Make Sure

All the airline passengers have just squeezed down that narrow aisle to their seats and everyone is getting settled in.  And the ground agent comes onboard and says, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is a destination check.  This is flight 305 to Atlanta."  The next part is what I love - it's so diplomatic, it's almost ridiculous.  "If Atlanta is not in your travel plans for today, this would be a good time for you to exit the aircraft."  Translation: "Hey, pal - make sure this flight is going where you want to end up!"
It doesn't matter how nice the plane is, how nice the people are, how sure they thought that this was the right one - if it isn't going where you want to go, you cannot afford to be on it.  That's obvious when it comes to our travel destination.  It should be obvious when it comes to our eternal destination.  But often we don't do a destination check. In a recent survey, 78% of Americans said they thought their destination when they die would be heaven.  Since this is the one thing you can't afford to be wrong about, there's an important question that those folks need to consider - all of us do.  On what can a person base their eternal expectations?  How nice the people are?  How nice the religion is?  How much they think this ought to be the way to get to God?  It's not true for an airplane flight - and it's not true for getting to God and to God's heaven.  Only God can tell us how to get to Him, what He says - and only what He says - is the final word. Here it is - in the words of Jesus Christ Himself.  Found in,

John 3:3" Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Those words have been over used, they've been misused, and they've been abused.  But they weren't invented by some cult or some right-wing religionist.  It was the Son of God Himself who told us that the way to give ourselves a destination check, to see if, in fact, we will go to heaven when our heart has beat for the last time is to answer this question, "Are you born again?" The Bible explains just two chapters earlier how you can be born again - speaking of Jesus - it says,

John 1:12
But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:"To all who received Him, to those who believed in Him, He gave them the right to become children of God."  You have to be born into His family to be His child, just as you were born into your earth-family.  And you were born again at the moment you "receive Jesus." That means welcoming Him into your life.  And then it says, "You believe in Him."  That refers to putting your total trust in Him as your only ticket to God's heaven. Why?  It is because it is your sin that will keep you out of heaven, because sin carries an eternal death penalty according to the Bible.  The Bible calls that hell.  And only Jesus could - only Jesus did - die to pay that death penalty so you don't have to.  That is how much He loves you.  Only He can remove your sin from God's record - and only people with their sins forgiven can enter God's sinless heaven.  Jesus left no room for any question. He said in

John 3:5
"You must be born again."You have no more important thing in your life to do than to make sure you have boarded the flight that is going to heaven.  To be sure that you have told Jesus you are putting all your faith in Him alone to forgive your sin; to take you to heaven when you die.  Only He died to make it possible. This could be your day to begin your personal relationship with Jesus Christ; to ensure your place in heaven some day, to know every sin in your life has been erased from God's Book forever. It's when you say, "Jesus, I am turning from the running of my own life. I'm grabbing You with both hands like a drowning person would grab a rescuer. I am Yours." See you in Church Sunday! Have a great weekend and we will meet again on Monday. God Bless you is my prayer.