Life is a Vapor

 

An Evangelistic Message

 

James 4:13-14 - “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.”

 

Life is a vapor. Life is fragile, brittle, brief. Life passes so fast. But the decisions you make in life will determine your eternal destiny. Life is a time of opportunity. But this life will one day end. Yes, no man-made cure, not even a vaccine can stop the fact that . . .  

 

Death is sure. The Bible says: 

 

Hebrews 9:27 - “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,”

 

We all die. Death is a certainty. 100% of us will one day die (save for those Christians around for the Rapture of church by Jesus - but that’s another message). But we die and face our Maker. That’s true whether you believe it or not. We die. We face our Maker. And we face an initial judgment concerning how we dealt with the cause of our death. I don’t mean necessarily the actual circumstances of our death, but the root cause of our death, sin. 

 

Sins the curse. Sin’s the curse and cause of our death. Sin is transgressing or willfully breaking God’s Law. 

 

Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17; 1 Timothy 1:8-11): 

 

1.     Have no other gods before God - Put God first. Worship God only. 

2.     Make no images of God or anything (Catholic Bible removed this one) - not God in your image, or according to what would please you but isn’t true to how God has revealed Himself in His word, an image of God that suits you and would condone your sin. 

3.     Don’t take God’s name in vain or use it in an unholy way. 

4.     Remember the sabbath - Remember to rest in the Lord and trust Him in life. 

5.     Honor your father and mother that your life may be long. 

6.     Don’t murder. 

7.     Don’t commit adultery. 

8.     Don’t steal. 

9.     Don’t lie or bear false witness. 

10.  Don’t covet the things of your neighbor or anyone else. 

 

Jesus elevated these to even thinking in the heart of breaking the law caused guilt (Matthew 5).  

 

The Two Greatest Commandments: 

 

Matthew 22:37-40 - “Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

 

Love God supremely. Love all others sacrificially. Has any of us done that perfectly?

 

The Bible says:

 

Romans 6:23a - “The wages of sin is death”

 

Ezekiel 18:4 - “The soul who sins shall die.”

 

James 2:10 - “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.”

 

Romans 3:23 - “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” 

 

We all die because we all have sinned. 

 

A second death: But there is a second death beyond our physical death, an eternal death and punishment for our sins. We are all under the curse of sin that causes not only physical, but an eternal justly deserved death of punishment. 

 

The curse of sin is the fact that we all sin, and therefore, die. We all break God’s laws and cause much pain and sorrow to ourselves, those around us, and most importantly, our Maker, God. We are guilty of many offenses, many crimes against people and God. And God who is a just Judge and Sovereign Overseer of us all must and will impose a just penalty for our sin. It would be unjust to just let sin go. It would be unjust to just let the rebel against God go, when God has blessed us in so many ways. It would be unjust to just let the godless, the greedy, the adulterer marriage covenant breaker go. It would be unjust to just let the cheater, the liar, the thief, the hypocrite go. It would be unjust to just let the immoral, the pervert, the abuser, the causer of pain, the murderer go. And we have all sinned in some way. Oh, some of us are better than others, but no one is good enough. No one is without sin. Before God, except One. 

 

Life is a vapor. Death is sure. Sins the curse and cause of death. But . . . 

 

Christ is the cure. God loves us despite our sin. And because God loves us, He made a way for us to be redeemed from the curse of sin. He made a way for us to be saved from our sin. That way is Jesus: 

 

Galatians 3:13 - “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”),”

 

2 Corinthians 5:21 - “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

 

Romans 6:23 - “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

 

Romans 5:8-9 - “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.”

 

John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

 

Life is a vapor. Death is sure. Sins the curse. Christ is the cure. 

 

You can avoid the second death by turning from your sins in repentance and trusting in Jesus as Savior and risen Lord. 

 

Romans 10:8-10 - “But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

 

Ephesians 2:8-9 - “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

 

Titus 3:4-7 - “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

 

Acts 2:37-38 - “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

 

Life is a vapor. Decisions in this life determine eternal destinies. Indecision is decision. Today is the only time guaranteed to you to make a decision that will determine your eternal destiny. So, I ask you, “Do you repent? Do you believe in Jesus? Are you ready to be freed from the curse of sin? Are you ready for life and eternal life with Jesus?” 

 

If you are, agree with this prayer in your heart: 

 

Father in Heaven, I come to You in Jesus’ name. I admit my sin. I have sinned against you and those around me. I admit my sin, and I repent; I confess and forsake my sins before You. I ask Your forgiveness not because of any good work I have done, but because I believe Jesus died for me on the cross paying the penalty for my sins and rose again from the dead defeating the death penalty of sin. Please Holy Spirit give me spiritual life, eternal life. Help me to know and live for Jesus. Thank You for loving me. Thank for this gospel good news that saves me from my sin. Thank You for forgiving me and giving me eternal life. Thank You for Your gift of grace. In Jesus’ name amen. 

