.

Ideally you want Jesus to defend you and you can have that if you prepare prior to your physical death. On the day of judgment be able to say: "God during my earthly life I believed in my heart that your son Jesus died for me and I made it personal when I asked Him into my heart, therefore I claim Jesus as my defender and His death on the cross as payment for the sins recorded in those boxes."

Because what you want to hear in return is: Well done good and faithful servant. Since you accepted for yourself what my Son did on the cross He has paid your debt. Come my precious child, enter into my Kingdom and live eternally.

Have you prepared yourself for this unavoidable moment in time that has eternal consequences?

I use to ponder that statement before I had a personal relationship with Christ. The answer was completely solidfied when what I read about Christ became more than words on a page for me - I experienced it. The answer is found in the parable of being a parent.

Webster defines Hell as: a realm of the devil in which the damned suffer everlasting punishment; a place or state of torment or destruction.

The Bible's definition: In Rev 20:15 Hell is called "a lake of fire" and is also referred to as the "second death".
Rev. 21:8 continues with "their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death".

So Actually a loving God would PROVIDE A WAY OUT of this very real state or place of torment.

A loving God doesn't want to see those He loves go to Hell any more than a loving parent would want to see their children receive the death penalty. As parents we instruct, guide, encourage and discipline our children in order to secure their safety and maturity. We want them to be prepared for what life is going to be like. God provides us with His instruction manual (The Holy Bible) because He wants us to be equipped and knowledgeable. He informs, instructs and warns in order to prepare us for what life is going to bring our way.

Earthly parents or a heavenly parent, we know that if our children choose to do things their own way and they do not follow the advice or examples set before them, then we are left to stand by, brokenhearted and crushed, as our beloved receive payment for their actions and decisions.

Make no mistake about it, God desires that everyone accept His gift and no one go to Hell (Matthew 18:14 "your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost")

How did God provide a way out of Hell? Through the sacrifice of His one and only son Jesus. (John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.")

You might think that you do not experience parables yet everyone does. Start with what you do for a living. Maybe you're a stay at home parent and your primary job is a mom or dad. What is it about your relationship with your children that mirrors the relationship that Christ has or wants to have with you?

If you're still not sure that you experience parables drop me a comment and share with me just one of the many titles that you fulfill: i.e. mother, daughter, sister, aunt, co-worker, wife etc. OR husband, friend, coach, brother, uncle, mentor etc.

Your job description is an easy way to start deciphering parables that are unfolding all around you. There are other parables that take a little more fine tuning. Here are 3 analogies that we pass off as ordinary moments in our day, yet because they reveal a little glimpse into heaven they are parables. These 3 reveal things about our relationship with Christ.

#1 Driving down the road in your vehicle: As the driver you can't afford to be distracted. If you are distracted from your focus it could cost you dearly. If you stray outside the boundaries set for your safety you will experience anything from minor dings and dents to a hospital stay or even death.

The parable: Jesus loves you dearly and he desires that you stay within his boundaries not because he wants to limit you but rather because his number one concern is your safety. If we take our focus off him and we drift outside his boundaries we suffer; be it things like: unprosperous prayer life, increased stress, depression or even death.

#2 The seasons of each year: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter - it is a cycle of renewal, prime, waning and death (kindly termed as hibernation). In almost every situation of existence: globally, nationally, with our government, economics, life, relationships etc. we can see this pattern played out in the big picture as well as in the details of our personal lives. We see it in our year, month, week, day and sometimes we see all four stages in one hour.

The parable: It can be the same with the phases of our relationship with Christ. Renewal is when we first accept Christ as our personal Savior, we move on to prime when we are actively seeking God and our relationship is strong and growing. We experience waning (loss of the connection) if we drift away from praying, talking and spending time with God. We experience a death like season in our life when we are no longer trying to please God and we live in unrepented sin. The good news with Christ is that he is the God of second chances and we can quickly get back to the renewal stage if we repent and seek him again.

#3 A spider web covered corner: What do you think it took for this corner to achieve this condition? Was it neglected, forgotten and overlooked. All three I'm sure but it defiantly was not a priority.

The parable: When we neglect ourselves, our relationships or our jobs they end up dusty, forgotten and in bad condition. It is the same when it comes to our personal relationship with God. If we're not actively seeking Christ on a daily basis by reading his word, going to his house or talking with him daily, then it's hard to maintain a connection. You fall away from the relationship.

Now you that you have some examples you're ready to decipher parables in your own life! God's trademark is taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary!
Let me know what you think - I'm allears

What does a tantrum throwing snotty nosed brat have to do with my personal relationship with Christ?

I call him Booger Boy - it's not a pretty visual but it keeps me humble. He was 5 years old and quite the challenge. His father, an older brother of 16 and he were camping right next to us. My oldest son (13 at the time) along with more than 1000 other motocross riders were taking part in the week long National event. Because of the level of competition my nerves were already strained plus in the midst of the National event the Lord had been speaking to me about a certain area of my life that needed change and I was fighting the change. I heard him loud and clear but I was in turmoil, very uncomfortable with His request because it would disrupt to much of my comfort zone. I tried tears, excuses and complaints but to no avail He would not let up.

Each time we left our camper to socialize or compete etc. we'd come back and Booger Boy would be in our motor home eating or playing with the gadgets, at one point he had a lighter that we use for our grill and he was lighting the bottom of the trash bag that was anchored to the awning of the camper. My patience were further tried because every time I saw him his face was filthy and his nose was running with green and yellow snot. Time and time again I passionately stated my "cover all" rule: "You are not allowed over here when we are not here" - but to no avail. I lost track of the number of times he was at our motor home pulling out things and generally trashing the place.

The moment that all things came to a head was when we rounded the front of the motor home, he had been in our exterior storage bin and retrieved an ax that he now had poised over his head. With his lips pressed tight he started the full force downward motion to chop the piece of wood that his two tiny feet held in place. On the verge of passing out my fear took over but translated into anger. I no longer showed any patience with him nor pity for his stature. The stubborn five year old dressed in snot and dirt was now making mud pies on his cheeks.

At the peak of my melt down I was stunned to see him with the eyes of my heart. I went silent. The Holy Spirit allowed me to see him as a mirror image of myself because my spiritual defiance looked no different to Christ.

I had been struggling against Christ because I did not want to do what He was telling me to do yet it was for my good, my safety. In God's eyes I was not a pretty sight. I'm just grateful that God's mercies are new every day and that He is far more patient and forgiving than I will ever be.

Everyone experiences parables in their lives what is yours? What is it about your life that mirrors a truth about the Kingdom of God? Leave me a comment and let me know, I"m allears!

The Bible speaks in great depth of God's hand in all that we know, therefore it would be safe to say that he is in the very pores of creation. If it happened in the Bible it is still happening today. Let's take a look at parables.

The parables of the Bible have two elements that are still present today: #1 a common occurrence with #2 a deeper meaning revealing things about the Kingdom of God.

When God told a parable he used a familiar situation that was common to their culture. i.e. farming, a bridal celebration, a defiant child etc. We are familiar with those examples but modern day parables for us are more unique and intimate to the way we live our individual lives. Heaven is reverberated in our daily schedules - parables are unfolding constantly and just like the people in the Bible we must tune our eye and ear to the deeper meaning.

If you read any book, attend seminars, talk with people they use analogies. An analogy becomes a parable when a truth about Heaven is revealed.

The God of the Holy Bible is not a dusty old religion. He appeals to us as the individuals we are - after all he was the one who created us as unique human beings.

4/2/06 - a snotty nosed brat parable