What are we afraid of?

... and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away?" Mark 16.3

To fuel the hype around the release of their first album in however many years, the surviving members of The Rolling Stones submitted themselves to an interview. During the conversation a chance remark was made about "church" which unleashed much teasing along the lines "when have you ever been in church?". Perish the thought that such legends of roll 'n roll would be so uncool as to darken the doors of this bastion of tradition!

It was obvious that the impression of church around which the banter was playing was the stuff of caricature made famous by Rowan Atkinson and Dawn French (not to omit David Nimmo for earlier generations!). At that level it is harmless fun. The pity is when people think that is all there is. Believers see beyond the parody. And it's not just that we regret that those who don't are missing out on a recreational choice. The stakes are much higher.

Our eternal destiny depends on our taking seriously how we shall approach our Maker when the time comes. Will we be accepted or condemned? If we think we can bluff our way or simply opt for cosy oblivion we are deluding ourselves. That God himself has paved the way for us to be judged, not as our sins deserve, but according to the righteousness of Jesus is not only life-changing, it is future defining.

And it begins now. Deathbed conversions are all very well but relying on such is no way to live, for who knows if we shall have the leisure? Jesus wants to do business now. He is knocking at the door of our hearts, rolling away the stones of prejudice, ignorance and unbelief. He is doing all this with restraint for the moment, allowing us time to respond. Our time is linear and one day it will run out. God invites us to step into his time, which is eternal but we have to make the choice...