The teacher gives an assignment to her students. They must each write a ten page paper and it is due on Friday. On Friday morning the teacher collects the papers and discovers that five of the students have not done the assignment. She asks the five to explain why they failed to complete the assignment and here are the answers she receives:

1. “The assignment was too difficult and I'm too stupid to write a ten page paper.”  

2. “I didn't have the time to do it; I will write the paper later.”

3. “I thought you were a very kind and considerate teacher and I did not think you would mind if I did not do this assignment.”

4. “I didn't think this paper was very important because we are all going to get a passing grade in this class anyway.”

5. “Teacher, I'm sorry I failed to write this paper. Will you please give me another chance?”

            God has given every person on the face of the earth an assignment: “This is the work of God, that ye ____________________ on Him whom He hath sent” (John 6:29). God's assignment for every man, woman, boy and girl is “that we should _____________________ on the Name of His Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 3:23). And yet, many, many people have not done this assignment. Here are some of the reasons they give:

1)  “Not now; I'll trust Christ some other time.”

            According to God's Word, when is the best time to be saved, NOW or LATER (2 Corinthians 6:2)? _______  If we do not listen to God TODAY (see Hebrews 3:15), will our hearts most likely become harder or softer tomorrow? _____________________

            The rich man described in Luke 12:16-20 thought that he had many years to live and to enjoy life. Did he live to see tomorrow (Luke 12:20)? _______ Did God consider him a wise man or a fool (Luke 12:20)? _________________

            Suppose a terrible plague were to fall upon the entire human race so that every single person found his hands covered with green gunk. Suppose also that along with this green gunk there came a message from heaven: “If you wash your hands with lemon juice, the green gunk will be completely removed. If you die before you wash your hands, then you will be thrown into a lake of green gunk where you will stay forever and ever.” If this were really true, what would you do? Would you say, “I'll wait and wash my hands later. After all, I'm not going to die now. I have plenty of time” or would you wash your hands right away?

            We do not have green gunk on our hands, but we do have sin in our hearts. Those who do not believe on Christ will _______ in their sins (John 8:24). Those who die in their sins will be thrown into a lake of __________ (Revelation 20:15) where they will stay forever and ever.   When is the best time for a person to have his heart cleansed from sin? _______

2) “I am too great a sinner.”

            Did Christ come to save good people (Luke 5:32)? _____ Why did Christ Jesus come into the world (1 Timothy 1:15)? ______________________________ Great sinners need a Great Saviour! The Bible says that “He is ___________ also to ____________ them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him” (Hebrews 7:25). The problem is not that God refuses to save great sinners. The real problem is that great sinners refuse to come to Christ to be saved (see John 5:40). Will Christ cast out those who truly come to him (John 6:37)? _____

3) “I believe I am good enough.”

            How many good people are there in God's sight (Romans 3:12)? _______ Who is the only One who is really good (Matthew 19:17)? ______ How good does a person have to be in order to get to heaven? He must be as good as God! NO ONE IS GOOD ENOUGH! People are not saved because they are good. People are saved because they have put their full trust in a good God and a great Saviour!

            Suppose you wash your family car until it shines. Everyone would be able to see how clean it is. But if you could take a close look at that car through a microscope, you would see all kinds of dirt and filth which you never thought was there!  It is not really as clean as people think it is. So too, my life may seem clean and good to others and to myself, but if I could see myself as God sees me, there would be all kinds of filth and sin that I never thought was there (see 1 Samuel 16:7).   Romans 3:10-23 shows me myself as God sees me!  It is God's special mirror to show me what I am really like on the inside.
 

4)  “I am doing the best I can.”

            Even man's very best is not enough to please God, because “A_____ have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). A person may try to live a good life, but trying does not mean succeeding. A swimmer may try to swim from New York to London (across the Atlantic Ocean), but this does not mean that he will succeed. It would be much better and safer for that swimmer to get on a ship and trust the ship to carry him across. It's not TRYING but TRUSTING that will bring a person safely to heaven's shore! RELIGION is man trying to bring himself to God. SALVATION is Christ bringing man to God: “For Christ also hath once suffered for sin, the Just for the unjust, that ______ might _____________ us to _________" (1 Peter 3:18).
 

5) “I live by the Ten Commandments”

            But how well do you live by the ten commandments? Are you a law keeper or a law breaker? Have you always given God first place in your life--every hour of every day (Exodus 20:3)? ____ Have you always respected and obeyed your parents (Exodus 20:12)? _____ Have you ever stolen anything (Exodus 20:15)? _____ Have you ever lied (Exodus 20:16)? _____

            Christ Jesus came into the world to save guilty law breakers. There are only two ways to have eternal life: 1) You must keep God's law perfectly and never break any of His commandments (Matthew 19:17; Luke 10:25-28)  or   2) You must believe in Jesus Christ and trust Him to save you (John 6:47).

            Is it better to live by trying to keep the law (Galatians 3:10) or is it better to live by faith (Galatians 3:9 and 2:20)? ___________________________________________ No sinful person has ever kept God's commandments perfectly. We have all fallen short and we have all broken the greatest commandment of all (Matthew 22:36-38)!
 

6) “I don't need to be saved. I already go to church.”

            Does the church save or does Christ save (Matthew 1:21)? ________________________ Can a person go to church and even be a church member, and not be saved? Being religious and going to church does not make a person fit for heaven. Man does not need religion, he needs a relationship with God (John 17:3).
 

7) “I'm already a Christian because my parents are Christians.”

            Is salvation something that can be passed down from parents to children? How does a person become a child of God (John 1:12)?  ________________________________________________________________ Those who receive Christ are children of God, but God does not have any “grandchildren.” Your parents cannot trust Christ for you. This is something that you must do for yourself. Your parents can teach you, pray for you and point you to the Saviour, but you are the one who must believe on Christ. If being a Christian depended on having Christian parents, then what about those who do not have Christian parents? Would there be no hope for them?
 

8) “I'll have another chance after death”

            God tells us exactly what we should expect after death: “And as it is appointed unto men __________ to die, but after this the _____________________" (Hebrews 9:27).

            In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus gave us a glimpse of what lies beyond the grave. Did God give the rich man a second chance? _____ Did God allow him to pass from the place of torment to the place where Abraham was (verse 26)? ______

            What a man does in this life will determine where he will spend eternity. Those who are in heaven in the next life are those who were saved in this life!
 

9) “God Is loving and will never condemn anyone to hell.”

            Is God a loving God (John 3:16)? _____ Circle the correct answer:

a.   God so loved the world that He overlooked man's sin and allowed everyone to have eternal life.

b.   God so loved the world that He sent His Son to save and rescue lost sinners who deserve to perish.

            God is loving, but He is also JUST! Would a human judge be JUST if he allowed criminals to go unpunished? ____ Would a human judge be very fair if he said, “I know you robbed the bank and shot the teller at the window, but because I'm a loving and kind judge I'll forget about that and I will pardon you”? _____

            And how loving are we?  Is it very loving for men to reject the very One who died on the cross to save them from hell? Did God send Christ to condemn the world (John 3:17)? _____ Why did He send Christ (John 3:17)? _____________________________________________ What people are condemned (John 3:18)? ____________________________________

10) “Everyone will eventually be saved”

            Did Jesus teach that someday all men will be saved (Matthew 7:13-14)? _____ Did Jesus teach that some people would be punished forever (Matthew 25:41-46)? ______ Did Jesus teach that there are many roads that lead to heaven and many ways to get there (John l4:6)? ______

*     *     *     *     *     *

            What are some other objections or excuses people might bring up? How would you answer them?

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