Thought of the Day !!

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.  

                           John 3:16 (NRSV)

We all know this passage.  It’s probably the most well known bible verse ever.  It tells us that if we believe in Jesus we will go to Heaven.  But what exactly does it mean to believe?  Does this mean to accept that Jesus is real will get us a ticket to Heaven?  Or do we agree with James in his letter where he reminds us that even the demons believe, and they tremble.  I don’t think that there are any “saved” demons.

So what does it mean to believe?  Believing is having faith.  In the book of Hebrews we’re told that faith is having assurance of the things we hope for and a conviction of things not seen.  So it could be said that faith is about having trust.  So now we’re getting somewhere.  Believing is trusting that Jesus is who he says he is and being assured that his way of salvation is “the” way. 

So if we place our trust in Jesus will we have our place in Heaven set aside for us?  Yes.  But is placing our trust in Jesus and getting to Heaven the goal?  Or could it be something else?

If you go to a place but you don’t really care for your host will your time there be perfect?  No.  If we go to Heaven but don’t care for how Jesus has “intruded” on our lives and made us “act right or else” then it will be more like Hell than Heaven.  This is because Heaven is not the place we go where all our dreams come true.  It’s the place where we will be with Jesus forever.  So Heaven is only truly “heaven” if we love our host.  This means that the goal shouldn’t necessarily be Heaven.  It should be Jesus.

In a nutshell, believe in Jesus, trusting that he is the true and perfect way.  Fall in love with Jesus, and your eternal life will better than you can ever imagine. 

In the love of Christ,

greg