Many tragedies could have been averted if someone had acted in time. Many lives could be spared if some would recognize that time doesn’t extend beyond its allottment in God’s order. The Apostle Paul clearly understood the value of time and its importance to the soul of lost sinners. He says, “Behold now is the accepted time.” Not tomorrow, not next week, not even within the next hour. “Now” means immediately.
Permit me then to consider with you the urgency of God’s time. You are in danger of going to hell, of missing God’s favor, and His loving invitation to come to Him. Listen to His Word, “Today if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts” (Heb 4:7). When God says “now,” He means now!
God is the God of all time: the past, the present, and the future, but He is especially the God of the present. To the unsaved, His Word is, “Now is the accepted time … now is the day of salvation.” The favored time of God for lost humanity is the here and now. Since a person does not know how long he will live, he is extremely wise to heed God’s warning concerning his soul’s salvation. The Scriptures say, “For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away” (Jam 4:14). The Psalmist David says, “Remember how short my time is” (Psa 89:47).
And what about the uncertainty of the future? How wonderful if we could get a glimpse into the future! If only we could tell what lies beyond today! God has not given us the ability to precisely predict the future, but His Word reveals, “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Heb 9:27). Death is inevitable, and the future is uncertain.
The Bible says, “There is a time to be born, and a time to die” (Ecc 3:2). The question yet to be answered for each of us is when is that time to die? Because we do not know the answer, God says, “Now is the accepted time” to receive salvation.
Think of the danger of the unknowable! You do not know what will happen tomorrow, or if you will even live to see the day. The patriarch Job says, “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle” (Job 7:6). The Apostle James says, “Whereas you know not what shall be on the morrow” (Jam 4:14). It is crucial that you accept God’s offer of salvation now. Eternal life is graciously offered to you now. You must accept God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as your Savior now, for “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Rom 10:9-10 ESV).