The Secret of Longevity, the Mysteries of Eternity

UV 1193/10,000 The Secret of Longevity, the Mysteries of Eternity
With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Psalm 91 v 16

When we walk in humility, faith and the fear of the Lord, the Word promises us length of days, long life, peace and eternal life as a gift we receive in the right hand and both riches and honour in the left hand. Traditionally, in virtually all cultures the left hand signifies something less significant. It implies that worldly success or riches and honour are a secondary blessing. This uni-verse contains the promise of longevity. The words “ will I satisfy him” implies that the time will come when we will say that we have seen and experienced enough of the blessings of the Lord on the earth and we are ready to depart. Both my parents eventually said in their early eighties that they were satisfied with the days the Lord had given them and were ready to depart.


While there are several cases of people we know who loved the Lord departing early according to the sovereign will of God, the general pattern is that a person who knows and serves the Lord runs the full course. Abraham went to the grave full of years after seeing the beginning of God’s promise being fulfilled in his heir Isaac. He did not see the promised land coming into the possession of the twelve tribes of Israel. He did not see the fulfilment of the promise that many nations will rise from him. But what He had seen and experienced of God’s faithfulness and goodness in the long years of his earthly sojourn was enough to convince him that God is able and faithful to do that which He had spoken and promised him. Similarly, Job went to the grave like a shock of corn in due season after experiencing the blessing of the Lord for his faithfulness, the test of his patience and faith, the period of tribulation and finally, his restoration to a state of blessedness. Each of us also go through different such seasons in our lives. In each season, we understand and experience a different aspect of the character and leading of God even as our own character is made to conform to a greater degree the image of God.

After our earthly sojourn, He shows us the full extent of our salvation. A crown of righteousness awaits the faithful, symbolising that due rewards await us at the end of a life of faith. Many of the mysteries of God that puzzled us on earth and many of the unanswered questions will be resolved forever. Now we see God as in a mirror - the Word. But then we will perceive Him face to face. Our knowledge and our transformation will be complete. Meanwhile, on this planet, we see the image or reflection of God even as God seeks to see His reflection in us.

Prateep V Philip