On the surface, there seem to be many reasons why people go through the work and investment of prepping. We prep against every situation we can imagine, and then do our best to prep for the situations we can’t. We consider major things like EMPs, terrorist attacks, government overreach, civil unrest, and natural disasters as well as smaller things, like the loss of a job, injury, sickness, or other financial hardships. Ultimately, what we’re trying to accomplish in all of these scenarios boils down to a single, albeit critical, thing; to survive. We understand that there have been no promises made that life will continue to be as easy as we’ve become accustomed to and we want to ensure that, should something change, we can provide for ourselves and our loved ones. It’s a worthwhile labor of wisdom and love, one that I believe everyone should undertake.
But there is one thing that even the most skilled prepper must come to terms with.
You could spend decades preparing yourself from everything from a common cold to World War 4 (we’re assuming you already survived World War 3), but eventually, you’re still going to die. This is inescapable. There will come a day, no matter what prepping you’ve done, where you will take your last breath, your heart will stop beating, and your soul will leave your body. Like the old saying says, the only two things you can be sure of are death and taxes.
As preppers, we put a lot of thought into what the future may hold and how we can support and protect ourselves and our loved ones through those times. Again, that’s a noble thing….But, if we’re being frank, you’re going to be dead for a whole lot longer than you’re going to be alive. If we are willing to put this amount of thought and planning into thriving in this flash that is life, doesn’t it stand to reason that we should be giving the rest of eternity considerably more thought?
Like the good preppers we are, let’s look to the future. Conveniently, there is only one way that this ends, thus only one thing that we need to prep for. There is going to come a day when you stand in judgement in front of a just, holy, and almighty God. You can claim you don’t believe it (scripture refutes that, but that’s a different conversation) yet that doesn’t make a difference. One day you’re going to find out that this is your inevitable end, and we can only hope and pray that it’s while you’re still on this side of the equation.
You are going to give an account of your life to God.
Luckily for us, this holy and just God has been very clear up front on how His judgments will be pronounced. It breaks down very simply for us as follows:
Perfectly sinless = Righteous
Not perfectly sinless = Condemned.
You sit, right now, in one of those two categories. As long as you have upheld God’s law perfectly for every second of your life, you’ve got nothing to worry about! But, just in case, let’s say maybe you haven’t perfectly upheld God’s law…(spoiler: you haven’t), does that leave you condemned? Outside looking in? Destined to spend eternity under the righteous judgment and punishment of the almighty God who spoke all things into existence?
No.
But how?
God is just, and being just there must be atonement for your sins. God is also merciful, and being merciful He sent His son and 2nd member of the trinity to live as a man, to uphold the law perfectly as you failed to do, and to then take your sins upon Himself. God’s justice is satisfied by pouring His wrath out upon His perfect and sinless son who willingly took your place. God requires perfection. You aren’t perfect, so God provides a perfection that is not your own to be counted as yours. This is an act of such love, such grace, that we will spend eternity pondering it and never truly understand…
Preppers are generally people of action. We identify a potential danger and immediately start to make moves to mitigate the impact it can have on us. So what moves need to be made for our ultimate prepping? How do we prep for eternity?
Through His scripture, God has been very clear that there is nothing that we can do to earn this salvation. It is a gift given out of love and mercy, nothing more and nothing less. In order to receive this free, unearnable gift, we must simply do two things.
First, we simply need to believe and trust that the sacrifice that Christ made covers our sins. It is by faith that we are saved. Nothing more than what has already been done for you is needed because the sacrifice was perfect – nothing more could be given. Once and for all, Christ paid the penalty for your sins. All you need to do is believe that.
Second, we must repent of our wickedness and turn away from evil. Perfection is never attainable, and thankfully it is not required. Our sins are covered by the blood of Christ, but as a sign of love and adoration to God, we are to ask forgiveness for and turn away from our sinful ways. God has promised that He will be faithful to forgive those who ask, again an act of mercy that we cannot understand.
We spend countless hours and dollars preparing for difficult times in this life that may or may not come. Yet we can be sure, unless your faith has been placed in the one true Savior, you’re guaranteed an eternity that’s worse than you could ever imagine. In order to prep for this future and avoid it all together, we don’t need to stock up on anything, there is no work to be done or money to be spent. All you need to do is believe and repent. That’s it.
Believe.
Repent.
So, let’s recap, just to make sure we’re clear….this is of eternal importance.
You’re going to die. You know that, I know that.
You’re going to stand before God and He will proclaim you either righteous or condemned.
You’re not able to uphold the righteousness on your own and require a savior.
You’re given a savior, Jesus, the God-man, who paid your penalty for you.
You’re only requirement to receive this gift is to simply believe and repent.
A stockpile of food, medical supplies, or ammo are all valuable, but if you haven’t put your faith in Christ, you’re prepping is meaningless and you’re still in grave, eternal danger.
Believe. Repent.
