Make Up Your Mind: It’s Now Time to Choose Your Spiritual Self

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

If you have not made up your mind on your spiritual path, this is a moment when the child of God and the child of the devil will be defined.

Introduction

For the past few weeks, I’ve focused on your spirit with great concern, because the spirit/soul is at stake today.  I believe we are living in biblical times, as wickedness abounds and many are suffering.  This message serves as a warning – now is the time for you to choose who you will be spiritually.  Every action you take in this moment is an action for which you will be held accountable, so you must choose wisely your spiritual path.

The Winepress of Wrath

In Isaiah 63:1-6, Isaiah shares a prophecy where a certain traveler speaks with a group.  Now, I want you to pay close attention to every word of this brief conversation. 

Prophecy of God’s vengeance

Isaiah prophesied that it was asked, “Who is this who comes from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah, this One who is glorious in His apparel, traveling in the greatness of His strength?”  The one coming answered, “I who speak in righteousness, might to save.”  You should understand that the one who was coming is none other than Christ.

The prophesied Christ is asked, “Why is Your apparel red, and your garments like one who treads in the winepress?”

He answered, “I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with Me.  For I have trodden them in My anger, and trampled them in My fury; Their blood is sprinkled upon My garments, and I have stained all My robes.  For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed has come.”

The prophesied Christ then continued, saying, “I looked, but there was no one to help, and I wondered that there was no one to uphold; Therefore My own arm brought salvation for Me; And My own fury, it sustained Me.  I have trodden down the peoples in My anger, made them drunk in My fury, and brought down their strength to the earth.”

This is a prophecy of God’s judgment known as the ‘Winepress of God’s Wrath’.  Nothing sounds pleasant about this portion of Isaiah’s prophecy, and it ought not to.

The day of the Lord

Amos prophesied about this day, calling it the day of the Lord (Amos 5:16-27).  The day of the Lord, Amos prophesied, will be a day when there will be wailing in the streets.  It will be a day of darkness with no light.  Amos prophesied that it will be a day when it will be as though a man ran from a lion and a bear met him – a day of no escape.  

Lastly, Amos prophesied that the day of the Lord will be a day when justice will run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.  God, you should understand, is going to judge in righteousness against sin.

The winepress of God’s wrath, the day of the Lord, is shown throughout Revelation 14.  We are shown that day of the Lord will take place at the Second Coming of Christ, which ought not to be confused with the rapture of the church.  The Second Coming of Christ will take place after the rapture of the church and the period of The Great Tribulation.  

At the Second Coming of Christ, Revelation 14:1 tells us that the Lamb will stand on Mount Zion, in Jerusalem.  Revelation 14:16 tells us that the Son of Man will thrust His sickle and reap the earth.  As He shared in the Parable of the Wheat and Tares, the wheat will be separated from the tares, and the tares will be gathered and thrown into the fire (Matt. 13:24-30).

At the Second Coming of Christ, Christ said that the Son of Man will judge the nations of The Great Tribulation (Matt. 25:31-46).  Christ said that He will separate His sheep from the goats, and the sheep will inherit the kingdom and the goats will go away into everlasting punishment.

Time to Make Up Your Mind

My intent is not to terrify you, but the day we live in is quite terrifying in itself.  To be clear, today is not a day of the Great Tribulation, but it is still a day when you must make a decision.  You must choose whether you will be one of the grapes pressed down in the winepress of God’s wrath.

One ends up as a grape in the winepress of God’s wrath by making the choice to be dull-hearted, purposefully having no interest in God’s word.  Those who are dull-hearted choose not to listen or to see, neglecting the teaching and preaching of God’s word.  In neglecting God’s word, the dull-hearted choose to neglect God’s salvation, therefore, making Christ’s sacrifice vain (meaningless/worthless).

One ends up as a grape in the winepress of God’s wrath by choosing to be a child of the devil, rather than a child of God.  One who is a child of the devil lives denying Christ and His way, as one with a spirit of antichrist.  Living in such a manner, one does not practice righteousness, living by not loving their neighbor.

On the other hand, the child of God moves to put forth their best effort in practicing righteousness.  This is to say, those who choose to love their neighbor earnestly choose to practice the righteousness that is of God.

God Will Judge Your Decision

Something that you must understand is that God will judge your decision.  God will judge how you choose to live.  God will judge your spiritual self.  God said, “To Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath (Is. 45:23).”

The writer of Hebrews asked, “How shall we escape [God’s judgment] if we neglect so great a salvation (Heb. 2:3)?”  If you choose today to be dull-hearted and do not heed God’s warning, you ought not think you will escape God’s judgment.

Times of spiritual ignorance ended

One may believe that they will be able to make up an excuse as to why they ought not be judged by God.  Paul, when he stood before the Areopagus (a Greek council), shared a powerful message about their practices.  In Acts 17, the story is told of how Paul walked the streets of Athens, saw how they were given over to idolatry, but also saw they had made an altar to the “UNKNOWN GOD”.  

Paul spoke to the council, saying to them, “Since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising.”

