The Brevity Of Life
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin Articles
This morning at approximately 9:30 a.m., MST, my little miniature dachshund dog, Abbie, was put to rest by her veterinarian. She was experiencing multiple health problems, including two tumors and congestive heart failure. Thus, it was time for her to be put to rest. She was a faithful and loving companion to my wife and I for a little over fourteen years.
Similar to an animal’s life, our life is short in duration as well. It is brief in time and appears to “fly” by. Job fully realized this in Job 7:6-7, when he observed, “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle.“ The action referenced in these verses could be described today by the movement of a sewing machine needle going up and down. It doesn’t take a long time for this repeated activity to occur. In fact, it happens so fast that the eye cannot even see it. This is how fast Job declares his life span to last. Man’s days are indeed swifter than a weaver’s shuttle.
Job declares in Job 9:25-26 that “….my days are swifter than a runner; They flee away, they see no good, They pass by like swift ships, Like an eagle swooping on its prey.” Have we ever seen an eagle hastening to its prey? It happens so fast that the prey gets caught off guard and suddenly becomes a meal. What a graphic picture the Lord gives us for the brevity of life!
The Psalmist tells us in Psalms 78:39, “For He (God) remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passes away, and does not come again.” In this passage, God describes our life as a wind. A wind that passes away and doesn’t come again. It’s not a long-lasting wind, but a wind of short duration, a quickly passing wind. This wind is temporary, moving fast and not returning.
Again, the Psalmist tells us in Psalms 89:47, “Remember how short my time is.” God measures our life in time and says it is short. We know that a child thinks that life is very long in duration. The child looks ahead in time and wishes it away to reach an age he aspires to. However, those at the other end of life’s spectrum, know that the child is wrong and that God is right. Time is indeed short as God says. You might say or hear someone else say, “Where did all that time go? It went so fast. I can’t believe it’s coming to an end.”
The rapid passing of time proves the Scriptures to be correct. No matter how many years one’s life lasts, at the end, he will agree with God regarding how short his time is here on earth. Other Bible examples, illustrate to us the brevity of life (Isaiah 40:6-8; Psalm 102:11; James 4:14).
Because of the brevity of life, our question needs to be, “Are we prepared to meet our Maker?” If we’re “in Christ” or in a right relationship with Christ, we are ready to meet our Lord when our short life is over.
Let’s think about the above passages of Scripture, and then take any necessary action needed to make our lives right with God.