7. What Next?

[1] This book started with the assertion that the keys to decipher the reasons for the present state of mankind and to know its future are present only in the Bible. We saw how God had created man to live forever, with happiness and peace. It was the transgression of man that brought the curse of death and suffering. Still, God did not give up on us altogether. He sent His son, Jesus Christ to pay the ransom price to justly redeem mankind by sacrificing his life in place of Adam and thereby releasing him and all of mankind from the curse of death and suffering. Every person is being given a proper chance in his or her due time to accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and prove himself or herself loyal to God and His righteous standards. His righteous standards are not like a tyrant’s whimsical rules, for how we live does not in any way affect God but they are for our own peaceful living without which mankind will sure head to destruction, sooner or later – ‘If you sin, how does that affect Him? If your sins are many, what does that do to Him? If you are righteous, what do you give to Him, or what does He receive from your hand? Your wickedness only affects humans like yourself, and your righteousness only other people’ (Job 35:6-8). Hence, disobedience and wickedness are dealt with strongly by God, only for our own long-term good. We also learnt that for all those who forego the path of wickedness, there is a glorious future waiting. In the minds of all those who have clearly understood this merciful yet just Plan of God, a love for Yahweh God and His son Jesus Christ does abound. But, what is to be done next? Where to go from here?

[2] Jesus calls the truths about the coming Kingdom of God as secrets (Read Mark 4:11). It is those secrets that we have learnt through this book. Elsewhere Jesus says that, not all but only those who are blessed will understand these secrets in the present time (Read Mark 13:11,16). What is this blessedness? It is the blessed opportunity to become the Church of God! As we saw earlier, only the Church class is being extended the opportunity to have a resurrection akin to that of Jesus himself and dwell in heaven. Nobody can enter easily into such blessed Church. In fact, the calling itself is restricted to those handpicked by God. The Bible declares unambiguously that the calling to become the Church is given only to those who have been foreordained by God (Read John 15:16 & Romans 8:29,30). The fact that this book has made you understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God indicates strongly that this calling has today come to you. It could be that the due time for you to accept the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ is now for God has chosen you!

[3] If that is the case, then what needs to be done? First and foremost, one has to decide firmly that he or she will follow the ways of Yahweh and Him alone. We encounter many religions in our world. There are countless gods and goddesses. But the Bible declares that there is only one true God and that is Yahweh: ‘Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord (Yahweh) is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other’ (Deuteronomy 4:39 & Read Isaiah 45:5). Hence, one who intends to follow Yahweh must distance himself from all other false Gods and false beliefs. Yahweh is firm that those who intend to follow Him must worship Him and Him alone (Read Deuteronomy 34:12). This is imperative. It is Yahweh who is the creator of the heavens and the earth, and hence it is useless as well as wrong to worship anyone else or anything else other than Him. One should keep in mind that doing any such thing will incur the wrath of Yahweh and result in His judgment.

[4] We then need to accept our sinful nature. As we saw earlier, we all are born with sin in our genetic makeup itself, and hence none of us is or can be perfect on our own – ‘If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us’ says the Bible (1 John 1:8). The first step to repentance is the realization that we are sinful. Without that realization, no one will know the need for forgiveness and redemption. Once we realize our sinful nature, it is then imperative that we appreciate the consequences of that realization. Because we are sinful, our present life in this world is pointless as even if we were to reach the pinnacles of fame and power, we will die one day. None can prevent it. Jesus says this succinctly – ‘What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?’ (Luke 9:25). Even the little time we live in this world is filled with suffering, pain, disease, disappointments and heartbreaks. One needs to realize that the only way one can live a meaningful life in this world is by following Jesus. One has to believe that this Jesus died and resurrected to redeem us from our sins and in his name we have forgiveness from our sins during this life itself. That is the faith of a Christian. To confirm that faith, one has to dedicate his or her life to Jesus Christ by taking baptism, which is symbolized by an immersion in water (Matthew 3:16). Once we undertake baptism, forgiveness of sins is granted to us in the name of Jesus, and we are considered a new creation by God (Read 2 Corinthians 5:17). Baptism is a covenant with God and if we abide by it till death then we will have a heavenly resurrection and rule as Kings along with Christ in the coming Kingdom of God (2 Timothy 4:8). Indeed, only a baptized life will make our present life meaningful. Think about it! We now know the Plan of God. According to it, the present lives of the rest of mankind counts to nothing as they have to resurrect in the Kingdom of God and only after they prove themselves all over again by living faithfully to God, will they get eternal life (Revelations 20:1-12). But, since the Church follows Christ now, it gets tested now itself, and those who withstand and succeed will receive not only eternal life, but also the other glories we noted before. Thus, following Christ now will not only make our present lives meaningful but also will gain us the future.

