In May of this year our family suffered a terrible tragedy. My young nephew, all of 21-years-old, was involved in a motorcycle accident. To the best of our understanding, there were no other vehicles involved and he was only going about 35 miles an hour. But he hit the curb of a median and rolled the bike several times. He was not wearing a helmet. To our heartbreak, he did not survive his injuries.
In situations like this, we’re often left asking, “Why, God? Why would you take the life of a young man with his whole life ahead of him? He had barely even begun to live.”
But it is my belief that God did not take my nephew. I have read the Bible and been a Believer for many years, and because I, personally, have been touched by God, spent time with God, and have worked along side God in serving others, I’ve seen what He has done in the lives of those who seek after Him. I’ve caught just a glimpse of His character, and He is loving, ever patient, kind and faithful. He is not deaf, spiteful or indifferent. But He is a gentleman; and He will not force Himself on you. If you seek Him, you will find Him. But the reverse is also true – if you do NOT seek Him, you may not find Him – and THAT is a tragedy.
But you see, we live in a broken and sinful world, and tragedy happens to innocent people every day. And unfortunately, death is a part of our experience in this life. I do not believe that God had plans to cut my nephew’s life short, or to deprive his family of his love and attention. That is just not God’s character. There are natural consequences to our actions. People get sick. Accidents DO happen. And mankind has an enemy that hates God SO much, he seeks to destroy God’s cherished creation (in mankind) by releasing death on the world while whispering lies in our ears and to our hearts that it’s all God’s fault, or we deserved it.
It is my hope and prayer that when tragedy touches your life you would take some time to draw near to God and release that pain to Him. He knows you intimately and wants to be in close relationship with you. God cares about you and wants to take care of you and to provide for your needs. He wants what’s best for you and those you care about. But if tragedy were to happen to you today and you were to die, do you know where would you spend eternity? It brings me peace of mind to know without a shadow of a doubt that we have the promise and assurance of eternal life after death IF we are in relationship with God when we die.
John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son (Jesus), that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
John 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
And John 14:6, “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'”
And finally, Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
There are many more scriptures I could quote, but I’m wondering if you are beginning to see a pattern. Notice it doesn’t say that you will have eternal life IF you pray all the time, or go to church regularly, or do more good things than bad things. The Bible teaches us that the only things necessary to have eternal life with God after death are the following:
A – to Admit that you are a sinner and are in need of God’s salvation;
B – to Believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is who he says he is (the Son of God), that he was sacrificed on your behalf to atone for your sins and reconcile you to God, that he was buried, and that God raised Jesus from the dead; and finally
C – to Call on the name of the Lord to be saved, or Confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings. This means trusting with all your heart that the gift of eternal life that Jesus provides is yours for the taking, and not based on any works you might do to attempt to earn eternal life. It is a (free) gift to you – Jesus already paid the price for you.
That’s it. It’s really very simple. If you have not yet taken the opportunity to accept Jesus into your life and heart, I would encourage you to do that today, before it’s too late. Because accidents DO happen, and no one is promised a tomorrow. But I can assure you that if you accept this gift that Jesus wants to give you, you will have the promise of eternal life with God when all is said and done, and that makes this life here on Earth a little easier to bear, and even blunts the fear of death in many ways.
Until next time – be blessed, and be saved!
CHOOSE YOUR ETERNITY 