Which way to heaven?

Billy Graham used to tell the story about a time when he was holding a crusade in a particular place and needed to mail a letter. But he didn't know where the post office was. Then he saw a boy walking by and said, "Son, can you tell me how to find the post office?"

So the little guy stopped and gave him directions to the post office.

Billy Graham thanked him and said, "Listen, I'm preaching here in your town tonight, and I'm going to tell people how to get to Heaven. I would like you to come tonight and hear me preach."

The boy replied, "You don't even know the way to the post office! How can you tell me how to get to Heaven?"

The Bible, the user's manual for life, tells us exactly what we need to do to get to Heaven.

Some people might say, "These Christians, they're very weak and need religion. Christianity is just a big crutch."

But Christianity isn't about religion; it's about a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Christianity isn't a crutch; it's an entire hospital. And I need all the help that I can get.

I used to have a tough exterior, due in part to the way I was raised. I was a cynical kid. By the time I was 17, I felt like I was 70. I had seen things that no young man should ever see, having been raised by an alcoholic mother who was married and divorced seven times.

I hung around in Newport Beach, California, and leaned against a wall, trying to look cool. I remember the Christians who came down to where my friends and I were, and they handed out their literature. In my heart I was saying, "Come talk to me."

They would glance in my direction and buy into my act, and then they'd walk on. But I wanted to hear the truth. I needed someone to show me the way.

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If you were to ask me for directions to a certain place, I'd first want to know your starting point. Before I could tell you how to get there, I would need to know where you are.

After Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, they were hiding. And God wanted to know where Adam was. The Bible tells us, "When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are you?'" (Genesis 3:8–9 NLT)

Now, do you think the Lord knew where Adam was? Of course he did. When I played hide-and-seek with my grandkids when they were little, I could always find them because they'd return to the same places again and again.

God knows everything about us. We can't hide anything from Him. God didn't ask Adam where he was because he was unaware of Adam's location. In essence, God was saying, "Well, Adam, you ate the forbidden fruit. How did that go? Are you happy with the way things turned out?"

I think God could ask the same questions of us today: Where are you? How is your life going? Is this how you hoped it would turn out? Are you disappointed? Are you wondering if you've missed the whole point of what life is all about?

In the New Testament, we find the story of a man who was very successful. He had everything this world has to offer. He had money, power and fame. He even had religion. On the outside, he appeared to have it all together. But he didn't. He was empty on the inside, and he was searching.

He went to Jerusalem searching for God, but he didn't find what he was looking for. However, he did obtain a copy of the Scriptures, specifically a scroll of Isaiah.

While he rode through the desert in his chariot, he started reading aloud from Isaiah 53. Meanwhile, God had directed a believer named Philip to go to the desert and wait for this man. And when Philip heard him reading from the scroll, he ran up to the chariot and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" (Acts 8:30 NLT)

The man told him, "How can I, unless someone instructs me?" (verse 31 NLT)

He just needed someone to show him the way. And that is exactly what Philip did. He explained to him how to have a relationship with God.

Their discussion included this verse from Isaiah: "He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth" (53:7 NLT).

This passage is about Jesus Christ. He was called the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (see John 1:29). He voluntarily came down from Heaven on a rescue mission to save us here on planet Earth.

Jesus, the very Son of God, fully God and fully man, was born in a stable in Bethlehem. Then he grew into a man and walked this earth for 33 years. He breathed our air and lived our life. When he was nailed to the cross, he willingly went. Then he died our death, and he rose again.

Jesus said, "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends" (John 15:13 NLT). He laid his life down for us. He died for us voluntarily, because there was no other way to satisfy God's righteous demands.

As Philip explained this to the man in the desert, he believed in Jesus and was baptized on the spot. Then the Bible says he went on his way rejoicing.

How long does it take to become a Christian? It doesn't take years. It doesn't take months. It doesn't even take hours. It can happen in an instant.

Not only that, it can happen for you today. There's a big difference between religion and a relationship with Jesus Christ. Christianity isn't rules and regulations; it's real freedom from the power of sin. And you can have your life changed in a moment.

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