None of us are going to be around here very long, so we should not get too attached to things.
The Bible uses many metaphors to describe the brevity of our lives. We read that our life is like a mist, a breath, a wisp of smoke, a flower of the field, a morning cloud, as the early dew, and as smoke out of the chimney. Hosea includes several of these expressions in one sentence when he says,
“Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney.”
David prayed,
“Show me, O LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life.”
Repeatedly the Bible compares life in this world to living temporarily in a foreign country. Where we now live is not where we belong. David says,
“I am a stranger on earth; do not hide your commands from me.”
Peter explains,
“Since you call on a Father who judges each man’s work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear.”
And Paul tells us,
“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”
An ambassador lives in a foreign country, and he represents the government who appointed him to serve there. The ambassador is expected to obey the laws of the country in which he is living, such as driving on the left side of the road if that is the case, but he would not dare to get involved in local politics. He could not vote and should be cautious with expressing his opinion about the candidates that might be running for office in the country to which he is temporarily assigned.
Our role right now is to represent the Lord who has chosen us to be his ambassador. Peter explains, “Beloved, I beseech you as aliens and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh that wage war against your soul. Maintain good conduct among the Gentiles, so that in case they speak against you as wrongdoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing right you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil; but live as servants of God.”
It is so important for us to realize that very soon our Lord will return to establish his kingdom on this earth. If we have been a part of this present order of things, we will not be asked to participate in his kingdom as kings and priests. Jesus tells us that we cannot serve God and Mammon. He did not say that we should not. He said that we cannot.
Joshua issued a challenge to the children of Israel: choose you this day whom you want to serve. Joshua even gave the Israelites several options that were all wrong choices. Then he concluded by saying,
“As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
We must make this choice now as we await our Lord’s coming to call us to his kingdom. We really do not belong in the culture where we now live if we “desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one.” If we choose to serve God rather than belonging to this world, we are told, “Therefore God is not ashamed to be called our God,” and, “He has prepared for us a city” as part of a better future for us to share with the faithful of all ages.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One