In Touch Ministries

Dr. Charles Stanley: God has equipped you with the spiritual gift that best fits who you are. So therefore, when you become a child of God, he's already given us skills and abilities and talents. Why? Because his purpose was that you and I serve him.

He created every single one of us to serve him. We may have different particular occupations, we may have different callings, different responsibilities, different opportunities, different assignments by God. And he says it is to be our lifestyle to serve him.

Guest (Male): Many Christians give little thought as to how their actions in this life will impact their future life in heaven. Today on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, we begin a series of messages that describe the relationship between life now and in eternity. In Dr. Stanley's opening message of Countdown to Judgment, he discusses our predestined appointment. Let's listen in.

Dr. Charles Stanley: Do you realize that the moment you were born, the countdown started on your life? A countdown to the judgment of God. The moment you became a person, the countdown started. And every single tick of the clock, you’re that one second closer to that moment of an inescapable, predestined, planned, unavoidable appointment with Almighty God.

There are a lot of people who say, "I don't believe in life after death." That doesn't make a bit of difference. "I don't believe the Bible." Matters not. "I don't believe anything about life after death." That’s no issue. There is a countdown going on in your life right now. You’re going to meet with the Lord Jesus Christ. You’re going to give an account for your life. And whether you believe it or not is not the issue. The issue is how ready are you to meet him?

Because when he calls our name, we go in. And I want to remind you that no doctor, no matter how skilled he is, can keep you here. No prayer meeting, no matter how powerful the prayer meeting may be, can keep you here. There is an appointed time, a predestined time, for the simple reason that’s what the word of God teaches and there are multitudes of reasons for it.

Now, the title of this series is Countdown to Judgment. The title of the message is Our Predestined Appointment. We have an appointment with Almighty God. We all have one. You say, "Well, I didn't sign up for that." You didn't have to. He signed you up. You will be there. You will be on time. There will be no delay. God knows exactly this moment when you and I will breathe our last breath and we’ll be in his presence.

The Bible says absent from the body, present with the Lord, that is for all of us who are believers. And so Paul, writing in this scripture we’re going to read in a few moments, he was writing to the Corinthian church, and he was writing this to believers. Now, there is a judgment of unbelievers. And while I’ll mention that and give a brief description, we're talking primarily about the judgment of the Christian, of the believers in Christ Jesus.

So if you’ll turn to Second Corinthians and look if you will in chapter five. Chapter five of Second Corinthians. And what Paul is talking about here, he’s talking about this whole issue of death and our physical bodies and what’s going to happen and so forth. And so here’s what he says, beginning in verse one: "For we know that if the earthly tent," speaking of our earthly body, "which is our house where we live, is torn down," dies, "we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."

"For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven." We’ve got aches and pains and scars and so forth. "For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life."

"Now he who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the spirit as a pledge." That’s the Holy Spirit living on the inside of us is his pledge of our entrance into heaven. "Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. We are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord."

"Therefore, we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to him." Now watch this last verse: "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad."

Now we're not going to stand before him in a crowd. Listen to this: each one. We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed, that is rewarded, for his deeds in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Our unavoidable predestined appointment with God cannot be changed.

Now for something to be predestined means that God prepared it beforehand, planned it, and since he is ruler over all things, it will happen. It will not be delayed under any condition. The issue for us is are we ready to meet the Lord who has predestined and planned our life? And the clock is ticking down. It may tick a long time or a short time. The problem is we don’t know what it is. And so what I want us to do in this message is to just understand one thing: we each one will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and give an account for our life.

Now, there’s a big misunderstanding. We misunderstand the whole gift of salvation and what God's purpose is in it all. So let's think about it for a moment. When you became a Christian, you trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior. What that meant was that he redeemed you or purchased you by paying your sin debt in full at the cross. He reconciled you to himself. He forgave your sin. He sanctified you, set you apart as one of his children. He made you one of his followers.

And when you look at all the things that God did at salvation, which we're not even aware of, he did an awesome amount. And so he prepared your home in heaven, your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, he sealed you forever with the Holy Spirit. Now for most people, they understand some of that, but not all of it.

But the misunderstanding oftentimes is this: that the reason God saved us is because he wants us to be happy. He wants us to have joy and peace. He wants us to be pleasing to him. And so we say, "Well, one of his primary reasons for saving us is because he loves us." And we quote John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him would not perish but have eternal life."

Now, God does love us, and he did save us because he loved us, but that’s not the only reason. And one of the big misunderstandings which is going to be costly in eternity is the fact that many people believe that that’s it. He saved us, that is for example, here’s the door into heaven, I’m in, he slammed the door, I’m locked in, I’m good for the go.

Well, that's not the way the Christian life is. Because you see, many people go to church or many people sit and watch television or listen to radio, whatever you may be doing. And somewhere back yonder you trusted Jesus Christ as your savior, and either you were told that that’s it, or you didn't listen very well. Because just listen, just being saved is not pleasing to God. That’s a step. That’s not pleasing to God.

If you just settle down and say, "Well, you know what, you've been teaching about eternal security, and once I’ve trusted Jesus Christ as my personal savior, I don't have anything else to worry about, so man just relax." No. That's not what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches us that God saved us for a very, very specific reason, which I’m going to show you in a second.

