Of recent, I have observed the way cars, trucks, buses and lorries are driven down highways, - sometimes for very long distances. We run them for kilometres on end and it seems like we never want to come to a halt. But it is a must. In the course of the journey one-by-one we drive off the highway. Yes, we make our exit and get out of the scene leaving other vehicles to continue their journey.
Each driver that uses a vehicle on the highway must at one point or the other make his/her exit and veer off; literally quit the motorway. It does not matter whether it is a racing car or whether we are on the fast lane. The brand name makes no difference either. Little does it matter if the vehicle is sturdy, robust or rickety, new or old. Its roadworthiness is equally irrelevant. All of them will have to exit the highway and they have no choice in the matter; it becomes a must. The point of the matter is that vehicles do not have the ability to run non-stop or forever.
We can draw a parallel between the stretch of the highway on which we drive our vehicles and our lives on this planet. For however long we run, however long we live, how dearly we hold on to this life we will have to make our exit one day.
Some of us run life’s race without regard to the distance we would have to run; we do not take heed to the number of kilometres we would have to cover. Because we focus more on the road and not on the exit, we live lives as if they will never end some day. If on the contrary we tread carefully we will have our eyes fixed on the future, the distance we have to run and how we run it - bearing in mind that we have to prepare ourselves for the final exit.
As we enter the highway of our lives so also shall we make our exit some day. How do you run therefore on the highway? Do you run on full tank or half tank? Are you driving on the fast lane? What if you have a burst tyre on the way: are you carrying a spare one? Will you run out of fuel? Will you run into a traffic jam? Will you cause an accident? Will somebody run into you? Will you get to your destination without any problems? Will the police book you for speeding? Will you lose your way? Will you miss the right exit? These and other questions should bog our minds as we set off on the highway. These questions are important because when all is said and done what matters really is our exit. How we run determines at what point we will exit.
The time allotted to us on the highway is not unlimited. “The length of our days is seventy – or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow for they quickly pass and we fly away.” (Psalm 90:10) Death puts a sure end to our journey. If this is the case it is best we spend time watching the signs on the way so that we may make the proper exit. The psalmist makes an appeal to God: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)
Needless to say we shall all be heading for the same destination; unfortunately there is just one destination, not two. Heaven is our final destination. Whether we make it to heaven will be determined by how well we live this life.
We do not serve a God of confusion for Him to provide several exits to the same destination. This is the reason Jesus Christ, His Son, declared He is the pointer to the right way, the only way. “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) People have created so many different religions to confound and distract humankind. Yet, only Jesus has seen the Father. (John 6:46) He stated without a shadow of doubt: “I and the Father are one.” (John 10:30)
Jesus said it so that there will be no question of doubt or guessing. This life does not end here; it is like a dress rehearsal for the life we shall live in the hereafter. We ought first to assure ourselves that we are riding on the right road, lest we go astray.
After the fall humankind was doomed to die. Before sin came into the world, humankind lived forever. Not anymore. God said: “By the sweat of your brow you will eat food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken: for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) God pronounced the death sentence (the exit) on humankind and from thence we are obliged to take the exit.
God showed us mercy that we did not deserve through the death of His Son on the cross. Jesus came to pay the price of sin which we ourselves could not afford to pay. He came to redeem humankind from the curse. Jesus says because He lives we shall live also. All those who will confess Jesus as Lord of their lives though they will die, yet they shall live. “I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” (Revelation 1:18)
The important thing in life is where we end our race. What exit will you take? Do not let the signs on the highway of life confuse you. Stick to Jesus who is the way, the truth and the life. Our Lord Jesus promises to accommodate us there. “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God: trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms.” (John 14:1-2) He did not stop there. He loves us so much. He continues: “… if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” (John 14:2b - 4) Take the exit through Christ, the only way!