What if it’s true that there is an all-powerful Creator God who actually cares about peon humans like you and me? The Bible
(in Deuteronomy 23:5) says that "the LORD your God loves you." Isaiah 40:11 says "He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart." Isaiah 43:1-4 tells us that the One who created you
says, "you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you ... you are precious and honored in my sight, and
... I love you." Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and
not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." The Bible is clear in its message that God does care for you.
What if it’s true that hell is a real place of burning fire that lasts forever? In Matthew 10:28, Jesus says, Do not be afraid of
those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. In
Luke 16:23, Jesus tells a true story about a man who was in hell, where he was in torment. So, Jesus obviously taught hell is
real.
What if it’s true that there is only one God and only one way to God? 1 Timothy 2:5 says there is one God and one mediator
between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. Isaiah 45:14 assures us, there is no other god. In John 14:6, Jesus says, I am
the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. The apostle Peter taught in Acts 4:12,
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. The
Bible is clear that Jesus Christ is the only way to God.
What if it’s true that Jesus Christ really did work miracles, walk on water, die for our sins and rise from the dead? In 1
Corinthians 15:3-6, the apostle Paul boils down the essence of the Christian faith by saying, what I received I passed on to
you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on
the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more
than five hundred of the brothers at the same time. In Acts 1:3, Doctor Luke, after doing first-hand investigative reporting,
concludes that after Christ died, he showed himself to ... men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. The Bible
affirms that the stories about Jesus are historically accurate and true.
What if it’s true that the timeless truths of the Bible, even though they’ve been around for thousands of years, will still work in
your family life today? 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting
and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. In John 17:17,
Jesus affirmed that God’s "word is truth." Jesus said in Matthew 24:35, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will
never pass away. The Bible is clear that its truths still do work today.
This morning I want to talk specifically to those of you who are still having doubts about whether it’s true. I invite you to
think about this logically and critically. Fire up your brain on all cylinders. There are only four logical possibilities.
Option One is that it’s not true and you live as though it’s not true.
Option Two is that it’s true but you live as though it’s not true.
Option Three is that it’s not true but you live as though it is true.
Option Four is that it’s true and you live as though it’s true.
Lets’s think through each option very carefully.
Option One: it’s not true and you live as though it’s not true. Let’s suppose Christianity is a hoax and that Jesus Christ never
rose from the dead. Let’s assume it’s just one of many man-made religions that was developed as a way to control people’s
lives. So, you live you life as a self-indulging materialist and pleasure seeker. Life is short, and death is final, so your goal in
life is to accumulate all the money and possessions you can, have all the fun you can, and climb as high as you can get on the
power ladder of life, and then you die and turn into nothing but ashes and water vapor. When the game’s over, your life is
deleted, erased, and within 100 years, no one will ever remember you were alive. There are a lot of people today who are
choosing to live as though it’s not true. They have no time for anything religious or spiritual. They believe that evolution
adequately explains how we got here, and that their lives are nothing but a random-chance consequence of the laws of
chemistry and physics. That’s it. The only fail to realize the high cost of being wrong. So...
Option Two: it’s true and you live as though it’s not true. If it happens to be true that God exists, that God cares about you
personally, that hell is real, that Jesus Christ did rise from the dead and is the only way to heaven, and that God’s Word really
works in your life today, but you live as though it’s not true, just think of what you’re missing. You’ll go through life alone,
without the ability to enjoy any kind of personal relationship with the God who loves you and cares for you. That’s sad.
You’ll go through life without any benefit of God’s eternal wisdom because you refuse to do what the Bible, the owner’s
manual, says you need to do to have a fulfilling and meaningful life. Then, because you reject or ignore Jesus Christ, never
receiving Him as your Savior, you’ll end up spending all of eternity in hell. You’ll burn forever, not because God is mean and
cruel, but because you chose to not accept a relationship with God when He offered it to you. When every day of your life
you choose not to be with God, hell will be the only place left to go, because that’s the only place God is not present. But it’s
so sad, because it is so unnecessary. No one has to go to hell. Jesus Christ has provided a way for every person to escape
that fate, and that way is by receiving Him. The reason why we as a church go to such lengths in spending our time and
money trying give people this message is that we love people too much to just sit back and watch them slide off to hell.
