1. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD

2. Definitions HINDRANCES; a thing that provides resistance, delay, or obstruction to something or someone: a hindrance to the development process | the visitor can wander around without hindrance. Example: Bad weather was the primary hindrance to our rescue efforts: impediment, obstacle, barrier, bar, obstruction, handicap, block, hurdle, restraint, restriction, limitation, encumbrance, interference; complication, delay, drawback, setback, difficulty, inconvenience, snag, catch, hitch, check, stumbling block; informal fly in the ointment, hiccup, wrench in the IDENTIFYING; To recognize or establish as being a particular person or thing; verify the identity of: to identify barrier or stumbling block …..

3. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Introduction Eternity with God is a reward of eternal life, which God will give to faithful Christians at the end of time. The New Testament presents a vivid illustration of the judgment day; in Matthew 25:31-46 and Revelation 20:11-15. Both accounts emphasize that people have only two possible destinies. The Scripture made it very plain and clear that all mankind will be divided into two groups: The Lost and The Saved.

4. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD According to Matt. 25, the lost will go to the left, while the saved will go to the right (No middle ground). “On that day, will I go to the right or to the left?” Those on the right will receive “eternal life” {John 3:36; Romans 2:7- 8, 6:23}. Those on the left which are the wicked will receive “eternal punishment” {Matt. 25:26} as they are cast into the “eternal fire” {Matt. 25:41; Jude 7; Mk. 9:48, Rev. 20:10} – the lake of fire which is “the second death” {Rev. 20:14; 2 Thess. 1:9}.

5. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD The Bible leaves no guesswork to what is God’s plan of salvation and eternal life with Him. God wants you to have assurance of eternal life with Him: 1John 5:13 “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” The hindrance to eternal life with God is sin. Mankind’s nature is sinful and rebellious while God is holy. This has caused a separation between sinful man and holy God. God bridged that gap with the death of the Lord Jesus on the cross and His resurrection from the dead.

6. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Each person’s destiny in “the life to come” will depend on what he or she has done in this lifetime. The desire of every child of God is to be at the Right hand side, which is eternity with God. The big question, which we are trying to discuss today, is what are the hindrances or setbacks or stumbling block that will prevent a child of God from completing this race successful to enable him receive the “Crown of life”! This question is best answered individually, as it affects you. Have a reflection on the stumbling block or setbacks that are making you not to exhibit your duties as a child of God. These setbacks are potential threats that could deny one eternity life!

7. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Classifying hindrances Sensory desire: {Fleshly or Carnal or Sensual} the particular type of wanting that seeks for happiness through the five senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and physical feeling. Ill-will: all kinds of thought related to wanting to reject, feelings of hostility, resentment, hatred and bitterness. Sloth-torpor: heaviness of body and dullness of mind, which drag one down into disabling inertia and thick depression. Restlessness-worry: the inability to calm the mind. Doubt: lack of conviction or trust.

8. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD The first step to receive the eternal life of God and His love to flow through us is to know what our hindrances are. If we are willing, the Lord Jesus can show us what hinders us from taking hold of the greatest gift of God, His eternal life. Once he shows it to us, He can also help us to overcome each hindrance so that one day we can become qualified to receive this gift from God.

9. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Let us look at some common hindrances we may have in order to receive this precious gift from God. Matthew 19:29 goes on to say, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life” This verse talks about leaving our houses, leaving some of our key affections and leaving our fields for the sake of the Lord. Let us look at these three conditions in detail.

10. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD HOLDING ON TO OUR HOUSES AND OTHER ASSETS Having one’s own house is considered a must for all human beings in this world. Apart from a house, we also own land, vehicles, investments and many other assets. There is a certain comfort and a sense of security, which comes along with these assets. In your quest for these comforts of material wealth, could it be a hindrance to your eternity with God? Can your love for this pleasure jeopardize your Soul? Letting go of this earthly comfort opens door to receiving His eternal life and to enter God’s kingdom. Luke 9:58 remind us “Foxes have den and birds have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head”

11. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Earthly wealth can become a great hindrance for a Christian to enter the kingdom of God. If a Christian devout himself to earthly riches or possession then he may even loose the kingdom of God. His soul maybe carried away with the lust of the world hence thus could be a hindrance to eternity with God. See 1John 2:15-17

12. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD HOLDING ON TO AFFECTIONS IN OUR LIFE The second thing this verse talks about is giving up affections for the closest people in our life. It says those who have left brothers, sisters, father, mother, wife, or children will inherit eternal life. These are the closest affections we have in our lives. Having our own love for any of our dear ones to conflict with the love of God is a hindrance to receiving God’s eternal life. We must set God first in all our priorities. God requires that we give up all our affections so that He can fill us with His love for our loved ones and others.

13. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Luke 14:26 says “if anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brother and sisters, yes, even their own life such a person cannot be my disciple” God requires for us to love Him with all our hearts, with all our soul, our mind and with all our strength. He requires for us to love Him with everything we have; every bit of our hearts must be dedicated to just loving Him and all the strength we have must be utilized to love Him. When we love Him with all our heart, then He will give us His love for others in our hearts.

14. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD HOLDING ON TO OUR MEANS OF INCOME In this world, we are taught to earn our living and we do a business or take a job or some kind of activity to earn our living. Could our holding on to our means of income be a barrier to eternity with God? Could your unwholesome practice in your place of work or business be the hindrance to eternity with God? Our willingness to let go of our means of income that constitute a barrier to our souls and ability to trust that God can provide for all our needs is a condition that needs to be fulfilled in order to qualify us to receive the eternal life of God.

15. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD HOLDING ON TO OUR LIVES Luke 14:26 say “if anyone comes to me and does not hate his own life, such a person cannot be my disciple.” We are free moral agent that has the freedom to choose the way we want to live our lives. We have the freedom to live our lives in the way we please; however, when we live our lives as per our desires, wishes, plan and dreams; we get disqualified to receive the eternal life of God. When we want to be in charge of our own lives and want to govern it, we lose all the privileges offered by God’s eternal life. If we are ready to let go our desire to be in control of our lives, and allow God to govern our own lives, to make and execute our own plans and to let go of our ambitions, and our dream for ourselves and for our loved ones, we qualify to gain the eternal life of God.

16. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD The Lord Jesus said in Mark 8:35 “for whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it”. This mean that if we would hold on to the rights of governing our own lives, we will lose the eternal life which is a precious gift from God, but if we let go of our right to govern our own life, we can gain the eternal life of God. A disciple of the Lord Jesus must carry his own cross in this world. The Lord Jesus talks about laying down our lives for the sake of the gospel; what it really means is that each and every believer of the Lord is called to lay down their prideful ways, lay down their own plans, desires and wishes for the sake of taking hold of the Kingdom of God. He expects us to follow the footsteps of our Master, who is indeed our Lord Jesus.

17. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Now that we have identified some hindrance to our eternity with God, what is the way forward? The way forward is a faithful Christian living. Christianity is not just a system of belief; it is a way of life. A person could believe everything that the Bible teaches, and it would do him no good if he never acted on those beliefs! In keeping with what the Bible teaches, we believe that faithful Christian living is necessary for a child of God to go to heaven. What does faithful Christian living look like? Leading a life that is pleasing to God involves the following:

18. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Changing our thinking. The Bible say’s ….as a man thinks within himself, so he is” {Proverbs 23:7a}. When one becomes a Christian, he needs to pay careful attention to his thinking. He must realized that wrong thoughts are as sinful as wrong actions {Matt. 5:22, 28}. Consequently, he should do his best to rid his mind of evil thoughts and focus on things that are “true … honourable …..right …..pure ….lovely ….and of good repute” {Phil. 4:8}. When he learns to think as a Christian, he will be well on the to living the Christian life.

19. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Developing Christian attitudes and growing in Christian attributes. What should characterize Christ’s disciples is not solely or primarily, what they do; rather, it is what they are, the personality traits {qualities} they display. Christians are frequently told to develop certain kind of attitudes. Ephesians 4:31,32, for example, says, “let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” {see also Colossians 3:12- 14, Matthew 5:1-12}.

20. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD In overcoming hindrances in our quest for eternity with God, a Christian must love. He ought to become a loving person, in keeping the way love is defined in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 –Read. When these attributes are acquired by prayer, Bible study and diligent effort - over a lifetime – he grows spiritually {see 2 Peter3: 18}. In this way he gradually acquires the Christian graces listed in 2 Peter 1:5-7 and develops the fruit of the Spirit described in Galatians 5:22,23. The result of his growth is that he becomes a mature Christian. He can be that, if he practices these things he “will never stumble” {2 Peter 1:10}.

21. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Letting Christ direct every aspect of our lives. Christians living involves letting Christ and His word control every part of our lives. The New Testament provides instructions for Christians regarding various facets of life. Keeping ourselves “unstained by the world”. {James 1:27, Romans 12:2a, 1 John 2:15-16}. Generally when the New Testament writers recommended positives attributes for Christians to cultivate, they also prohibited negative, sinful characteristics {Ephesians 4:25 to 5:5, Colossians 3:1-4}. Other attributes includes; Fulfilling the Great Commission, Doing good to others and Being faithful to the church.

22. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD Conclusion Beloved brethren we have being discussing the hindrances that could constitute a potential threat to our heavenly race. Like I mentioned previously your area of setback(s) or stumbling block is best known to you; hence the need for reflection on your life. My prayer for us is to identify these obstacles with the help of the Holy Spirit and living beyond the hindrances thus demonstrating a faithful Christian living. Its only then and then the hope of “the Crown of life” is guarantee!

23. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD The second appointment, which every mankind must accomplish, is Judgment. Read 2 Corinthians 5:10 -11 ………… knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.. We will round up with the food for thought in Matthew 16:26 “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

24. IDENTIFYING OUR HINDRANCES TO ETERNITY WITH GOD