"I'll do it Later"

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are a reflection on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://www.myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media] 


We say it all the time. About saving for the future, investing, changing jobs, going back to school, getting in shape, or having that hard conversation. 

“I’ll do it later.”

We say it all the time.

“I’ll start tithing when I have a better income.”
“I’ll tell my brother that I forgive him when I have a moment to call him.”

“I’ll talk to my neighbor about coming to church later, maybe in the spring, when the weather is better and we’re both outside again.”

“I’ll start devotions with my kids when they’re older and can better understand.”

“I’ll do it later.”

We say it all the time.

We have the best intentions, we really mean to get to it, but we were too busy living for ourselves or anyone else in the meantime. We were too afraid to knock on the neighbor’s door. We were too busy changing diapers to talk about the death of Jesus. We were just barely paying our bills and didn’t have an extra penny to spare.

I sometimes imagine how I would feel if Jesus returned right now. I think I know how I’m supposed to feel, but I don’t think that’s how I would actually feel. I would probably say to myself, “Already? Now? But I’m not ready. I just need a little more time.” Too late.

In the parable of the Ten Virgins, the virgins too were surprised by the arrival of the groom, but of course they had no reason for such surprise. They knew that the groom was on his way; they knew that his arrival was imminent. And still, they were unprepared. To those who were ready they pleaded, “Give us some of your oil” so that they could enter the party, but by then it was too late. It couldn’t be shared.

The truth housed in this parable is something that we tend to shy away from because it makes us uncomfortable. We don’t like the image of the separation of the sheep and the goats. We don’t like the image of people suffering for all of eternity in hell, especially if we decide that they lived “pretty good” lives.

We don’t know how much time we have before Christ returns. But we do know that not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven. It’s a terrifying thought.

 But we also that Christ has no yet returned. And that means that we have grace for one more second, one more minute, one more hour, one more decade, perhaps even longer, in which to bend our wills to God’s and live in the knowledge of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.

[Kristin vanEyk lives in Kentwood, MI where she attends Encounter Church with her husband Dirk, and two kids, Lily and Colin. Kristin teaches high school English and otherwise passes the time reading, writing, running, and enjoying all that Michigan's West Coast has to offer.]