The Book of Life
Let’s begin by looking at the first and last mention of the
Book of Life in the Bible.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosover hath sinned against me, him will I
blot out of my book.” (Exodus 32:33) ~ “And if any man shall take away from
the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the
book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in
this book.” (Revelation 22:19). It is interesting to note that both mention
the real possibility of having one’s name removed from the Book of Life.
I believe that the Book of Life is an actual written record of each of our
lives, containing all that we have done, said and thought. It is a record of
even the minutest of details, things that we so easily and conveniently forget.
This study will prove the importance of living for God without compromise. It
will confirm that we have full assurance if we continue in the faith.
As mentioned above, even the smallest detail of our lives are recorded in
Heaven. Do you know that God has an account of every tear that you have ever
cried? “Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into Thy bottle: are
they not in Thy book?” (Psalm 56:8). This should be a great encouragement to
all who think that God does not care for them. He does know every pain, worry,
fear, and tear you have cried. He cares so much that He has written them in a
journal of your life. We serve a God who does not forget about us for the
slightest moment.
“Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being imperfect; and in Thy book all my
members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when yet there was
none of them.” (Psalm 139:16). From the womb to the tomb God knows all about
us.
Not only does His Book contain the blueprint of our body, soul, and spirit, but
it also records the times we have spent in His presence and in fellowship with
our brothers and sisters in Christ. “Then they that feared the Lord spake
often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of
remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that
thought upon His name” (Malachi 3:16). Do you see the point? Every prayer
meeting you did or did not attend is entered therein. The times we where at
church or should have been are plainly written down. Every act of devotion is
recorded in His Book. Nothing escapes God’s eyes. All the sacrifices you have
made for the cause of Christ, and every excuse we have made for not obeying Him
are clearly seen in the Book of Life.
We should rejoice in the fact that our names are entered into His Book, unless
we are unsure of our personal commitment to Christ. “Rejoice, because your
names are written in Heaven” (Luke 10:20). We can also rejoice because we know
that we are not doomed along with those who do not believe in Jesus Christ. “A
fiery stream issued forth from before Him: thousand thousands ministered unto
Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgement was
set, and the books were opened” ~ “And there shall in no wise enter into it
any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a
lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Daniel 7:10
& Revelation 21:27). Each person who has ever lived has a biography written
by God. No doubt every word and every action is recorded ready to be broadcast
in vivid technicolour. Our thoughts too will be played back to us. So we see how
it is important to make certain that our names are entered into “the Lamb’s
book of life” any other book wont do.
If we want to be sure that our names will never be blotted out we have to be
overcomers. “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment;
and I will not blot his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his
name before my Father, and before His angels” (Revelation 3:5). This calls for
personal commitment to the Lord on our part. We will not get to Heaven warming a
church pew nor by the skin of our teeth. Heaven is not for the fainthearted but
for those who are willing to stand up and step forward for Christ. This means we
have to put our Christianity into action as proof that our names are indeed in
the Book of Life. Paul spoke of those faithful ones who laboured with him in the
gospel. He called them “fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of
life.” (Philippians 4:3).
Those who will not follow Jesus will not have their names in the Book of Life.
Their names will appear in another book. These are they who will worship the
Antichrist when he is revealed. “And all that dwell upon the earth shall
worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world.” (Revelation 13:8). These are doomed to
eternal destruction. Regardless of how good a person thinks they are, they will
spend eternity in the Lake of Fire. This is because they never accepted Jesus as
Lord and Saviour, and because of this their names do not appear in the Book of
Life. “The beast that thou sawest and is not; and shall ascend out of the
bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall
wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of
the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is . . . And
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of
fire.” (Revelation 17:8, 20:15).
We should praise God that the message of salvation was given to us. We should
continuously thank Him for such wonderful redemption. Our eternal existence with
Him in glory is guaranteed if our names are recorded in His Book. The day we
received the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour was the moment our names were written
in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Since it is the “Lamb’s Book of Life” I
wonder if our names are written bold blood-red ink?
“To the general assembly and the church of the firstborn, which are written in
Heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made
perfect.” (Hebrews 12:23).
“Then will He own my
worthless name
Before His Father’s face;
And in the new Jerusalem,
Appoint my soul a place”
Isaac Watts
Pastor Gary J. Hall
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