“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”
– James 4:13-17, ESV
I have read James 4:13-17 many times in previous years and learned that when I speak of the future I should include “If the Lord wills”.
However, in recent weeks, these verses impressed onto my heart like an alarming warning – when someone I knew was speaking about travel plans (like how any of us would), was suddenly in the ICU fighting to survive. It happened so unexpectedly that the above passage rang inside my heart warning me that that we never know when our time on earth is up.
Believers, or unbelievers, each of us will have to be accountable to God on everything we have done on earth after we die. Consider The Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30.
In the past 6 months, I have been studying the books of 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Amos, Joel, Obadiah, Hosea in the Bible. Going through these daunting old testament books that document the lives of Israel’s kings & messages of his prophets has been a tremendous blessing – I grew in deeper knowledge about:
- God & his nature,
- Our sinful nature and tendencies as human beings (believers & unbelievers)
- How God’s people and unbelievers provoke God’s anger
- How to please God
- God’s deep unwavering persistent love for all mankind
I realized each day we are alive, is God’s merciful, patient & loving invitation & calling from God – to turn to Him, repent of our sins, seek His Kingdom first, read His Bible, grow in knowledge of Him, ask Him for wisdom and guidance how to live out each day in our lives pleasing to Him.
Each day an unbeliever is alive, is God’s loving, patient and merciful invitation for them to turn away from their own way and turn towards God by receiving Jesus as their Savior from sins, experience His forgiveness grace, mercy and perfect love.
A few questions continue to convict my heart:
- Who is going to preach the truth & good news to unbelievers?
- Who is going to pray for them for their eyes to be unblinded?
- How are we going to preach, if we don’t even know what it is?
- How is a new believer going to learn and study the word if we don’t even study his word?
- How are we going to be the light in darkness, if we aren’t even living out the Word and experiencing His powerful transformation in our individual lives?
- How are we to live out His Word if we are not even prioritizing time to read & study His bible daily?
Lots to process. Lots to thing about.
In the mean time, the verses above (James 4: 13-17) on Boasting about Tomorrow, is more than just what we ought to say, but a reflection of our attitude towards God’s sovereignty, our life & His purpose for us on Earth.