COME AS YOU ARE
Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Rev. 22:17.
The story is told of a man whose horn on his car wouldn't work. So he went to the garage in town to have it fixed. When he got there, it was raining, and he found that the door to the garage was closed. On the door was a sign that said, "Honk for service"! Have you ever felt that repentance was something like that?
I'll never forget trying to convert my boy. I was worried about him. There were problems in the town where we were living at the time. Kids were being jailed for dealing in street drugs. I was afraid he would become involved. I talked until I had talked too much, and finally realized that I'd better stop talking and begin praying.
Then some kids that he admired from the academy invited him down to a discussion at the Bible teacher's house. He decided to go and ask some hard questions. He liked to ask hard questions. So he went and began to play his game. But about halfway through the evening he began listening. He didn't know until later that some of those other kids were prying for him. But before the evening was over he heard something that he had never heard before--although I can assure you that he had too heard it before! It had simply never registered. He heard that we never change our lives in order to come to Jesus. That we always come to Jesus just as we are, and He is the one who changes our lives.
He came home about ready to speak in tongues! He was so excited. He came to me and said, "Listen, Dad, listen to this! We don't change our lives in order to come to Christ. We come just as we are. He changes our lives!"
I didn't want to spoil it for him, so I said, "Really?" And the very blood in my veins began to sing. The next morning I passed by the door to his room and saw him reading his Bible. The day before, he couldn't have cared less about the Bible. Now he couldn't put it down. Before the week was out, he had an "evangelistic" meeting in the living room with some of the other academy kids, trying to share his new insights.
When one realizes for the first time that we really can come to Jesus just as we are, it makes all the difference in the world.
Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Rev. 22:17.
The story is told of a man whose horn on his car wouldn't work. So he went to the garage in town to have it fixed. When he got there, it was raining, and he found that the door to the garage was closed. On the door was a sign that said, "Honk for service"! Have you ever felt that repentance was something like that?
I'll never forget trying to convert my boy. I was worried about him. There were problems in the town where we were living at the time. Kids were being jailed for dealing in street drugs. I was afraid he would become involved. I talked until I had talked too much, and finally realized that I'd better stop talking and begin praying.
Then some kids that he admired from the academy invited him down to a discussion at the Bible teacher's house. He decided to go and ask some hard questions. He liked to ask hard questions. So he went and began to play his game. But about halfway through the evening he began listening. He didn't know until later that some of those other kids were prying for him. But before the evening was over he heard something that he had never heard before--although I can assure you that he had too heard it before! It had simply never registered. He heard that we never change our lives in order to come to Jesus. That we always come to Jesus just as we are, and He is the one who changes our lives.
He came home about ready to speak in tongues! He was so excited. He came to me and said, "Listen, Dad, listen to this! We don't change our lives in order to come to Christ. We come just as we are. He changes our lives!"
I didn't want to spoil it for him, so I said, "Really?" And the very blood in my veins began to sing. The next morning I passed by the door to his room and saw him reading his Bible. The day before, he couldn't have cared less about the Bible. Now he couldn't put it down. Before the week was out, he had an "evangelistic" meeting in the living room with some of the other academy kids, trying to share his new insights.
When one realizes for the first time that we really can come to Jesus just as we are, it makes all the difference in the world.
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