Perhaps someone is thinking, "OK, that makes sense, but what if it’s not true and I become a Christian anyway. What if I’m
fooled into believing a lie, and live as though the Bible is true, even if it’s not. Then what?" That’s a fair question. Let’s look at
it.
Here is Option Three: it’s not true and you live as though it’s true. In this scenario, you tell a Savior who isn’t real that you
believe in Him. You start going to church to sing and pray and hear teachings from a 2,000 year old Book. You start
patterning your life after Jesus Christ and you become more of a loving, kind, gracious, generous, joyful, peaceful, confident
individual than you were before. You develop friendships with other people who are likewise seeking to become more like
Christ. What else happens? You live without guilt, because you believe that God has totally forgiven you for all the bad stuff
you’ve ever done. You teach your children moral values from the Bible, and those moral values keep them from lying and
stealing and having casual sex and using drugs and shooting each other with guns. When it comes time for you to die, you
have peace, because you have this belief that a loving God is awaiting your arrival in heaven, and that you’ll be able to see
your Christian relatives again. OK, now tell me the downside! Well, to be honest, there isn’t much of one. You’ll read the
Bible and pray. You’ll likely give away some of your money instead of spending it all on yourself. You’ll get baptized, and
spend lots of Sunday mornings in church instead of in front of the TV or up in the hills. You might even hear someone from
outside the church call you a hypocrite because you are unable to perfectly practice what you believe. But, be truthful, now.
That "downside" is nothing compared to the downside of going to hell if, that is, it’s true.
Now before you draw any conclusions, let’s examine Option Four: it’s true and you live as though it’s true. If Christ really is
God’s Son, and if He really did die for our sins and rise from the dead, and if the central teachings of Christianity are true,
and if you live as though it is true, then what? Then, in this life, you will develop an ever closer personal relationship with
your Creator. You will experience His presence. You will live according to His eternal wisdom. You will feel His strength at
work to help you through the tough spots of life. You will feel His forgiveness for all your sins, allowing you to walk
through life without that heavy burden of guilt and shame. You will publicly identify yourself as a follower of the greatest
man who ever lived. When you go to church, you will develop close friendships with brothers and sisters in the family of
God, people who will support you in hard times and rejoice with you in good times. Reading the Bible will be like reading a
love letter, written from God to you. Praying will be like crawling up into the lap of your heavenly Dad. Serving God will be
exciting, for you will be teaming up with others to express your love for God and people in a tangible way. But the very best
part about heaven will not be the streets of gold, or the happy reunions with Noah and Moses and Paul and Aunt Bess. The
best part about heaven is that we’ll get to meet Jesus face to face, and walk with Him and feel His love for us forever.
Let’s summarize what we’ve learned here. I’ve summed up the four options in this simple chart, and in each box, I’ve placed
with I think are appropriate Win-Lose numbers for that option, on a scale of -10 to +10. You can put whatever numbers you
want in there, and I still think you’ll agree that you were going to make a choice merely on the odds of a cost-benefit ratio, the
wisest choice is to believe that it’s true.
Option One: it’s not true, and I live as though it’s not true. Nothingness awaits - 3
Option Two: it’s true, but I live as though it’s not true. Hell awaits - 10
Option Three: it’s not true, but I live as though it’s true. Nothingness awaits + 3
Option Four: it’s true, and I live as though it’s true. Heaven awaits + 10
Do you see how much it matters if it’s true or not? Many people live their entire lives without ever knowing "Why am I
alive?" They exist without an idea of why they are here. Yet, the most basic question anyone can ask is, "What’s the meaning
of my life?" God created us with a desire to be happy, but most people try to search for happiness along false paths. Some
look for happiness by acquiring possessions; they get all they can, can all they get, then sit on the can. Some look for
happiness by experiencing pleasure; they seek thrills that keep their adrenaline level high, indulging in lots of sex and
drinking and drugs in order to keep their body feeling good. Some look for happiness by gaining prestige and power; their
dream is to get their picture on the cover of a popular magazine or to have their face flash on TV. But the fact is, none of
those paths lead to lasting happiness. Real happiness comes from understanding my purpose in life and then living in
harmony with that purpose.
