Being Diligent And Living A Productive Life

Being diligent is the opposite of being lazy.  Why is it important to be diligent rather than lazy?  The reason is because God has only given us one life and we should do all we can with that one life to glorify God.  God actually created man to work.  Even before sin entered into the world God told Adam to keep and dress the garden in the Garden of Eden.
Genesis 2:15: And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 
God wants people to be productive with their life and work because it is for their own happiness and wellbeing.  People who work are happier than people who are lazy.  It makes you feel good to produce and accomplish something with your life.  Even in heaven we will be working by serving our Lord and Savior.
Revelation 22:3: And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him. 
So we get to serve the Lord even when we get to heaven.

Ways to be diligent and productive:

1. Strive to be productive every single day:  That means to not be fiddling time away on things that don't even matter, like playing video games for instance.

2. Have goals for your life:  For instance, what you would like to accomplish five years from now.  If you spent a few hours a day every day for five years playing video games that would add up to a lot of hours, and what would you have at the end of five years, absolutely nothing. On the other hand, if you spent that time instead practicing a musical instrument you would have a very good talent that you could use to glorify God.  The purpose is not so that you can say "look at me how great I am", that would be pride.  But the purpose is to say, "look what God has done through  me."  Everyone should want to accomplish something with their life.  That is the way God created us. If you aim at nothing, that is what you will hit every time.

3. Be diligent with your bible reading: Develop a routine of doing it every day at the same time. The bible says the Christian life is a life of striving to win the prize, and we need to be filled with the Word to run the race.
I Corinthians 9:24: Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
Philippians 3:14: I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Acts 17:11: These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

4. To be diligent you must not let difficulties stop you: This is called perseverance.  It means to never give up.  You just keep on striving no matter how hard it is.  I know a person who is an excellent example of someone who was diligent.  She dedicated 2 1/2 years of her life to intense studying and work going through nursing school because she had a goal of becoming a nurse.  Sure it was tough, but she kept on going until she finished.  Many people drop out of nursing school because they say it is just too hard, but a diligent person keeps on going no matter how hard it is.  Determine to finish what you start; with God's help you can do it.  It also takes patience.
Romans 2:7: To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality.

5.  Do your very best at everything you do:
Ecclesiastes 9:10: Whatsover thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.  What that means is during your one life here on earth is the only time you have to do any work for God's glory; after you die you will not be able to.  So make good use of your life and do everything you do with all your might.

Christains are  also commanded to diligently keep God's commandments.
Deuteronomy 6:17: Ye shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he hath commanded thee.

Also if we keep God's commandments he will give us good success in everything we do.  God doesn't make failures, he only makes successes.
Deuteronomy 11:13: And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,
14: That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.

Joshua 22:5: But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. 

Psalm 119:4: Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.

The bible also says that in all labor there is reward.
Proverbs 14:23: In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.
I Corinthians 3:8: Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.
Deuteronomy 11:22: For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD yours God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him:
23: Then will the LORD drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves.

So the most important thing we can do is to diligently keep God's commandments and live every day to be the most productive and useful that we can so that when we come to the end of our life we can say what the apostle Paul said.
II Timothy 4:6: For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
7: I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.
8: Henceforth, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them that love his appearing.

Why Seventh Day Adventists Are Not Christians

This is a bible lesson on the subject of why Seventh Day Adventist is a false religion and a cult.  Many people think they are just Christians that go to church on Saturday, but actually that is the least problem there is with them.  They do not agree with any of the most important doctrines in the bible about salvation.  They have many strange doctrines and false teachings. They may sound like Christians in the terms they use like salvation or being born again, but their terms do not mean the same thing that is actually biblical truth.  I looked up their beliefs on their very own website called adventist.org and will go over some of them below.

1.  They don't believe in hell.  If you don't believe in hell what are you being saved from.. You cannot be a Christian if you don't believe in hell. When Jesus died on the cross it was to take our punishment for us so we wouldn't have to pay ourselves and go to hell forever.  The bible clearly states that when someone dies they go immediately to heaven to be with Christ, or they go to hell for all eternity.  What the Adventists teach is that death is an unconscious state for all people, saved or unsaved.  They say that people will be actually nowhere and will be nothingness until the second resurrection when Jesus comes to judge, then the righteous go to heaven and the unsaved will get burned up with fire and be gone and cease to exist, which is called annihilation. But that is not true because the bible says the wicked will be tormented day and night in an everlasting fire, which means for ever and ever.  That is the motivation for winning souls, because we don't want people to go to an eternal fiery hell.  Matthew 25:41: Then shall he say unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.  Another verse also is Matthew 18:8: Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be case into everlasting fire.

