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•THE BOOKS WILL BE OPENED.•By William WinfieldAnd when they are…Your excuses won’t matter.Your followers won’t matter.Your title won’t matter.Your denomination won’t matter.Your popularity won’t matter.You will be standing before the KING OF KINGS.Church, we need to start preaching about eternity again.Because too many people are playing Russian roulette with their souls as though tomorrow has been promised to them.Let’s study the Scriptures.John describes a terrifying scene in Revelation:“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.” (Revelation 20:12)Read those words carefully.GREAT AND SMALL.Kings will stand there.Preachers will stand there.Celebrities will stand there.Billionaires will stand there.Atheists will stand there.Religious people will stand there.People whose names were known around the world…And people nobody knew existed.Death eliminates earthly status.And Scripture says:“The dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.” (Revelation 20:12)Can I go deeper?Then John mentions another book:The Book of Life.“And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)Church…THIS IS WHY THE GOSPEL IS SERIOUS.Christianity isn’t merely about becoming a better person.Jesus didn’t come merely to improve your marriage.Increase your finances.Help your business.Give you motivational quotes.Or make your earthly life more comfortable.Christ came to save sinners.Because humanity has a problem much greater than an uncomfortable life.We have sinned against a holy God.“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)And the terrifying reality is that sin has consequences.But here is the Gospel:THE JUDGE PROVIDED THE RESCUE.The One before whom humanity will stand…Is the One who stepped into humanity to save us.Jesus took sin upon Himself.Shed His blood.Died.Was buried.And rose again.That’s why salvation isn’t about presenting God with your résumé.“But I was a good person.”Compared to whom?“But I gave to people.”Giving doesn’t erase sin.“But I went to church.”Church attendance doesn’t save you.“But I preached.”A microphone doesn’t save you.“But I performed miracles.”Jesus already warned that people will claim miraculous works in His name and still hear:“I never knew you.” (Matthew 7:23)Can I say something boldly?STOP GAMBLING WITH ETERNITY.You wouldn’t play Russian roulette with your physical life…So why are you doing it with your soul?You keep saying:“I’ll get serious about God later.”Later when?After college?After you make your money?After you get married?After you finish having fun?After you build your career?Who promised you later?James says:“You do not know what tomorrow will bring.” (James 4:14)Your next breath isn’t owed to you.And eternity is far too long to gamble on another tomorrow.Can I go deeper?There are two judgment scenes Christians should distinguish carefully.Believers will appear before the judgment seat of Christ regarding their lives and works. (2 Corinthians 5:10; 1 Corinthians 3:12–15)Revelation 20 describes the Great White Throne judgment, culminating in the Book of Life and final judgment.So don’t reduce every judgment passage into one event.But don’t miss what they have in common:EVERY HUMAN BEING IS ACCOUNTABLE TO GOD.Hebrews says:“It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)Not reincarnation.Not another earthly opportunity.Not “I’ll figure it out after I die.”Judgment.And here’s what should shake us:The Jesus people mock today…Will be acknowledged as Lord.The Jesus people reject today…Will still be King.The Jesus people say they don’t believe in…Doesn’t lose His throne because somebody refuses to believe.Paul says:“At the name of Jesus every knee should bow… and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” (Philippians 2:10–11)EVERY KNEE.The question isn’t ultimately whether you will acknowledge Jesus.The question is when.Will you bow now in repentance and faith…Or face Him later as Judge?Church, eternity is real.Judgment is real.Sin is real.Hell is real.But don’t preach judgment without preaching the incredible news:MERCY IS REAL TOO.Jesus is still saving.The blood still cleanses.Grace is still available.Repentance is still possible.The door is still open.TODAY.“Behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2)So stop playing with your soul.Stop playing church.Stop living two lives.Stop assuming you have another 40 years.Stop postponing repentance because grace has been patient with you.God’s patience is an invitation to repentance—not evidence that judgment disappeared. (Romans 2:4–5)One day…The preaching will stop.The invitations will stop.The excuses will stop.The books will be opened.And every one of us will discover that Jesus was never merely somebody to debate.HE WAS KING THE ENTIRE TIME.Eternity is too long to gamble with.GET RIGHT WITH JESUS WHILE MERCY IS STILL CALLING YOUR NAME.#Jesus #Bible #Judgment #Eternity #Repentance #PreachWill #Christian