There was a man who lived in a tent. All his days were spent in agony because his tent was not comfortable; for the flies bit, the sun beamed, and the moon striked. Nevertheless, he hoped forward to his permanent home which was far away in a distant land being prepared for him. Night and day he longed for it and thought about it, even dreaming of it in his sleep. After many years, his home was ready; at the perfect time he went away to his home in which he hoped for. The tent was destroyed, the man went to his home, and he rejoiced and spent the rest of his days in it forever more. As it says, " For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street. " (Ecclesiastes 12:5)
For we have this present life, but it is not ours to keep; if our life was forever, then we wouldn't die, but because we die one day, we know this isn't our home; it is our temporary residence, the tent we live in; our lives are entrusted to us for only a little while. So since we know we will die, we look forward to our next life, our permanent home. If we reject our permanent home, we will try to make our home here on earth eternal; as it says, " Their inner thought is that their houses will last forever, Their dwelling places to all generations; They call their lands after their own names. " (Psalm 49:11)
But who of us can prevent the day of our death? No one! Everyone will go to an eternal dwelling, whether good or bad, as decreed by God. In the state we finish, it will determine where we spend eternity. The time in the tent is a time of testing, and we always have two choices: good or evil. If there were only one choice, we wouldn't have free will, since we would be forced into choosing the only choice, but there are two choices. We will reap what we sow, we gain what we have put in, we will be recompensed according to what we have done in our body. There is life after life, which is eternal, and there is death after death, which is the second death; the second death is hell, the lake of fire, a fire that is not quenched, for the wood is not consumed. Anyone whose name is not written in the Book of Life will die the second death in eternal shame and torment. Paradise is the Kingdom of God, the new Jerusalem, Mount Zion, the new heaven and the new earth, where righteousness dwells. The present heaven and earth are subjected to evil and violence, but it is passing away with everything in it, as we ourselves are passing away. The new heaven and the new earth will never pass away; for it is an eternal home which cannot be shaken. The LORD God will judge the living and the dead according to their deeds, and recompense all according to what they have done in the body; as God says, “Now the end is upon you, and I will send My anger against you; I will judge you according to your ways and bring all your abominations upon you.” (Ezekiel 7:3-4) So He judges us based on our own works. And from the judgement, each will go to their permanent home as decreed by the judgement of God; and God's judgment will be based on righteousness and justice; so who can argue with the verdict? He will reward all who do good for the good done and repay harm for the harm done. But certainly, God has sown everlasting life in the human heart so that we would covet life; as it says, " He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end." (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
For we don't want to die; we covet life, but we are without knowledge of the way of life; we know we should do good, but we have not the goodness within ourselves.
Nevertheless, if a sinful man dies in his sins, he will be raised a sinful man, and he will be judged for his sins; but if a righteous man dies in his righteousness, he will be raised a righteous man, and be rewarded for his righteousness. The LORD shows us through sleep what death is like: we sleep and hours pass without us knowing about it. In sleep, we've accomplished nothing, we've done nothing, but rest; those who belong to the LORD, He teaches them in their sleep; while they dream in the night, He ministers to them in parables; but in the place of the dead, there is nothing, no dreams, no plans - nothing. While we live, there is hope for repentance, but in the place of the dead, there is no hope for anything; as it says, " The hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. But he who is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and forever they have no more share in all that is done under the sun. " (Ecclesiastes 9:3-10)
For generations of our descendants grow up before our eyes, but yet at the fullness of life, we leave and fly away. Not one of us chose our family, no-one chose the body in which they would be born, not one chose the country they would live, yea, no one even asked to be born! We are all given what we have without a say, and it is all taken away without our gesture. A plate is set before us, and before we are finished eating, the waiter takes it away; as it says, " No man has authority to restrain the wind with the wind, or authority over the day of death; and there is no discharge in the time of war, and evil will not deliver those who practice it. " (Ecclesiastes 8:8)
" Moreover, man does not know his time: like fish caught in a trecherous net and birds trapped in a snare, so the sons of men are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them. " (Ecclesiastes 9:12)
So we have all been dealt cards, and the dealer will gather them back up; the end will declare whether we have played our cards right. No-one can take their cards back to the dealer; they are dealt out according to his will. For our lives have been dealt out to us by God; if we don't like them, do we dare quarrel with our Maker? "Woe to him who strives with Him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’? Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’ or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’" (Isaiah 45:9-10)
But rather this is the righteous response: " LORD, make me to know my end And what is the extent of my days; Let me know how transient I am. Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths, And my lifetime as nothing in Your sight; Surely every man at his best is a mere breath. " (Psalm 39:4-6)
And it says, " Teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom. " (Psalm 90:12)
So therefore "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going." (Ecclesiastes 9:10) For "I have seen that nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him?" (Ecclesiastes 3:22)
