The Day After the "Votequake"

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

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Now, I've always been interested in following politics. But I've got to tell you, even I am sick of politics right now! I mean, we've OD'd on it these past few months! Suddenly, all those pundits on the news were starting to sound like that indistinct blather when adults speak on a Charlie Brown special. You know.

And the signs! I can't wait til they come down and I can see my neighbor's house again. Oh the joy to think, "Today I can turn on my TV and there will not be one political commercial, showing your opponent as Frankenstein or Bride of Frankenstein."

But sadly, America's a pretty fractured nation politically. Today some people are just all excited because their candidate won, and some are saying, "Boy, the end must be close because my candidate lost. The other guy won."

Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Day After the 'Votequake.'"

You know, after waking up and hearing election results in America, I thought of all the views I'd heard on TV describing how they see America. And you know what? This morning, I asked God to help me see my town, my country, my world through His eyes. "What do You see, Lord?"

And He said, "Ron, there are only two categories that really matter. When you look at people, see them as being on one of two lists." Then I remembered something I read about the days after the Titanic sank. White Star Lines, the owners of the Titanic, set up a room in Liverpool, England, where people could wait to learn the fate of a passenger that they loved. Occasionally, a company official would come in and add a name to one of two lists, posted on a large board. The lists simply read: "Known to be saved" ... "Known to be lost."

Everyone you love - everyone in your personal world - everyone hearing or reading this is on one of two lists. They're described in our word for today from the Word of God in 1 John 5:11-12. It says, "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that has the Son has life; He that does not have the Son of God does not have life." Known to be saved...known to be lost.

It should not be what political list or religious list a person's on that defines my relationship with them - it should be which of God's lists they're on. When we get to heaven, there won't be any "Republicans" or "Democrats" or "liberals" or "conservatives." No "Baptists" or "Methodists" or "Roman Catholics." God sees people in terms of their eternal destination, and it defines His relationship with us.

We were all in one doomed category - sinners; people who have marginalized our Creator rather than enthroning Him. Who have defied His ways and done what we wanted to do, and cut off from Him because He's sinless and we're full of sin.

But in spite of our disregard and disrespect of the God who put us here, He refused to leave us lost. He sent His precious Son, Jesus, to do what only He could do - pay for our sin by paying our death penalty on the Cross. So heaven or hell all comes down to what I do with Jesus. Whether I leave Him outside of my life or put all my trust in Him as my only hope for rescue. "Have the Son, have life...don't have the Son, don't have life" (1 John 5:12).

Maybe today if you could see God's lists, you'd be on the "Known to be lost." But today you can change lists. Because Jesus stands ready to erase the sin of your life from God's book, forgive every one of those sins, and give you eternal life that you could never deserve, because He gave His life for you. Why don't you tell Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours" today. Go to our website and find out how to get started with Him. It's YoursForLife.net.

And in this season when we'll be hearing a lot of people being defined by their label, I want to see what God sees, don't you? Saved and Lost. I want to love those people like He does, because it breaks His heart. It should break my heart to see them lost.