Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
In James 4:14 we read: "For what is your
life? It is even a vapour that appeareth for a little time, and then
vanisheth away." Here is a question for every thinking man and woman of
God. What is your life? For solidity, for stability; what is it? The very
breath in our nostrils on a cold winter day is not more unsubstantial than is
our life. Your own breath is a fair picture of the flimsy, airy thing which
men call life.
The Apostle here speaks of life as a "vapour." Were you to stand
upon the height of one of the
Notice also that James speaks of this vapour as one "that
appeareth." He does not speak of it as a thing of substance, having a
true existence, but only that it "appeareth." Vapour is so
ethereal, phantom-like, and unreal, that it may rather be said to appear than
to exist. Such is this life. It is like a dream, a vain show, an apparition of
the night. Half our joys and sorrows are but the pretense of joy and the
shadow of sorrow; and the most of things through which we travel day by day
are not what they seem to be.
Indeed this text tells us that our lives, like a vapour, appear "for a
little time." At his best a man's life lasts only a little while. The
very trees which we have planted about our homes will long outlive our days
in this world. Our lives appear for a little time "and then vanish
away." With most of us our remembrance will be short after we are gone
regardless of how well men once regarded us while we lived.
Well, lest we be thought morbid in viewing our lives from this perspective,
let us consider the spiritual lessons this truth teaches us. The first and
most obvious truth is that if life is as unsubstantial as a vapour, then we
need to seek for something substantial elsewhere. Unless we purposely live
with a view to the next world, we cannot make much out of our present
existence. Children may be happy to blow bubbles with the aid of a pipe and a
piece of soap; but for those men and women who have put away childish things,
we ought not to be greatly moved by the things of this life, for they are but
bubbles which have less substance than those which delight a child. We need
to grip the eternal verities and sit loose to everything that is temporal.
Furthermore, if our lives are so uncertain, then we must live and act without
delay. We need to redeem the time that the Lord has given to us while in this
world. We need to flee the wrath to come. We need to put our trust in the
only Saviour of sinners. We need to spend our days seeking to glorify His
name and pursuing the interests of His kingdom. If life is short, it is
wisdom to make the most of it for the honor of Christ's name and to pack our
little space of time as full as possible in His service.
And if our days are but a vapour, then does this not teach us not to make
such great provisions for them as the custom of men is to do? Mind you, it
would be most unwise and imprudent not to lay by anything for a rainy day. To
do so would be to act the part of the sluggard and to disregard the lesson of
the ant. But having said that, can there be any justification for laying up
treasure which will never be used? Ants do not store up grain for the sake of
storing. They simply divide over the whole year the harvest of a month.
Let me add one thing more, if our time is short and fleeting in this world,
then we should not let its troubles and discomforts become the cause of great
anxiety to us. A man traveling to a new home may put up with a great many
difficulties and inconveniences along the way. Why? Because he knows that
these are only temporary. His destination will afford him ample time to
recover from what trouble he has taken in his journey. Child of God, I ask
you, "What is your life?
Rev. Claude D. DePrine, III
To contact the pastor by e-mail go to Pastor@providenceopc.org
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