We didn’t have any Wifi or cell service at the campsite we are in tonight so I walked up the street about half a mile until I found a little hamburger joint that has WiFi. The name of the place is “62 Burgers” but I am having chicken strips and fries. This blog won’t be long unless I get another order because the place is very small and busy.
We biked 77 miles today and it was all uphill as we followed along the banks of the Rogue River to a town called Shady Cove. Tomorrow will be a long day with about 90 miles and includes a lap around Crater Lake.
Over the years I have asked a lot of people why they think they are going to heaven when they die, and 90% say, because I believe in God. My response is, “the devil believes in God, but he isn’t going to heaven“. Sometimes I get some discussion, but usually not much positive response. Their thinking I am sure is “Leave me alone, I am comfortable in my simple, naive faith”. I am convinced that the reason there are so many people who fall away from the Lord is that their beginning with Him is based on a faulty definition of saving faith. A pseudo salvation has no real power to endure.
An interesting story in the gospels is when the rich kid asks Jesus what he needed to do to be saved. Jesus said, “Sell everything you have, give it to the poor and follow me“. That seems a strange answer in light of the Bible’s emphasis on grace, and a salvation that is free apart from any works. I think Jesus knew that if this dude made a commitment to follow him it would be with just half his heart, the other half would be trusting in his money to take care of him.
Saving faith is trusting in Jesus and believing that he is all I need, He is 100% my hope, my love, my commitment, and my Lord. In our culture we typically have a foot in two worlds, and when the going gets tough that divided commitment doesn’t work. Paul admonished the Corinthians to examine their life to see if they were really in the family of God. In light of our cultures bent toward easy believism, divided commitments, the prosperity gospel, “I believe in God”, and a dozen other substitutes for the real gospel it would be a very good idea for everyone to seriously examine their own heart before the day they stand before God and hear Him say, “Why should I let you into my heaven?” and we give Him the wrong answer.