As Christians we often like to sing songs about Heaven and about the glorious return of Jesus, the Son of God. We like to sing songs that talk about when our labors and toils are ended and about going to be with our God. These songs are good and are of great encouragement. These are songs that I remember my mother singing! as she worked around the house, songs that as a child I heard and helped sing as I grew up. These are songs that teach us great and wonderful lessons, but many of them also teach about the flip side.
The flip side of these songs are sad and bring a fearful warning to
those who are outside of Christ. The song "There's a Great Day Coming"
is an excellent example of a song that teaches both sides. It starts off
talking about the "Great Day" when Christ shall return, but it also, in
that first verse, teaches an important lesson: "When the saints and the
sinners shall be parted right and left." Often we do not like to think
about this
fact, that there will be a great parting of people, those who have
been obedient to God on one side and those who have been disobedient on
the other (Matthew 25:31-46). Yet this is one of the plain lessons taught
in God's word and also in this" song. In verse two the line reads, "There's
a bright daycoming" and indeed that day will be a bright day because of
the brightness of our God being present.
On the flip side it says, "But its brightness shall only come to them
that love the Lord." To those who are not prepared for the Lord's return
that brightness will be a terrible thing that will shine on their sins
(John 3:19-20). In the final verse is the total flip side of the "Great
Day" it will be also a "Sad Day." When the sinner shall hear his doom,
Depart, I know ye not." This is the side that we often do not like to think
about for that glorious resurrection morning of the faithfid Christian
will be a day of terror for the non-faithful Christian and non-
Christian alike.
Another song that we do not often sing but is one that we might consider
is the song "You Never Mentioned Him to Me." This song teaches to Christians
a very pungent truth of the need for every Christian to obey Christ's command
of Matthew 28:18-20, to take the gospel to all people. This song speaks
of standing before God on the judgment day and hearing someone crying to
us that we failed to do the Lord's bidding and now that soul will spend
an eternity in Hell. This flip side is of course that we need to spread
the words of life to all who willlisten so we will not hear that accusation
that "You never mentioned Him to me." Nothing should chill the blood any
quicker than to know some loved one is doing wrong and we are doing nothing
to try to correct them, to try to get them to obey God's word which alone
can save them. How shocking it will be to stand there and hear someone
cry out your name or mine and hear them sobbingly ask why we hated them
so. "You never mentioned Him to me, You helped me not the light to see;
You met me day by day and knew I was astray, Yet never",
mentioned Him to me."
The easiness of the flip side is found in verse three when it says, "A few sweet words may guide a lost one to His side, Or turn sad eyes on Calvary; So work as days go by, that yonder none may cry, You never mentioned Him to me." The flip side can be startling when we take time to think about it. Leading one away from the devil to salvation in Christ Jesus may be as easy as asking someone to come to church with you.
Sometimes it is important to think about the flip side, the opposite
side. When we sing, talk and think about heaven, we need to think also
about hell and talk to others about their souls. Remember, God did not
say this is an optional thing as Christians. We are commanded to speak,
teach and preach about God, Christ, sin and salvation. The flip side is
if we do not, we will hear, "Depart, I know ye not!"",