Non-Hell Residents
There are several ways that we could refer to Believers.
...And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. (Acts 11:26)
The Bible calls the believers in Jesus “disciples” which means a learner, follower, or a student of some person or some philosophy. Someone in Antioch coined the word “Christian”. Whether this was intended to be a compliment or an insult, it meant a follower of Christ. A follower or a student of a teacher would respect his teacher and take his instructions seriously. Jesus said that if someone wants to be a real follower of His, it will be costly. It is a free gift to be given eternal life, but to be a genuine disciple will involve serious commitment (Matt 16:24).
Unfortunately, this description of a disciplined one, a Christ-follower, cannot be honestly applied to every person who has heard the Gospel and thinks it is a great story. There are many that we cannot honestly call “christian”, a follower of Christ. We would have to say that they are a “non-hell resident”.
[Everyone who has placed faith in Jesus' Person and His work on the cross is accurately termed a “Son” (I John 3:1, 2). However, it is the Servant aspect of our lives that is going to be evaluated by Jesus someday (2 Cor 5:10).]
Every hearer of the Gospel that has real saving faith placed in Jesus will not perish but has eternal life (John 3:15). God knows the hearts of people professing to know God and He knows who is a fake. At the Judgment Seat of Christ, Jesus is going to evaluate the servant aspect of our lives. The fire of God's nature will test and try each person's life and service for God. That which is like God will result in a reward for the Christian. However,
If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. (1 Cor 3:15)
If our Christian life and service is characterized by motives and things that are unlike the nature of God and His Word, some or all of the record of our temporary earthly lives will be reduced to ash. We will have nothing...except an escape from the same fate as the devil, a place in the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:10, 15). That is both good and bad. It is a tragedy that we will not have the things and responsibility that God intended for us. The only good thing is that we will be saved, and eternally so, from the pit and its torment because of the Grace of God. There will be great rejoicing and thankfulness combined with a profound grieving until God wipes the tears away from every eye for the last time (Rev 21:4).
Are you a non-hell resident? That is a great thing, in itself. But it is a tragedy compared to what could be and really should be. Do you desire to be a student of Jesus, considering His words as precious jewels?
Feb 27, 2025