So God has given us many days of life, but there is a day of death; He has given us many days of grace, but there is one day of judgement. The many is not like the one; but while we live in the many, we ought to consider the one. “For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:14) So in our days of pride, we ought to consider from where we came, and we should consider where we are going. When we consider ourselves more than what we really are, we should remember we are no different from beasts that perish; as it says, " I concluded that God is testing us, to show us that we are no better than animals. After all, the same fate awaits human beings and animals alike. One dies just like the other. They are both the same kind of creature. A human being is no better off than an animal, because life has no meaning for either. They are both going to the same place — the dust. They both came from it; they will both go back to it. How can anyone be sure that the human spirit goes upwards while an animal's spirit goes down into the ground? " (Ecclesiastes 3:18-21)
For surely we are no better off than animals. Furthermore, we are no better off than the foolish, for the wise die like the fool, and both are forgotten; as wisdom sees and says, " Then I said to myself, "As is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. Why then have I been extremely wise?" So I said to myself, "This too is vanity." For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man and the fool alike die! " (Ecclesiastes 2:15-16)
And because of these things, the Psalmist says, “Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure And washed my hands in innocence; For I have been stricken all day long And chastened every morning.” (Psalms 73:13-14) And about the wicked he says, “There are no pains in their death, And their body is fat. They are not in trouble as other men, Nor are they plagued like mankind.” (Psalms 73:4-5) But then he says, “Until I came into the sanctuary of God; Then I perceived their end.” (Psalms 73:17) When he says, "Then I perceived their end." He was not looking at their death, for the wicked died with no pains. For death isn't the final end; God will give new breath to the living and the dead, the earth will give up its dead and the depths its slain. It is God's grace that gave life, and His grace is revealed in the resurrection of the dead, for He will give new life; “Inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27) At that time, the throne of grace will be taken down, and judgement will be upheld. But He says, " Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. " (Matthew 5:7)
Judgement will be based on what we have received from God, what we have done with this grace of life. But there is not a single man on earth who has not soiled his garments. Haven't we all already ruined this good thing of life? So if we have ruined our cards, can we take them back? Knowing where they come from, can we take them back as goods bought in a store? Can we have a do-over in this life or trade our cards for someone else's? Surely God is just. Wouldn't He show us the way of redemption from sin and forgiveness of sins? Does He not know that we are wayward, and in need of a Shepherd? Surely one day we will return our cards to the Dealer, for our hand is only for a little while. Will we be able to ask Him at that time? Certainly it will be too late for questions. For He will question us and we are the ones who must answer. So shall we go all in for something that is nothing? Of course not! Rather how much more shall we go all in for what is everlasting! But where is the everlasting path? Where is the ancient road? Will someone show us the way of life? If there was a way, surely God would reveal it, wouldn't He?
The world thinks the truth is hidden: in the depths of the ocean, in outer space, in the center of the earth. They spend countless billions of dollars to explore where no man has gone before, searching for the truth. Yet, God is widely known and everyone knows His name; for no-one needs to ask, “Who has ascended into heaven and descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has wrapped the waters in His garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name or His son's name? Surely you know!” (Proverbs 30:4) For He has made Himself renown to all His creation. We can discern the signs of the sky, but we cannot discern the truth? Whose name is constantly blasphemed? Yes, we all know Him, but we choose not to honor Him as God. And whose symbol is the cross, which is put on buildings, hung around necks, pierced on the skin, and marked on grave stones? Did we forget that it was once a device of death? (For Jesus was put on that cross, turning what the enemy meant for evil into good.) Whose coming split our calender in half? Or who makes a week seven days? Who is it that hallows the seventh day? The same writings that declare a seven day week and a restful day on the seventh, tells of Him; the same writings that quote wisdom, that we have all come to agree upon, even quoting it without knowing its original source, also speak of the truth. Who is it that lived a great while ago, but yet died, and is proclaimed as resurrected from the dead? That which once was a sect, a heresy, a false teaching, which was fought against, has now become world-wide good news. For who can fight against God and succeed? If this thing were not of God, it wouldn't have withstood. And yet we shoot rockets into the heavens to reach God, just as they tried in times past at the Tower of Babel, by their own might to make a name for themselves, but they failed; for God sees to it that no-one can come near Him by their own self-will or effort, so that no-one will be able to boast in His Presence; but rather, through the word of faith, through the word of truth, which says, ""The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. It is just as the Scripture says: “Anyone who believes in Him will never be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. " (Romans 10:8-13)
For the way of life is through the knowledge of God in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ; and He is the living Grace, the living Truth; He has descended to us and He has ascended; and He sends forth the Spirit of Truth; and He will come again with the clouds in the heavens, for He is always and forever! Every question is answered in a single saying, as the apostle Paul says, "THANK GOD! THE ANSWER IS IN JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD." (Romans 7:25)