Many labor under the illusion that life is a personal possession that one may do with as he wishes. Clearly, that is not the case. Jehovah declared that, ultimately, all souls belong to him (Ezekiel 18:4). The Lord has the sovereign right to dictate how human lives should be regulated.
The Bible indicates that we were created for the purpose of glorifying our Maker (Isaiah 43:7). The whole purpose of man’s existence is to have reverence for God and obey his commandments (Ecclesiastes 12:13). We ought to want to honor our Creator and lovingly serve him.
Any person who does not acknowledge this truth lives as a rebel and flaunts the very reason for his existence. How tragic it is, though, that many use their lives in a vain, egotistical fashion. A wise person once said: “For we must needs die, and are as water spilt upon the ground, which cannot be gathered up again” (2 Samuel 14:14). Life is a period of preparation for eternity.
Abraham recognized that life is but a sojourn that eventually leads to the eternal beyond, and so he cast his eyes toward the city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:9-10). We would be wise ourselves to “walk in the steps of that faith” which characterized Abraham (Romans 4:12).
In the Lord’s parable of the wise and foolish virgins, the key element that separated the two groups was that of preparation. Those prepared were received into the wedding feast; those unprepared were not (Matthew 25:1-13). There is no reincarnation whereby one can return to this planet to “get it right.” There is no purgatory in which one can expiate his sins. There is no baptism-for-the-dead by which the reward of obedience can be transferred.
Now – in this life – is the time for preparation. What is your life?
Are you a faithful steward?