Day 325 - Ignoring Death Won't Stop It

How do you turn a conversation toward eternal things?  Just do it.  Just ask the question.  Here are some good questions to ask if you're concerned about a person's eternal fate:

• Do you have any spiritual beliefs?
• Do you have a church background?
• What do you think happens after a person dies?
• Do you believe there's a heaven and a hell?
• What do you think a person must do to go to heaven?
• If you died today, where do you think you would go?

These are just a few questions that can get a conversation going in an eternal direction.  Try it and see where the Lord leads the conversation.  Most people think they're going to heaven.  And they may be.  Only God knows.  But, if you're prepared with all of the essentials of the gospel, it will allow you to guide the conversation toward the ultimate question:

• Do you know what Jesus said to do in order to know that your eternal destiny will be heaven?

The answer:  Repent and believe (Mk. 1:15).   Jesus told Nicodemus that unless a person is born again he will not see the kingdom of heaven (Jn. 3:3).  Nic asked the obvious question:  how is a person born again?  Jesus explained the process by referring Nic back to a story he knew by heart--the serpent in the wilderness (Jn. 3:14-16).  According to the story of the serpent in the wilderness, the salvation process included the following steps:

1. The Israelites realized the sinned against God.  To be saved, we must acknowledge we are sinners.
2. The Israelites cried out to Moses to intercede on their behalf by asking God to forgive them.  We must confess our sins and be willing to repent, turn from them back to God.  That's what the Israelites were doing when they turned back to Moses to cry out for them.
3. God told Moses to tell the Israelites the good news that God made a way for their forgiveness and salvation--by believing in the solution and looking to that solution as their sole source of salvation--the bronze serpent that Moses was to make, put on his staff, and hold it up high for all to see.  In the same way, we must believe in the source of salvation that God has provided us, Jesus Christ, who became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him, and who was lifted up on the cross to bear our sin (2 Cor. 5:21).
4. All who obeyed the solution by looking to it for healing and salvation were saved.  Jesus said that those who do not obey the Gospel and look to him for salvation remain under wrath and condemnation (Jn. 3:36).

Jesus summed the salvation process up on Mark 1:15 by proclaiming:  Repent and Believe.  That is what we are to proclaim, too.

Mr. B stood outside the courthouse smoking.  I walked up to him and greeted him warmly.  I asked him his name and shook his hand, introducing myself.  Nothing hard about that.  His name was Mr. "B."  I'll keep his true name anonymous, because it turns out that he works for a client of mine.  I asked Mr. B what he thought happens to a person after they die.  He said he tried not to think about death.  Me too, I said.  But, I continued, we all make plans for important contingencies that could arise in our lives, and it's important to prepare for eternity, too.  He agreed.  I asked him if he had a church background.  Not really, he admitted.  I then asked if he knew where he would go if he died today.  Not really, he admitted.  I asked him if he what Jesus said to do.  No, he admitted.  I explained the gospel to him.  The conversation went well.  He didn't get angry, yell, or throw stones.  Eternal seeds were sown.  I urged him to think about his destiny and repent and believe before it's too late, since we never know when our last day will be.  I hope Mr. B took action.