The Bible says that God loves you. God says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with
lovingkindness." (Jeremiah 31:3) The Bible also says that you were created to enjoy a personal relationship with God. Jesus
said, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10) Whenever we let God love us and let Him
give us full and abundant lives, it produces huge benefits in our lives. It lets us experience a clear conscience and genuine
inner peace. We enjoy confidence about the future, and feel secure in God’s unfailing love. We find the power to gain
freedom over things that used to enslave us. This is the kind of lifestyle God intends for us to live. So, why then aren’t most
people really happy? What’s the problem? The problem is that man has a natural desire to boss and to ignore God’s
principles for living. This is true from the time we are little babies. Our attitude is "I want what I want when I want it, and I’m
going to do what I want to do." Our culture describes this desire to be boss in various terms. We say, "Look out for #1. Do
your own thing. If it feels good, do it. It’s my life and I’ll do with it what I please!" The Bible calls this attitude sin. We all
have sinned against God by our attempts to live independently of God. We all have faults, failures and fumbles. There is no
exception. Has the Pope sinned? Yes. Has Billy Graham sinned? Yes. Have I sinned? All the time. The problem with sin is
that it breaks our close relationship with God. The Bible (Isaiah 59:2) says that our sins separate us from God. It leads us to
live outside of God’s best plan for our lives.
When our relationship to God is not right, it causes problems in every area of our lives - in our marriage, our career, our
parenting, our relationships, and our finances. Then, when people have problems, they turn to many different ways of coping
before turning to God. They’ll try alcohol or drugs. They’ll try the thrill of an affair. They’ll try the latest religious fad or
experiment with an alternative lifestyle. But all these paths are dead-ends. The Bible (Proverbs 16:25) says, "There is a way
that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." Even when we finally realize that our deepest need is to know God,
we often try wrong ways of getting to know God. For example, we’ll rely on our religious upbringing as a child. We’ll
comfort ourselves by saying things like, "My mother was a Christian so I must be one, too." But that’s not necessarily true.
We’ll say, "I was born in the church." Oh yeah? If you were born in a garage, does that make you a car? Or we’ll say, "I’ll
give up all my bad habits, then God will accept me." In other words, I won’t drink, smoke, cuss, chew, or go with girls who
do. But, the fact is, you could live like a monk and it doesn’t guarantee you know God. Why? Because God doesn’t grade on
a curve. Many people say, "I’ll start being religious and get baptized and go to church." That doesn’t do it, either. You can be
baptized so many times that all the fish in the sea know your name, but that doesn’t make you a Christian. What, then, is the
real solution? The solution is not found in a plan or a program. it’s found in a Person, a Person named Jesus Christ. Jesus
said in John 14:6, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Jesus didn’t say
He was a way, or one way, or even the best way. He said He was the only way to God. In other words, if you want to know
God, either you go through Jesus, or you don’t get in the door.
Jesus Christ is God’s own eternal Son. He came to earth as a human being in order to bring us back into a relationship with
Himself. Our only way into heaven is to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus became the only way to heaven when He
voluntarily took care of our sin problem. The Bible says, "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still
sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) Why did Christ have to die for us? The Bible says, "the wages of sin is death, but
the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."(Romans 6:23).
Because I have sinned, I deserve to die. That’s the penalty for only one sin. Jesus died in my place on the cross so that I
wouldn’t have to die for my own sins. He died in my place as my substitute. He took the initiative. All I have to do to benefit
from it is to individually accept what He has done for me. To accept His gift of eternal life, I must admit the fact that I need
His forgiveness, and accept the fact that my forgiveness is found only in Jesus Christ.
