Now there *is* something that we can take into the next world….

The song “The Blessing” by John Waller has been ringing in my mind for the past week or so. In this very popular song, John sings of the legacy that we will leave behind when we pass on. One part of the song goes this way: “Let it be said of us / That our hearts belonged to Jesus Let it be said of us / That we spoke the words of life / Let it be said of us / That our heritage is blessing for life”. While it is important to make sure we leave behind a good legacy, one needs to question what , if any, we can carry on with us when we move on.

Although, the words of Job (“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart” – Job 1:21) indicate that we came into this world without any physical assets, and will depart the world without the riches we have worked so hard to build up, it is important to remember that a person who builds on the foundation of Jesus Christ will be able to carry their work into the next! I Corinthians 3:11-15 talks of this: “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.”

That “Day” of course, is the Judgment Day when God will judge a Christian’s work. In short, our work here for the Lord will exist eternally if it passes the ‘quality test’ of God’s Fire, and it is clear that we will be rewarded for ‘quality work’ built using durable ‘quality materials’. On the other hand, if we use cheaper hay and straw, this will get burned up in the fire, but we ourselves will survive and be saved, “but only as one escaping through the flames“……

Now obviously, Paul was not talking about building a physical building (“of course” I hear you say .) Paul, however, was talking about investing what we have in God’s work and building God’s Kingdom here on earth! In that case, we need to ask ourselves if we are giving Him our “leftovers” in Time, Money (yes I used the “M” word!), Passion, Energy and whatever Gifts we have been given, or are we using things that really cost us for His Kingdom. I have to ask myself whether I, like David in I Chronicles 21:24, will “insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing“. Before I do anything for Him, I also have to remind myself that “the LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (I Samuel 16:7) I have to measure my attitude, actions and results towards His work as per His Yardstick and His Measure, not mine.

Since what I do here for Him, and how I invest in building His Kingdom is going to be the only possession that I can carry into the next, I better make sure I am using ‘quality material’ that will survive the fire on That Day. And this my friend is something worth investing in!

In Him,

John Kanagaraj