OUTLINE:

Life
Life is short. Life has context. Without said context, our lives are vapid and we lack the perspective that gives us a sense of purpose. What’s worse than roaming the Earth without a purpose???

We Are Christ’s Bride
Christ has gone to prepare a home for His Bride (Jn 14:1-4), the Church (we believers). Those who were saved prior to the Church-Age will be there to celebrate our marriage in Heaven. (Rev 19:6-9)

Rev 19:7 [Amplified]
Let us rejoice and shout for joy! Let us give Him glory and honor, for the marriage of the Lamb has come [at last] and His bride (the redeemed) has prepared herself.”

Rev 19:9 [Amplified]
Then the angel said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited [non-Church-Age believers] to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he said to me [further], “These are the true and exact words of God.”

We Are Christ’s Bride
Christ has gone to prepare a home for His Bride (Jn 14:1-4), the Church (we believers). Those who were saved prior to the Church-Age will be there to celebrate our marriage in Heaven. (Rev 19:6-9)

1Pe 1:3 [Amplified]
Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant and boundless mercy has caused us to be born again [that is, to be reborn from above— spiritually transformed, renewed, and set apart for His purpose] to an ever-living hope and confident assurance through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Refusal to accept the Truth doesn’t change it.

Wisdom
If you’re not with God, you’re against Him (Mt 12:30) - there is no neutrality. If you’re against Him, your life is vapid, your purposes fleeting, and your faith/ hope is in vain. “All is vanity” (Ecc 1:2).

The Crucible
Faith must be tested for it to be consummated. In other words, while God always knows the purity of our faith, we must have it “tested by fire” (ala 1Pe 1:7) in order to understand its purity for ourselves.

1Ti 2:5
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Mt 10:28
“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” - Jesus

Refusal to accept the Truth doesn’t change it.

“strive”
from agonizomai - to struggle, literally (to compete for a prize), figuratively (to contend with an adversary), or genitive case (to endeavor to accomplish something): — fight, labor fervently, strive.

Grace Is Free, Not Easy (Lk 13:24)
Grace is constrained by God’s integrity towards those He chooses to give it to (ala Jas 4:6). From the flesh’s perspective, grace is difficult because it requires humility to receive it. The flesh would prefer to redefine grace as something that accommodates its unholy desires (eg. live for self and obtain a free “ticket” to Heaven).