Could My Late Father Have Made Things Right With God While in a Coma?

Q: My father was in a coma several weeks before he died and there was no communication with him. He always said that he would get right with God before he died but I have no assurance that he ever took that step. Is there any hope that he could have settled things with God before he took his last breath? – I.B.

A: While it is dangerous for one to deliberately wait until near the end of life to settle things with Jesus Christ, there is always hope that a person comes to that point. None of us knows when we may die; for thousands, sudden death occurs each day. But more important even than the foolishness of delaying salvation is the fact we are losing the joy of being a Christian.

One’s salvation, however, is not determined by the time of life at which we repent and accept Christ as our Savior. There have been those who have repented on their deathbeds and have been saved. In the Bible we read the account where one of the thieves crucified at the same time as Jesus turned to Him in repentance. Jesus told the thief that very day he would be with Him in paradise (Luke 23:43).

The longer one waits to accept Chris, though, the more difficult it becomes, for the heart of man grows harder with the passing of time. The Bible says, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). Without Christ at the center of our lives, daily routines become tiresome and tedious; a drudgery rather than a joy. But we must always have hope that those who have run from God throughout life come to that “now” moment, even in the last breath of life.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

(c)2020 BILLY GRAHAM DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.