Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
Lou Coleman-Yeboah
By Lou Coleman-Yeboah
(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- You fool! There are no guarantees about tomorrow! [Luke 12:16-21.] Life is short and uncertain. Fragile! [Psalms 39:4; James 4:13-17]. Talking ‘bout; “Tomorrow you’ll serve God!” Making plans without taking into account your own mortality and God’s sovereignty. What is your life? A vapor that appears for a little while and then disappears…. [James 4:14]. The only time you have is right now! Whatcha mean tomorrow! CHOOSE whom you will serve! Today!
As Martin Luther King, Jr., once preached “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity… but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, “Too late.”
I tell you there are times in our life when we cannot afford to stay still; to not act on God’s will for our lives. That time is now. Scripture does not permit us to sit still, to wait for God to call to us a second time. Today is the day; this is the hour, the minute, when we say yes to God’s call to us to live. Now is the time. The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God has come near, repent and believe in the good news.
“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow…’ Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow.” “You do not know what will happen tomorrow.” [James 4:13-14a]. You don’t even know what will happen ten minutes from now, let alone tomorrow! Arrogantly assuming that you would wake up tomorrow; presuming things about an unknown future that you have no control of and no guarantees about! Whatcha mean Tomorrow!
I want you to know that there are three passages in the [Book of Proverbs] that warns us that we are not to wait too late about making our decision of commitment to Christ and to receive forgiveness for our sins. [Proverbs 1:24-28] is God’s invitation to man to respond to God’s offer of mercy and grace. These verses tell, in part, what will happen to man if he refuses God’s invitation. [Proverbs 27:1] presents to us the man who thinks he has many “tomorrows” to get right with God, but does not realize that, for him, there may not be another “tomorrow.” [Proverbs 29:1] presents a picture of an oxen who has a yoke put about its neck so that the master can lead it in the direction that he wants it to go. But the ox is rebellious and will not go in the right direction. The yoke rubs on the neck until a callous is formed and the animal becomes insensitive to the pulling of the reins by the master. The only thing to do now is to destroy the animal; to put it to death, for it is of no further use to the master. Rather than the ox being useful, it becomes a burden and a problem because of its rebellious nature.
I tell you, God is saying something very important to us. We are not just beast. We are people that He loved, died for, and wants to bring control and direction to our lives. God is saying to us, “Don’t wait too late. Come to Jesus while there is still time.” Wehave known yesterday –the past –and we are experiencing the present, but we have no certainties of tomorrow. To count on tomorrow is to neglect the duty of today!
Listen, “Tomorrow” is the devil’s greatest tool; “Now” is God’s greatest weapon to defeat the devil. Today and not tomorrow is “THE ACCEPTED TIME. “Now” is Mercy’s offer. “Now” is the invitation from God, reaching down from heaven. Tomorrow you may find the door shut. This is your urgent day. [Proverbs 29:1] I tell you, whatever it is that is keeping you away from the Lord, it isn’t worth the price you will have to pay to keep it! Throw it down and cast yourself on Jesus for salvation. The day of grace has its limits. Now is the time to do something. Tomorrow may be too late!
“I gave you cleanness of teeth by sending you famine and drought so that you would turn back to Me –yet you have not returned to me. I withheld rain from you so you would return –yet you have not returned to me. I sent blight and mildew and locust –yet you have not returned.” Your young men were killed in battle with a sword –yet you did not return to me. Because you will not return to me, prepare to meet your God. And meet Him without ever turning to Him in life on earth. Meet Him –Condemned. [Amos 4:6-12]
