It's not an option

Ever notice people do not want to die as a general rule of thumb?? They usually tell you. “I don’t want to die” or “I’m too young to die.” Or “I want to live forever!” Could it be because we were meant to live forever?

Ecclesiastes 3:11 says God has put eternity on all men’s hearts.

10 I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.

How does that work that we are going to die but we have this carrot (eternity) dangling in front of us? Let’s try this on for size: perhaps we are living life in the here and now so that we can know what life is so that we can understand this is not all there is to life.

If God has eternity on our hearts I’m thinking there isn’t an option. We will live forever! We know we are currently living in a world that is in a state of decay but there will be another place that will take its place someday. We have to break free from the mindset that life at is fullest (at least in our culture) is the toy grabbing, pleasure seeking, wealth accumulating, complete our kids resume before the age of 10, get ahead of the neighbors, stay healthy game we play . . . for what we think is “keeps.” The real “keeps” is eternity.

Rick Warren in Purpose Driven Life says something to the effect, “life here on earth is a dress rehearsal for eternity.” The confusion comes when we think the dress rehearsal is the reality of eternity. For those who think the dress rehearsal is “the event,” it is not. The stage is real, the props are real, the director is real, the actors are real, the emotions are real, but this is not where the full production will be presented Eternity is!

The Bible teaches us is that our earthly flesh bearing body is going to die but there is a reality of existence that we know some things about, but not everything about, that which is yet to come. So many people live like this is all there is and that might be because without understanding or hearing what God has spoken, we cannot fathom what he has done from beginning to end. (For those of you old enough, remember the song “Is that all there is?” by Peggy Lee). But God has set eternity on our hearts!!!

So wouldn’t it be a refreshing approach to dive into a conversation with someone who says, “I don’t want to die.”

And you reply, “Well actually, that’s not an option.”

Now they are going to think you mean that it’s not an option: we all have to die. But then you could go on to explain, “Dying is not an option. Oh sure, your body is going to die but you, spiritually, are created for eternity. What really is not an option is whether you live or not. You will live forever. So the question begs, where do you plan on spending it?” talk about looking at things from a different perspective!

Now that all segues to what is an option: where we spend eternity. There are only two neighborhoods that we have to choose from: Choose wisely!

Reservations are now being taken for where you want to live forever.

Jesus says, “I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the father except through me” (John 14:6)


Stay in the Word and stay close to Jesus.
REG