I glanced at the clock in the Akron bus station. It was 12:20 p.m., and the bus Renee was to take to Pittsburgh was due. Within seconds several passengers from that very bus came walking into the station. The bus had broken down and was sitting on the expressway ramp.
The passengers had all bought tickets to Pittsburgh, with a stop in Akron. They had boarded the bus, expecting to arrive safely. The bus came close. It was within 200 yards of the Akron station - but it did not make it.
We asked the ticket agent what they would do about the trip to Pittsburgh. He told us, “We will bring in a replacement bus. You can expect an hour and a half delay.”
So we settled down in the station for a long wait. It would be an hour and a half before Renee would hear the bus driver’s call for passengers to board the bus for Pittsburgh.
Trains have mechanical failures. Automobiles and buses have flat tires, run out of gas and need new parts. Even airplanes have mechanical problems that have to be repaired. These ways of transportation are designed and made by man, and they depend upon man to do good mechanical work. Everything must be kept in good working order.
Renee’s experience gives us something good to think about. She bought her ticket for Pittsburgh. She was on time at the station, and she expected her bus to arrive on time to take her there. But she was depending on man - the bus driver and the bus company mechanics.
Each one of us will be taking a trip, and the date has already been set - some sooner and some later. This is the trip that will take us from the earth to either heaven or hell. No one wants to go to hell; we all want to spend eternity in heaven. Heaven is the place the Lord Jesus has prepared for those who love Him and have been washed from their sins. Each of us, like Renee, needs to be ready for our trip. We need to be on time, and we need to have that “ticket” to heaven in our hearts. We can depend on the Lord Jesus Christ to take us there safely.
Perhaps your mommy and daddy love the Lord Jesus and have both had their sins washed away. But that won’t count for you. Even though you may go to Sunday school every week, say your prayers, and try to be very good, these things will not buy a ticket to heaven. It is what you have done with Jesus that counts. You have to depend on Him. Have you told Him that you have done things that you should not have done (sin), and that you want to be His child? He wants to live in your heart.
If you have any doubt, don’t wait any longer. If you have not accepted Jesus as your Saviour, simply tell Him you want to do it right now. Be on time and be prepared.
The promises of the Lord Jesus are sure. What He has said He will do. We can depend on Him because He said, “Whosoever believeth in Him [Jesus] should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16).
Renee’s bus ticket cost money. What God offers us is free - Jesus paid the price. You simply open your heart and say, “Yes.” Then He says, “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee [paid the price for you], I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine.” Isaiah 43:11But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. (Isaiah 43:1).
Renee finally heard the bus driver’s call to board the bus for Pittsburgh. And one day soon the Lord Jesus is coming back in the clouds and will call all who have said “yes” to go up to heaven with Him. Will you hear the shout that calls us up to be with Him? The door will be closed after that and there will not be another “come.”
Come on board little ones, and big ones, too. Come before it is too late. “Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.” Luke 12:4040Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not. (Luke 12:40).
ML-08/08/1993