I do not broach this topic lightly.

My former boss, who is also a friend and brother in Christ, got the news one recent evening that his son was shot 5 times, the victim of a robbery.

He survived, although he remains in excruciating pain with two bullets lodged in his bones. Severed blood vessels and wounds are still on the mend.

After countless days in the hospital, he was able to attend church using a walker.

Praise God for His mercy and grace.

But what if this young man had not survived?

What if that day was his last day to repent of his sins and accept Jesus Christ as His Lord and Savior?

One day we will all have to stand before God and give an account of ourselves in our relationship with Jesus.

Romans 14:11-12 puts it this way:

“… For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’

“So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.”

Are You Prepared For Judgement Day?

Hebrews 9:27 proclaims:

 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment.

It’s a day that is coming … maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but one day the living and the dead will face judgment.

And the judge will be Jesus.

The Father gave the Son the power of judgment over all, along with the keys to the kingdom of heaven.

The following verses from John 5:21 to 31 are so important to YOU, the person reading this right now, that you must give attention to the entire passage.

The Son Of God Gives Life!

“For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.

The Father judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.

Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life.

He does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life.

Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.

And he has given him authority to execute judgment because he is the Son of Man.

Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true.”

Back to the young man who was shot.

What if he had no chance whatsoever to correct a life that was leading to an eternity of damnation rather than love and grace?

God, through His love, grace, and Son, Jesus Christ, gives us lots of chances to fix our path to destruction.

God’s Final Judgement Is Not Here For A Reason

Let me give you another illustration.

I recently finished jury duty.

It was a long-winded and arduous process, taking four days just to select the jury.

And it was a minor case!

I was angry.

My patience was gone.

I wanted the process to speed up.

But the judge would not be rushed.

He wanted to be as fair as possible to the defendant.

God, too, wants to be fair to the defendant (all of us).

He wants everyone pronounced, “Not Guilty!”

In that respect, I am thankful God takes His time and does not rush to judgment.

2 Peter 3:9 tells us:

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

What’s The Value Of Life?

There is a popular movie quote that says, “What we do in life echoes through eternity.”

It should really say, “The choice you make in this life will echo throughout eternity.”

Do you want to spend eternity with Jesus Christ?

Or do you want your soul to spend eternity in some bottomless pit.

Do not let your sins continue to separate you from God … because they will separate you from God for eternity.

2 Thessalonians 1:9 notes:

These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.

If your sins separate you from God while you are alive — Isaiah 59:2 states, “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear” — would not your sins  also separate you from God in death?

Jesus was sent into this world as a man to show us how to bridge that separation between man and God – repentance, and acceptance of Jesus as the Holy Son of God the Father.

He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through Jesus (John 14:6).

Understand this Truth, because this Truth will set you free.

Let His coming be your glad tidings, and as a child of God, take eternal joy in Ephesians 1:13-14:

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

So, the life-altering question remains…

What if today was YOUR last day on Earth?