MELVIN M. NEWLAND, MINISTER
RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
(REVISED: 2016)
TEXT: Acts 16:22 34
ILL. A few years ago in Brownsville a young lady whom I had never met called & asked if she could talk with me that afternoon. She seemed rather anxious, so I told her “Yes,” & we arranged to meet in my office right after she got off work.
Well, it turned out that she was getting married, & she & her fiancé had been making their wedding plans. The two have different church backgrounds & had asked each of their preachers to participate in a joint wedding ceremony.
His preacher said “Yes,” but her preacher said “No.” Well, she was hurt by that because she had gone to that church all her life, & had even attended a church college. But she accepted his decision.
Then, a few days later he called & told her that he had changed his mind & would take part in the wedding after all because she was not a Christian. But if she had been a Christian, he would have had to say “No.” And that is when she called me.
Here she was, a young lady in her mid-20’s, who had always attended church regularly, even while away at college, & she wasn’t a Christian. Her mother is a very devout member of their church, & all the children attended regularly.
But this young lady had never become a Christian. And now she didn’t dare become a Christian before her wedding or her preacher wouldn’t take part in the ceremony.
As we talked about it, I asked her why she had never become a Christian. She told me, “Nobody ever asked me. I guess I was a kind of an unruly girl or something, so maybe they didn’t want me. And I attended a church college, too. But nobody ever said a word to me about becoming a Christian & being baptized. So I never did.”
It was hard for me to imagine that what she was saying was correct. So I told her a little about our services & my sermons. I said that the purpose of the church is two-fold: #1 – to seek to win people to Christ; & then, #2 - to help them grow & mature as Christians.
Therefore, even though the majority of people present at our services are already Christians, we always include an invitation, & urge those who are not yet Christians to accept Christ as their Savior.
“No,” she said, “they don’t do that at our church. Maybe they do it sometimes at some of the seminars. But they never do it at the regular church service. In my whole life, nobody has ever suggested that I become a Christian.”
A. Folks, if she was correct - & I have no right to doubt what she said – what an indictment! Surrounded by Christians all her life - & no one had ever urged her or even suggested that she accept Christ as her Savior & her Lord! What a tragedy!
But wait a minute! Is it possible that there are others like her? I mean, is it possible there is someone here this morning who feels the same way she did?
O, I hope not! But if there is, please let me apologize to you, & then let’s correct it. We don’t want anyone ever to think that we’re not concerned about you & your relationship with God.
The Bible tells us in 2 Peter 3:9 that “The Lord…is not willing that any should perish…” And in Mark 16:15-16 Jesus told us, “Go into all the world & preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes & is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
B. There are several simple questions I would like to ask you this morning. #1, “Are you a Christian?” #2, "Would you like to go to heaven?" & #3, "Do you know how to get there?"
I'm convinced that most of us want to go to heaven maybe not right now, but someday, anyway. So it is important to know how to get there. And for 3 weeks I will be preaching on this subject. Today is Part 1.
ILL. Calvin & Hobbes are among my favorite cartoon characters Calvin, the hyper active little boy with a wild & vivid imagination, & his companion, Hobbes, a tiger. Are you familiar with them?
Well, in one cartoon Calvin & Hobbes were lying in the shade of a tree on a summer afternoon discussing the important things of life. Calvin says, "What if there is no heaven? What if this is all we get?"
Hobbes answers, "Well, if this is all we get I guess we'll just have to accept it." Calvin replies, "Yeah, but if I'm not going to be rewarded for my good deeds, I want to know it now."
If there is no afterlife, if there is no heaven, why do we even bother being good? But if there is a heaven, how do we get there?
ILL. Ivan the IV was the first Czar of all Russia. He was such a cruel man that they called him "Ivan The Terrible." He married 7 wives & abused them all. He was immoral & violent & used to throw animals off the Kremlin walls just to watch them die.
But when he died in 1584, historians record that they shaved his head & dressed him for burial in the robes of a monk, hoping that God would think that Ivan the Terrible was a monk, & thus allow him into heaven.
