What If No One Warned You?

What If No One Warned You?

Imagine that you’re driving along a highway and pass a man walking toward you on the side of the road. He waves and smiles; you wave back. But as you round the bend just beyond him you suddenly realize that the bridge across a deep canyon is out!

How would you feel about someone who knew the bridge was out but didn’t tell you? Wouldn’t you expect that a person with such crucial information would do whatever was necessary to warn you of danger ahead?

A greater danger

Most people are heading down the highway of life hoping to be good enough and to do enough good things to someday arrive in heaven. Many were baptized as infants. They attend religious services. They’re trying to follow their pastors, priests, spiritual advisors, or consciences. They provide for their families and even contribute to charities. They depend on these things to be their bridge to heaven and eternal safety. They believe that religious traditions, the decrees of spiritual leaders, or the interpretations of popes or denominations are enough to serve as their bridge.

But listen to what Jesus said to religious leaders in His day: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! Thus you nullify [invalidate] the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down” (Mark 7:8,13).
A Bible author—John—who knew Jesus well when He was here on earth, wrote this about the only way to God: “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:11-13). Not “hope” or “think,” but know that Jesus is the only way to eternal life. That simple first-century message is still true in the 21st century!

The ultimate risk

Jesus warned that “wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” (Matthew 7:13). Those people are choosing the road with the bridge that’s out—it will never get them to heaven! You’re taking the ultimate risk if you have doubts about the religious bridge you’re planning to take to cross over into God’s heaven—the consequences of your choice are eternal.

Jesus urged his hearers to “enter through the narrow gate” (Matthew 7:13). The person who truly believes that Jesus alone is “the way” (John 14:6) has this assurance in Jesus’ own words: “Whoever hears My word and believes Him [God the Father] who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24). The true believer has Jesus’ word on it—the bridge is there, and it crosses over to heaven!

Jesus, God’s sinless Son, chose to come to earth to pay the “eternal death penalty” for the sins of humanity. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:23-24). Jesus became the bridge to God by exchanging his righteous life for the lives of all sinners who ever lived—to die “for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Then Christ’s resurrection proved that His payment for our sins had been accepted by God the Father.

No place for doubt

Those who accept God’s offer of eternal life, by wholeheartedly trusting in what Christ has already done for them, are the ones who will stand accepted by God. The instant they place their confidence in Christ alone for the forgiveness of their sins, they are right with God now and forever.

Traditions may teach it, but nowhere in the Bible does it say that we can be right with God through good works, baptism, church membership or good intentions. It comes only by trusting in Jesus as our perfect “substitute,” believing that His death accomplished the complete payment for our sins—once and for all. Eternal life is God’s gift, “not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Though the spiritual “narrow road” is not the one most people are taking to eternity, it’s the only one the Bible says goes to heaven. If you were that person on the highway with the bridge that’s out, I think you’d warn me, so I hope you’ll understand my concern for your eternal safety. I want you to know that you’re taking the road that will ensure that you arrive in heaven, not hell when this life is over.

If you choose Christ’s way, you can express your decision to God in a prayer like this: Dear God, I admit that I have been trying to get to heaven my own way. Now I’m convinced that Jesus is the only way to heaven. I believe that he died in my place and took the judgment that I deserved for my sins. I accept your offer of forgiveness. I want the eternal life Jesus promises to those who believe in Him. Thank you for helping me find the sure way to heaven!

Text: Doug Salser • Copyright © Literature Ministries International, 2008Bible quotes: New International Version. Used by permission.

A New Type Of Preacher

But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. --Acts 20:24

If Christianity is to receive a rejuvenation, it must be by other means than any now being used. If the Church in the second half of this century is to recover from the injuries she suffered in the first half, there must appear a new type of preacher. The proper, ruler-of-the-synagogue type will never do. Neither will the priestly type of man who carries out his duties, takes his pay and asks no questions, nor the smooth-talking pastoral type who knows how to make the Christian religion acceptable to everyone. All these have been tried and found wanting.

Another kind of religious leader must arise among us. He must be of the old prophet type, a man who has seen visions of God and has heard a voice from the Throne. When he comes (and I pray God there will be not one but many), he will stand in flat contradiction to everything our smirking, smooth civilization holds dear. He will contradict, denounce and protest in the name of God and will earn the hatred and opposition of a large segment of Christendom. Such a man is likely to be lean, rugged, blunt- spoken and a little bit angry with the world. He will love Christ and the souls of men to the point of willingness to die for the glory of the One and the salvation of the other. But he will fear nothing that breathes with mortal breath. A.W.Tozer - The Size of the Soul, 128-129.

Another Welcome Home

The outside of the card reads "Hope your feeling Better" Then on the inside "feeling Better"

I hope your feeling better. God was right beside you always. I thank god (God) that your alive. I give you this from the bottom of my heart. I hope you feel better"

The back side of the card has a heart with "feel better" written inside and From: Nicole Lopez To: Ms. Watita (Janis translates to Juanita in Spanish, but she misspelled "Juanita".)

Mr. Quanita, (she meant Mrs. Juanita)

You are the great person I ever meet. Thanks for you being like that with me and others you are a good person with us we think you have done a lot of things for us so we oh you a lot. Mrs Quanita we are asking with many thanks...by being a good person with us. The days you were not here we all missed you so much, we thought something terrible happen to you but know that you are here we give thanks to god (God) by letting you be with us again. We are all glad to see you here, sorry I didn't give you this letter because I was waiting for this day to come. With love your friend,

Kein Shajiry and Axel

I Should Be Dead

Greetings in the name of Jesus,

The blockage in my carotid artery was OVER 99%! I should not have survived. I should have been dead from the onset of symptoms in Oct. Instead I flew to Mass. the flight should have caused a stroke due to changes in air pressure, but the Lord kept me. The surgeon told me at my check-up that he almost could not keep the artery open and that is why the surgery took longer than it should have, but he kept it open by the grace of God. At my re-check the tech that did the ultra-sound on my neck said that they usually don't see people with a blockage greater than 80% (because greater than 80% people die), but they saw me at over 99%! The following day when I went to see my primary to be released he said "I'm surprised you survived." He is the director of doctors at Harvard Medical Center and he was surprised!

We left Belize and had no insurance, but the Lord provided. We did not have to pay one penny for anything except my prescriptions, which cost $1.00 each. I had, literally, the world's best vascular surgeon do this surgery. That is provision. Provision that only the Lord Himself could have provided.

Satan would have had me dead and Andrew hopeless if he could, but our God is the very God who created the universes and breathed life into us. He is our Sustainer and Provider and King. He IS.

I have a blockage in my right chest. It will be taken care of at a later date.

I return in Sept. for the carotid follow-up. Though my liver was inflamed it has completely cleared up. I do have a calcium deposit (pre-cancer) in my right breast. There have already been two mammogram and I will have a follow-up mammogram in Sept. I was severely anemic, but that is almost a thing of the past.

Today we are back in Belize and have begun to pick-up where we left off. Lord willing we will see people come to the Lord and bring glory to His precious name.