A Visit with the Joneses

Carol Jones Saint: Hello, hello there, come right in to enjoy a special time of family devotions at Home Sweet Home. I have a question for you: Do you have any plans for tomorrow? Well, it's almost a foolish question because, of course, all of us have many, many plans for tomorrow. Maybe you're going to the city, or you're going to the country, or you're going on a trip, or you're going to a meeting.

In this time of family devotions, we're going to share with you some scripture and music and thoughts that will help you as we all think about tomorrow and how we should live tomorrow so that each day counts for Jesus Christ. Well, come on in, make yourself comfortable, and we'll just have a good time sharing the things of the Lord together.

Bert: I never sing that song but what I think of the people who are on a train going on a long, long trip. They noticed a little boy, about five years of age, who kept scampering through the coaches. You would see him maybe go through one hour, and a couple of hours later he'd come through again.

Finally, after almost a full day of getting to know the little boy, one dear old lady said to him, "Now Sonny, where are you going on your trip?" The little fellow answered back and said, "Oh, I don't know, but I'm with my daddy and he knows."

Guest (Male): Isn't that beautiful? I'm with my daddy and he knows. There's such a sense of security as a child when you're with mom or dad. You just know you can rest back and place your hand into one of their hands and have no care or worries. For the child of God, what a joy to just be able to say, "Well, I'm with my Father and He knows." He planned it all.

Bert: In James chapter four, we read some very interesting words of scripture concerning your plans and mine. Let's turn to this passage for our family devotional reading right now.

Guest (Male): Here's some Bibles. Pass the Bibles around. It will help everyone to read along as you're reading, Bert.

Bert: I'm going to refer to this passage of scripture numerous times during our family devotions, so just keep your Bible open. I would suggest if you have a piece of paper or a pen handy, you'll want to jot down some of the thoughts because they will be so helpful to you in your Christian walk. As we pray, "Break Thou the Bread of Life, Dear Lord, to me."

James chapter four, beginning with verse thirteen. These words have to do with our plans and His purposes: "Go to now, ye that say, today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: 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. For that ye ought to say, if the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that." May the Lord add His blessing to this reading from His Holy Word as we realize He leadeth, what a blessed thought.

Now I want you to hear the same words, these words of James chapter four, beginning with verse thirteen, and I want you to hear them from the Amplified New Testament. Just a bit of the fuller interpretation as found in the Greek New Testament.

"Come now, you who say, today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a city and spend a year there and carry on business and make money. Yet you do not know the least thing about what may happen tomorrow. What is the nature of your life? You are really but a wisp of vapor, a puff of smoke, a mist that is visible for a little while and then disappears into thin air. For you ought to say, if the Lord is willing, we shall live, and we shall do this or that thing."

Guest (Male): What a beautiful way to put it. How much this passage of scripture has to say to you and to me as we live in modern society, a day when plans are extremely important and a day when human beings think that all that matters is the plans that we as human beings make.

Bert: Notice in this passage of scripture, we find first of all reference to the presumptuous planning of life. Man is always planning without consideration for God. We will go, we will continue a year, we will buy and sell, we will make money. So it's presumptuous planning, that is presumption in the sense that presumption means taking something for granted.

We presume so much as human beings. Now such planning is erroneous because it assumes the eternity of man in his present situation. It just assumes we're going to be here forever, and so we make our plans and we live by those plans because I'm going to be here forever.

It also assumes a very humanistic concept that man is all that matters, that man controls his own fate. You notice this reference in scripture to the presumptuous planning of man. It doesn't take God into consideration at all. God is not even in the picture of this human being.

Furthermore, this presumptuous planning of man involves a very materialistic concept of life. It's so common to modern man. Life consists of one thing, that is buying and selling and getting gain. That's what the scripture says.

Guest (Male): It sounds like it could have been written about 20th-century America.

Bert: Exactly, right. Such you see is the presumptuous planning of man, all presumptuous planning taking it all for granted. Instead, all true planning must be given over to God and consider God's place in man's plans. Day by day we shall live, moment by moment for Him.

Guest (Male): How true that if we as Christians will just remember that every day it's not year by year or month by month, but day by day, I'm going to trust Him for each moment. What a difference this makes in our living.

Bert: This passage of scripture also takes into account the unusual uncertainties of life. At its very best, life is very uncertain. It also takes into account the shocking shortness of life. Someone has reminded us that the most certain thing in life is that all men will die, and the most uncertain thing in life is when it will happen.

Guest (Male): Boy, that's really something to think about. You better give that again.

Bert: The most certain thing in life is that all persons will die, but the most uncertain thing in life is when it will happen. So this passage of scripture speaks of the unusual uncertainties of life. As having spoken of the plans of man, the scripture says, "Whereas you know not what will be on the morrow."

