In Times Like These... 

 

Kim Simmonds, Jeff Beck, and now David Crosby. Markers of a passing generation. All musical giants who had profound influence on my musical development and my youth. 

 

I first heard Kim Simmonds in 1970. I was working with a concert production company and Savoy Brown was one of the bands that came through. I had the pleasure of watching from side stage. A considerable influence in developing my love for the blues. 

The first time I saw David Crosby was in a muddy field in upstate New York in the summer of 1969. CSN and Neil Young were already on my radar, but this combination was new and only their second live concert in this formation. I saw them many more times through the years. I would say they had more influence on my acoustic folk rock side than anyone else. 

I never saw Jeff Beck live. When the album Truth came out in 1968, I was immediately both blown away and hooked. I had never heard such guitar playing. I tried to imitate it, but soon gave up. Neither YouTube nor tablature existed to help me figure it out. It was one of those unreachable places, but I always remained a fan. 

In times like these, we get emotional and often reflective. We are sad to see their passing. We know there is more to come, and it is unavoidable. We see the end of their time, and ours. 

In times like these we seek comfort and reassurance. The loss is profound, and we want to feel like they are still among us and are not really gone. We tell each other “They live on in our hearts”, or “Their music lives on” and other comforts. 

But in fact, they are gone, and we do not know where they are or even if they are. We comfort ourselves with the hope they are alive somewhere in some version of heaven, playing blissfully forever with all those others who passed before them. Hoping in our time we will join them. A version of heaven that, if we are honest, we create in our minds because we have not considered what the truth of the afterlife may be. We do not consider it because it also means we must consider how we are living this life and what it means for whatever comes next. The truth is they are inseparable. 

 

The good news is heaven does exist. Life does not end here, even if some among us think so. But heaven does not exist in a vacuum. It didn’t create itself, so how did it get there? And how do we get there? Is anyone excluded or do we all end up there? Are Kim, Jeff, and David there? Along with all those who have gone before them? I did not know them personally, so I will not speculate. I am not heaven’s gatekeeper. I don’t make the rules and have no say in the matter. 

 

There is One who does have the say, the Creator of heaven itself. It is impossible for heaven to exist without a Creator. Just like it is not possible for the buildings you enter or the streets you walk on to exist unless someone creates them. It is God who has created Heaven and set the conditions by which you, me, or anyone enters. 

 

Many of us hold a belief there is some set of scales where the good we have done is measured against the bad and we hope we will come out on the good side. You are not wrong, but these scales do not operate the way you hope. It only takes one bad thing to outweigh all the good you have done. It’s like that new shirt you had to throw away because of that single, small, ugly but obvious stain you cannot get out. The rest of the shirt looks great, but nevertheless, that one stain can’t be unseen. It’s ruined and destined for the trash heap. Likewise, we are tainted by our wrong and it stains us. By this standard we fail every time because God cannot allow the taint to enter His presence. Hoping in the scales is not where you want to put your trust. 

God is also big on is justice and justice requires a reckoning for wrongs. We identify with this because when we see injustice done, we want it righted and those responsible held to account for it.

 

The good news is God made another way. A way that works. It’s easy and anyone can do it. A way that erases the stain of our past. A way for God to see past it. And that is what we really want, right? We need God to see past our flaws. We need forgiveness for them. We need mercy. We need Him to tear down the wall between us and Him because we are powerless to do it.

 

So how do we tap into God’s mercy and forgiveness? Is it some automatic thing and everyone gets it in the end?  

God’s mercy comes with a huge price tag, one that had to be paid. One that also satisfied the justice requirement. Knowing we could not pay the price, God paid it himself. Jesus gave up his rightful place in heaven, came to earth, and sacrificed Himself to pay the price and offer Himself to pay the price for our sin, removing our stain. 

God simply requires us to believe in what He has done and what He has made available. It is this simple. Place your trust in Him and what He has done for you. Turn away from going your own way. Turn away from trying to tip the scales and follow His way. He wants nothing more than to love you and you love Him. When you really consider what He has done for you, it’s not a hard choice. What you gain has far more worth than what you give up. You will not be disappointed, and you will not face the scales on that day. 

In times like these, we are naturally reflective. Are we doing it in a way that brings life?