Vanitas is a genre in the visual arts
These are works designed deliberately to remind one about the fact of their own mortality. The meaning of the term vanitas is "vanity;" emptiness, or meaninglessness. It is an echo of the mournful cry of King Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes, "Vanity, all is vanity," he laments, and he would be right about his conclusion IF it were not for Jesus Christ and who he claims to be - which is LIFE itself. The good news of Jesus is that he has rescued us from futility, from meaninglessness, from emptiness and from the terminus of death by giving us access to eternal life.
I encourage you to really ponder the meaning of eternal life. It's probably a lot different than you imagine. It is infinitely "other than," and far grander than any mere concept of the immortality of the soul. Eteranl life is huge. In Christ we have a real living-life pulsing with thriving energy, infused with the Spirit that breathed eternity into existence. It overflows with powers that makes the energy of the stars seem trivial by comparison; and it never ever comes to an end - it is not subject to diminishment or decay - and it grows greater and sweeter and more like its Maker on into the endless ages.
Check out the song "Come Along," by Titiyo.
It's kind of a get up and get moving song. It's been around for years, but you can still find it on YouTube. It sums up this call to act, this call to live while you still have life.
Here are some selected lyrics to the song:
"Play with it while you have hands
Dust settles, cities turn to sand
Trespassing this is their land
Time flies, make a statement, take a stand
Come along now, come along with me
Come along now, come along and you'll see
What it's like to be free
Come along now, come along with me
And I'll ease your pain
Come along, come along with me
And let's seize this day
Stay out stay clear but stay close
Friends, foes, god only knows
Let's be the thorn on the rose
Time flies, make a statement, strike a pose
Oh, come along with me
Time flies, make a statement, take a stand
Time flies, take your chance
Come along now, come along and you'll see
What it's like to be free
Come along now, come along with me
And I'll ease your pain
Come along, come along with me
And let's seize this day
Oh, come along with me."
In the visual arts, images such as skulls, bones, sheets of music, books, flowers, hour glasses, clocks, over-ripe fruit, half-empty glasses of wine or water, broken objects, decayed buildings; anything that has a beginning and an end, anything with an expiration date, anything that can rot, decay or whither over time; all of these images are part of the long tradition of the vanitas. Artists continually remind us, "You are going to die," and we should thank them because it is probably one of the most important things about which we can be reminded.
I had a brilliant insight at my younger brother's funeral some years ago. In an instant of time I had a moment of complete clarity. I saw all of those around me, all we who had come to honor my brother, as corpses. I comprehended that with the simple addition of time, and nothing else, we all would be as he was at that moment; cold, still and lifeless. The phrase that came into my mind was this, "Show the greatest kindnesses to those around you while you can, for you all are ALREADY dead, the only thing that stands between you and your brother is a thin and fading sliver of time, and it is only the false impression of the solidity of the present moment that keeps you from seeing this clearly."
That may seem morbid, but it is not, it is the truest of all truths. Our demise is a foregone conclusion and the only things that matter are the things that cannot be quantified by a bank account, fame, or power; what really matters most is how we treat each other while we have the time. So, do good to those around you while you still have the power to do so. Love while you can. Help others while you can. Forgive others while you can. Be reconciled with those to whom you are estranged while you can; for death will swoop down on you one day with inexorable finality and there will never be another opportunity to mend what could have been healed . . . if you had only humbled yourself just a little - for a moment - if only you had been conscious of the shortness of your days, if only you had taken seriously the fact and finality of your mortality.
St. James advises us in this way, "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit' — yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil." JAMES 4:13-16 - English Standard Version
Whatever it is that you know in your heart must be repented of, acted upon, sought out, healed, or blessed, do it right now, today, do not wait another moment. Do it speedily, sincerely and with all your strength - for the days of your life are few and you will not be given another chance. Act immediately, act decisively, because time is slipping through your fingers even now.
The Psalmist, in Psalm 39 summed it up well when he prays:
4 "O LORD, make me know my end
and what is the measure of my days;let me know how fleeting I am!
5 Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
and my lifetime is as nothing before you.
Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath!
Selah
If you don't yet have the inner assurance of knowing all is right between you and God, then call on the name of Jesus today, and place your complete trust in him. He not only will give you hope and strength to live, and to live well, but he will be your source to a life that is not subject to the confines of your fleeting existence.
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