We are the offspring of God in that God made us–He shaped and formed mankind in His image, according to His likeness (Gen. 1:26).  God then breathed into mankind’s nostrils His breath, the breath of life, and that piece of God dwells in us, making us a living soul (Gen. 2:7).

Paul used such knowledge to say that we ought to feel it in our souls that there is more to life than what our eyes can see.  He used knowledge of our first spirit to say that we ought to feel that worshiping an idol made by man’s hands is improper.  Paul told the Greeks that they ought to feel it deep in their hearts that this creation is not random, and that there is one God who stands over all things.

Paul then said to them, “Truly, these times of ignorance (worshiping idols) God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.”  Paul took away their ignorance of the one true God and left them with a choice to make.  They could choose to continue living sinfully or put forth the effort to know the Lord.

God’s gospel is widely available

If you think you can escape God’s judgment with the excuse of ignorance, there is no escape because the gospel has been made known and received by the world.  

The prophets of the Old Testament prophesied God’s law to Israel, for which one can say that they are not of Israel, nor were they there to receive God’s law.  The gospel came through Christ, to which one could use the excuse of not having lived to be able to see or hear Christ.  The gospel was then ministered by His apostles, to which one can say that they weren’t there to hear Peter’s sermon at Pentecost or there to hear Paul’s sermons.

However, the gospel is not dead today.  In fact, the gospel is very much alive and well today!  The gospel is still preached in churches and the doors of every good church are wide open.

If you don’t feel comfortable attending a local church, online worship is available.  If you don’t have a physical bible, you can download a bible app for free on your phone.  If you don’t have a phone, you can go to a website and read the bible online for free.  If you don’t have a computer, you can go to your local library, get on a computer, read the bible for free, and I imagine they even have a physical bible as well.  

All excuses are taken away, God will judge your decisions–your every action!

There’s No Moral Dilemma Today

Some suggest that we are living in a day of moral dilemma.  To that, I have to ask:  Since when is there a moral dilemma of doing what is right and what is good?  Is it that difficult for us to discern good from evil and right from wrong?

Isn’t it good for you to love your neighbor?  It is a good thing when we choose to honor and respect each other, right?  It is a good thing when we choose to support and uplift each other, right?  It is a good thing when we choose to help each other, right?

Where is the moral dilemma?

It is an evil thing for you to harm your neighbor, right?  It is an evil thing to bear false witness against your neighbor, isn’t it?  When you covet what your neighbor has, when you rob and take from your neighbor, surely that is evil, right?  

To oppress and to hinder another, that is evil, right?  To kill and to tear down, that is evil, right?  Again, I ask, where is the moral dilemma?

In Matthew 5:43-48, Jesus told the disciples to love everyone, including those who hated them, despised them, used them, and persecuted them.  Let’s be clear, those instructions are for all of God’s children.  Jesus told the disciples that even the tax collectors (sinners) understood the basics of loving those who loved them.  But loving those who love you is too easy a thing for you to do!

I want to be clear about this:  God is not the author of confusion!  God’s command and instructions are direct and clear one how we ought to live.  Again, you must make up your mind as to whether or not you will heed His word or do your own thing.

Help Making the Best Choice

Today’s “dilemma” of the heart is not brought on by God, but rather, it is brought on by sinful man.  You see, the “dilemma” is man’s long desire to do things his way rather than God’s way.

I said that we are living in a biblical moment today because history has a way of repeating itself.  You see, wicked men throughout history have always had this notion of moving to be seen as gods.  They love to build images of themselves and surround themselves with riches and gold.  They have the grand desire to be remembered throughout history as a god, when history always remembers them for the wicked men they were, regardless of how grand they think themselves to be.

I urge you today:  Do not buy into the dilemma that the devil is selling you today.  As I said in the first sermon of this series, the devil is trying to press down on your weak points to get you to choose to turn away from God.  Do not let the wickedness of today corrupt your soul!

Live in fear of God’s judgment

If you find yourself struggling between right and wrong, I want you to keep these things in mind today.  First, consider God’s judgment.  God will judge, and He will judge without mercy and remorse.  In His winepress, the future Christ, I remind you, will say, “I have trodden [the wicked] in My anger, and trampled them in My future.  Their blood is sprinkled upon My garments, and I have stained all My robes.”

You should keep God’s judgment in mind, living in fear of His judgment!  You ought not desire to be caught up in the winepress of God’s wrath because that means that you will perish.  If you keep in mind God’s judgment, that cause you to live in a manner where you seek to please God and find His favor.

Do not conform to the world

I will also remind you of God’s word being direct and clear.  God commands His children to love everyone, not just a few.  Do not give in to the way of Satan, who is only selfish in loving Himself.  The world teaches the same kind of selfishness for which, I will tell you, do not conform, do not adapt to the principles of the world.

In Romans 12:2, Paul tells us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”  This means that you must open your heart and permit the Holy Spirit to lead and to guide you in the way of righteousness.

We must take seriously this day and moment that we live in.  I do believe that we are living in certain times and we will be judged for who we choose to be spiritually.  For your sake, I pray that you will choose to live putting forth your best effort of discipline and obedience, living as a child of God.