Embracing the inevitable

Very often at the committal of a Christian funeral, the minister will say the following words;

Man that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, and is cut down, like a flower; he fleeth as it were a shadow, and never continueth in one stay.

In the midst of life we are in death: of whom may we seek for succour, but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins are justly displeased?[1]

And the truth is that for all of us from the very moment that life begins, in this life we are in death. All of us are temporal beings with finite lifespans, so just like a flower, all of us are destined to be cut down like a flower and die.

Death surrounds us in this life, and therefore in life, we are in death. For us, death is an appointment that is an imminent but unavoidable event that is mercifully unknown. It’s a shadow that stalks us unseen, waiting for its unannounced time to call. Today we live and breathe, but tomorrow we are gone, and when we’re gone, very soon we are forgotten. We only need to take a stroll through any graveyard to see the unkempt graves of forgotten loved ones from yesteryear.

In addition, death isn’t something that any of us like to think about, we tell ourselves that there’s loads of time left before death comes knocking on our door. And so, we reject all thoughts of the inevitable by keeping our minds focused on the present, the right here, the right now. In doing this, we find comfort, telling ourselves that the end of the line is a terminal that is far off in our distant future, and nothing to be concerned about just right now.

Thomas Á Kempis in his reflections 'Imitation of Christ' asked the question;

“arrange every action and thought as if today were the day of your death. If you are unprepared to die today, will you be more ready tomorrow”.[2]

But the sad truth is, tomorrow is an uncertainty that none of us can be sure of. Think about it, if we don't prepare today, we might never get the chance to deal with it. How often do we hear of tragic accidents on the roads, at work, at sea, or in the air? Death jumps from the shadows in sudden abruptness. Sadly the common thing was that all these people were just like you and me, they had plans for what they would do later that day, plans for tomorrow and the next day. So, it makes good sense to remind ourselves that we may not live to see the tomorrow which is just a few precious, present, moments away. While alive and full of life, we need to be ready for our death and ready to meet the Lord. "Momento Mori", remember you must die!

So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Matt 24:44

The question must be asked, have you made preparation for the salvation of your soul, are you ready to depart this world?

Or have you listened to the soft whisper of the deceiver, telling you that you don’t need to worry about death right now, you’ve plenty of time to get right with God! And in that, you tell yourself ‘One day’, I’ll get right with God ‘one day’ but not today, I've plenty of time, and you shake off those feelings of fear and trepidation for now.

John records for us 10:10 of his Gospel that Jesus said:

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full”.

That thief is the deceiver, the one who robs us of life in this world and in the next. If we allow his words of deception to take root and harden our hearts to answer Jesus’s call, then we lose the opportunity to deal with out pending death and the eternal future of our soul.

But there is an alternative to saying ‘One day I’ll get right with God'. We can simply ask Jesus into our hearts right now and in doing so today becomes our ‘Day one’ of the rest of our lives with Christ on this earth and for all eternity.

To make today your ‘Day one’, all you need do is pray the short prayer below, If you hear His call, seize the opportunity to deal with the matter of your soul today. I pray and hope that you will,

Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Saviour.

May God bless you on your journey this day,

Trev.

[1] THe Book of Common Prayer, Canterbury Press, P473

[2]Thomas A Kempis,  The imitation of Christ. Penguin Classics, P 41