No man is promised tomorrow. Life is fragile, or as Scripture describes it, a vapor or passing shadow. Only God knows the number of days He has allotted to each of us on this earth. Some will live short lives, others long. But in the scope of eternity even long life is a blink of the eye. That is why Isaiah 55:6 is written with a sense of urgency:
Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.
Because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), how does one seek and draw close to a holy God? The answer is in Ephesians 2:13 – "But now in Mashiach Yeshua you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Mashiach." God can be found through the atoning sacrifice of Yeshua. We draw near when we receive His salvation by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8). The Greek word for faith, pistis, means trust.
But this window of grace is not open forever. If man dies without having called upon God's Son while He was near, his soul goes directly to hell, where he will endure torment and separation from God for eternity. There is no second chance following physical death. But the Lord is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). The choice is ours. In Deuteronomy 30:19, Adonai sets before us life and death, blessing and cursing. He exhorts us to choose life. Through the prophet Isaiah, God adds a footnote: if you desire spiritual life in Him, seek Him now. Don't delay. None of us know when we will draw our last breath.
Posted by Jeff King at September 30, 2006 07:45 PM