Fire fire 🔥

Late in December 1996, a large family in Los Angeles gathered for a joyous Christmas. There were so many gathered that night, five of the children slept in the converted garage, kept warm during the night by an electric heater placed near the door.

During the early hours of the morning, the heater suddenly burst into flames, blocking the doorway. In seconds the room became a blazing inferno. The frantic 911 call revealed the unspeakable terror as one of the children could be heard screaming, “I’m on fire!” The distraught father rushed into the flames to try to save his beloved children, receiving burns to 50 percent of his body. Tragically, all five children burned to death. They died because steel bars on the windows thwarted their escape. There was only one door, and it was blocked by the flames.

Imagine you are back in time, just minutes before the heater burst into flames. You peer through the darkness at the peaceful sight of five sleeping youngsters, knowing that at any moment the room will erupt into an inferno and burn the flesh of horrified children. Can you in good conscience walk away? No! You must awaken them and warn them to run from that death trap!

The world sleeps peacefully in the darkness of ignorance. There is only one Door by which they may escape death. The steel bars of sin prevent their salvation, and at the same time call for the flames of Eternal Justice. What a fearful thing Judgment Day will be! The fires of the wrath of Almighty God will burn for eternity. The Church has been entrusted with the task of awakening them before it’s too late. We cannot turn our backs and walk away in complacency. Think of how the father ran into the flames. His love knew no bounds. Our devotion to the sober task God has given us will be in direct proportion to our love for the lost. There are few who run headlong into the flames to warn them to flee (Luke 10:2). Please be one of them. We really have no choice. The apostle Paul said, “Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16).

The “Prince of Preachers,” Charles Spurgeon, said, “Have you no wish for others to be saved? Then you are not saved yourself. Be sure of that.” A Christian cannot be apathetic about the salvation of the world. The love of God in him will motivate him to seek and save that which is lost.

This is why Christians share the Gospel. 

Are you aware that God became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 3:16), and that He died for the sins of the world?Did you come to the Savior because you knew that you had sinned against God?Are you convinced that Jesus suffered and died on the cross for your sins, and that He rose again on the third day?Did you truly repent and put your faith in Jesus?

God acquits us from the Courtroom of Eternal Justice on the grounds that Jesus Christ paid our fine. We are “justified” (made right with God) by His suffering death. The resurrection of Jesus Christ was God’s seal of approval signifying that His precious blood was sufficient to pay the fine.

Think of it this way. Imagine you have violated the law and face a $50,000 fine, which you cannot pay. You tell the judge that you are truly sorry for your crime, but he answers, “You should be sorry; you have broken the law. Now you must pay this fine.” He can acquit you only if the fine is paid. If someone else pays your fine for you, then he can let you go.

The reason we need a substitute (a Savior) to pay our “fine” is that we have broken God’s moral Law. We can see that we have transgressed this Law by looking at a few of the Ten Commandments: Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever stolen something? Jesus said, “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Have you ever lusted? If you answered “Yes” to these questions, you admit that you are a lying, thieving adulterer at heart, and you have to face a holy God on Judgment Day! If you have used His name in vain (such as “OMG”), then you are guilty of “blasphemy”—you’ve substituted God’s holy name for a curse word. If you’ve hated someone, the Bible says that you are a murderer. You have violated God’s holy Law and are in big trouble. On Judgment Day, you will be found guilty and end up in Hell. That’s why you need the Savior.

“The reason we need a substitute (a Savior) to pay our ‘fine’ is that we have broken God’s moral Law.”

Merely being sorry for your sins, or confessing them to God won’t help you. Your fine must be paid, and the “wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). However, the Bible says that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He is rich in mercy and provided a Savior: “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). Jesus Christ died on the cross, paying the death penalty for sinners, then He rose from the grave, defeating death. Hundreds of eyewitnesses saw Jesus after His resurrection; it’s no fairy tale. Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies about the promised Savior, written in the Holy Scriptures hundreds of years before His birth.

Salvation is a free gift; it cannot be earned by good works or religious rituals. If you repent and place your faith in Jesus Christ alone—the only grounds for forgiveness—God will grant you mercy. If you’re not sure of your salvation, read Psalm 51 and make it your own prayer. Then show your gratitude by obeying God’s command to be baptized.

Footnotes:

RayComfort, Evangelism, First Steps New Believer booklet, Save YourselfSome Pain 

I actually have family who experienced a house fire.