Saturday, September 5, 2015
John 1:51 Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
THE STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN -- USE IT
Jesus is the Stairway to Heaven -- the one way to God. We need to remember how this stairway works or operates.
That sounds odd, doesn't it? Stairways don't operate. They have no moving parts. They just are there to be used. But there are exceptions, aren't there? Stairways that move, that carry people up to the top. We call them "escalators." Jesus is that kind of stairway. He Himself BRINGS us to God.
Jesus doesn't say, "I am the way ... to follow." That is, "live your life like mine and you'll get to heaven." No, he says, "I AM the way." "I Myself am the stairway to heaven. Through what I have done in My living and dying, I bring you to God. Trust me to do this. Rely on the sacrifice I made of My body."
Faith is resting your heart's confidence on Jesus, putting your whole weight -- your whole future -- on Him, on this stairway -- not relying on any work or merit of your own. The confidence of saving faith is not in anything we do or promise to do. There's no future for us there. That's not a stairway; that's a merry-go-round.
Depend instead entirely on Jesus to bring you -- forgiven and cleansed -- into the presence of God forever -- the God who loves you with an eternal love and sent His Son for the express purpose of making an historical fact of Jacob's dream of a stairway to heaven.
So, use the Stairway ...
+ Stand squarely on what Christ has done for the certainty of forgiveness and eternal life.
+ Pray in Jesus' name, realizing your access to God rests on His sacrifice.
+ Live out His forgiving love in simple acts of kindness and caring every day.
+ Look to Jesus to fill your life -- to provide for your every need and give your life meaning and purpose.
And finally, the day will come for each of us, when Jesus brings us into the presence of the Father and the Spirit to live in the house of the Lord forever.
The Stairway to Heaven is part of the Father's house ... and always will be.