[5] What are the principles of the covenant of baptism that one has to abide by? The immersion that accompanies baptism symbolizes death. A person who gets baptized dies to the world and lives only for Christ from then on – ‘don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life’ (Romans 6:3,4). Truly, a person who undertakes baptism cannot live the old life of sin. He has to conform himself to the standards set forth in the Bible. Hence, one has to strive hard and resist sin from the day of baptism (Read 1 John 2:1,2). However, it is not as though we will not sin at all after baptism. Sin is in our flesh itself, and hence until our resurrection none of us can become completely sinless, even after our baptism (Read 1 John 1:10). (The new body which everyone will receive at resurrection will not have the stain of sin. This applies to all of mankind). Hence, we will sin at times due to our fallen flesh. But on those occasions, one has to repent immediately and ask for the forgiveness of God in the name of Jesus and in that way we can cleanse ourselves. This is the privilege and grace we have in the name of Jesus (Read 1 John 1:9). We should always bear in mind that we are sinners and we are counted worthy to serve God only because of our faith in Jesus Christ. It is only through the grace of God through Jesus Christ that we are allowed to commune with him. But we need to repent of our sinful acts. If we don’t, and continue sinning, then we will be destroyed forever i.e. an eternal death as a punishment for us breaking the baptism covenant we made with God. However, fighting sin is not the only thing we have to do. Our calling after baptism is to serve and live for God. In fact, only when we serve God, we can resist sin. How do we serve God? By preaching His message!

[6] Truly, after baptism, one needs to give utmost priority to the service of God than to the things of the world. Service to God includes meditating on His written word, the Bible, edifying His Church and also preaching the message of Christ to others. The latter is a commandment given by Christ to his Church before he left for heaven (Read Matthew 28:19,20). It is our calling. We have to fulfill this commandment until our death for mere faith without such works is dead, says the Bible (Read James 2:20). In fact, even to not get entangled by the lusts of this world, we have to live a life of Gospel. Truly, it is a pleasure and privilege to spread the message of the Gospel to others. In this path, we will encounter severe trials (Read John 15:18). They come to prune and make us mature. They also come to test the depth of our faith and the strength of our commitment to God. Even for a job in today’s world, there are tests and interviews to be passed. Hence, it is understandable that God cannot give eternal heavenly positions without proper testing. Also, it is only through these trials we all gain the practical knowledge necessary to lead and govern the world as Kings during the coming Kingdom of God. Again, those who withstand these trials and stand with God till death will receive heavenly rewards. Those who wilt under pressure and deny Christ or fail to live a life advancing the Gospel will be guilty of breaking the covenant of baptism and will receive eternal death as punishment.

[7] That Christian life is not easy is something which the Bible itself acknowledges (Read 1 Peter 4:12,13). We will face severe trials in our life for Gospel. It is also a daunting task to continue fighting the sin that is in our flesh, the schemes of Satan, and the attractions of the world. But with the help of God and Jesus we can indeed overcome the world (Read John 16:33). God also gives us His Holy Spirit which strengthens us (Read John 14:16,17). No one can deny that even the normal life we live in this world is full of despair and troubles. So, we have nothing to lose. If we struggle for God and toil for the Gospel now, we will reap rich rewards in the future (Read James 1:12). Since we have the certainty of a glorious future in Christ, we can lead a peaceful and meaningful life now without getting perturbed by the trials of the world. The peace of Christ will reign in us and will keep us away from fear and worry (Read John 14:27). That peace comes from the knowledge that a wonderful future awaits us and also the whole of mankind. Truly, our biggest fears and our deepest concerns are always about the future. Here and now we have the opportunity to secure our future for eternity. Let us embrace it with happiness. If we make use of it appropriately, eternal glory will be ours.