TWO MANDATORY APPOINTMENTS

Mike Johnson

There are very few things in life that we absolutely must do. A person does not even absolutely have to eat. A person, of course, must eat if he wants to live, but he can quit eating and die if he really wanted to. However, there are two future events that we cannot avoid. They are death and the Judgment. Hebrews 9:27 says, “and as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” These are two appointments that all of us must keep.

First, consider death. Our life here on this earth is, at the longest, very short. In James 4:14 it is referred to as a vapor “that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” To live is to eventually die. Since it is true that we all must die, the second mandatory appointment (the Judgment) should concern us all.

All of us must face the Judgment which will occur after the second coming of Christ. According to II Corinthians 5:10, we will be judged according to the “things done in the body.” The Judgment cannot be avoided, so we should certainly prepare ourselves for it.

If you are not a Christian, you need to become one. The Bible teaches that a person must believe (Heb. 11:6), repent (Acts 2:38), confess Christ (Rom. 10:10), and be baptized (Acts 2:38). After a person becomes a Christian, he must remain faithful (I Cor. 15:58).