You know, even if there were no heaven to gain, it would be worth it to become a Christian just to get a clear conscience and
begin over again with a brand new start. it’s that wonderful. So, here’s the good news: Jesus died in our place for our sins, to
pay our penalty, and then rose from the dead on Easter. This is the pivot point of history. All of human history is divided into
B.C. and A.D., either before Christ or anno Domini, which means, the year of our Lord. Every time you write a date on a
check or on a letter, you use the birth of Jesus Christ as your reference point. You can’t escape it. The death and resurrection
of Jesus Christ are the most important events in all of human history. God offers salvation to you, but it must be received as a
gift. You can’t earn it. You can’t deserve it. You can’t buy it. The Bible (Ephesians 2:8-9) says, "For it is by grace you have
been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast." If
heaven could be earned, it wouldn’t be heaven anymore, because everybody there would be bragging about what they did to
get there. That would be awful! No. Heaven is a gift purchased for you on the basis of what Jesus already did for you. The
gospel is not spelled "D-O." The gospel is spelled "D-O-N-E" because Christ has already done everything that is necessary
in order for you to be saved.
All you have to do is say "Yes" to Him, by inviting Jesus to be your Savior. The Bible says, "Yet to all who received him, to
those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God..." (John 1:12) it’s not enough to know He is the
Savior, in your head. You must personalize it with a decision, a decision to receive Him as your own Savior, in your heart. If
you reject His offer of salvation, you are rejecting Him. If you think Christ’s death was not good enough to save you, God
will have no other choice but to turn His back on you for all eternity.
Contrary to popular jokes, hell is not a place where you can have a drink with your friends and get wasted. Hell is not like an
eternal animal house party. It is more like an insane asylum. There are no friendships in hell. There are no orgies and no fun
and no fellowship. Everyone there is consumed with their own suffering, and everyone feels totally isolated, totally alone.
Hell involves emotional suffering, because its inhabitants will know that they are nothing but human trash, worthless garbage
as far as God is concerned, just junk. Everyone will be filled with regret over how stupid they were to reject Christ when they
had the chance. Hell involves physical suffering because it is a fire that never quits, just unending heat and burning day after
day forever. Hell involves spiritual suffering because it is filled with the terror of utter darkness and meaninglessness.
Have you ever awakened from a dream in which you felt like you were falling? You woke up sweating, panicked, your heart
racing. The Bible describes hell as the bottomless pit. In hell, that feeling of falling never ends. You just keep on falling,
knowing your doom is sealed forever, with no second chance and no hope. You might wonder, "What kind of horrible sin do
I have to commit in order to be sent to such a terrible place?" Be a mass murderer? Yes. Rob a bank? Yes? Commit adultery
in my heart? Yes. Tell a lie? Yes. Dishonor my parents? Yes. Any of the above.
The Bible says that all of us have sinned. Any kind of sin is a form of cosmic treason. Sin is like raising our fist in front of
God’s face, saying "I’m going to live MY way." Sin involves the breaking of God’s commands. The payment we owe for one
sin is death. God is not grading on a curve. If you are less pure than Jesus, you can’t get into heaven as you are. You must
allow God to make you fit for heaven by receiving Jesus into your life. The greatest sin of all is to reject the forgiveness and
the salvation that God offers to you as a free gift. The ultimate sin, the final sin that sends everybody to hell that commits it, is
the sin of NOT receiving Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. That sin of unbelief is the only sin that Christ’s death didn’t
pay for.
Will you trust Christ as your Savior? I’m not talking religion here. God does not care if you were baptized as a baby, or if
your name is listed on some church membership roll, or if you gave a lot of money. When it comes time for the Judgment
Day, God will only ask you one question: Did you receive my Son? When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the penalty for
every sin you’ve ever committed. God condemned His own Son for the bad stuff in your life. All of God’s wrath was heaped
on Christ on the cross because God hates sin and must judge it with death. Only after your sin is paid for in full do you
become qualified for heaven.
So, will you accept Jesus’ payment for your sin today?
