Last Day, Last Opportunity

The folks who write fiction are really good at cliff-hangers. They take you to the brink of death, and then some hero comes through and pulls you back from the brink. Sounds a little like Washington come to think of it. I work with firefighters and paramedics. They often "get there in the nick of time." But, sometimes they are "too late." The tone goes off, the dispatcher's voice sounds out, and the printer kicks on and spits out valuable information. The rush to the rescue unit begins, the lights go on, and the siren blasts. The race is on to save life.

Jesus speaks of a last day in John 6:39-40. It is a critical day. It is the LAST day. There will not be another. The calendar ends for real. No more meetings. No more "to do lists." No more plans fulfilled. No more words said. No more tomorrow. No more "next time." Done. Over. Finale. The only person who stands between you and permanent DEATH is Jesus. We might debate what "death" means, whether sleep, annihilation, never-ending suffering in a burning hell, or some other state we have no clue about, but we know what it is not. It is not LIFE lived and enjoyed in the presence of God the Father who gave us our lives. Death is an enemy that has a grip. That grip is firm and inescapable. Those words of Jesus provide the only hope for the escape from the grip of death. "...and I Myself will raise him up at the last day." (Jn.6:40)

In John 5:21 we learn from Jesus that He gives life to whomever He wishes. In 5:25ff Jesus says He will call people from death's grip with His voice. When the dead hear his voice they will live. It was the voice of Jesus that called Lazarus from the tomb. It is the sheep who know the voice of the shepherd who follow him (John 10). We are in training now to learn to recognize the voice of Jesus. One reason is so when we hear it on the last day we will get up and escape death. I don't want to miss the last opportunity to rise from the dead because I do not recognize the voice of Jesus.

We each live in the temporary world doing temporary things with temporary results. Temporary will one day end, and we will lie in the stillness of death awaiting a certain, single, powerful voice that will call our name, because the shepherd knows his sheep by name. If we know that voice we will rise up in joy and excitement that we did not miss the last opportunity to experience eternal life. Maybe we should spend more time now listening to His voice and following Him so we don't miss it on the last day. You think?