We’ve been inundated with predictions and warnings about the impending snowpocalypse of 2022. Our weather prognosticators have been honing their forecasts for the past several days. Their predictions have become more pinpointed as the weather front has moved from the Pacific northwest to the southeastern part of the country. And so much has been done as we have prepared ourselves for the worst, while hoping for the best.

Well, now it is here. Some areas have awakened to a blanket of snow several inches deep, while others have a mixture of ice and snow, while still others have only had a rain event. But as we have listened to the predictions, and wanted to be as prepared as possible for whatever might come our way, we did everything we could to be ready.

Teresa and I went to WalMart yesterday to pick up a few items we needed, and we were met with many empty shelves as a run was made by the general public, stocking up on items they thought they needed to survive. Even though the winter weather event is predicted to last a very short period of time, it was as if we thought it was the end of the world as we know it.

Which causes me wonder why we don’t take the end of the world as we know it more seriously. Perhaps some who will read this blog would have to admit the end of the world is a foreign thought to you. Perhaps you are so busy with the day-to-day affairs of life that you give no thought at all to the end of the world, or, more importantly, to the end of your life.

As I think about my own life, I can quickly identify many times that I have spent hour after hour preparing for some coming event. Perhaps, as now, it was preparation for a major weather event. Or, maybe it was making plans and preparations for an upcoming speaking engagement, or revival, or marriage retreat. Or perhaps it was the enjoyment of getting everything ready for our next vacation. Or one of countless other things.

We spend much time, and expend much energy, preparing for upcoming events, while we overlook the most important upcoming event we will all face. There is coming a day when we will stand before God, giving an account of our life, and most importantly, giving an account as to what we did when given the opportunity to commit our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible makes it amply clear that each and every individual human being will experience physical death. The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews says it like this:

“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment…”

Hebrews 9:27

We all have an appointment that we must keep. So far, death has a proven record: one to one. No one will ever escape passing from this life through the vehicle of death. And once we have suffered that fate, we will stand before the living God and give an account. The main question we will face is, what did we do with Jesus? Did we accept the Bible’s testimony that He is the only means of salvation, and the only hope for entrance into heaven? Of, did we give no attention to matters of eternity at all, giving every moment of our lives to the things of this world?

Jesus made this astounding assertion:

“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father except through Me.”

John 14:6

You may be one of those who did everything you could do to prepare for the winter storm. Perhaps you went overboard with your preparations. Perhaps you stocked up for days, or even enough for weeks, making sure that you had done everything you could do to be prepared.

Or maybe you are right now making preparations for the next big event on your personal calendar, or your family’s calendar, or your company’s calendar. Even though that event is still months in the future, you are spending enormous amounts of time making sure everything is ready.

Well, the biggest event of all is looming just ahead. We don’t know when it will happen. It is not a date we can circle on the calendar. But it is absolutely certain. And each of us should make sure that we have made the proper preparations for this coming event. So, allow me to remind us of the proper preparations so that we are sure we are ready when that day comes.

First, we must agree with the Bible’s testimony that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23). There is not a person who has ever lived, other than Jesus Christ, who did not commit sin. We were born with a sin nature, and we act out of that nature. As Paul asserts, ALL have sinned.

Second, we acknowledge the Bible’s teaching that the wages of sin is death (see Romans 6:23). There is coming a day of reckoning, a pay day, for our life of sin. The book of Revelation reveals the truth that records are being kept in heaven, and all non-believers will be judged according to their sin. However, there is hope for the sinner.

This brings us to our third observation. Going on in Romans 6:23, we learn that even though the wages of sin is death, there is hope if we will confess. Paul states that if we die in our sin we will receive our wages, but the gift of God is life (Romans 6:23b). We do not have to suffer eternal death, as Jesus has paid the penalty for us, in our place. So, how do we go about accepting this amazing gift?

That is our fourth observation. A little later in this same letter to the Romans, Paul speaks directly to this matter. Read carefully and prayerfully the following quote:

“For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Romans 10:10

So, God’s plan of salvation is extremely simple. First, I must confess that I am a sinner. Second, agree that my sin is worthy of God’s judgment of death. Third, acknowledge the Bible’s teaching that Jesus is God’s gift of salvation that will save me from the penalty of my sin. And fourth, believe with my heart, and confess with my mouth, the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is nothing in all of life that supersedes the importance of being ready for eternity. Are you? If not, and you have questions beyond what I have given in this blog, please contact me. I would love to speak with you further about this most important decision.