When God instructed people in the Old Testament, its symbolism is evident.
It was symbolism to remind His people of what He had done already and that He can be trusted.
God told them to write His words on the gates and posts and to wear them on their hands
and between their eyes and to talk about them all the time from morning until nighttime.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: 
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children,
and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way,
and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. 
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9

If you need a reminder, read His word.
If you lack faith, read His word.
Come to the living water which washes us daily.
Let His word rule and reign in your heart.

Salvation is an individual response to the Holy Spirit
There are no blanket Salvation promises for everyone
If you say in the word, it says that if you believe, you shall be saved
That is truth, however each person must recognize that Jesus is Lord and that He was raised from the dead
Each one also must reconcile his or her life to Jesus and this is an individual effort
If you meet Jesus and you decide to give your life to Him, then your walk is with Him
He tells you how to follow Him, what He is asking of you
This is not payment for Salvation
It is a response to His work in your life
If you do not allow Jesus to work in your life and make you a new creature,
you will be like a man who looks at himself in a mirror and forgets what he had seen

For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. James 1:23-24

We each need to check our walks before the Lord
Paul called that judging ourselves
Then, we will not get surprised when we do finally meet our Lord
because we will already be aware of what it means to follow Him
There will be no surprises
Stay close to Jesus as you walk with Him, He will direct your steps

Should we be afraid we can lose our salvation?
Yes. It is the godly fear that reminds us that He can cast us into Hell, which is separation from Him
it is a lie from the pits of Hell that we cannot lose our salvation
Jesus gave us many ways that we can lose our salvation
It will not be our goodness or anything we have done that will allow us Salvation, but God’s grace and mercy
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

it is all between you and God
The assurance of Salvation comes from Him
He will make it clear to you
Ask Him

Be faithful in the little and God will give you the increase.

Have you ever considered doing something no one else will see, but just because it’s the right thing to do?
Like picking up a nail in the road while you’re walking so someone’s tire doesn’t go flat?
Nobody else saw, but God did.
We are not to do things for others to see. if we do, then we lose our reward.
I hear people telling others about their times of fasting
or how much they read the bible or how they helped this person or a host of other good deeds.
Jesus said, Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance:
for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast.
Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 
But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 
That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret:
and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Matthew 6:16-18
That goes for anything. If we seek our glory from men, we will lose our heavenly reward.

Jesus loves to tell parables. He likes to demonstrate a story to help our understanding.
If you understand them, you are blessed.
If you do not, ask Jesus to teach you what they mean and He will.
Likely, those who do not believe will find them foolishness.
And when He was alone, they that were about Him with the twelve asked of Him the parable. 
And He said unto them,
Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God:
but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 
That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand;
lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. Mark 4:10-12
That is precisely why He told parables, to hide His teachings from the wicked.

If we honor Jesus at all, we can allow that honor of Him to grow.
When we follow Him, we must put off the world and treasure the things of the kingdom.
The more ground we allow God to take in our lives,
the more we will be rewarded in this world and in the world to come.
His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things,
I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Matthew 25:21

Follow no man.
Follow Jesus.
If Jesus gives you the peace to walk with others in difficult circumstances, so be it,
but keep Jesus in the mix. He might change your direction.

Jesus warned us that we would face perilous times.

They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh,
that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. John 16:2

Jesus told us to watch and pray, to watch for the signs of The End.
Watch ye therefore, and pray always,
that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass,
and to stand before the Son of man. Luke 21:36
This means, the Lord is watching over you to help you endure to the end.
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. Matthew 24:13

This is not time to ignore the commandments of the Lord.
Stay close to Him and obey whatever it is He may ask of you.

Easier said than done.
In the world, it’s fine to curse people. People do that to one another all the time.
We are not thinking of curses of Satanic origin, although, that might very well influence us.
Many of us were raised that way from a young age saying or thinking things like:
That person is an idiot. What a dummy. He doesn’t know anything at all.
and all sorts of other cursed things.

This morning, in the Proverbs chapter of the day, this jumped out:
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse. Proverbs 28:27
What if we thought of these people we are cursing or that we cannot stand as the poor?
They definitely are in many respects.
What if we blessed them instead, as a form of giving to the poor?
What if we did not hide our eyes from them, but prayed and gave them blessings from the Lord?
Would that not please the Lord?
It most definitely would.