So I want you to turn if you will to Ephesians chapter two for a moment. And this is a passage that many people know sort of by heart, and it’s one thing to know it, something else to practice it. So I want you to look if you will in the second chapter and look beginning, let's begin in verse eight. And if you have your Bible, I want you to read this. It’s one thing to listen to it, read it. Listen to what he says.

"For by grace you’ve been saved through faith, that not of yourselves, it's the gift of God," it’s all of him. "Not as a result of our works, so that no one can boast." So none of us can boast about, "Well look what I did to be saved." Now watch this next verse: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand," predestined it so, "that we would walk in them."

Now what does that mean? It’s a very important verse. We're his workmanship. That means simply this: that you and I today, we are the result of God's goodness and love and mercy and grace in our life. We're his workmanship. He saved us. We have a different attitude about life. Our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. We have security. And we're Christians, we're followers of Jesus Christ. All of that’s his work.

Now watch this: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus," that is by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ we're who we are, "for," listen, "for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Now look at that. He says he saved you and me for the purpose of doing what? For the purpose of serving the living God. And somehow in many Christians' minds, that’s never connected.

He saved us not to sit in church, though we sit in church. He saved us not just to worship, though that’s part of it. He saved us, he says, for good works. And notice what he said back yonder. He said good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we could walk in them. Now, how did he prepare beforehand? When you came into this world, you came into this world not only with physical life, but you came into this world with certain talents and abilities and skills.

And you have sharpened those skills and those talents and abilities, and so wherever you work, in whatever your profession may be, whatever you're doing, you've tried to better those. When you became a child of God, God gave you spiritual gifts. He gave you, watch this, he gave you gifts that perfectly fit who you are and his purpose for your life.

When you trusted him as your savior, the Spirit of God gave you spiritual gifts that equip you so that a person does his or her best when they are operating out of their gift. When you’re out, for example, if your gift was administration and you’re over here trying to be mercy and so forth, you may get frustrated. Or if your gift for example is teaching and you have a job in administration, that may be frustrating.

God has equipped you with the spiritual gift that best fits who you are. So therefore, when you and I become a child of God, he's already given us skills and abilities and talents. Why? Because his purpose was that you and I serve him. He did this in order that you and I may have good works in our life. And notice what he said, which he prepared beforehand, that is before you came into the world, he already had it prepared.

He has predestined you, listen, not only in your salvation, but he’s predestined you for work, that is to serve him in some fashion. And notice what he says, he says that prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Now what does that mean? When Paul uses the word walk about or walking in them, usually he’s talking about a way of life. That is, it’s our way of life to be servants of the living God.

We may have different particular occupations, we may have different callings, different responsibilities, different opportunities, different assignments by God. But the truth is we’re all on the same level. And he says it is to be our lifestyle to serve him. And there are many churches who really believe, people who really believe because they’ve been taught that way, that the pastor does all the work over here and we hire staff and they do the work and we just come and we listen and we enjoy the music and we enjoy all these other things, but they’re the ones we are paying to do the work.

Listen, you can't pay anybody to do what God called you to do. He’s called every single one of us to serve him. This just happens to be an area in which he’s called me to serve him. He’s called every person’s area of service is equally important in the eyes of God. Because listen, God, listen, he didn’t make a mistake. When you were born, he knew all about you: past, present, and future. He knew the second you were going to be born, he knew the second he was going to call you to give an account for your life.

So what I want you to see is this: that in God's whole economy and his plan, he brought us into this world and saved us and gave us opportunities and gifts and talents and skills in order to serve the living God. So one misunderstanding is this whole thing of salvation is not to make me happy and peaceful and joy and go to heaven. It is in order to equip us and prepare us to serve him, to work.

The second misunderstanding here is about this whole issue of accountability. Turn if you will to the 25th chapter of Matthew, because this is one of the simplest things Jesus ever said in a parable to make this very, very clear of this whole issue of our accountability. Look at this for a moment and I’ll tell you what happened, then we'll read part of it.

The master called his three servants together and here’s what he said, he said, "I’m going to give you five talents, you two, and you one, and I want you to be good stewards of them." But I want you to hear what he said. He said, for example, in the 15th verse, "To one he gave five talents, to another two and to another one, each," watch this, "each one according to his own ability."

That is, he didn't give one man a five-talent job. He gave to each one of them according to their own ability and went on his journey. So he gave one five, he gave one two, and he gave one one talent. So verse 19, after a long time the master of those servants came and settled their accounts with them. Accountability.

The one who had received the five came up and brought five more talents saying, "Master, you entrusted five talents to me, see I’ve gained five more." Good steward of what Father gave him. "Well done, good and faithful servant. You’ve been faithful over a few things, I’m going to put you in charge of many things." Rewarding good stewardship and accountability.

So here comes the second man. He says, "Well, you had two and you’ve multiplied that, now you have two more. I’m going to put you in charge of many things and enjoy your master." Listen to this: "And the one who had received the one talent came and said, 'Master,'" now watch what he said. People, this is the same way people operate.

