The Brevity of Life
1 Peter 1:24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.
Peter is obviously quoting from Isaiah 40:6-8 and the point he is trying to make is that life is short, life has a brevity about it and that we are here for a little while no matter how long we live. Every day the obituary pages of the local funeral homes remind us of the temporal nature of life. People of every age and at every stage of life pass away every day. Peter reminds us through the use of a metaphor about how uncertain life is and how brief it can be.
I. The Grass that Withereth
All flesh is as grass. This metaphor is used in both OT and NT. The word translated grass here means all kinds of vegetation not just the Bermuda or crab grass that we have to mow on a weekly basis.
a. All inclusive – It is appointed to man once to die…
During the course of his sermon, a preacher wanted to emphasize the brevity of life. He took a long pause, then said, “Every member of this church is going to die.” But, to his surprise, a man in the back row responded to this statement with a big smile.
Repeat twice, louder…After the sermon he went back and found the man and asked, “Why in the world did you smile so big when I said ‘Every member of this church is going to die?’” The man erupted with a huge smile and said, “Because I’m not a member of this church.”
b. Sudden death happens
Most of us hear about the sudden passing of younger individuals but we don’t appreciate the fact that it could happen to us, a family member or a friend.
While we come to understand from an early age that death is just a part of life, it doesn’t make losing a loved one any less painful, especially when someone dies unexpectedly.
Death is hard, and it's even harder when it comes out of nowhere.
You may have no idea what to say when someone dies suddenly.
When we receive the news, we pray that it is just a bad dream we can wake up from. There are often no words to describe the amount of pain we’re in, and there are not enough hugs in the world to comfort us.
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c. No matter how long you live it is short compared to eternity.
OUR LIVES ARE LIKE A...
Listen to what the Bible compares our lives to, and as you do, notice that the central theme of each comparison is the idea of the BREVITY of our lives upon this earth:
* First, our lives are compared to A VAPOR (James 4:1) - Think about the vapor from a teapot. It is there one moment and poof!--it’s gone.
* Our lives are compared to GRASS AND FLOWERS THAT WITHER AFTER A SHORT TIME IN THE SUN (Psalm 103:15-16) – Here in Germany in the Spring we see stunningly beautiful wildflowers along the roads and in the fields. But very soon, the highway department or farmers come and mow them down. Their lifespan is only a very short time.
* Our lives are compared to A SHADOW (Job 14:1-2) – Stand stationary in your yard tomorrow in the morning, and you will have a long shadow. But by midday it will be gone.
* Our lives are compared to A STORY (Psalm 90:9 – I remember when my kids were little, before they went to bed, they would beg me for a story. So I would make up elaborate tales of knights and dragons and ladies in distress and courageous acts of daring do—all in a few fleeting moments, until their eyes drooped and they dropped off to sleep.
* Our lives are compared to A WIND THAT PASSES BY (Psalm 78:39)
* Our lives are compared to A WEAVER’S SHUTTLE (Job 7:6) – A weaver's shuttle can make a complete rotation in about one second.
* Our lives are compared to FOAM ON THE WATER (Hosea 10:7) - Go to the ocean and watch a wave come in. As the water recedes, it leaves little foam bubbles. But within seconds, they disappear before another wave rolls in.
Aside from the masterful poetic beauty of these passages, one thing stands out in each of them--our lives are SHORT!
Only One Life, Twill Soon Be Past
by C. T. Studd, 1860 - 1931
English Missionary to China, India, and Africa
Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life's busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last.
II. The Glory that Fadeth
If you know Sis Judy and I then you know how much we love flowers. Our yard both front and back are filled with flowers, all kinds of flowers. We love to see the blooms of our roses, irises, lilies, azaleas, hydrangeas and crepe myrtles. There is one thing that they all have in common; they bloom and then the petals all fall off and they die. This is true of the glory of man. His learning, wisdom, wealth, power, dignity, authority, dominion; as the flower of grass — which is yet more frail than the grass itself.
a. All our accomplishments
b. All our activities
c. All our acknowledgements
I’ve watched the Olympics this week like many of you and it is interesting to see the responses of the athletes as they stand on the podium, receive their medals and pause for the national anthem. It is something that they will remember I’m sure for the rest of their lives.
Your glory – it won’t last forever. The enjoyment that you have – it won’t last forever. The car that you have, The balance you have in your bank account, The home that you have, IT WON’T LAST FOREVER!
Don’t set your sights on the temporary – Men are like grass – their glory – that which is not found in Christ Jesus is like the flowers of the field.
My senior year of high school I remember taking a Senior Trip. We went to Texas. While we were in Austin we got to see the state capital. The Blue Bonnet is the state flower in Texas. I remember seeing this amazing field of blue bonnets in front of the state capital – like nothing I have ever seen since or before that point. Our glory that is not found in Christ Jesus on the surface looks like that blue bonnet field. We were there in the spring time – they were beautiful. I would guess if we’d gone back during the winter months the field would have been nothing but dirt. All the flowers withered away.
He does say there is one thing that is eternal – Church, you can grab this one thing and never let go. Peter continues his quote – “But the word of the Lord stands forever.” It will last regardless if it’s in our courtrooms or not, it will last regardless if it’s in our school or not, it will last regardless if it’s in our homes or not. God desires all three.
III. The Gospel the Endureth
Peter’s point is that life is temporal at best but the Word of God is eternal and you cannot separate God’s will from obedience to God’s Word.
a. What God says about our fallen nature.
What God says is sin, will always be sin. No amount of redefining, law-making, public opinion, or academic gymnastics will ever change the absolute judgments of God.
J.C. Ryle
b. What God says about faith.
Without faith it is impossible to please Him.
c. What God says about our future.
Max Lucado says, “The Bible has been banned, burned, scoffed, and ridiculed. Scholars have mocked it as foolish. Kings have branded it as illegal. A thousand times over, the grave has been dug and the dirge has begun, but somehow the Bible never stays in the grave. Not only has it survived, it has thrived. It’s the single most popular book in all of history. It has been the best-selling book in the world for years.”
GOD’S WILL IS GOD’S WORD
Jimmy is a professional fisherman. He makes his living fishing on the BASS (Bass Angler Sportsman Society) circuit. He is also a devout Christian and belongs to the FBC Keys, Oklahoma.
This year, BASS made a ruling that to be eligible for the fisherman of the year award ($100,000), you had to wear the patch and decal of a prominent sponsor--Busch Beer!
Jimmy Houston refused to do it, thereby forfeiting his chance at the $100,000. A fellow Christian fisherman on the circuit asked him, "Jimmy, have you prayed about that?" Jimmy replied, "I don’t have to pray about it. There is no decision for me to make. God has already made the decision in His Word when He said not to do anything that would damage our testimony as Christians."
He didn’t use these words, but Jimmy was saying to this fisherman, "This is not a part of God’s specific will, it’s a part of God’s general will. God’s Word clearly tells me what God’s will would be in this matter."
Once we understand that the majority of God’s will is revealed in the Word, and that the small part that is His specific will can only be discerned using principles taught in the Word, we can make a statement about knowing God’s will. The knowledge of God’s will and the knowledge of God’s Word are, for all practical purposes, one and the same! You cannot know God’s will without knowing His Word, and you cannot know God’s Word without discovering His will!
(Source: SBC Life, June 2003, pp 12. From a sermon by Tim Huie, "The Truth about Pleasing God" 1/16/2009)
