YOU LOSE WHAT YOU DO NOT USE
Jonah 2:8,9 “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord.”
It is funny how our perspective changes in life as time goes on. When I was young it seemed like summer lasted forever, and now the weeks fly by. Days fly into weeks, weeks into months, months into years and the next thing we know we are sitting around wondering where the time went and how much of it we waisted. But no matter how much we try to get it back, it is so much water that has flowed over the dam never to be retrieved. If only we had our live backwards maybe we would live it differently.
In 2008 a movie came out called “The curious case of Benjamin Buttons”, starring Brad Pitt. It was about a person who lived his life backwards and how it affected those around him. While everyone was getting older, he was getting younger. Of course this added problems as Brad saw all those he loved grow old and die while he gradually became a baby and died. As interesting and entertaining as the movie was it only pointed out the reality that we have one life to live then comes judgment. (Hebrews 9:27) Whether it is forward or backwards like Pitt, we have to do it a day at a time. With each day comes blessings and regrets. All we can do is to do our best and hope that somehow our regrets will not haunt us like the movie “Scrooge”.
One thing we do know is that God has given us his word compiled into what we call the Bible to give us insight that will lead us in ways that will produce less regrets. It helps us to cling to what is good, and let go what will only leave us with regrets. There is no other time in a person's life when the survey of life stands out the most to us than when we are near death. All of a sudden all those things that we thought we so important were only things that caused us to miss out on what should have been the most treasured. Jonah certainly found this out as he was in the fish. He said, “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.” Why did it take him so long to remember the Lord? Why did he not call on the Lord to save him from the fish, from being thrown into the ocean? Remember he thought he wanted to die. In fact even later on he wished he had sooner died than to see God show the Ninevites grace and mercy sparing their lives. Jonah had become hard hearted towards the Ninevites, God and even himself. Yet when he was about to die he began to remember God’s grace, and that salvation only comes through the Lord. The grace he wanted God to deny to the Ninevites, he wanted for himself. There is probably nothing like death staring us in the face as to cause us to get serious, really serious about facing God and his judgment of us.
For Jonah it wasn’t that he didn’t know better. He was a prophet of God and had even heard the Lord speak to him clearly in a personal way, yet he allowed hatred to cause him to forfeit the very grace that God had for him. He knew that no one can find true grace in idols. Idols whether they are demonic beings or materialistic in nature will alway leave us disappointed. In them there is no unmerited favor. Everything comes at a great price, one that always costs more than the reward they bring. Only in God and God alone can we find true eternal love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness and self-control. Only in God can we have true lasting purpose and fulfillment in life. All of these and so much more only comes through trusting in Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior. When we have Jesus, we have grace and blessings beyond measure.
For some people their life is much like Benjamin Buttons. They live their life backwards without the grace and blessings of Jesus until the very end of their life when they become a Christian. They forfeited a lifetime of blessings and fellowship with Jesus for stuff that when looked back on was only regrets like the water flowing over the dam. Those things came and went and are now regrets for what could have been. What they could have had with Jesus never happened. They chose poorly as Indiana Jones might say. But for those that do reach out to Jesus on their deathbed, Jesus responds just as happily as at any other time in our life. The twelfth hour conversion or commitment to Jesus is certainly real. I have helped several people to receive Jesus just hours before their death. Do I believe they were sincere? It doesn’t matter what I or you or anyone else thinks. All that matters is they decided to trust in Jesus just like every other Christian.. I was only a messenger that took a last minute call for someone. It was up to them to answer it.
Where are you at in your life? Are you young, old, living your life for your own desires or living your life for Jesus? Have you asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior? Are you forfeiting the eternal for the temporal?
There is no guarantee what tomorrow holds let alone our next minute. Don’t put off the eternal blessings of Jesus for the fleeting regrets that you may chase after today.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for providing for us a hope and blessing that brings eternal happiness and joy. Thank you for your grace, mercy and love. You are a wonderful God and Savior!