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again;
and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest:
for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Luke 6:35

It’s not easy to love the unlovely. They are ugly. They have faults that can be so difficult to overlook.
We must try. God loves them. God wants us to love our neighbor as ourselves.
What if we were the strange ones who always said or did the wrong things?
What if we didn’t bathe and stank or had atrocious social skills that turned others off?
Jesus was kind to the evil and the unthankful.
This is not something we can do on our own: Love others out of obedience to the Lord.
It’s a tough job. We cannot do that without the help of the Lord Jesus. It’s utterly impossible.
These people are too difficult.

If we self-reflect, we can think of a time we said or did the wrong thing. What if we almost always did?
Then we would be like the unlovely. How would we want people to treat us if we messed up all the time?

If God were to remove Himself from the Earth, there would be nothing good.
No love, no kindness, no goodness, no light, only emptiness and darkness.
People who live without God, who do not acknowledge Him do not realize,
the only good they have is from Him.
With God’s presence, which is everywhere, there is honesty, justice, and anything good and right.
Without God is emptiness, complete absence of anything good.

When people arrive in Hell of their own choice,
to not choose God while they had the chance here on Earth,
the worst part will be to be completely separated from God.
Jesus spoke of Hell many times. He also called it outer darkness.
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed,
than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Mark 9:43-44

God does not play. He said what He meant and He meant what He said.
We cannot change His words, neither can we soften them when they seem harsh.
God said what He said.
Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand,
Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: Matthew 25:41

And He said unto him, Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but one, that is, God:
but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. Matthew 19:17
True good, the only good that matters comes from God and reflects God’s goodness.

There is no turning once we die. We will be judged and it will be too late.

What is the whole duty of man? Solomon told us in Ecclesiastes 12:13
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
The fear of the Lord is to be in our hearts. He can cast us into Hell.
We cannot talk our way into His good graces. It is entirely up to Jesus.

In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God,
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 
Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of His power; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9
The time is short. Time to take God seriously.

It is best not to assume.
Some of the people Jesus spoke of did not please Him.
We can’t take Jesus for granted or take a seat at the table.
We wait for His invitation.

When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room;
lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;
And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee,
Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.
But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room;
that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee,
Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them
that sit at meat with thee. Luke 14:8-10

Let us not give ourselves positions of honor in God’s kingdom.
Think of others better than yourselves.
For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? 
is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth. Luke 22:27

This all does not mean that God does not want us to draw near to Him.
On the contrary: All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. John 6:37
He draws us, let Him be in charge and don’t assume a position.
Remain pliable and humble.

Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you. 1 Peter 5:7

We can get stuck. We know what we’re supposed to do, but we can’t put it all together.
Jesus understands. He’s right there beside us, walking beside us.
Jesus knew the Father heard Him. He didn’t worry about it.
He committed things that bothered Him into the Father’s hands.
And He went a little further, and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, 
O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me:
nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt. Matthew 26:39
Jesus was/is our example. He hears us and the Father hears us because we ask in Jesus’ name.
A simple thought that can be difficult to grasp.
The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. Psalm 34:15
Try anyway, keep trying. He cares for you.
Read about all the times He has shown His care for people in the Bible.
Think of all the answered prayers you have seen in your own life, in the lives of those around you.
Ask Jesus to remind you and let His word get deep down into your heart and permeate your innermost being.

So much love and so much care God has for us…
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Matthew 10:30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field,
which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Matthew 6:30
Rest in His love for you.

It is time to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in the world where they are facing persecution unto death.
This is one among many times that Christians will have to offer their lives for the Lord Jesus Christ.
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; 
and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body. Hebrews 13:3

There are no excuses.
Even if we are persecuted or if those in authority are our enemies.
We are called to love our enemies and pray for and bless those who persecute us.
Even if we know the Tribulation is coming or might even be here,
we still need to pray and believe God to work things for our good and for His glory.
We also know as we pray God’s will that He will influence the leaders or possibly thwart their plans or change their hearts.
All of those scenarios are possible with our God. He is kind and merciful and He never ceases to work.
He never slumbers or sleeps.

The ugly things that we think or say, we may be cursing people without realizing it.
God wants us to bless others.
We may be thinking we are better than or smarter than them
or we might be thinking how foolish the leaders are.
While all that may be true to an extent,
our role is to be humble before God and to love them anyway.

Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.
For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.
Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God:
and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. Romans 13:1-2

Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates,
to be ready to every good work, Titus 3:1

Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake:
whether it be to the king, as supreme;
Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. 1 Peter 2:13-14

As you go forward in this sometimes cold, cruel world, know that He has your back.
That is, if you follow His commandments.
Jesus loves us and He also expects much of us.
Keep in tune with Him and He will help you along the way.