You are in my Seat, Sir! Awake Series, Part 12
They were young and determined, these ten gentlemen who took the ten seats in
front of us. They were in the reserved seating area at the Performing Arts
Center of the Kingdom Bound Christian Music Festival, and they were eager to
watch one of their favourite bands in action.
Then one of them stood up and scanned the area. He pointed to a row of empty
seats closer to the stage, and suddenly they were gone, making their way
excitedly forward.
But wait. If they had reserved seats, how could they just change them?
We weren't left to wonder long. A couple of minutes before the performance, the
usher showed up and kindly asked the young men to leave. Apparently they didn't
have reserved seats after all, and the legitimate owners of those places had
arrived!
It didn't matter to the usher that these 10 young men were supposedly personal
friends of the performing band! They were still ousted from the reserved seating
area, and because the Performing Arts Centre was already completely filled, the
young gentlemen found themselves outside on the grass. They were as far from the
stage as it was possible to get, with no view of the band and very poor
acoustics. How embarrassing!
Unfortunately, many of us will find ourselves in a similar situation on the day
of Jesus' second coming. The do-gooders will be pushing their way up front
boasting about their works. The legalists will be pushing their way to the
front, boasting about the merits of their denominations.
But despite what these "Pharisees" of our own day and age think, they will find
that they do not have reservations! Although they are confident in their own
endeavours, they will hear Jesus say, as He said to the 5 unworthy virgins: "I
tell you the truth, I don't know you." (Matt 25:12 NIV).
These will be the ones who, just like so many of us, can't stop themselves from
boasting about their works: "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did
we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many
miracles?'" (Matt 7:22 NIV)
However Jesus will not be impressed: "Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never
knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'" (Matt 7:23 NIV)
Many of us have been granted the privilege of eating and drinking the "spiritual
food" and "spiritual drink" provided by Jesus Himself. However this, by itself,
does not assure us reserved seating in Heaven.
"They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the
same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the
spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless,
God was not pleased with most of them…" (1 Cor 10:2-5 NIV)
Too often we forget that we are not saved by our own merit. It isn't about WHAT
we do, it's about WHO we know intimately: Jesus, the Christ!
"Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom you have sent." (John 17:3-4 NIV)
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from
yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast." (Eph
2:8-9 NIV)
Does this mean we can sit around on our backsides and watch others die of
thirst? Hey, we are saved by knowing Jesus! But would we be acting like Jesus if
we did that? Or would we, by our own actions, show that we truly don't know Him
at all?
"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave
me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes
and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you
came to visit me… The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did
for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" (Matt
25:35-36, 40 NIV)
Sorry sir, I believe you're in my seat…
Rob Chaffart