It takes the Bible to define what human life is in an accurate way. The world has lots of definitions that wind up confusing but the Bible definition does not. It may not make sense to some people but the truth remains unchanging, whether people believe it or not. It is the Bible that tells us that humans have eternal souls and their time spent is this world is as short like vapor or smoke (James 4:14).
Job defines life as breath (Job 7:7). Breath has a unique quality of being present. When you breathe in, out or even hold your breath; you do it now. It’s not in the past or in the future but now. It means that once you stop breathing, you are no longer alive. This makes man very temporary in this world. Isaiah 2:22 puts an emphasis on the fact that man should not be regarded since his life is in his breath. Once breathing stops, man’s time in this world is over.
David say about man, ‘they are like breath of air; their days are like a passing shadow’ (Psalm 144:4). A shadow passing only catches your attention and you wonder where exactly it came from but soon you forget about it. The same applies for mankind.
What next after the last breath?
Do not be mistaken and think that once breathing stops then the final end has come. In actual fact, the beginning of life starts after death. It is eternal life that matters more than this life which is short and full of sorrow (Job 14:1, Ecclesiastes 2:23). Eternity cannot be escaped. Whether you like it or not, the fact that you were born and you were exposed to this truth, you are accountable for your life and the truth only can set you free.
Right from creation, no soul can ever go missing after death. This tells us that in the after-life there is Adam, Eve, Abel, Cain and everybody else who was born by the human spices, no matter the ethnic group. These people may have denied the fact that their souls would live forever yet now they have chance to change their eternity.
Now that we know what human life is, what next? It is important to prepare for the time when the earthly life has come to an end. For it is destined for man to die once and after that to face judgment (Hebrews 9:27). It is not over when you breath your last. How I wish this truth were to be known by all the living.
What then should be a priority for the living?
Searching for the truth comes top. Once the truth has been found, the person should take it and live on it because time span to live in this world is uncertain. The truth is Jesus. He calls Himself so and God confirms Him so. Truth is Jesus (John 14:6). The same truth is life and a way to the creator.
The truth, which is Jesus, will then lead the way and the person who is loyal to the truth should follow Him. It means that Jesus’ priorities become this person’s priorities too. Given a choice to do that which is Jesus’s will and that which is personal will, this person should take Jesus’ will. It is not easy when it comes to this, yet such decisions count for the judgment that awaits all the living.
Application
To me it then makes sense not to strive for being rich in this world. True riches are being ready for eternity. We work so hard in this world preparing for this short life which that Bible defines as a shadow. We even prepare for those that shall remain by buying life cover policies but too little goes into the afterlife preparations yet the time after this life is incomparably long.
The top priority agenda in this life should be to seek the wonders of the truth. David’s prayer was for God to open his eyes so that he may see the wonderful things in God’s law (Psalm 119:18). I guess this is the right prayer for us too.
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near (Isaiah 55:6). You need to believe this that the Lord is near you as you read this article. He can manifest Himself to you if you ask of Him. Make sure you cover your request by saying ‘in the name of Jesus Christ’ because the devil himself may appear to you and pretend to be God. The devil will not over power the name of Jesus at any rate.
Be blessed as you see to know more about the Lord.
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