How To Know You Have Eternal Life

(0:00 - 0:18) Real Life presents the Jack Hibbs Podcast. With intention and boldness to proclaim truth, equip the saints, and impact our culture. You find yourself hurting yourself, so to speak, self-inflicted wounds, trying to do your life without Jesus, you don't have to do that anymore. (0:18 - 0:48) But concerning the times in which you and I live and think for a moment, God wants to deliver you instantly from sin that plagues your life. He wants to give you a new life, and He also wants to turn you on to eternity, because glory be to God, this time and this timeline is not all there is. You can get the outlines of this podcast by going to Jackhibbs.com slash podcast. (0:48 - 1:03) Today, if this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled life in Christ, then make sure you leave us one of those five-star ratings. To us, that's like saying amen or yes. Then that rating will encourage others to listen. (1:04 - 1:13) Now open your hearts to what God's word has to say to you. Here is Jack Hibbs. Regarding salvation, Jesus Christ rose from the dead. (1:13 - 1:38) Technically, what? He died on the cross and rose again from the dead for our justification, okay? What does that mean? It means Jesus died on the cross for our sins, rose again from the dead for our justification, meaning that none of our past life is no longer held accountable to us if we repent of our sins to Him. He's the great justifier. Well, what could be better than that? The next word is sanctification. (1:38 - 1:46) The moment you come to Christ, you're justified. And from that moment on, you live like you and I are living right now. It's called sanctification. (1:46 - 2:08) See, what does that mean? It means the Spirit of God every day in your life is working out more and more the image of Jesus in you. So think about you. Are you more like Jesus than you were five years ago? Are you more like Jesus than you were ten years ago? Three years ago? Think of it. (2:08 - 2:12) Because I know how it is. We all know how this is. We kind of feel like we're not growing. (2:12 - 2:17) And we get frustrated. I wish I was growing. You know your little kids. (2:17 - 2:34) You know the door. Do you guys have a door at your house that's got all the markings of your kids having grown up, and now the grandkids are doing it, carving into the wall, setting dates? You notice when you're around them all the time, you don't see them growing. They're just there. (2:36 - 2:50) But if they're gone for a month and they come back, you go, whoa! And they go, what? To them, nothing's happened. To you, a lot's happened. I think that's true regarding our spiritual growth too. (2:51 - 3:09) I think we look at each other and say, man, you should have grown up by now. Or I should have come along a little further with you. I think God someday is going to look at us and say, man, look what my spirit has done in your life with my word to the glory of my son. (3:09 - 3:14) Look how much you've grown. And you graduate. You graduate. (3:14 - 3:24) I believe this. The Bible says, precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints, his believers. I think when you and I die in this world, it's because we outlive our body. (3:24 - 3:29) It's like, you know what? Spiritually, the inside comes out too big. Time to go. I got to die. (3:29 - 3:31) I got to keep growing. I got to die. I've grown. (3:31 - 3:39) Can't go anymore. Time to go to heaven. We all walk around this world, oh, so and so died. (3:41 - 4:04) And like, what are you crying for? Are you in heaven? If we only knew, we would have hung on to her, hung on to him, and gone with him. Listen, for those of you who are followers of Jesus Christ, Jesus said you're born again by the spirit of God. Listen, this is as close to hell as we'll ever get right here. (4:04 - 4:16) This world. If you're feeling a little left out right now, then you can join us anytime now. You can believe in him, too. (4:16 - 4:25) Trust him, too. I want to read to you St. Augustine, Augustine of Hippo. I want you to hear him. (4:25 - 4:44) This is, we're going back nearly, what, 1700, 1600 years ago. Oh, tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. How can I free myself from these terrible urges within me that drive me to the things that hurt me? I want you to look at that for a moment. (4:45 - 4:59) This is coming from one of the greatest theologians of all time. And he cries out, tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. What about tomorrow? Have you noticed if you put it off until tomorrow, it never happens. (4:59 - 5:05) I'm going to get on that tomorrow. I'll take care of that tomorrow. And then tomorrow you say, I'll do it first thing in the morning. (5:06 - 5:16) Have you noticed that? I'm going to start my diet tomorrow. How can I free myself from these terrible urges? You cannot. That's what he learned. (5:16 - 5:36) You can't. The urges that drive me to the things that hurt me. Do you find yourself hurting yourself, so to speak? Self-inflicted wounds? Trying to do your life without Jesus? You don't have to do that anymore. (5:38 - 5:51) But concerning the times in which you and I live in, think for a moment. God wants to deliver you instantly from sin that plagues your life. He