Is that how you get into heaven by disguising yourself & hoping God will think you are someone else?
C. If you ask the man on the street he might say, "Don't worry about it. We're a Christian nation, & we're all going to heaven."
Someone else might say, "That doesn't concern me. My parents took care of that when I was a baby. They had me baptized, so I have a ticket to heaven. I don't have to worry about it."
Is that right? How can we know? Well, I'm convinced that there is only one place where we can find the right answers, & that's in the Bible, the Word of God.
D. So turn with me to Acts 16. In this chapter there’s a story about the apostle Paul & Silas. They have been preaching in the city of Philippi, & because of their witness for Christ they have been arrested & thrown into prison.
We’re told in vs's 22 & 23 that they were stripped & beaten & thrown into the inner part of the prison where their feet were fastened in the stocks.
Then in vs’s 25-30 it tells us, “About midnight Paul & Silas were praying & singing hymns to God, & the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.
"At once all the prison doors flew open, & everybody's chains came loose. The jailer woke up, & when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword & was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.
"But Paul shouted, ‘Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!' The jailer called for lights, rushed in & fell trembling before Paul & Silas. He then brought them out & asked, ‘Men, what must I do to be saved?'"
I suggest that is one of the most important questions we can ever ask. And the answer to that question will influence our eternal destiny. So it is important for us to hear the answer as well as the question.
The answer is found in vs. 31. It says, “They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ & you will be saved you & your household.’"
But some today would ask, “Why should I believe in God? How can I believe in God with so much suffering & pain in our world? How can I believe in a good God if bad people prosper, & so many others live in poverty? I don’t see any reason to believe in God or in Jesus Christ.”
I. YOU MUST REALIZE YOUR NEED
Yes, there are many people who feel that way, for we live in a world of human pride, in a time when we're told that we must be self sufficient, able to handle anything that comes our way.
If we would just clinch our fists & flex our muscles & get our minds working, we can do it all. But then something happens to remind us just how helpless we are. So first of all, we need to realize our need.
This Philippian jailer might have gone to work that evening feeling great. Maybe he had just made his mortgage payment, & the first payment on his new chariot. His wife was home taking care of the kids.
Everything was exactly the way it was supposed to be. So he could spend the night at the jail feeling completely secure in his job.
But right in the middle of the night a violent earthquake shook the building. The jailer awoke to see the prison doors open, & he was sure that all the prisoners had escaped.
In one brief moment everything had changed, & according to Roman law, he would now have to serve out the sentences of any escaped prisoners. So rather than go through that, he pulled his sword & was about to kill himself.
“But Paul shouted, ‘Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!' The jailer called for lights, rushed in & fell trembling before Paul & Silas.”
Has your world ever come crashing down around you? There are times when you get up & think, "It's going to be a great day!" But then something happens - broken health, lost job, shattered marriage, not enough money.
Suddenly you realize there are so many forces in this world over which you have no control, & all you can do is come to God, confessing your helplessness. That's the beginning of faith – you must realize your need.
II. YOU MUST REALIZE THAT JESUS IS THE ANSWER TO THAT NEED
Secondly, you must realize that Jesus is the answer to your need. Listen to these words: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” [John 3:16-17]
ILL. Imagine for a moment that you're trapped in a cave with a friend & the water is rising. It's already up to your waist & you realize that soon you will be dead. Your friend says that there must be a way to get out. So he dives down into the water & disappears & is gone for 20, 30, 40 seconds.
Then he pops back up & says, "I can see a tunnel. I'm going to swim for it & see if it's a way out." So he disappears again, & is gone for 1 minute, then 2 & 3 minutes, & you think he's dead. The water is now up to your neck & soon you will die, too.
But just then his head pops out of the water. "Good news," he says, "I've found a tunnel that leads to a cavern bigger than this one & there is light in there. I think we can get out. I think we'll be safe. Come, follow me!" Would you follow him? I know that I would!
Jesus, who came back from the dead, announced, "I have a way of escape. I am the way. Come, follow me." Would you? Are you?
III. HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE?
A. We are told to believe in Jesus. But how can we be sure about Him? Well, the first thing we need to do is to examine the evidence. Paul writes in Romans 10:17, “Faith comes by hearing & hearing by the Word of God."
Most people who criticize the Bible & Christian faith have not read the Bible & know very little about Jesus. Maybe they saw a movie, or sat in a Sunday school class when someone talked about Jesus. But they really don't know much about Him. If that is where you are, I challenge you to examine the evidence.
ILL. Do you remember when Alice in Wonderland met the White Queen who announced that she was 100 years old? Alice said, "Oh, I can't believe that." In surprise, the White Queen answered, "Oh, can't you? Close your eyes & take a deep breath & try harder."
Now sometimes people feel that's what we're telling them to do in church. "Just close your eyes & take a deep breath & try harder." But no, there is much more than that. There is solid evidence upon which to build our faith.
I challenge you to examine the evidence, read the accounts, find out what happened, & discover the truth in the Word of God.
ILL. C.S. Lewis was one of the great scholars of Oxford a number of years ago. He used to scoff at Christianity. He especially made fun of the hymns we sing in church. Then one day C.S. Lewis decided to read the Bible.
Being a man of integrity, once he started reading it he had to admit it was convicting him of his sin & causing him to see his own limitations. Finally, C.S. Lewis became a Christian & then a great defender of the faith.
And his books, “Chronicles of Narnia”, “The Screwtape Letters”, “Mere Christianity” & many others, have led thousands of people to Jesus.
B. So act on the faith that you have. The Bible talks about little faith. It talks about great faith. It talks about growing faith. It talks about an active faith.
And here's the rest of the story. In Acts 16:30-34, when the Philippian jailer cries out, “‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ & you will be saved you & your household.’ Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him & to all the others in his house.
“At that hour of the night the jailer took them & washed their wounds; then immediately he & all of his family were baptized.
"The jailer brought them into his house & set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God – he & his whole family.”
The jailer began with a little bit of faith, & he acted upon it. And as he did, his faith increased & resulted in a whole family filled with joy.
IV. YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE TO BELIEVE
Now how about us today? What we need to do is to choose to believe. We make choices every day. We choose to love, or not to love. We can choose also to believe, or not to believe.
At times I have talked with people who said, "I’m going to wait until I know for sure. I want to know for sure about God." Or, "I want to know for sure that I can live the Christian life before I decide."
But if you wait until you know for sure, you'll never decide, because faith doesn't know everything for sure. Faith is believing in that which we cannot see, & moving ahead when only part of the evidence is in, & trusting God for the rest.
Joshua told the people, "Choose you this day whom you will serve. If you choose Baal, then serve him. If you choose the Lord, then serve Him." Then Joshua said, “But as for me & my house, we will serve the Lord."
ILL. Kay Arthur is a well known Christian author & speaker who has influenced tens of thousands for Jesus. Her testimony is written in her book, "Lord, I Need Your Grace Because I Can't Make It On My Own." In it she talks about her life & her struggles in coming to Christ.
As a young girl she went to church. She wrote, "I would listen to the messages, & go to Sunday School, but I never really committed my life to Jesus."
She grew up & got married, & then found out that her husband suffered from a mental disorder. They had two children, but the marriage was always in trouble. Her husband was constantly causing problems, so finally, she left him.
Time after time he called & pleaded with her to come back, but she refused. Finally, he threatened suicide, & she told him, "Go ahead, I need the money." And he did.
In her remorse, Kay Arthur says she can remember driving home from the funeral, shaking her fist in anger at God & saying, "Go to hell, God." Then she writes, "It was like someone flipped a switch. I suddenly realized that was exactly what God did. He went to hell for me, that I might go to heaven with Him."
CONCL. There is no sin so deep or dark, no thought so evil, nothing that you have done that is so bad that God cannot forgive. He longs to forgive you. He longs for His children to come home & receive His mercy & His grace.
The journey to heaven begins with faith. Do you have a little bit of faith this morning? Are you willing to act on that faith? That's why we extend the invitation to give you the opportunity to express that faith & see that faith grow. Will you come as we stand & as we sing?
INVITATION
