Our Time on Earth, What is it For?
Have you ever wondered why you were put on this earth? What is your purpose while you are here? Many think it is to see how far you can go in life. Some think it is to see what they can accomplish or what they can attain. Such thinking shows that most folks do not know the Word of God. Jesus, in Luke 12:15 addressed this when one asked Him to intervene with his earthly inheritance. And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. Afterward, He spoke a parable about a man whose whole focus was on earthly gain. That man’s foolishness in this area of life becomes apparent when in vs 20 we see how God referred to Him, and told the man his time had run out. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? After our time on earth is completed, someone else will have control of whatever it is that we have amassed while we were here.
Most folks also don’t give a great deal of thought to the fact that our time on earth is somewhat limited. The Spirit had James deal with this in James 4:13-15. Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: 14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. This is why it is necessary to look into the perfect Law of Liberty to see what the Will of God is. James 1:25 tells us to receive the blessings of God one must look into the Word and continue in it. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
However, the blessings of God do not exist in just the temporal realm. True, God has blessed us with life, and all the good things of life. He has given good things to all of humanity. In the Sermon on the Mount in the latter part of Matthew 5:45, did not Jesus indicate this? He said: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. But, His blessings for man will continue beyond this life for all who are obedient and remain faithful to His Word. In 1Corinthians 15:19 the Holy Spirit had the apostle Paul tell those brethren that our time spent on this earth is not all there is. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
Our time on this earth is to prepare for what lies beyond this life. This is because we do not cease to exist when life on this earth is over. In Hebrews 9:27 we are taught that all mankind has an appointment, and that there is also something else after that. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: Since we don’t cease to exist upon departure from this life, does it not seem that we ought to make preparation for that which lies beyond? Jesus told us in Luke 16:22-23 in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, of the two places where one will await that judgment. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;23And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. The reason each was in the place they were, was because of the way in which they spent their time while on earth. The whole story can be better understood by reading the entire account of Luke 16:19-31.
The two men of the story were both children of God as both were descendants of Abraham and lived under the Law of Moses. This should help us know that even the children of God in this, the last dispensation of time must make preparation for our existence beyond our time in this life. Jesus, in the latter part of John 10:10 spoke of the life beyond this one. He said: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. Those of us who have been obedient to the gospel are also the children of God, but we can miss what God has promised if we leave this life unprepared. The Spirit had Paul, in 1Timothy 6:18-19, speak to those of the church (children of God) that had been blessed with the riches of the world so that they would know how to prepare for that time. That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; 19 Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life. These preparations not only bring us to the promise of eternal life, but continuance in the teachings of the Word of God helps us to remain prepared for that which lies beyond this life.
But, we cannot do this alone. In John 15:5 Jesus told His disciple this. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. He came and died so we could prepare for eternity. But, just because He came doesn’t mean that we automatically will be granted entrance into that heavenly home. He gave His blood as the Supreme Sacrifice. Jesus has done His part; now we must do ours. One place the Spirit told us how we can begin to prepare for eternity while we spend our time here on earth is 1Peter 5:6. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: The way we humble ourselves before God is to be obedient to His Word. If we do what God has commanded, He will exalt us when His Son returns and the judgment occurs. Can you think of any better way, or for any better cause on which to spend our time? Think about it !
Dennis Strickland – Mooresville church of Christ
