Amo 4:12 “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
Isaiah 47:3 Your nakedness shall be uncovered, and your disgrace shall be seen. I will take vengeance, and I will spare no one.
Luke 21:34-35 “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth.
1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
James 4:4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Revelation 3:3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.
Standing before God in a welcoming or judgment is not an abstract possibility but an absolute certainty. While the timing may be unknown to us, it is fixed and known by God. How much greater preparation should be made for encountering God, Creator of everything there is?
We are all aware of death and how it claims young and old alike. We do not know the time of our death but it is as certain as the sun rising and setting. Death is unpredictable and with the knowledge that everyone will stand before God it is urgent to be prepared.
Life is a gift given specifically for the purpose of preparing to meet God. The world is filled with reminders of mortality and the coming judgment, from natural phenomena to everyday experiences of change and loss. All aspects of existence—beauty, joy, sorrow—carry the admonition to “Prepare to meet thy God.”
God is the Creator who has endowed humanity with abilities, opportunities, and responsibilities. God is Holy, who will ask questions and bring charges, with the power to display unendurable terrors. Any notion that God might overlook or minimize the individual’s actions misses the seriousness with which God regards human conduct.
Each person should caution against underestimating His authority or the consequences of rebellion. The grandeur of creation and the sacrifice of His Son are cited as evidence of the value God places on humanity and the certainty of divine attention on the day of judgment.
God requires a final settlement of the conflict between Creator and created with justice and holiness prevailing.
Judgment awaits us all and it is prudent for self-reflection and readiness in light of His Word. It is important to recognize the certainty of facing God and to make the most of life as an opportunity to prepare for that meeting. Eternity in heaven or hell demand we give thought to our coming death. Each person is accountable to God and will stand before Him. (Bowen)
