Life's Trail

Recently I walked about 165 miles on the Appalachian Trail. I saw MANY beautiful sights (Click the link for Photo Gallery to see some of them): breath taking views, spectacular flowers, amazing sight after amazing sight. But sometimes, I saw simply trees and underbrush; the same trees, the same underbrush, the same exact things. Every so often you would see a trail blaze along the trail that helps keep you from getting lost in the woods. There were many side trails, some leading to potable water, some leading to other pleasant things, but more than a few leading to false ground on a bluff where - although it looked like a solid place to walk, the "ground" was just leaves stacked on some down branches. These areas are dangerous and have the illusion of being safe, but in reality are VERY treacherous. The more I walked, and thought, the more I realized life is very similar to this trail.

You see in life, we have a set of trail blazes found in the bible. Things that help us stay on the true trail, that keep us from wandering off cliff faces, or from doing other things that look appealing but are wrong for us.

Walk with me as we look at the Romans Road - probably the most important walk you'll ever take.

Romans 3:23 - "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God".

This means that all of us have wandered from the trail, we've done things we shouldn't have, and been places we shouldn't have. Sin is quite simply anything we do think or say that displeases God. Let’s use the 10 commandments as an example of Gods standard (in truth His standards are much higher, but as we will see, we cannot live up to even these 10 simple commands).

First we will start with something everyone knows is wrong - lying. Despite knowing this is wrong, everyone has told a lie. This makes us liars. Another commandment is that we are not to steal. Stealing is another thing most everyone has done at some point in their lives. Most kids have taken candy from the grocery store, and many adults have picked grapes out of the bag and eaten them as they shop. Still others who are reading this will have taken items of much larger significance. HOWEVER, regardless of the size and value of the item, IF the item did not belong to you, and you took it. It was stealing and you are a thief. So far, if you’re keeping score, we are largely lying thieves. Need I go on? So far I’m guilty of two out of two, with eight commandments remaining. The third one we will cover is the commandment against murder. The bible says anyone who has been angry with another is as guilty as a murderer. Therefore now we (I) am a lying thieving MURDERER. The other seven - rules against coveting, keeping the Sabbath, putting God first in your life, not having idols (an idol is anything you put before God - TV, friends, family, computers, hiking, can all be idols), Not taking the Lords name in vain (in lay mans terms someone saying "Jesus Christ" as a curse, or "oh my God" are both examples of breaking this command), honor your father and mother (Every teenager in America has dishonored their parent, If you haven't you must not have been a teenager...),and lastly, don't cheat on your spouse. The verse we read says that EVERYONE has committed at least one sin in their life. Because of that ONE sin, we do not measure up to God's Standard. This leads us to our next verse.


Romans 6:23 - "For the WAGES of sin is DEATH, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord". This verse tells us what happens to those of us who have missed the mark when it comes to God's Standards. Everyone who has committed a single sin has become doomed to spend an eternity apart from God. There is no other option. Holy and unholy, perfect and imperfect; these things just cannot be together (think new clean white shirt, and gardening/playing ball/rolling in the mud). Therefore, if we cannot spend an eternity with God because of our sin, and if there are only two options, then we must spend an eternity separated from God. If heaven is for the sinless and God is in heaven then Hell is for the sinful.


Ephesians 2:8-9 - "For by grace you have been saved, through faith, and that not of your selves, it is the gift of God lest any man should boast". So far all we have been talking about is the Bad news. The bad news summed up so far is that we have sinned. Because we have sinned we are bound for Hell (separation from God). This verse adds the last part of the bad news. There is nothing you or I can do to fix our problem with sin. One sin is enough to separate us from God, but a million good deeds are not enough to bridge the separation. Giving to charity, attending self help groups, building homes for people through Habitat for Humanity, helping the elderly to cross the street - NONE of that, and in fact NOTHING you can do will remove our separation from God. NOTHING we can do will remove the sin from our lives, and so NOTHING we can do will allow us into heaven. That is the bad news. The good news is that 2000 years ago, God sent his son Jesus to pay the price for our sins. We were guilty, and our punishment was death, but Jesus who lived a perfect life free from sin, agreed to take our punishment. Think of it this way. A man committed murder, was caught, and at trial, AFTER the judge sentenced the criminal to death. The judge says to the condemned if you'll apologize for your crime, and seek forgiveness. I will take the electric chair for you. It’s the same way with God. By our own choices we have sentenced ourselves to eternal separation from God. But God loved us so much, that he sent his son Jesus to pay for our sins.

Romans 5:8-9 - "God demonstrates his love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us". You see we deserved the death penalty, but Jesus paid it all. It’s like it says in the old song - "Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe, Sin had left its crimson stain, but HE washed me white as snow". Something I want you to notice is all this occurred while we were yet sinners. He willing gave up his life for ours even before the trial, before you were born, and I submit to you that he decided before the formation of the world that he would die for your sins. Now some of you may be wondering what your part is in all of this. That is simple.

Romans 10:9-10 - "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation". If you want to go to heaven, if you want to spend an eternity with God, IF you want absolution for your sins it’s that simple. Just confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, and you will be saved. IF this is something you would like to do, say the following out loud and believe it in your heart: Dear God in heaven, I come before you in the name of Jesus. I confess that I am a sinner and ask you to forgive me and cleanse me from my sins. I receive Jesus as my Savior and ask Him to come into my heart. I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord and that you raised Him from the dead. I ask you to please help me to live as you want me to live. I thank you for the gift of your wonderful Son Jesus and Your merciful free gift of salvation. In Jesus' wonderful name. Amen.

What’s Next?
Congratulations, and welcome to the family! The bible says that every time someone asks Jesus to pay for their sins, the angels rejoice. So in a manner of speaking, there is a party going on in heaven for you right now! Many people want to know what to do after they have accepted Jesus substitutionary payment for our sins. There are four things. First is prayer - prayer is just like talking to a friend. There is nothing mystical about it. It’s as simple as talking to your best friend. Second is reading the bible. The bible is like Gods love letter or his trail map for us. It’s intensely personal, and full of deep meaning. No matter how many times I’ve read the bible, I get something new out of it each time. I would suggest praying to God to reveal himself to you through whatever part of the bible you are reading. Thirdly you should attend a church. The bible says as iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. Being with other Christians helps us to grow and mature as Christians. Interaction with other Christians spurs us on in ways that are hard to imagine. Now I should point out church membership is not a requirement for heaven - however, it will make life easier for you in a lot of ways. Lastly, tell others about what Jesus has done for you. If you have trouble starting conversations about Jesus with people, drop by the AFC store for a patch. Many times people will ask you about the patch which will lead naturally into a conversation about Jesus. If you have accepted Jesus for the first time, and would like a patch. Please use the Contact Us form and we will send you one for free. If you are already a Christian, but would like a patch any way. Please click on the shop link on the left hand side of the page.