If This Were My Last Day - Pastor Stacey Shiflett

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If This Were My Last Day

Proverbs 27:1 Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

Intro: Yesterday, I had the privilege to preach the funeral of one of our dear saints of God. What a testimony and a legacy he left behind. He was saved at the age of 14, and died at the age of 84. For seventy years, Russell Spangler loved the Lord. He died a week ago – right after our Sunday evening service. All week my mind was on the inevitable fact of death.

If Jesus doesn’t come back soon, every one of us will face death.

· Hebrews 9:27 tells us, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”

· James 4:14 is clear “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”

I have thought so much this past week about how uncertain death is.

Not everyone has the opportunity to know when they will die.

Many people die after being sick for a long time.

They have doctors tell them they will die.

They have hospice at the house and family gathered around.

They have a lot of time to think and plan and prepare for it.

But many people do not.

Our text is clear - Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

The meaning is crystal clear – you may not be here tomorrow.

Which means that today could be your last day on earth.

None of us are guaranteed to be here tomorrow.

I saw a tract one time that said, “The gas may be in the tank of the hearse that will carry you to the cemetery.”

I’ve been thinking about this very powerful fact – today could be my last day.

This could be your last day.

If it were, what would you want to do?

I noticed how many stories in the Bible were of people on their last day.

What they did; how they lived; things that were important to them on their last day.

It stirred me; it challenged me; it caused me to seriously search my heart, because this could be my last day.

Let’s look at a few of them this morning.

If This Were My Last Day…

I. Like Enoch, I’d want to spend it walking with God

Genesis 5

· 22 And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:

· 23 And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:

· 24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Imagine being so close to God that God just decided you were closer to His house than you were to yours!

One thing is clear to me; Enoch had no idea on this particular day that it was going to be his last.

He just got up and did what he always did – he walked with God.

And one day, while he was walking with God, he never went back home.

QUOTE: "Smart men walked on the moon, daring men walked on the ocean floor, but wise men walk with God." - Leonard Ravenhill

You and I ought to spend every single day walking with God, because it might be our last day on earth!

I cannot imagine a greater thing to be said at my funeral than that I walked with God!

You cannot improve on the Company; or the Conversation; or the Companionship!

If This Were My Last Day…

II. Like Jacob, I’d want to spend it commanding my family

Genesis 49

· 1 And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.

· 2 Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.

· 28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.

· 33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into th bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.

Jacob made some mistakes in his life. There’s no question about that.

But you’ve got to give him credit for one thing.

On his last day on earth, he gathered his family around and blessed them and commanded them.

Verse 2 tells us that he gathered his sons around and told them to hearken unto him, and they did.

I can’t think of anything greater than to live a life where my children will stand around my deathbed and be still be interested in what I have to say.

I want to still have influence with my family.

I want to be able to bless them and command them and guide them.

There’s no greater disappointment than to be completely incapable of influencing your own children.

If This Were My Last Day…

III. Like Joshua, I’d want to spend it urging others to serve God

Joshua 24

· 1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.

· 2 And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.

· 14 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.

· 15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

· 16 And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;

· 19 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.

· 20 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.

· 21 And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.

· 22 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.

· 23 Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel.

· 24 And the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.

· 25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.

· 26 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.

· 27 And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God.

· 28 So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.

· 29 And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an hundred and ten years old.

I can think of no greater way to spend my last day than to inspire others to serve God.

Using my last day on earth to urge people to forsake false Gods and to serve the true and living God is a powerful way to go!

If This Were My Last Day…

IV. Like Elijah, I’d want to spend it preparing the next generation

2 Kings 2

· 9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.

· 10 And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

· 11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

Elijah spent his last minutes on earth investing in the next generation.

He spent his last day mentoring and preparing the next generation of preachers to take the mantle.

The older I get, the more consumed I am with this opportunity.

If older men of God really thought that today was their last day, they’d spend more time on this.

I am amazed at the preachers that preach that life is uncertain, but they live like they’re going to be here forever.

Who is going to take our place when we’re gone?

Who is going to fill our shoes if we don’t wake up tomorrow?

We have an overwhelming obligation to pass the torch; pass down the faith once delivered unto the saints.

If This Were My Last Day…

V. Like Stephen, I’d want to spend it forgiving those that have done me wrong

Acts 7

· 58 And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul.

· 59 And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

· 60 And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Holding grudges and being bitter seems to lose its appeal when you’re facing death.

Just let it go.

There’s no time to spend stewing over the wrongs done to you.

Stephen’s last words were of forgiveness and mercy and longsuffering.

· There are people you may never be able to fellowship with…

· There will be people that you won’t want to spend time with…

· There will be those that no matter what you do, living together in harmony is not possible…

But you don’t have to live with bitterness and unforgiveness.

Forgive them and move on.

If This Were My Last Day…

VI. Like Jesus, I’d want to spend it burdened for a lost world

Acts 1

· 8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

· 9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

The last day that Jesus spent on this earth, He was concerned for those that had never heard the Gospel.

His last words to the disciples were about getting the Gospel around the world – to every creature.

No matter how good we have it, and how much we’ve been blessed, we cannot forget those that do not know.

I never cease to be amazed at what people put in their wills.

The insane things that people leave all their money to.

I knew a man that left his entire estate to the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.)

Don’t get me wrong. In spite of my occasional cat jokes, I hate to think about animals suffering.

But what about the billions of people on this earth that will spend eternity in Hell if they die lost?

What about leaving your estate to the church to reach the world with the Gospel?

What about spending your last day on earth burdened for the lost souls of men, women and children?

Jesus spent His last day on earth making sure that the whole world knew that He had died for them.

We should do the same!

If This Were My Last Day…

VII. Like the dying thief, I’d make sure I was ready to meet God

Luke 23

· 39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

· 40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

· 41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

· 42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

· 43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Please don’t put it off.

· 2 Corinthians 6:2 (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)