“Jesus told them, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.’” (John 14:6 NLT)
In response to the disciples’ inquiry as to the “way” to where Jesus was going, He quickly responded that He WAS the way. And just to be clear, Jesus was returning to His Father in heaven, our eternal home, the place we go when we die. If anyone, Jew or Gentile, is to EVER get to heaven, to the Father’s House, it will be by the blood of Jesus who secured our redemption on the Cross.
For someone to believe they will get to heaven by their own effort, their strong belief, their good works, their religion, or in any other way than faith in the completed work of the Jesus of the Bible, they will be sorely disappointed. There is no other way, period, end of story!
Having said that, there still remains the practical logistics of making our way up the sometimes-treacherous pathway of salvation in Christ alone by faith alone. What do I mean? If you’re a Jesus follower, you’ve likely not found your journey to be easy. That’s not a term I would use to describe my walk with the Lord. In some ways it’s like saying marriage is easy. There are lots of ways to describe it, but it’s not easy.
Walking with Jesus is deeply satisfying, enriching, challenging, invigorating, rewarding, and in many other ways completely fulfilling, but rarely, if ever, easy. And, my sense is, that’s exactly how it should be. Perhaps we misunderstand Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28-30 where He said: “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Soul rest and easy are not one and the same.
If I’m struggling to carry a 100 lb. bag of concrete mix by myself, it may not be for you, but for me, that would be a heavy burden, so, if someone offered to help me carry that load, while it would certainly be easier, at least for me, it would still not be easy. Being yoked with Jesus certainly makes the journey much easier, but it is still far from easy.
Jonathan Edwards helps us when he wrote: “The way to Heaven is ascending; we must be content to travel uphill, though it be hard and tiresome, and contrary to the natural bias of our flesh.” Following Jesus can be very costly, just ask any of the original followers of Jesus or those who live in lands who violently oppose those who bear His holy Name.
Even those of us in America and other “free” lands, are daily challenged to compromise our convictions for fear we will offend someone in our efforts to stay true to our Savior. What’s my point? The pathway to heaven, while open to all who will acknowledge their sin and need of a Savior, is splattered with the blood of the martyrs who have walked before us. My sense is, unless and until we come to terms with the reality that our blood may also be spilled for our faithfulness, we won’t realize just how hard it is to make that journey.
Is it worth it? To me and millions like me it is, but that’s not the question. The question is: Is it worth it to YOU! Are you willing to trade the risks of some discomfort, hardships, suffering, and possibly the loss of your life on this earth, for an eternity of torment in hell?
Think carefully. Eternity is a long, long time to be wrong.
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 