Saturday after the First Sunday after Easter, 4/28/01

John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. --NIV

In the name of the One Whose name saves us from condemnation, amen.

Either you believe or you don't. Either you have faith or you don't. Nothing in Scripture is more clear than the fact that it is faith in Christ that saves us, and unbelief that damns us. We may think that we are good and God must love us because of that. Or we may think that we are far better than so many other people. But the cold hard facts are that no one goes to heaven unless they believe in Jesus Christ-no one, period.

Christianity is a very black and white religion. There is no gray area, no in between. If you have faith in Christ you are saved. If you don't believe in Jesus, you are damned. So, do you wonder what to say to people when the opportunity comes for you to witness? It's really much easier than it seems. There are just two paths.

Alright, so how do you get someone off of the path to hell and onto the path to heaven? Well, as Joe Friday used to say, "Just the facts, ma'am." You turn people around by telling them what their Savior has done for them, how He loved them so much that He lived the perfect life for them that God demands. You show them that all their guilt was crucified on the cross, and that because Jesus rose from the dead they have new and eternal life in Him. You can fill in the details as needed, but you leave the rest up to the Holy Spirit. Your job is to give the facts; it's the Holy Spirit's job to make believers out of them.

Prayer: Dear Holy Spirit, You work through Your word and Baptism to bring people to faith in Jesus. Make us bold witnesses of the facts of salvation, and use that witness to the glory of Your holy name, amen.

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