Do you know what Russian Roulette is? Russian Roulette is a potentially lethal game of chance in which participants place a single bullet in a revolver, spin the cylinder, place the muzzle against their head and pull the trigger. If you are lucky, the cylinder will come to rest on an empty chamber and nothing happens when the trigger is pulled. If you are unlucky, you will be dead. When a person decides to do nothing about their separation from God, it is just like playing Russian Roulette.
Why is this? If a person is not a disciple of Jesus then he or she has not had their wrong doings forgiven and taken away. If a person dies in this condition they will pay the full penalty for their spiritual crimes. Because none of us know when we will die, deciding to do nothing about our spiritual condition is just like playing Russian Roulette with our eternal destiny. Every moment that a person delays in becoming a Christian, he or she risks dying and facing eternal punishment. The Bible states it like this, “Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes (James 4:13-14). This is a “game” of chance with eternal consequences.
Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment
One day, God will raise everyone from the dead to face judgment for the things we have done during our lifetimes. “…a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned” (John 5:28-29). What kind of condemnation do the people face who die without having their sins taken away? Let us look at a number of passages and let the Bible speak for itself.
The destiny of those who choose not to be a follower of Jesus
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels… Then they will go away to eternal punishment (Matthew 25:41, 46)
The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13:41-42)
This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13:49-50)
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.’ (Mark 9:43-48)
God will give to each person according to what he has done… for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil (Romans 2:6, 8-9)
No one would purposely choose to face the penalty described above after the Judgement. However, choosing to do nothing is the same as choosing to be expelled from the presence of God and cast into a fiery place of punishment.
The eternal destiny of those who are disciples of Jesus
Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven (Matthew 5:12)
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you (1 Peter 1:3-4)
God will give to each person according to what he has done… To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. (Romans 2:6-7)
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father (Matthew 13:43)
No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him (1 Corinthians 2:9)
Which will you choose?
Choosing to delay the decision to become a Christian is the same as choosing to do nothing. Doing nothing is a chance that carries with it risks of eternal consequence. Why not choose to become a Christian today? Tomorrow may be too late! Your eternal destiny hangs in the balance.