"Making It Known"

"I will be glad and rejoice in Thee: I will sing praise to Thy name, O Thou Most High." (Psalms 9:2) Yes, there was much sadness in that day when Jesus was nailed upon that cross; but there was a place where people did rejoice; and not for gladness that He was slain, but for gladness that His kingdom was at hand! Think about all those that were waiting for Jesus to show up in Hades, or Hell to some, and to set them as captives free!!! Abraham, David, John the Baptist; the list was endless of those disembodied spirits who were waiting for Jesus to show up and show them what soon was to come. To hear Jesus describe this place, He makes it perfectly clear that there are two separate chambers or dwelling places; one that is set in comfort, while the other is less desirable, and is full of torment. If we look at this account given in Luke 16:19-31, which is titled in my Bible as "The Rich Man and Lazarus", we see that there was depicted to be a large gulf between the two areas; one which did not allow for crossing from one side to the other; yet in this account the Rich Man was able to see Lazarus afar off, in Abraham's bosom; being also able to cry out to him for water. Jesus tells us within this portion of Scripture about something rather important, and that is often overlooked, and it has to do with the living; those that are alive and have the ability to touch others with the message of deliverance! In verse 27-31, as The Rich Man, who is really not that rich anymore, cries out to Abraham for Lazarus to be sent back to his father's house, saying, "For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment". To which Abraham replies, "They have moses and the prophets; let them hear them". In other words, Abraham is speaking about the written word of God that was available to them, that they might be taught what was right and wrong. But the Rich Man knew his brothers would not search out the Scriptures, much as he did not; so he then asked again for Lazarus to be sent, this time saying, "Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent". He said this thinking that someone from the dead would be able to persuade them to what was right; yet Abraham clearly says, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead". But what would have made a difference in these brother's life? The Rich Man sadly regretted not knowing what he now knew; for if he had known sooner, then he could have went to his brothers, and tried to convince them himself. We are gifted with something that is far greater than riches and money; we are gifted with the Word's that lead others to eternal life! After I had shared at church last night, I thought about so much more that I could have shared; which is not unusual, because anytime I share Jesus with somebody, I always wish I had said more. But I shared about the need for us to tell others what we know; that it was not only something that needed to be said, but was something that had to be said! You can not say that you love someone, and yet, not tell them what they need to know! If we have someone in our life that does not know Jesus, they need to be persuaded; and words alone are not what they need, they need to see Jesus; and there is only one way that they are going to be able to see Jesus, and that is to see Him lived out in our life!!! We must live out Christ; and we do that with LOVE!!! If we look again to Psalms 9:2, David is making something abundantly clear in his opening words: "I will be glad and rejoice in Thee". I thought about the different ways that gladness looks, and hate never came to mind; neither did shame, or guilt, or blame; only love and thanksgiving came to mind, as I thought about what gladness actually looked like. "If your happy and you know it, then your life will surely show it"...