(Amos 4: 1-13)
The word “prepare”, according to the Chambers 20th Century Dictionary, means, among other things, “to make ready or fit”; “to bring into a suitable state”; “to train, as for an examination”; and “to subject to a process for bringing into a required state”. The word features prominently in public and private discourses every day. We talk about the state of preparedness of our army to ward off external aggression. Teachers and educationists often work hard to prepare their students for examinations. In the business and economic realms, many have attributed our economic problems to our failure to prepare for the fluctuations in the price of crude oil in the international market.
In the Book of Amos, the Prophet warned the people of Israel about the need to make preparation for their inevitable meeting with God. But it is not only the people of Israel who need to prepare to meet God. Everybody in the world needs to prepare as well. The question that we should individually ask ourselves is this, “Am I prepared to meet God?” The Bible says that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of God” (Romans 14:10). It goes on to say that, “so then, each of us will give an account of himself to God” (Romans 14:12). Some think that they can avoid their meeting with God by claiming that they don’t believe in the existence of God. The Bible says that “the fool says in his heart, there is no God” (Psalm 14:1).
Charles H. Spurgeon, that great Baptist preacher of the 19th century, said,
“The atheist is the fool pre-eminently, and a fool universally. He would not deny God if he were not a fool by nature, and having denied God, it is no marvel that he becomes a fool in practice. Sin is always a folly. As it is the height of sin to attack the very existence of the Most High, so it is also the greatest imaginable folly. To say there is no God is to belie the plainest evidence, which is obstinacy; to oppose the common consent of mankind, which is stupidity; to stifle conscience, which is madness…. But as denying the existence of fire does not prevent its burning a man who is in it, so doubting the existence of God will not stop the Judge of all the earth from destroying the rebel who breaks his laws. No, this atheism is a crime which much provokes heaven, and will bring down terrible vengeance on the fool who indulges it.”
Are you prepared for your inevitable meeting with God? There are three infinitely important questions suggested by the text, that we must seek to answer faithfully, namely, “Why should we prepare to meet God?” “How can we prepare to meet God?” and “When should we prepare to meet God?”
First, why should we prepare to meet God? It should be enough to say that God commands it. Running like an unbroken thread all through the Bible is God’s command to the children of men to make preparation for their meeting with Him. When we know the mind of God about anything, it is the part of highest wisdom for us to obey His command. But another reason is that our condition demands that we should make such preparations. Someone may ask, “What of our condition?” There has come to us in our very nature, a moral sickness called sin which has turned us all away from God. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We all started life with “a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns (us) away from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12). Because of this moral sickness which calls for a helper who has now been given to us, we are to turn to that helper and seek to have healing and recovery from our moral sickness. Jesus Christ said, “The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). When all men fell in Adam, man became lost to fellowship with God and the kind of life that God wants him to live. He became lost to all things that bring real satisfaction to the experience of living. Outside of Christ, all men are lost in the ways described above and more. Thus, we must prepare to meet God because God commands it and it ensures remedy to the problem of sin. Salvation is by a Person, and that Person is none other than Jesus Christ who died on the Cross and rose again from the dead.
Second, how can we prepare to meet God? Three things are necessary. First, you must seek God with all your heart. He said in the Bible, “In the day that thou seekest me with thy whole heart, I will be found of thee” and “Ye shall seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). Oh, if this day, the man, the woman, the boy or girl, reading this and who knows that he or she is wrong with God will say, “Today, with my whole heart I will seek God,” then this day you shall meet Him and be saved. The second thing necessary is repentance toward God. Our evil, unbelieving hearts turn away from God (Hebrews 3:12). In repentance, we renounce all evil ways and deeds and turn to God. The Bible says, “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them find mercy” (Proverbs 28:13). The third thing necessary is to commit your life to God through Jesus Christ by taking Jesus Christ as your divine Lord and Saviour. These three steps must be taken to prepare to meet God, namely, seek God wholeheartedly; repent; and accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour.
The third and final question suggested by the text is “When should we prepare to meet God?” First, you should make your preparations for meeting God today and now because you need that your life here and now should be saved. There is not a human being reading this or anywhere else competent to live life like it ought to be lived for one short second if such a person is in hostile array against God. Secondly, you should make your preparation for meeting God now in order that you may be ready for your life’s end, whenever such end shall come. And when shall that be? No angel above knows when that end shall come. It may come before midnight tonight. It may come before tomorrow morning. That is why God says in the Bible, “Boast not thyself of tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1). Be ready for your departure from the earth. There is no wisdom in going your way to that inevitable end, and then taking a leap into the dark without preparedness, without readiness.
If you want to prepare for your meeting with God, you may offer the following prayer to God. “Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus into the world to die for my sins. I confess my sins and turn away from them. I invite Jesus into my heart to be my Lord and Saviour. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
Your eternal salvation and spiritual well-being are our concern. If you gave your life to Jesus Christ by offering the prayer above, please let us know through the address below. You may also join us in worshipping God in Yoruba language at 7.30 a.m. or in English language at 9.00 a.m. every Sunday.
Rev. Kayode Ilupeju,
Good News Baptist Church,
47/49, Olufemi Road,
off Ogunlana Drive,
P.O. Box 3781,
Surulere, Lagos.
Tel. 0803-302-1008.
