The Preacher's Pen 

"Your Tombstone"

If Jesus came today, Acts 1:11, would you be ready to meet him? There is no more important question than that! If the answer to that has been resolved, you can "rest" easy, Matthew 11:28-30. Talking of "rest"--when you enter your eternal rest, what would you want your tombstone to say? If it told the truth and nothing but the truth, would it agree with your expressed sentiment? The divine paradox is that Jesus lived that he might die, and died that we might live. The angels announced his birth, but they also announced his epitaph, "He is not here. He is risen," Matthew 28:6. 

I love browsing in cemeteries and reading the inscriptions on the gravestones. Years ago in Montreal, Donna and I scaled a wall of a Jewish cemetery on a Canadian holiday to see if we could decipher the Hebrew inscriptions on the Tombstones. Someone asked, "Why in the world would they build a wall around a cemetery and lock the gates?" The silly response was, "Because people are just dying to get in here." Duh! Then another frivolous statement was that this is the "dead-center" of town. Yeah, sure! Though it was insightful to translate and read the inscriptions, it was definitely time to get out of there! 

In a Falkirk, Scotland, cemetery, there is an epitaph: "Here under the sod, and under these trees is buried the body of Solomon Pease. But here in his hole lies only the pod, his soul is shelled out and gone up to God." The Bible says on death, "The body returns to the dust and the soul returns to God who gave it," Ecclesiastes 12:7. Living in the West as we do, I just had to add this one. In a cemetery in Tombstone,  Arizona: "Here lies Lester Moore--four slugs from a 44. No Les--no more." Men of violence and their victims have always walked the earth, Micah 2:1-2.  

Can you imagine a more insignificant life than is characterized by these words: "Mary Hoyt, 1836. She lived--what more can be said? She died--and all we know, she's dead." Most of us would like to do a little better than that. We would like to leave the world a better place than we found it, wouldn't we? We want to make a difference, right? We want to make an impact for our Savior and God. Anyone can live...and die. We who are in Christ want to have a light that shines in the darkness even after we have gone, Matthew 5:16.

There are also epitaphs that warn vividly of the uncertainty of life. From a cemetery in Kent, England come these words: "Grim death took me without any warning. I was well at night, and dead in the morning." My sweet 98-year old mother-in-love was healthy in the morning of her final day. That night she tripped and fell. Her hip broke. Her life was over. Life is so very uncertain, James 4:13-15. That is why I asked the question at the beginning, "If Jesus came today--now, at this very moment--would you be ready to meet Him?"

If your eyes were to close for the last time today, could you look forward to your eternal inheritance with God? I want my grave marker to say truthfully in one form or another, "He is not here. He is risen?" Do you want yours to say that too? That will only happen if you and I are in Christ. Can you truthfully say that you are in Christ?  If not, why not obey Jesus today and become a child of God? Recognize that you are a sinner, Romans 3:10, 23. Express your faith in Jesus Christ as the one and only Savior, Hebrews 11:6. Determine to turn from sin (repent), Acts 17:30. Confess His wonderful name in the presence of witnesses, Matthew 10:32. Submit to be baptized by immersion in water, Acts 2:38. Then you can walk in newness of life--a new beginning, Romans 6:2-4. Don't you want that? That is what I did. I invite you to do the same. Then you and I can share our Savior's epitaph mentioned above. I am ever ready to help you! Just let me know. . .  

Love you all,

Al--"the Horne of Africa."

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