Romans 5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
This passage of scripture brings vividly to light the genius and the benefits of Christ's life and sacrifice for us, and we are thereby encouraged to partake freely of God's salvation while we have opportunity to do so. The apostle Paul, writing under the influence of The Holy Spirit declares that wherever sin proliferated, grace did much more abound, and this grace can be accessed by any and everyone, because of Christ's righteousness, and also because of His death. The disobedience of Adam in the garden of Eden plunged all of his posterity into a state of sin, rebellion and alienation, as it pertains to our relationship with God, and because of this it became necessary for Christ to pay the penalty of the law, so that we may once again be reinstated to the divine favor.
For centuries the gospel has been preached, and God has stretched out His hands in loving entreaty, pleading with the sinner to return from a life of sinful pleasures and fantasies to live a life that would be a glory to his Maker and a blessing to humanity. In words of solemn pathos, God has called to us through His prophets and servants, proclaiming the day of grace as it still exists for all who will accept Christ. But His gracious offers are gradually winding down to a close, and because of this, an urgent appeal is now being made to all those who have been influenced and deceived by the poisonous drafts of Babylon, to run for our lives while the door of escape is still open. Let's read:
Revelation 18:1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. 2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. 3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. 4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
This call is the final one to be given to the inhabitants of the earth, and God has promised a tremendous outpouring of His Holy Spirit to meet the emergency. The reason for the "Latter rain", as it is commonly referred to, is to enlighten the minds of all concerning the great issues that are at stake, and the decisions that are to be made, in order that we may be aligned with the kingdom of light or the kingdom of darkness. It is the will of God that as many as hear and believe should be delivered from the coming cataclysmic battle of Armageddon, and the need for a decision is duly emphasized in the scripture, for our eternal destiny ultimately hangs upon the choices we make. Let's read:
Joel 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down" ..... "for their wickedness is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. 15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. 16 The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people" ....
It is therefore incumbent upon us to be wise, and choose life by turning to God with all our hearts whilst God's day of grace still lingers. One of the most successful of satan's temptations is to get us to put off for tomorrow, that which we should do today, and because of this many golden opportunities slip us by, including those which pertain to salvation. Our day of grace can close very suddenly without any prior warning, as it took place with the many who died on September 11, and more recently in France, during those horrific terrorist attacks. That's why we end this presentation with an appeal from the God of heaven to us, not to delay our day of grace, but to act immediately upon it by surrendering our lives to Christ that we may be saved. Let's read:
Hebrews 3:7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, 8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. 10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. 12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. 13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; 15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts".
May God add His blessing to the study and practice of His every word. God bless!