Did you hear the story about the guy who thought he was so smart he could always beat the system? So instead of getting a job and working for a living, he devoted his life to crime. He asked himself – why should I work hard all day, when I know how to take other people’s money and have a life of leisure?
He actually did very well, but alas, there is no such thing as a perfect crime. So he was caught and sentenced to 12 years in prison. Vowing to escape, he meticulously studied the prison as a system – every detail about how it worked, who came in and for what reason, and who went out.
He discovered a unique opportunity and created a very clever plan to escape. It was a large prison, full of all kinds of prisoners. So occasionally, a prisoner would die, or one would be executed. A hearse would then arrive, a casket with the body inside would be loaded into the hearse, and it would drive away. His plan was to slip into the casket late at night and be taken out of the prison walls when the hearse left the following morning.
So he contacted the prison employee who always put the body into the casket, and told him his plan. The prisoner would sneak into the coffin at night. Then when the coffin is taken out of the prison and buried, the employee would dig up the grave and open the casket. The prisoner would be free, and he would pay the prison employee a large sum of money. The employee agreed and they were just waiting for the next death in the prison.
Several days later, when the prisoner saw the hearse arrive, he enacted his plan. Late at night, when the room was dark, he slipped into the casket, along side the body already there. He left the lid slightly ajar so he could get some fresh air.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Early the next morning he could hear the sound of the casket being loaded into the hearse, the prison gates opening and shutting, and feel the bumps as the hearse drove away from the prison. Finally, he heard and felt the sounds of the casket being lowered into a grave, and being covered with dirt.
The prisoner waited, and waited, and waited for the prison employee to come and dig him up and set him free. After waiting several hours, in his desperation, he took out his cigarette lighter and flicked it on. To his absolute horror, he discovered that the body in the coffin with him was the prison employee who was supposed to dig him up.
He trusted the wrong person to free him from the grave! The moral of the story is this: we need to trust the right person to free us from the grave. Every one of us is a prisoner – a prisoner of time and space. When our time is up, we will be headed to the grave. But is that all there is? Is it all over? The Word of God describes what comes next – that our souls will leave our bodies and enter the spirit world.
If we have received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, He will receive us into heaven with open arms, stating: “Well done, thy good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of the Lord and your eternal reward.”
Only He, who overcame death with His resurrection, can set us free from the grave, from sin and death. If we rely on anyone else – Joseph Smith, Buddha, Mohammad, or others, just remember that they, like the prisoner in the story, are still in the grave.
Perhaps you believe that this is not a problem because everyone is going to heaven. For some, our Lord will say: “Welcome.” But for those who don’t know Christ as their Lord and Savior, He will say: “Depart from Me; I never knew you,” and you will be headed to the Lake of Fire for eternity. God will grant you your most cherished desire – to live apart from God – forever. And you will be with others with the same desire – alone, together.
So who are you trusting to deliver you from the grave? You better decide soon, because time is short, we are not guaranteed tomorrow, and eternity is a very, very long time.
Mark Peterson, Ph.D, is a retired educator who’s worked with people in Southeast Arkansas. His blog, LifeintheSpirit.net, provides a Biblical perspective on current events.
Editor’s note: Pastors, ministers or other writers interested in writing for this section may submit articles for consideration to shope@adgnewsroom.com. Please include your phone number and the name and location of your church or ministry. Writers should have a connection to Southeast Arkansas.