On Saturday night, I was flipping
through the channels looking for
something to watch when I came across
the ending of the blockbuster movie from
several years ago, The Titanic. It was
at the point in the movie where the ship
was on its nose, slowly sinking into the
icy waters. The lifeboats were already
separated from the luxury liner, leaving
the rest of the people clinging to their
last few minutes of life. It is a
horrible scene, especially due to the
fact that this movie was based on a very
real disaster that took over 1500 lives.
As I watched the ship sinking, the
people dying, I immediately thought that
despite all the ways man creates to
separate himself from other men, death
is the great equalizer!
On that great ship were people of
great privilege, people of incredible
wealth. On that ship you also had those
who had nothing. However, on that
fateful night, there were men worth
millions who died in those icy waters
along side of men who didn't even have
$1. At the moment they took their last
breath, their name, their job, their
bank account, what they may or may not
have accomplished during their life, all
ceased to matter. At the moment they
took their last breath, the only thing
that mattered was their relationship
with Jesus Christ, nothing else.
This is the foolishness of putting
everything you have into these few years
on earth. James calls life "a vapor."
The Bible tells us tomorrow is promised
to none of us, that each day is a gift
from God. Most people live their lives
like they will never die, spending every
second fulfilling the desires of their
flesh. Their entire focus is on these
few brief years and all of their time
and energy, talents and resources, are
invested in a life that will be gone in
the blink of an eye.
If Bill Gates would die without
accepting Christ into his heart, like
the rich man in Luke 16, the moment he
dies he will be eternally separated from
God. All of his billions, all of his
great accomplishments, all of his "good
works," will not matter. The moment he
dies there is only ONE THING that will
matter, and that is if he has accepted
Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Likewise, if a homeless man in
Chicago dies but knows Christ as his
Savior, like Lazarus, the moment he dies
he will be eternally with God his
Creator. The fact he had no money, or no
possessions, or never did great things
in his life will not matter. The moment
he dies there is only ONE THING that
will matter, and that is if he has
accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and
Savior. DEATH IS THE GREAT EQUALIZER!
What is the main focus of your life
today? Is it solely focused on these few
short years, or are you preparing for
your eternal home? Are you using each
day to lay up treasure where moth and
rust doth corrupt, or are you laying up
treasure in Glory? Do you spend your day
on the temporal or the eternal? How much
of your time, talent, and treasure is
spent on this life versus your eternal
life? These are all serious and
legitimate questions only you can
answer. Another good question you need
to ask yourself is what will your legacy
be? Are you working to build a legacy in
this temporal world, or are you working
to build a legacy that will stand for
all eternity?
The most important question that I
could ever ask you is, are you ready to
meet Jesus? Are you ready to take your
last breath and be standing before God
your Creator? If you took that last
breath in the next moment, do you know
without any doubt where your eternal
home will be? Are you ready to die? Are
you ready to meet Jesus? Are you ready
to stand before God your Creator? If you
can't answer each question with an
emphatic YES and you aren't 100% certain
that you will be spending eternity in
Heaven, please, take a moment right now
and ask God to open your heart to hear
His voice and watch this video clip:
http://www.liveprayer.com/altarcall.cfm
There is no decision you will ever
make in this life more important, since
this is the decision that will determine
where you spend eternity. The moment you
die, all that will matter is whether you
know Jesus as your Savior by faith. All
of the things that separate men in this
life cease to exist. As a man takes his
last breath, he will be separated like
the wheat and the chaff. All that will
be left are those who rejected Jesus and
those who surrendered their heart and
life to Him by faith. Death is the great
equalizer!
God put you on my heart today and
wanted me to tell you that if you have
not accepted Jesus as your Savior by
faith, NOW is the time to do it. You may
not have tomorrow. If you do know the
Lord in the pardon of your sins, it is
time to quit focusing so much on this
temporal world, and start focusing more
on eternity. The things of this life
will all pass away, but there is an
eternity awaiting each of us. It is not
our accomplishments for this world that
will stand the test of eternity, but our
accomplishments for the Lord! Our only
real legacy is not in the impact we make
on this temporal world, but the impact
we make in the eternal souls of men!
I will be praying for you today to
open your heart and hear the Lord's
voice speaking to you. He loves you and
has a wonderful plan and purpose for
your life. He wants to use you to touch
hearts and lives for the Lord. God has
given you life to serve Him. May this
word today open your heart to the fact
God is calling you and asking you to
turn completely to Him. Turn from the
temporal pleasures and attractions of
this life and focus instead on the
eternal hopes and goals of our Heavenly
home. It is too late for the rich man in
Luke 16 to tell those he loves about
Jesus, it is not too late for you!