As I traveled yesterday, I drove pass a church sign that said, "Obedience is Time Sensitive". It made me think of how we prioritize things in our lives. There are some tasks that we act leisurely upon. You know, those things that can wait until tomorrow or next week, like the laundry.
Then there are things that we know cause for immediate attention, like if your boss tells you a certain task needs to be done in the next hour, you'd put off your other task to work on that one.
Time sensitive tasks have an expiration date. There are consequences to face if we fail to meet the deadline. We know this to be true in our daily lives and it is just the same in our spiritual lives.
I've heard people say, "what's for you is for you." I agree to a certain extent. What's for you is for you as long as you act when and how God instructs. The Children of Israel incorrectly assumed that there was no time limit on what God had promised them.
The land was theirs. God promised it to them. Yet, they disobeyed God and did not go possess it when He told them to go. As a result, God said they would not possess the promised land that was previously promised to them. It was a time sensitive blessing that they failed to act upon.
Once the deadline was up, the Children of Israel decided they wanted to complete the task. They assumed "what's for us is for us." Regardless of their disobedience and despite their failure to move when God instructed them, they thought the land was still there for the taking because it was once promised.
Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, “Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised. Surely we have sinned!”
(Numbers 14:40 NIV)
"Now, we are ready" they said. But they were ready too late. The opportunity had come and gone. What was meant for them was promised to the next generation.
Don't you know as the children of God, eternal life is promised to us? (John 3:16). However, disobedience can keep us from what is meant for us. We cannot walk in the flesh or live in sin and expect to still have the promise of eternal life.
Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
(1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NIV)
I thank God that if we still have breath in our lungs, we still have the opportunity to receive the promise. The deadline is not missed so long as we are still alive. We can repent and be made new. And what was promised, will be ours.
Yet, there will be some, like the foolish virgins in Matthew 25, who will miss the deadline. There will be those who chose to walk in disobedience, who chose to ignore the time sensitive issue of salvation as if it were laundry that can be completed next week.
They will cry out like the Children of Israel after the window of opportunity is gone. They will try to repent and say, "Now, we are ready" when their "now moment" is gone. What was meant for them, will have vanished.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
(Matthew 25:13 NIV)
The only way to ensure that we don't miss the deadline is to stay ready for the deadline. Salvation and obedience to God is a time sensitive issue that needs to be treated as such. Eternal life is conditional, no matter what the world may tell you. The clock is ticking. Take heed, fear God, and keep His commandments.
That's all I have for you today. Not a feel-good message, I know. Some medicine is bitter, but for our betterment. Take care! Lord's willing, I'll see you next week.
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Happy Reading!