Now no man knows what tomorrow really holds. We can plan, but we cannot know. We can hope, but we cannot know. We can trust, but we cannot know. There are so many variables in life. For instance, you may not be here tomorrow. Now you said, tomorrow I will do this and that, but you may not be here tomorrow.

Or another variable, tomorrow may not come. And still another variable, if tomorrow does come, you cannot be sure what it will contain. Then the writer goes on to consider the shocking shortness of life. When lived at its best, you are a vapor that appears, just a mist, a puff of smoke.

As if standing on a high hilltop looking out across the valley, five miles away you see someone light a little bonfire and the flames of brush, smoke for just a moment or two, and then the fire is gone. He says that's what your life is, just a vapor that appears for a little while, just a mist, a puff of smoke, then it disappears into thin air.

Rather startling to remember and amazing to think of the startling shortness of life. Should we live our allotted three score years and ten, it would be but 26,000 days. Now that's not very long.

Guest (Male): And that's the allotted three score years and ten. Many people don't make it that long. No wonder the Apostle Paul wrote in Second Corinthians 4:17: "We are here but for a moment." We don't have very long to stay here, and it behooves us to use what time we have for the Lord Himself.

Bert: Everyone I've ever known, the best Christians I've ever known, have always felt that life was far too short to do all that they needed to do for Him. You have just a little while. How will you use that just a little while? Will you use it for Him? I hope so.

And oh, what a change this would make in the presumptuous planning which we are all guilty of making if we would realize that each day must be lived day by day for the Master as He plans best. But this passage of scripture also takes into account a realistic rule for life. Here's the realistic rule for life: "For that ye ought to say, if the Lord will, we shall do this or that."

Guest (Male): Oh, what a difference. What a difference.

Bert: "If the Lord will, we shall do this or that." This realistic rule for living recognizes the existence of God, the existence of a higher being. God must always be considered in the life of the child of God. Moreover, this realistic rule for life recognizes that all life and all of life are in God's hand.

No wonder David the Psalmist one day wrote those words that become the answer to the riddle of life in so many situations, Psalm 31:15: "My times are in Thy hand." When David the Psalmist wrote those words, he had come to peace with God and this realistic rule for living that said, "If the Lord will, we shall live to do this or that."

This rule constantly reminds us of our total dependence on God. This rule keeps man in his place. This rule shows the futility of our planning apart from God. Now notice, this does not do away with wise planning. We are to plan this or that, but our plans must be ever subject to His will.

Guest (Male): Oh, and what a difference that makes. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't have insurance and things like that that are wise planning for your living.

Bert: But it takes into account the fact that over all of our plans must be His will, our plans prefaced by His will. I think it's original as far as I know: Our plans prefaced by His will. Jot it down in that notebook.

This realistic rule for living involves a denial of self and its plans, and this realistic rule for living provides real peace in your heart and mind. The rule is not just a good luck charm. You know, some people pull out that saying, "Well, if the Lord will," like they would a good luck charm or a good luck slogan or some catchy cliché.

No, it's not just a catchy cliché. It's not just a pious platitude that will make Grandma think you're very religious, that'll make the preacher feel very good when he hears you say, "If the Lord will." Nor is this just the language of prayer.

But for the Christian, this phrase, "If the Lord will, we shall live and do this or that," for the child of God, this becomes a spirit of life which says, "If the Lord will." One does not need to constantly say the phrase, but by the attitude of your life and living in the spirit that is manifested through your life, it should be that all who know you best will know that this rule prefaced all of life.

Whether you say it or not, if the Lord will, I shall meet you for lunch tomorrow. If the Lord will, I will go to the symphony tomorrow night. If the Lord will, I'll see you at church board meeting. This rule requires complete submission to the will of God, and it requires complete surrender to the purpose and plan of God.

I wonder, have you submitted to the will of God for your life? Have you surrendered to God's purpose and plan for you? Have you? Our Father, we pray that each of our lives may be changed through the message of this hour. We pray that in a very new and a very special way, we will make this be our prayer: Lord Jesus, as Thou wilt for every moment of my life.

Carol Jones Saint: What a very special joy it has been to have you visiting at Home Sweet Home, and it is our prayer that the thoughts we have shared together, the scripture, the music, has all been helpful to you in just thinking and considering how you're going to live tomorrow.

We hope most of all that you'll be determined to live every day for Jesus Christ. Remember, you could be a blessing to us if you would take time to write. When you're writing, the address is: A Visit with the Joneses Inc., Post Office Box 575, Erie, Pennsylvania, Zip Code 16512. Checks to the ministry are tax-deductible. Thanks for being here, and as we go, sing right along, "Trust and Obey." Goodbye.