OUR DAYS
"Right now counts forever" (R. C. Sproul).
Most scholars believe Psalm 90 was written near the end of Israel's 40 years of wandering, which would mean Moses wrote it near the end of his earthly life. It is a Psalm about understanding man's frailty, especially in light of God's power and strength. Its main message is that we must use our short time here to prepare for eternity to come.
Verses 1-4 tell of our need to praise God because He is eternal. Verses 5-12 tell of our need to prepare because life is short, and then comes eternity. Verses 13 -17 tell of our need to pray because we need God's approval. It is the end of that middle section where we are going to focus. Verse 12 is the focus of Psalm 90. Note how he develops to this point:
Life is short (vv.5-6). Our days are like a flash flood that rises quickly and just as quickly disappears. They are like sleep that is seemingly over as soon as it starts. Our days are like grass that grows and dies at a rapid rate with not much life in between.
Judgment Awaits Us (vv.7-10). Our days in this life are short (at best), full of problems, and soon are gone. Then, we will face the righteous anger and wrath of God over sin and a realization of what we have done in this life.
Our Proper View (vv.11-12). We must view God, ourselves, and our days in this context. God is powerful. Man is weak. Life is short. Man will meet God and answer to Him.
So, in light of all this, we must prepare for this life to be over. What is "fun" or what we want doesn't matter compared to eternity. The actions and opinions of others don't matter. All that matters is that we must leave this life (which will come sooner than we think) ready to meet the Lord. That is the epitome of wisdom: using our days to prepare to live with the Almighty for eternity!
This week, let's commit to being eternity-focused. Let's think about our decisions—big or small—and how they compare to eternity. Let's focus on what we can do to take advantage of our days—the short time we have on earth—to be ready to meet Him and to help others be ready as well!
I love you, and God does too!
Corey Sawyers is the preaching minister for the Martin Church of Christ and an adjunct instructor for Bear Valley Bible Institute. He is Melody's husband and Daddy to Garrett (and Bailey), Gordon (and Lauren), and Gannon. "The Third Saturday In October" means the Vols need to beat Bama!
