Get In!

If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins.   1 Corinthians 15:17

The heart of Christianity lies not in a set of instructions, but in the ability of Jesus to take us to heaven. The Bible’s teaching will not save you; Jesus Christ himself will save you. Christianity stands or falls on Jesus’ ability to do what he has promised.

Suppose you’re in a large city and you don’t know how to get to a particular destination. Assuming you can’t access the Internet, here are two options:

• You could ask for directions. Someone might tell you to catch bus #29, get off at the second stop, go over the bridge, and it’s on your immediate right.
• Or you could take a taxi. You would ask the driver if he knew how to get to your destination, and if he did, you would get in.

Now suppose just after you get on bus #29, the man who gave you directions has a heart attack and dies. This unfortunate event will make no difference to your journey, because you already have the instructions. All that matters, as far as your journey is concerned, is that he gave you the information before he died.

But suppose you’re in the taxi, and just as you’re going past the second stop, the taxi driver has a heart attack and dies. If this happens, you’re stuck! You don’t know the way to your destination, and your driver is unable to take you there.

Other religious leaders present a program of spiritual disciplines and say, “This is the way,” but Jesus said, “I am the way.” Others present their teaching and say, “This is the truth,” but Jesus said, “I am the truth.” Others say, “Do this and live.” Jesus said, “I am the life” (John 14:6). Jesus’ claims all depend on his being raised from the dead. Apart from the resurrection, our faith is futile—he’s unable to deliver us to our destination.

Jesus tells us that he can bring us to the Father. Like the taxi driver, he invites us to “get in.” We face a decision that involves an act of trust, and since the issue at stake is your eternal destiny, it is not a decision you will want to make lightly.

For further reading, see 1 Corinthians 15