Now and Later
Two buildings stand side by side, separated by a wide moat filled with large allegators. On top of the first is a treasure nobody has ever seen, riches beyond comprehension. On top of the second building are lots of people, music, laughter and, though not immediately apparent from below, loneliness.
You approach with a ladder that will reach the top of the second building, but not the top of the first. You see a label on the second: “NOW”. The taller building is labeled “LATER”.
There is a man standing
at the base of the first building, dressed in stained work clothes, and holding a sign that says, “Leave your baggage here and I will help you reach the top.” You look at him and think, “he doesn’t have a ladder, this must be a scam. Besides, it looks like everybody else is ‘over there’”.
There’s also a man dressed in fine clothes, with a sign, at the bottom of the second building that reads, “Free ticket to the top.” It seems like a no-brainer, so you plant your ladder and begin the ascent.
As you step from rung to rung,
you begin to hear what sounds like sobbing, though nothing loud enough to mask the gaiety you believe to be up there. You keep going, step, step, step. You pass a sign that says “one way only” and wonder what that could possibly mean. You find the climb is longer than you thought and pause to rest.
Glancing at the other building, you notice a stairway you hadn’t seen before and an older man being helped up by the ‘worker’. But you still can’t see the top. Although you begin to faintly hear what sounds like an orchestra and choir. Hmm. As you near the top, the sobbing grows in intensity and you hear people yelling at each other. You begin to think, “what’s going on?” but you keep going step, step, step.
You look again at the other building and notice that the higher the two men go, the less the worker has to help the older man. He seems to have more energy, a quicker step. But you conclude your eyes are playing tricks on you because you’re becoming tired and keep going.
Upon reaching the top,
you discover an easy transition from your ladder to the roof in the form of a platform hanging with an opening in the parapet. You step off your ladder and immediately someone pushes your ladder away from the building and it falls to the ground below. You asked the person who pushed the ladder why he did that. He reminded you of the one way sign you noticed on the way up.
You quickly understand that all the sounds you heard were from a series of concert-type speakers. There is nobody there. You are roughly grabbed by two large grotesque beings and immediately wrapped in chains with locks even Superman couldn’t open. As you pass an opening to your cell, you notice a sign overhead, “Abandon hope all ye who enter here.”*
Just before you are thrown into your cell, you hear the most beautiful music and singing you’ve ever heard coming from the roof of the other building. And you know you made the wrong choice.
Friends, this is a graphic picture
of the choice we face before we die. The God who created heaven and earth has lovingly given us untold chances to “choose the right building.” The Bible says in Romans, “that which is known about God is evident within them [unrighteous men]; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
To be clear, Jesus is the building labeled ‘Later’. He said, “…the one who comes to Me I certainly will not cast out.” The only way to reach the top is through Jesus. He also said, “I am the way and the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but through Me.” Have you come to Jesus yet? If so, you’re assured a place at the top of the right building. If not, it’s not too late. In the section titled “Steps to Salvation”, you’ll find out how to make sure you’re “on the right ladder”. Be sure to read that before the day is over. Tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone.
*From Dante’s Inferno