 

If you prayed that prayer, be baptized to testify and seal your commitment to God. Start praying and reading your Bible regularly. Find a Bible believing church and start fellowshipping there. Tell others what Christ has done for you. Invite them to do the same. 

 

 

Attitude Determines Altitude

So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’” – Luke 17:10

 

 

Someone has said, “Attitude is everything.” If you have a good attitude, you are one step ahead of the game. Attitude determines your altitude in life. And the same can be applied to being a disciple of Jesus. In Luke 17:7-10, Jesus speaks about attitude. For the disciple to uproot trees of unforgiveness, or move mountainous obstacles in ministry, they must have the right attitude.    What should the attitude of a disciple of Jesus be? What attitude will help us reach altitude with Jesus? Here Jesus tells us.

 

⁷ And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’?

 

An attitude that understands the call to service. The first aspect of a disciple’s attitude is that they understand they are a servant. As we mentioned in the introduction, a “servant’ (Greek doulon) is a slave, bondman, servant. A servant was low man on the totem pole in society. They had few rights. They were at the mercy of their master to a great extent. Under Old Testament Law there were provisions to protect servants from abuse (e.g., Exodus 21:24, 26-27). But a servant was in a humbled, humiliating position in society.

 

A servant was expected to serve. As Jesus said here, when they came in from the field their day didn’t stop, they were expected to serve and continue serving until the master determined they had served enough. Do you have a servant’s attitude? Can Jesus ask you to serve and keep serving even though you have been serving all day? Do you look for a break after you’ve served? Or are you ready to serve and keep on serving as long and however Jesus requires you too?

 

⁸ But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’?

 

An attitude of readiness to serve. To “gird” oneself meant to be ready for action or ready to serve. People of this day wore robes that made running or working cumbersome unless they “girded” themselves. To gird meant to reach down and take the back part of one’s robe and pull it up through your legs and tuck it into your belt making like a pair of short pants. This removed restrictions or a flowing part of the garment that might trip a servant up. What Jesus is saying here therefore was that, even when you have served in the field or been plowing, you need to remain ready to serve or answer the call of the master. Are you girded, ready to answer the call of Jesus at a moment’s notice? Are you ready to serve even after you’ve been out in the field plowing all day? Are you ready to serve?

 

⁹ Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not.

 

An attitude of selflessness. This servant, according ot Jesus, shouldn’t expect any thanks or affirmations from the master. A good master may give affirmation, but the servant’s service shouldn’t be dependent on thanks from the master. A servant, therefore, should be selfless. A servant should serve simply because that is what they are supposed to do.

 

This was the attitude of the greatest of all the prophets, John the Baptist. Of him Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he” (John 11:11). What made John so great? The attitude of his heart toward God and His plan is what made him great. John the Baptist said:

 

·       John 3:27–31 (NKJV) - ²⁷ John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ ²⁹ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. ³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease. ³¹ He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.

“He must increase, but I must decrease,” that attitude is what positioned John the Baptist to be greatly used and soar in God’s plans.

 

¹⁰ So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”

 

An attitude of an unprofitable servant. As we mentioned in the introduction to this chapter, “unprofitable” (Greek achreioi adjective of achreios) means useless, unprofitable, good for nothing, worthless. We also said this term means helpless, foolish, unfit for war. Without their service, the servant is nothing. The idea is that a servant should get all of their purpose and meaning in life from their service of their master. Do you get your meaning in life from your service of Jesus?

 

An attitude of being “duty” bound. The servant of Jesus, rather than looking for compliments or attention, should be thinking “We have done what was our duty to do.” The word “duty” (Greek opheilomen Imperfect/Active/Indicative of opheilo) which means we are bound, we owe, we ar eindebtred. The idea is that a servant’s attitude should be appreciative to Jesus for the opportunity to serve Him.

 

We aren’t doing Jesus a favor by being His servant. The unprofitable servant shouldn’t expect lighter treatment when they “have done what was our duty to do.” The unprofitable servant should be ready to serve all the time, even when they have finished their initial task. We aren’t doing Jesus a favor by serving Him. We need to always remember, we are not our own, we have been bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus!

 

The Apostles knew this all too well and taught the followers of Jesus the same. The following inspired words should humble us to the right unprofitable status:

 

Paul was inspired to say:

 

·       1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (NKJV) - ¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? ²⁰ For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Peter was inspired to say:

·       1 Peter 1:17–19 (NKJV) - ¹⁷ And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; ¹⁸ knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

A special treasure. On our own we are unprofitable. But because of Jesus, we become a special treasure to God. God called His people a “special treasure” in the Old Testament (Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 7:6; 14:2; 28:12). And in the New Testament we have treasure within (2 Cor. 4:7). We are God’s poetry (Ephesians 2;10). Without Him we are nothing. With Jesus, we are complete (Colossians 2:10).

