I have a question. What if you really only get one shot to make the right choice? The choice I’m talking about isn’t anything as trivial as who you marry, what job you get, or whether you step in front of that bus. The question is this: Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?
Now, whether or not you believe in Christ really isn’t what I’m talking about right now. For the sake of this post, I’m going to assume that believing in Christ is the “correct” answer simply because I don’t want to spend time writing an apologetic. For those of you out in reader-land who disagree, please bare with me.
In essence, the question is about eternity. Choose the right answer, spend forever in heaven. Choose the wrong answer, spend forever in hell. Any question dealing with eternity is a pretty big question. And, like I asked earlier, what if you really only get one shot at answering it?
One could argue that the question isn’t even valid. That in America people have heard that question as often as they’ve been asked, “Would you like fries with that?” I have two problems with that statement. One, it presupposes that just because America calls itself a Christian country, we really are. I don’t think the majority of the American public knows any more about Christ than they do about Abraham Lincoln (and that’s not much). Second, I’m not really talking about when man asks the question. I’m talking about when God does. Saying you turned down God when you changed the channel in the middle of a televangelist sales pitch is no more accurate than saying you turned down a marriage proposal from Miss America when told your buddy asked you if you would. You see, your buddy had no authority to offer Miss America’s hand, and the only one who really has the authority to offer Christ’s salvation is God.
Jesus said that no one can come to Him unless God called him (or her). I believe that He uses people to make that call. Maybe it will the televangelist telling you to repent. Or maybe it’ll be your grandmother bugging you to go to church. Regardless of how it comes, when the question comes with God Himself attached, something about it will ring differently. And then, right then and there, you’ll have to make a decision. Before you do, I want you to remember my question.
What if you only get asked, really asked, once?
Now, whether or not you believe in Christ really isn’t what I’m talking about right now. For the sake of this post, I’m going to assume that believing in Christ is the “correct” answer simply because I don’t want to spend time writing an apologetic. For those of you out in reader-land who disagree, please bare with me.
In essence, the question is about eternity. Choose the right answer, spend forever in heaven. Choose the wrong answer, spend forever in hell. Any question dealing with eternity is a pretty big question. And, like I asked earlier, what if you really only get one shot at answering it?
One could argue that the question isn’t even valid. That in America people have heard that question as often as they’ve been asked, “Would you like fries with that?” I have two problems with that statement. One, it presupposes that just because America calls itself a Christian country, we really are. I don’t think the majority of the American public knows any more about Christ than they do about Abraham Lincoln (and that’s not much). Second, I’m not really talking about when man asks the question. I’m talking about when God does. Saying you turned down God when you changed the channel in the middle of a televangelist sales pitch is no more accurate than saying you turned down a marriage proposal from Miss America when told your buddy asked you if you would. You see, your buddy had no authority to offer Miss America’s hand, and the only one who really has the authority to offer Christ’s salvation is God.
Jesus said that no one can come to Him unless God called him (or her). I believe that He uses people to make that call. Maybe it will the televangelist telling you to repent. Or maybe it’ll be your grandmother bugging you to go to church. Regardless of how it comes, when the question comes with God Himself attached, something about it will ring differently. And then, right then and there, you’ll have to make a decision. Before you do, I want you to remember my question.
What if you only get asked, really asked, once?
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