Pisgah Church of Christ

Where will you and I spend eternity? Eternity is not a topic to which we choose to give thought. We are time oriented. Our lives are governed by clocks and watches; calendars and day planners; appointments and schedules. We live with our thoughts and activities upon the present. We make plans for the future. We believe that life is going to continue. The foolish live by this principle: "Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant." Isaiah 56:12. In a story told by Jesus, a man made plans for the days to come. This was his reasoning: "This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat drink, and be merry." Luke 12:18-19. This is the philosophy of the masses. He was prosperous; he was successful; he had accomplished his dream. His planning and hard work had paid him rich dividends. Society praised him. But, he had failed in the demands of eternity. God considered him a fool. "Thou fool" was the verdict of heaven. Eternity is not interested in our barns or grain or goods. "This night thy soul shall be required of thee:" Luke 12:20. The concern of eternity is the soul of man. And one night, our soul be required of us.

How are you and I going to fare in that hour? We make plans for life. We even make plans for death. We buy plots where our bodies will be laid to rest; we purchase life policies to aid those loved ones left behind. But, often times, we have not made preparation for that final encounter with God. The God of eternity will call us into judgment. Each one of us will stand before that tribunal bar. All of us will give an account of our lives. "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." II Corinthians 5:10. This is the great subject of eternity. Each must make his own preparation. Jesus warns us about preparation in his story of the ten virgins which is recorded in Matthew 25:1-13. Five virgins failed to take sufficient oil. They tried in the final moment to seek oil for their lamps, and while they went to buy oil, the bridegroom came. "They that were ready went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut." Matthew 25:10.

In the hour that the bridegroom comes, many will find themselves unprepared. The soul is too precious for us not to be prepared for eternity. We begin our preparation for eternity by believing in Christ as the Son of God (John 8:24); we repent of all sins (Luke 13:3); we confess the deity of Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:32-33); we are baptized for the remission of our sins (Acts 2:38); we live faithfully until death (Revelation 2:10). Then, regardless of the time of our death or the time of the second coming of our Lord, we are ready for eternity.

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