wants to give you a new life. (5:52 - 6:07) And he also wants to turn you on to eternity. Because glory be to God, this time and this timeline is not all there is. Have you talked to any new age people? They're always around. (6:09 - 6:20) If you've never seen one, you can at least go to Laguna Beach. You'll see some there. If you really want to see them in full color, go to Sedona, Arizona. (6:22 - 6:28) Beautiful place. But people are walking around with pyramids on their head. And they're putting crystals in their navel. (6:29 - 6:35) In their belly button. In the lotus position. On a rock. (6:35 - 7:05) And they're going... And what are you doing? I'm converging with the harmonics of the world. Of the universe. Great. Awesome. So what's going to happen next? We're going to become one with the universe. Are we going to feel it? When is it going to happen? You have to imagine it. (7:06 - 7:14) You have to imagine it. And then what's going to happen? The world's going to get better. That's the message. (7:15 - 7:22) What's happening? The world's getting better. It's just getting better. It is? Yes. (7:23 - 7:31) Don't you see it? I'm trying real hard. And they'll say it's getting better. It's all getting better. (7:32 - 7:40) And then what is going to happen? We're going to reach this level. Of man becoming one. And everything becomes great. (7:43 - 7:50) Isn't it interesting? The same people that do that. Because they don't have the gospel of Jesus Christ. Liberating them in their heart. (7:51 - 8:02) They do their harmonic convergence. And then they self-medicate. Have you noticed the correlation between the two? Peace with the world. (8:02 - 8:11) All is one. Give me some drugs. Have you noticed it's true? All is love. (8:12 - 8:18) It's all peace. I need drugs. It's so funny. (8:18 - 8:29) Sad, but funny. Jesus says you don't need drugs. Well how am I going to cope? He'll get you through, friend. (8:30 - 8:43) He'll give you a peace. The Bible says that passes all human understanding. And we get ready to meet him. (8:43 - 8:49) Christ is coming. The Bible is telling us here in these two verses. That it's all about the night being far spent. (8:50 - 8:59) What a great word. It means all of these millennia of time. Man has suffered. (8:59 - 9:07) And the world has suffered under the yoke of sin. The night is almost over. Isn't that beautiful news? Christ is coming. (9:08 - 9:15) The night is almost over. And for the believer, either we go up in the Lord together in the rapture. Or we die individually. (9:15 - 9:20) It doesn't matter. We still go home. The night is far spent, everybody. (9:20 - 9:28) It's almost over. Glory awaits. My daughter showed me the other day. (9:28 - 9:36) This young man. He's texting while he's driving. And he blows an intersection. (9:38 - 9:42) And it's so graphic. It is so powerful. It really, really bothered me. (9:43 - 9:48) And then I said to my daughter. I said, everybody has to see this. Because it's really disgusting. (9:48 - 9:53) This kid graduating from school. He's free. All right. (9:53 - 9:56) It's the summer. Texting. Looking down. (9:56 - 10:09) Looking down. And gets T-boned. And is in a vegetative state for the rest of his life. (10:12 - 10:19) Texting. In a second. As it were, in a twinkling of an eye, it ended for him. (10:20 - 10:29) Well, in a twinkling of an eye, the Bible says it's going to begin for us. But we need to be ready. And understand what the scripture is announcing to us. (10:29 - 10:40) God came because the mission was for him to be our atonement, our sacrifice. For all the sins of the world, the Bible said. The second time he comes, he will not be disguised. (10:41 - 10:55) The Bible tells us that the sun will flee from his presence. It will diminish from the brightness of his face. Can you imagine that? When the spiritual eternal meets the temporal physical. (10:57 - 11:07) Everything that you and I think and feel that is stable, real, and lasting, turns into dust. And eternity arrives. And I leave you with this. (11:09 - 11:18) The attention you and I owe one another is in verse 12. And we're to help each other to be looking up. To be looking up. (11:19 - 11:27) It's okay to live life in the here and now, of course. Just keep your eye on eternity. The Bible says the day is at hand. (11:29 - 11:34) Therefore, let us cast off the works of darkness. Throw them off. Heave is the word. (11:35 - 11:42) Heave it off. What is? What? The things of darkness. The things that have a tendency to wrap around your ankles. (11:43 - 11:50) And pull you into dark places. Dark things. The Bible says cast them off. (11:51 - 11:55) Heave them off from you. Violently seize them. Whatever it might be. (11:56 - 12:04) Anything that would keep you from looking up. Don't answer, please, out loud. Can you, with all assurance, knowing that we're not perfect. (12:04 - 12:12) None of us are perfect. But down deep inside, if you could choose perfect, you would be perfect. You strive to be perfect for this one reason. (12:12 - 12:20) You love him. And you don't want to offend him. And because we're not, God's grace comes in. (12:20 - 12:26) Do you hear me? His grace mitigates all that for us. But we love him. We don't do it to earn his favor. (12:26 - 12:32) We've got it. Through Christ. We