Revelation 14:10: The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of this name.
That is not getting burned up and being gone, it is much worse, it is being on fire forever. I'm definitely so glad that I'm not going there, and it is all because of what Jesus did for me. That is why Jesus suffered and gave his life for me, to keep me out of hell.  There is nothing that horrible about being burned up and being gone as there is about being in an everlasting fire forever.

There is also the story of the rich man and Lazarus and how the rich man went straight to hell and Lazarus went straight to heaven.  Some people think the story of the rich man and Lazarus is a parable, but it is not a parable because parables do not give any names of actual people.  They just say a certain man, etc., but in the rich man and Lazarus story God actually said the name of Lazarus, so it is not a parable, it is a true story. To read the entire account of this read Luke 16:19-31. There is definitely a man named Lazarus in heaven right now, while the rich man is still in torment right now and will be forever.  Hell is horrible and lasts forever; what a chilling thought, but that is what the bible says.

Also the bible is clear that saved people go to be with the Lord the moment they die.  Corinthians 5:8: We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.  

When I die I will be going directly to heaven to be with Jesus.  Philippians 1:21: For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 
23: For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ, which is far better.

John 11:25: Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.
26: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believeth thou this. When a saved person dies they will go to be with Jesus forever.

2.  One of the Adventists beliefs is called "Experience of salvation": This is what the Adventists say, "When we accept God's grace and salvation, the Holy Spirit reveals our need for Jesus and recreates us. The Spirit builds our faith and helps us leave our broken lives behind."  In another place they say, "we are given the power to live a holy life".
Notice how it says nothing of receiving the gift of eternal life. To them salvation is just being given a heart to live a holy life, no mention at all of John 3:16 or Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. So when they talk about salvation it is not the same thing as what we believe about salvation. (the gift of eternal life).  It is a false teaching. Jesus didn't die to make us live better lives; he died to keep us out of hell.

In another section of their beliefs it goes on to say "Continually committed to Jesus as our Saviour and Lord, we are set free from the burden of our past deeds."  Also they say, "Salvation transforms how we see our world. We no longer fear our past or future, but embrace a present full of hope, love, passion and praise as the Spirit lives in us.  In actuality, when we are committed to Christ he will make us fishers of men to keep people out of hell.  Everything they say about salvation or living for Christ is only pertaining to this life here on earth only.  In truth, though, salvation is eternal life and to live for Christ means to live for things of eternal value.
Colossians 3:1: If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  So you see then that their definition of salvation is totally different from our definition of salvation from the bible.

3.  They have the strange doctrine of washing one another's feet.  It is an ordinance that they do in their church.  When Jesus washed his disciples feet in the bible, he did it to show us an example, to be like him and serve others and to have humility. He didn't do it to be an ordinance in the church for people to actually wash each others feet.  Back in Jesus's day people wore sandals and walked for miles in them so their feet really needed washing, but today people wear shoes, etc., so this washing of feet is just a showing off of how spiritual they think they are.  It is ridiculous.

4. They follow the teachings of a woman named Ellen G. White and they actually put her writings on the same level as the bible, which is horribly wicked.  This is what they say about Ellen. G. White. "Her writings speak with prophetic authority and provide comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction to the church.  No writing of a human being should be put on par with the bible.  The KJV bible ONLY is the authority in our life and church, not any writings by a person.  The bible says that Jesus is the head of the church, not some false prophet's writings. All false cults start with a false prophet like Ellen G. Smith.  Christian science was started by Mary Baker Eddy, Mormons by Joseph Smith.  So flee from any religion that teaches a human being's writings are on par with the bible or even above the bible.  The KJV bible is our only authority as the word of God, nothing else.

The Seventh Day Adventists are a huge church in America, with tens of millions of followers, but it is a satanic religion that preaches a false gospel and is damning souls to hell.  We have to be on the alert for false religions and be on guard, so we don't get sucked into their false teachings.  Remember just because someone says, "I'm saved, I believe in Jesus", that doesn't mean they are saved. If they believe in a false gospel they will end up in hell unless they get truly saved before it is eternally too late.

Galatians 1:8: But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have received, let him be accursed.
9: As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 

We need to be strong in the Lord and continually in his Word so we won't fall for the devil's tactics or false religions or false prophets.

Ephesians 6:10: Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11: Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.