 

The Apostle Paul, in the greatest chapter on the Resurrection, opens with an honest humble  disclosure of his heart attitude. And as we read these words, we see the attitude that enabled Paul to ascend to great altitude with the LORD.

 

·       1 Corinthians 15:1–11 (NKJV) - Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, ² by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. ³ For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, ⁵ and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. ⁶ After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. ⁷ After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. ⁸ Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. ⁹ For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. ¹⁰ But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. ¹¹ Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

“For I am the least of all the Apostles,” said the Apostle who was used by God to pen 14 of the 27 New Testament letters. “For I am the least of the Apostles,” said the one chosen by God to preach the gospel to the Gentile world. “For I am the least of the Apostles,” said the one who also said, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” That is the servant’s selfless attitude that Jesus blesses to soar with Him in mighty deeds.

 

Nathan Hale was born June 6, 1755 and died just beyond his twenty-first birthday on September 22, 1776. He was an America patriot, who served the American Revolutionary cause as a spy in the Battle of New York. When the opportunity presented itself, Hale volunteered to go on an intelligence gathering mission in the Battle of Harlem Heights, New York City but was captured and sentenced to be executed by hanging. At his execution he was asked if he had any regrets. His reply was, “I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.” Nathan Hale had a servant’s heart and attitude to serve his country. Nathan Hale had faith that the revolution he was involved with would lead to the establishment of the United States of America. And he was willing to give his life, (and more if he could) for that cause. Nathan Hale gave his life for an earthly temporal cause. Do you have the same servant attitude to serve an eternal God in His eternal causes?

 

Dr. David Livingston, served as a missionary explorer to Africa from 1841-1873. He left his medical practice in London to spread the gospel in the heartland of the African continent and fought the Arab slave trade in the process. He became the best known and most loved of missionaries to Africa. He traveled a total of 29,000 miles during his missionary life. In 1873 David Livingston was found dead in an African hut, where he died on his knees in prayer. David Livingston died on his knees in prayer. What a way to go! When he died those who had been blessed by his ministry buried his heart under a tree in Africa and carried his embalmed body on a one year journey to the sea where it could be taken to his homeland of England and buried there. Btu his heart remained in Africa. In England he received the burial honors due a prince or king. What did this great partner of Jesus say about his life? Listen:

 

"People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a sacrifice, which is simply paid back as a small part of the great debt owed to our God, which we can never repay? Is that a sacrifice which brings its own reward of healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of glorious destiny hereafter?

 

"Away with such a word, such a view, and such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say, rather, it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering or danger now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause and cause the spirit to waver and sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall hereafter be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice. Of this we ought not to talk when we remember the great sacrifice which He made who left His Father's throne on high to give Himself for us." - David Livingston, missionary to Africa. [1]

 Isaiah 40 begins a section often referred to as "The Gospel of Isaiah." It is a section that opens with an offer of comfort from God. Then we are given the prophetic words that refer to John the Baptist and his preparing the way of the LORD. It is a chapter that speaks of the brittleness of life and how it fades with time. It is also a chapter that speaks of the enduring word of God. In Jesus the LORD comes with "good tidings" that will dispel fear. it speaks of God's strong arm and a reward He will bring. It speaks of God holding the universe in the "hollow of His hand," and the omniscience of the "Spirit of the LORD." it is a chapter of perspective as it states, "The nations are as a drop in a bucket," to the LORD. There is no one like God. None so great and mighty and all knowing and all powerful. Three is none like Him. And it speaks of the foolishness of trying to hide from Him or live in some way without Him. Then we have those incredible climactic inspired words, "Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." "They shall mount up with wings like eagles." All of this chapter is connected to weakness, weariness, those who need comfort, those who have come to the realization that their strength is not enough. this chapter speaks of those travelling in the valleys of life. It speaks of mountains of pride being brought low. "All flesh is grass." "The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the LORD blows upon i; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of the God stands forever." All of this is spoken to those who have learned, you might say, that they are unprofitable servants and all that they have done and experienced, is simply their duty or what can and should be expected of them. That is the attitude that enables us to elevate. That is the attitude that enables us to soar like an eagle with the LORD. That is the attitude that enables us to soar to high altitudes with the LORD. Do you have such an attitude? 

Do you have an attitude like Nathan Hale or David Livingston that will help you soar in altitude in the secular or spiritual causes of God? In effect we need to stoop low to soar high. Do you accept that you are an unprofitable servant with no rights, and no basis before God to be anything except thankful to be included and used by God. We need to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God that He might exalt us in due time (1 Peter 5:6-7). Your attitude determines your altitude with Jesus. What’s your attitude?

 

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[1] https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7375510-for-my-own-part-i-have-never-ceased-to-rejoice