People will say there are many roads up the mountain, trying to get to God. Yes, there are many roads, but only one of those
roads leads to heaven. The rest of them lead to hell. Wide is the path that leads to destruction, and narrow is the path that
leads to salvation. Jesus said John 14:6, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through
me.
There is no middle ground. Either you are in a relationship with Christ, or you’re not. Either you are born again, or you’re not.
Either you are saved, or you are lost. 1 John 5:11-12 says, God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who
has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. The question is, do you have the Son of God
living in you?
In order for Jesus Christ to live in you, you need to just admit that you are a sinner who needs God’s forgiveness, believe in
your heart that Christ died for your sin and rose from the dead, and receive Christ as your Savior and Lord. Just saying you
believe in God is not enough. That won’t do it. The devil believes in God, too, but he’s not saved. Did you ever think of that?
Believing in God is not enough. You must choose to trust Christ personally to save you and to forgive your sins.
My prayer today is that you will hear God’s soft voice speaking to you today and that you will say "yes" to Him. Please
don’t hang on to a few cheap toys for the sake of missing eternity. Nothing that you are hanging on to is worth losing eternal
life. If you would like to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior today and know that God has forgiven your sins, I would like to
lead you in a prayer that expresses that desire to God. So, let’s all bow our heads and close our eyes and concentrate on the
meaning of what we’re about to do. For some, it will mark the beginning of a whole new life, for it will be the moment when
you are born again.
Here’s the prayer. I invite you to say it in your heart to God.
"Dear God, thank you for loving me even when I’ve ignored you and gone my own way. I realize I need Jesus in my life. I
admit that I’m a sinner. I need You forgiveness for all my sins. I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins and I
believe Jesus rose again from the dead. On the basis of what Jesus did for me, please forgive all my sins. I trust Jesus to be
my personal Savior. I invite Jesus to come into my life and make me a new person inside. I accept your gift of salvation
through faith. I accept heaven as a free gift. By Your grace, make me Your child. I want to live Your way from now on. Help
me to be the kind of Christian who pleases You. In Jesus’ name, Amen."
If you just prayed that prayer to God and meant it with all your heart, I want you to know that God heard you, and He will do
what you’ve asked Him to do. That’s exciting. And because it involves embarking on a new kind of spiritual journey through
life, you need someone to help you to get off to a good start. So I want to ask you to do two things today.
The first thing you need to do is to tell another Christian about the decision you’ve just made. If you came with a friend today,
tell the person who invited you here that you prayed that prayer today. If you came on your own, tell me or someone you’ve
seen on the platform about your decision. Let us rejoice with you.
The second thing you need to do is to pick up a free copy of the New Testament and begin to read it every day. Read with
your own eyes the words of Jesus. Get to know Him more in the pages of His biography. The better you know Him, the
more you’ll love Him. The closer you get, the better He looks.
*B I B L E* OUTLINE *Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth
"What If it’s True?" A Friend Day Message
I. Is it really true that ....
... the all-powerful Creator cares about peons like me?
... hell is a real place of burning fire that lasts forever?
... there is only one God and only one way to get to God?
... Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead?
... the Bible’s principles still work in my family life today?
YES!!!!!
II. Four logical possibilities ....
Option One: it’s not true, and I live as though it’s not true. Nothingness awaits - 3
Option Two: it’s true, but I live as though it’s not true. Hell awaits - 10
Option Three: it’s not true, but I live as though it’s true. Nothingness awaits + 3
Option Four: it’s true, and I live as though it’s true. Heaven awaits + 10
III. What is the true meaning of life?
A. Searching for happiness apart from God are dead-end paths.
B. The problem is we want to be our own boss. This attitude is sin.
C. The solution is found in a Person: Jesus Christ. Jesus says in John 14:6, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through me."
D. Jesus solved our sin problem by dying for our sins, in our place. "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we
were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23)
E. Forgiveness and heaven are received as a gift -- by trusting in Jesus. "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in
his name, he gave the right to become children of God..." (John 1:12)
MAIN IDEA: It makes sense to trust Christ to save you.
