We are presently in the middle of The Olympics and many of you have been watching with enthusiasm.
There are some surprises and there are some disappointments. These athletes have trained for four years in order to compete and try to win gold, silver or bronze metals for their achievements. All it takes is an unexpected injury, an illness or a mistake and their dreams go up in smoke.
Some are able to come back in four years and try again, while others will have to live with their disappointments and failures.
The great news is that as Christians we don’t have to suffer disappointment as to our final reward. If we have a relationship with God, through following his Son, Jesus Christ, we have been promised eternal life. It is not a guessing game, it is not a hope-so salvation: We can know that we have eternal life.
In 1 John 5:13, the writer says this very thing. He says, "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."
This promise is only for those who are true followers of Jesus Christ, not for those who only profess with no real heart change. There will be those who are disappointed like those spoken about in Matthew 7:21-23. It reads, "Not everyone who says, ‘Lord, Lord’, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evil doers!’"
If you are sincere about your faith in Christ and you genuinely have a relationship with him, you will have no disappointment when you meet him face to face.