What Matters in the End

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

— 2 Timothy 4:7

 

When Paul wrote the words of his final epistle from the Mamertine Prison in Rome, he knew that his time on earth was coming to an end. He had faithfully proclaimed the Good News, and though he had been warned that he would be arrested if he kept preaching the gospel, he persisted. So he found himself chained up in that miserable, primitive, little place, all alone.

Live Wisely

"Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom"

— Psalm 90:12

 

Let's say that tomorrow morning you got a call from the president of your bank, and he told you that an anonymous donor who loved you very much would be depositing 86,400 pennies into your bank account every day. The only condition is that you will have to spend all of the money. You can't carry it over from one day to the next, and what isn't spent will be taken away. When you take out your calculator, you realize that it amounts to a lot of money each year.

Keep Your Heart in Heaven

It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.

— 1 Corinthians 15:52

 

My wife Cathe and I had the privilege of attending a dinner where Billy Graham was interviewed by his longtime ministry associate, Cliff Barrows. When asked if there was anything left to do that he had not yet done, Billy Graham replied without hesitation, "I want to see Ruth." Of course, he was speaking of his wife Ruth, whom he loved deeply and misses greatly. It broke his heart when God took her to heaven.

When you have a loved one who has gone before you into eternity, it causes you to have a longing for heaven that you did not have before, because now it is personal. There is someone there whom you want to see again. With a son in heaven, Cathe and I have been profoundly affected, and it causes our hearts to be more in heaven.

When Bad Things Lead to Good

Chuck Swindoll tells a story about a man who was shipwrecked on an uninhabited island. Seeing that rescue might be a long time in coming, he painstakingly built a little hut to provide himself protection from the elements, and a place to store the few items he had managed to salvage from the wreck.

For weeks, this man lived in this little hut, with only the hot sun and the cold nights to keep him company. Each and every day, he would prayerfully scan the horizon, hoping for the approach of a ship.

Finishing Well

So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.

— 1 Corinthians 9:26

 

The apostle Paul drew three comparisons to illustrate what it is like to live as a believer. He likened himself to a fighter, a runner, and a soldier.

First, he said he was like a fighter: "I have fought the good fight . . . " (2 Timothy 4:7). The idea Paul was conveying was a potential fight to the death. This reminds us that the Christian life is a conflict. Once you enter into this new relationship with God, you discover that your adversary, the devil, will try to undermine you. It is a spiritual battle, and thus we need to use spiritual weapons.