THE LAST WORDS OF THREE OLD MEN
Being an old man myself I would like to share with you the words of two very, very much greater old men in the hope that as their words have spoken to me they will be of help and encouragement to you also.
First the words of Jacob when his son Joseph took him in to see Pharaoh. The King asked Jacob how old he was and this was his reply:
“The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” Genesis 47:7-10.
I like that translation in the New King James Version because it brings out the phrase “the days of the years” three times.
A lifetime is made up of individual days and every one of those days is important. Even the ordinary days, the boring days, the difficult days and the days off. What we do each day makes up the sum total of the years of our lives. So however important, eventful or uneventful a day may be, it can make a great difference to the total picture. Today is the only day that I have for sure - that makes it a very important day and what I do with it is of vital consequence.
A happy day can turn into a sinful day that spoils the rest of one’s life or it can be an unhappy day which in God’s hands can be transformed into one of the most important days in one’s life. Let’s hold it there…
Next the words of the Apostle Paul near the end of his life as he faced his final trial which would lead to his execution he said:
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on THAT DAY (!), and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:7-8
What a testimony that is! May those words be true of all of us – that we have fought a good fight, finished the race and kept the faith - faithful to the end!
It is worthy of note that Paul also goes on to talk about the crown of righteousness that is awaiting us - but it’s not going to be given because we have been faithful to the end. The crown is for all those who have “loved” or NIV translates it: “longed for” His appearing. That is the secret!
If we live every day of our lives looking forward to seeing Jesus, every day longing for Him to come back, every day anticipating the fact that soon we will see Him - that will control what we do with the days of the years of our lives. That will help us to focus the purpose of each day in a way that will be pleasing to Him and that will stop us from wasting today or doing the wrong thing today.
We’ve only got today
- and tomorrow we may see Him
– in fact it could even still be today!
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