"I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you don't sow and gathering where you scatter no seed." First of all, his attitude wasn't right. Hard man. Is God, listen, is God hard in the fact that he requires accountability? No, he’s not. So he says, "Look, you’re a hard man and this is where you operate." But his master said to him, "You wicked, lazy servant. You knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scatter no seed," and it wasn't the fact that he didn't do anything, that’s not what he’s talking about.

"You ought to have put my money in the bank and on arrival I would have received my money back with interest. Therefore, take away the talent from him, give it to the one who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has more shall be given and he’ll have an abundance. But from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness, into that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Now, he’s not saying that the man is going to be that he’s a Christian who’s going to be lost. What God is doing is simply saying this from his perspective: it is a very, very serious thing for a child of God to squander and to be a poor steward of their gifts and talents and skills. And what he’s really saying is it displeases God.

This is why a person can be saved and know that you’re saved, your name’s written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, and be very displeasing to God. Now, it doesn't mean that you, somebody says, "Well, I don't steal, lie, cheat, commit adultery, do any of those things." No, but you’re lazy and you’re a poor steward of the things that God has given you.

And here’s what he said: he said this man is lazy and wicked because what he did, he misused God-given talents and abilities and skills and opportunities. He misused it. He squandered it. He buried it. And there are multitudes of church members, listen, who have buried talents, buried skills. They’ve buried them. You know what they’ve buried them in? They’ve buried them in pleasure and buried them in seeking profit and buried them in other relationships, buried them in busy, busy, busy things.

They’ve been diverted from what God called them to do. When he put you and myself down here in this life, he intended for every single one of us to be a servant of the living God. We are followers of Jesus Christ; there wasn't a lazy bone in his body. We're servants of the Lord. And so what I want you to see here is this: we're all accountable.

And when it comes to thinking about, "Well, but I can't do this and I can't do that," you know what would happen if you said to God, "Lord, here’s my life. Here I am, Lord"? You’d be absolutely amazed what he begins to do in your life because remember this: if you say, "I don't have any skills, talents, and abilities and gifts," then you are saying God’s a liar.

He predestined before you were born. He knew exactly how you were going to look, how your skills and abilities and talents would work. He knew the difficult times, hard times, troublesome times, persecution, hardship, trials, difficulty, and what did he know? He knew he was going to turn all that for your good and work all that in such a way that your skills and talents and abilities and all of these things would work to make you somebody in the eyes of God.

Guest (Male): One day every person will face judgment, but if you've trusted Jesus Christ as your savior, you're ready for it right now. Learn more about the confidence this kind of life can bring when you join us tomorrow. In the meantime, stop by intouch.org to learn more about becoming a Christian and to find clear direction from the Bible on living a God-honoring life.

To go back over what you just heard, click on Today on Radio. And the bookstore is where you can order a copy of today's complete message. The title is "Our Predestined Appointment." Or order Dr. Stanley's entire Countdown to Judgment teaching set. Our web address again is intouch.org. Call or text to 1-800-INTOUCH. If you prefer, you can write to us at In Touch, Post Office Box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia 30357. Are you curious as to what prompted Dr. Stanley's series on judgment? Then keep listening for today's moment with Charles Stanley.

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Dr. Charles Stanley: Let your time and your schedule and everything about you revolve around this: that you and I are to develop and continue to develop this ongoing, intimate, wonderful, exciting, satisfying, indescribable, wonderful, incomparable relationship with a personal God.

Guest (Male): Dr. Stanley devoted his entire life to helping us get closer to Jesus, as we all want to do. You can learn how at CharlesStanleyInstitute.org.

Guest (Male): God's judgment may not be a favorite subject, but in a moment with Charles Stanley, you'll learn why this topic should not be avoided.

Dr. Charles Stanley: As believers, we can become far too casual about our relationship with Jesus. Oftentimes people have the idea, "Well, I know that I’m saved, and I’m going to heaven when I die, so what’s this living a sanctified, holy life all about?" The Bible says reverence for God is the beginning of wisdom, and there’s very little reverence in our society today.

In fact, not only in our society but oftentimes in the church. Many Christians are drifting in their life, and as a result, they’re not like salt nor like light and they’re short-sighted, sacrificing their future for the pleasure of the moment. No thought for the warning given to us in Hebrews 9:27, which says, "It is appointed unto man once to die, and after this the judgment."

That is a meeting that you and I are going to keep. It's an appointment that God has set. Every single one of us is going to die one of these days and we’re going to meet him. And the scripture gives us another warning in Second Corinthians chapter five, verse 10, and here’s what he says: "We must all appear," all of us appear before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account for our life and be recompensed for the deeds in our body, whether they be good or bad. The Christian life is life at its very best, but there’s always an accountability.

Guest (Male): Once you receive God's gift of forgiveness through humble faith in Jesus Christ, you're ready to face the final judgment. Visit us at intouch.org to learn more. And if today's program has encouraged your relationship with Jesus, we'd love to hear from you. Tomorrow on In Touch, Dr. Stanley's message continues clearing up misconceptions about our predestined appointment. I hope you'll make plans to join us Tuesday for In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley.

Guest (Male): This program is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia, and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.