Imagine relaxing comfortably in your recliner reading the newspaper at the end of a busy day; scanning headlines, arguing with the opinion writers, laughing at the comics. Suddenly, your personal reverie is interrupted by a loud banging on the door. Grabbing your slippers you shuffle toward the foyer to see who it could possibly be.
Opening the door, you are immediately disgusted by the sight of what appears to be a tramp who hasn’t showered anytime in the last moon phase and his hair hasn’t been cut in many. What kind of a handout is he seeking and how can you best tell him no?
Before you can say a word, however, he blurts out that you must come with him immediately. His English is horrific with rough contractions and colloquialisms. Because of his draw, you have to ask him to repeat what he tells you several times. You finally understand that the dam upstream is about to give way from severe flooding and you have no time to lose.
You wonder if it’s a scam but it has rained heavily the past few days. He speaks with urgency and points to his car which is nothing to brag on: an older model with more than one dent and at least one off-color quarter panel. Do you believe him? He certainly isn’t saying anything you want to hear.
Because of his urgency, you decide to trust him. Grabbing some better shoes and a few photo albums, you rush to his running car and jump in. It’s no compliment to him that you joined him just to avoid destruction but he’s more than happy to have you. Once you close the door, you realize the interior is immensely better than the exterior. In fact, it’s a limo with all the amenities that pertain thereto. How is this possible?
As he pulls out of your driveway, you can see water crashing down the gorge about to overtake your home. Turns out he wasn’t lying and thankfully you trusted him. Why did he stop to check on someone he didn’t know, anyway?
He drives you to his home which you had assumed was a dump. Not at all. His spread is the best in the best part of town. It is an elaborate mansion with stunning columns, an inground pool, and an enormous patio. As he pulls up to the front door, he hands you a set of keys and says, “It’s all yours!” What kind of dream is this?
Thankfully most of us don’t live downstream from any dam, but we do all live in the shadow of eternity. Time and history are piling up behind the thin pretense of what we think is the ever-enduring present. We assume things will continue as they always have. But there is a change coming. Although we may not have paid attention to the rain, the Bible’s fulfilled prophecies have been accumulating behind time’s dam pushing against its slopes. We have been warned many times. The Keeper of life’s valley has sent numerous messengers, including His own Son, to warn us all of the coming flood.
There will come a day when time will end and eternity will begin. God desires that all people would come and live with Him in His mansion. Too often we ignore His warnings because His messengers aren’t impressive. They may not use perfect English or dress in ways we prefer. Their cries seem extreme and their invitations require drastic life-change. But their message must not be ignored. We must pay attention to these whom God has sent to knock on our heart’s door. We would do eternally well to jump in and join them on their trip to heaven, for one day time’s dam will break and the last opportunity will have passed. Listen to this crazy messenger today that God has sent to knock on your door as you read the paper. Blessings, George