By Larry Young
Have you ever seen one of those movies where a vehicle races to the edge of a steep precipice, but stops at just the right moment, with the driver holding his breath as the vehicle teeters back and forth on the ragged edge? Then the driver realizes he is OK and cracks a nervous smile. But just then a big bird decides to land on the hood of his vehicle, and the weight balance changes for the worse… then it’s a one-way race to the bottom. In today’s world, do you ever feel like that driver?... but with one exception: you’ve already been warned that a big bird is about to land on the hood of your car when you least expect it and at the worst possible moment.
Paul gave us a similar warning in 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-4: “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.”
Common sense tells us that we would never be fooled because we got such a clear warning ahead of time, but our culture and the world around us have already blindly raced to the ragged edge, the big bird has already landed on the hood of their teetering vehicle, and they have already started the race to the bottom into darkness. Folks, like Paul said, we must not be part of that darkness, but partakers of the Light: ”…giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.” (Collossians 1: 12 – 13)
All of that is awesome truth and a direct warning to us for this exact time in history, but how do we deal with it in a practical way? Actually, the answer is hidden in plain sight in the warning itself: It’s the Father who has qualified you and me to be partakers in the light. In other words, Jesus is the Light, and His sacrifice on the cross qualifies us for an inheritance as saints in His Light. It’s His job to do all the saving work; and He has already done that. There won’t be one single human act that qualifies anyone to be with Jesus in Heaven. However, we do have a crucial part to play: our part is to be partakers with Jesus…in gratitude because of our faith in Him. So it’s not by any works that we become saved partakers, but works become the natural outcome of our gratitude, walking in the light, not darkness.
There’s no joy or happy expectation for those who are now racing to the bottom. However, for those who have a saving faith in Jesus, there is a different path that leads upwards to eternal life in Him: “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matthew 7: 13 – 14) The narrow gate and the difficult way is NOT a roadblock put in place by Jesus to discourage anyone. Instead, it summarizes just how hard it is for us to let go of this destructive world of hatred and darkness led by Satan, and to embrace by faith an eternal world of love and light led by Jesus.