Too Late?

NO ONE wants to hear they’re TOO LATE… Like discovering the item they had their heart set on buying was JUST SOLD, or when a connecting flight they couldn’t afford to miss took off. Have you heard people talk about a missed opportunity or the one that got away? Some people have been told they were a day late and a dollar short. In other words, they waited TOO LONG to act on a great opportunity, and when they finally realized how important it was, it was gone—they were too late. Think of the sadness of emergency services arriving TOO LATE to save someone’s life. Or when a person is TOO LATE to tell a loved one how much they meant to them before they passed away. Or a person seeing a doctor when it’s TOO LATE to stop the spread of a deadly disease. But there’s a scenario when being too late is FAR WORSE than anyone can imagine. What could that be? One day your body will die, but the real you, your soul, will go on and exist forever. Perhaps you think, “If there is a Heaven or Hell, I’ll be ok because I’m a good person.” With all due respect, none of us are good people. We’ve ALL fallen short of God’s moral perfections. For example, how many lies have you told throughout your life? How many things have you stolen? God even considers lust to be the same as adultery, and hatred to be the same as murder. And using God’s Name as a four-letter curse word demands the death penalty. God even knows everything we’ve ever said and done in secret. Throughout peoples’ lives God is gathering the evidence of a person’s guilt. Every time someone lied, lusted, or stole has been written down, and on the Day of Judgment, the trial of every person will unfold. Every crime against God will be revealed, and He will pronounce violators of His 10 Commandments as guilty and unworthy to enter His presence. And THOSE people will be bound and thrown into a terrifying prison called The Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:15; 21:8). But God does not wish for anyone’s eternal doom. No! He deeply loves us and wants us to live with Him forever in Heaven, but the legal demands of His law had to be satisfied first. What did God do? Think of it like this … imagine being arrested for a crime and owing a huge fine, and because you can’t pay it, you will go to jail. But if someone steps in to pay your fine, the judge can legally let you go. That’s EXACTLY what God did for us. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is the legal transaction that COMPLETELY pays our big fine, CANCELS our day of execution, and KEEPS US out of the fiery prison of Hell FOREVER! My friend, think carefully about this message. Because as of this moment, it’s NOT too late for you. It’s NOT too late to leave your old life behind for a new life with Jesus Christ. It’s NOT too late to confess what you’ve done as wrong to God. It’s NOT too late to be adopted into the royal family of God. Do you want that? My friend, the emergency message for you has arrived. You’re not a day late to receive total forgiveness. You haven’t missed the opportunity to make Heaven your home. You’re NOT too late. You’re right on time. Jesus said, “Come unto me.” (Matthew 11:28) “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish.” (John 10:28) “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2)