don't do it because it's the moral thing to do. (12:34 - 12:41) Or it's the law. We don't do it for that reason. We do it because he first loved us. (12:41 - 12:53) And he gave himself for us. And that he purchased for us the ticket to eternity. Lisa and I were dating. (12:54 - 13:15) So that puts it back in late 1870s. And we went to the Universal Amphitheater in those days. And some guy was an opening band for the band we went to go see. (13:15 - 13:25) And I think his name, I always get this mixed up. So don't hold me to this because I've lost track. But I think his name was either Eddie Money or Eddie Rabbit. (13:25 - 13:33) Or Bunny Money or Bunny Rabbit. But he had a song called Two Tickets to Paradise. And you know that song now. (13:33 - 13:37) But nobody knew it back then except a little bit. And he was the opening act. And the guy, they introduced him. (13:38 - 13:43) There's like 10,000 people there. But they introduced the guy. By the way, what is his real name? Eddie Money. (13:43 - 13:49) Ladies and gentlemen. Live in Los Angeles tonight. Eddie Money. (13:49 - 13:57) And people like. It was really embarrassing. So the music starts up. (13:57 - 14:03) And he comes running out from behind the stage. And grabs the microphone. And he sings this song called Two Tickets to Paradise. (14:04 - 14:13) I think that's the guy. Is it still the guy? And he opens up with that song. I've got two tickets to paradise. (14:15 - 14:28) Good evening LA. He wraps himself up in the cord of the microphone. Falls flat on his face. (14:28 - 14:34) The crowd goes crazy. Screaming and applauding. The guy had two tickets to paradise. (14:34 - 14:43) But he couldn't even keep himself off the floor. It was so comically amazing. Listen. (14:44 - 14:56) Jesus has two tickets to paradise. He was crucified to buy the ticket. And he gives it to you. (14:56 - 15:04) He's got more than two tickets. And the fact of the matter is. If you would only look to him. (15:05 - 15:09) As the prophet Isaiah said. Look unto him. Look unto the Lord. (15:09 - 15:13) Look unto him. And be ye saved. All years. (15:14 - 15:19) Wow. Can you look? I said I'm not going to look. Come on look. (15:19 - 15:23) Nope. Not going to do it. Just give him a look. (15:26 - 15:35) Maybe your heart today would be one where. You may be willing to look. I encourage you to open your eyes. (15:38 - 15:42) The very one who you've argued. You've tried to argue out of your life. Is the very one. (15:43 - 15:47) That is your healing. He is your joy. He is your salvation. (15:49 - 15:54) And the fact of the matter is. Is that all those works of darkness. They don't have to own you anymore. (15:56 - 16:05) The stuff that you're ashamed of. Give it to him. And then the scripture says. (16:05 - 16:10) But put on the armor of light. I'm going to ask you to stand. We're going to do this right now. (16:10 - 16:14) In our prayer. In our closing time together. You say Jack. (16:14 - 16:18) How do I do this? You just said it. How do I do it? Good question. This is what we're going to do. (16:19 - 16:27) You know how you put off the darkness? There's only one way. You pray it off. And by the way. (16:27 - 16:33) That doesn't mean you have to. You have to pray 21 hours a day. No, no, no, no. (16:34 - 16:42) You cry out to him. Every time a temptation comes into your life. Every time that thing starts to arise in your mind. (16:42 - 16:47) You can say Lord in Jesus name. I'm asking you to take it away from me God. I'm not strong enough for it. (16:47 - 16:51) Jesus help me now. I need you to help me. Call upon his name. (16:51 - 16:59) Call upon his name. So let's pray together. Heavenly father. (17:00 - 17:08) We come before you now as one people. And we're asking you Lord. That you would now come down upon our lives. (17:10 - 17:16) As we right now. In our all clumsiness. And with all awkwardness Lord. (17:16 - 17:22) We would lift up to you. And pray off from ourselves to you Lord. Take it. (17:22 - 17:27) Please remove it. And that is Lord. These things of darkness that have plagued our lives. (17:27 - 17:32) Thinking that either. It's too bad for you to forgive. Or as a Christian. (17:33 - 17:37) It's just something I guess I have to put up with. Till the day I die. Not true. (17:38 - 17:46) Lord you said right here in your word. We cast the works of darkness to you. And Lord we also put on. (17:47 - 17:53) The armor of light. We ask you father God. As we pray off one. (17:53 - 17:58) And pray on the other. We pray for the helmet of salvation. We pray for the sword of the spirit. (17:59 - 18:05) We pray Lord God now for the shield of faith. We pray for the belt of truth. We pray Lord God for our feet to be prepared. (18:06 - 18:13) With the gospel of peace. We pray Lord God the breastplate of righteousness. Upon our lives. (18:14 - 18:21) God please we pray from this moment on. May we walk, live, move, breathe. In being a people of prayer. (18:22 - 18:30) To experience the constant pushing off. Of the darkness. Drawing closer to the light. (18:31 - 18:40) And being ready to owe one another always love. Attention. You. (18:42 - 18:50) May we love each other. Just as though we were loving you. In Jesus name and all God's people said. (18:51 - 18:53) Amen. God bless you church. God bless you.