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AM the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
(John 11:25-26)
We all may have had the experience of deep regret over some duty or consideration we should have paid a friend or close loved one before their passing from this life. In my case, I regret I did not send more pretty flowers to my mother (she loved flowers) before her passing from my reach; or did not express my admiration and fondness for an old friend who has gone to his reward; or done more to alleviate the suffering of little children who had not man to stand on their behalf. I believe these are regrets common to many of us. Additionally, there are numerous opportunities upon which we neglected to capitalize upon that would have made a difference for us, our families, or our friends and neighbors.
I have a dear friend who recently underwent a routine health check-up – the first of which I am aware for many years. He is fifty-two years of age. Unfortunately, the test revealed cancerous tissue in a very vulnerable place in his intestinal tract requiring surgical removal. It will also require my friend be equipped with a colostomy bag for the rest of his life. It is good news the cancer did not spread, but unhappy news the colostomy bag would be necessary. Had he been examined only a few years earlier, it is likely that the problem would not have developed into cancer at all, but now, he learned too late to safeguard his body against a sad disorder. Of course, God is merciful to allow him to live out a normal life-span even if troubled by the impediment of an uncomfortable attachment.
This is a sorrowful development for my friend. He failed to care for his health by having frequent routine check-ups. But how much more serious is the negligence of the well-being of one’s own soul! The body is a temporary transport through this wilderness world and it returns at death to the dust of the ground of which it is composed. “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? (Mark 8:367-37) How many perish in this world for neglect of their souls? How many show even a faint interest in the Word of God? Some waste their young years on riotous living and wait until the shadow of death falls across their doorstep before responding to the beckoning call of the Holy spirit to life? Of course, as long as life remains, there is always time to believe and respond, but why save only less productive years only for God? Belief must come while we still breathe and think, “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.”
When the calling of the Holy Spirit is rejected over time, consider the number of valuable years of service to the Lord that fall by the wayside. How many opportunities to reach out to our youth with the soothing Balm of the Gospel are wasted? How many years of a failed marriage could have been healed by the inclusion of faith in the hearts of its members?
We must respond while we yet live! Not only do we need periodic health check ups for the body, but also for the soul. “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.” (John 5:39-40) A regular daily resort to the study of God’s Word is health check-up for the soul. We grow stronger in the certain faith and knowledge of God.
Getting one’s life straight before repentance is never a reason for delay. We need the guidance and comfort of the Holy Ghost to face ourselves in the mirror of God’s Word to see what miserable sinners we are. We are powerless to save ourselves since we are already dead in trespasses and sins. We need to hear the beckon of the Holy Ghost to quicken and make us alive in Christ. We will seldom hear that voice in the saloons, dance halls, or gutter-lands of the world.
There are many Christians, as well as lost persons, who are wounded and burdened with the retained load of sin which they have failed to place on the broad shoulders of the Lord. He can carry every burden and forgive every sin. If we, as Christians, fail in our testimony or walk, we may be called to the grave before our expected time. “(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) (2 Corinthians 6:2-3)
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HERE is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
(Ecclesiastes 9:10)
