It was a typical Sunday at our house, full of the sound of kids having breakfast and getting organized for the day. I wasn’t going to be home much today, as I’d been rostered to drive a bus at the Bathurst 1,000 race at Mt Panorama.
Driving at the Mountain was a regular event over the years, and I enjoyed the hustle and bustle, and I did get to see a fair bit of the race. Getting to meet hundreds of people from around the country and across the world was a bonus as well.
The buses would run from the bottom of the mountain near the pit complex, and travel up the back road to the viewing and camping areas at the top. Back then it was a “free” trip, with the cost being covered in the price of admission. Some people baulked at having to line up, or maybe they thought they had to pay, so they’d walk.
It was a fair hike, and up hill!
The buses would make their way up the hill, and it always intrigued me that coming up to the steepest part of the road, those same people would be attempting to flag the bus down, some waving $20 and $50 notes in an attempt to get us to stop.
It was impossible of course, with sixty plus people on the bus, on the steepest part of the hill, it would have been hard to get started again. Not to mention the fact that we shared the road with cars, police and emergency vehicles, and other heavy vehicles. Stopping in those circumstances was just plain dangerous.
Why couldn’t they just get on at the start like everyone else?
I’m not sure, but I guess that it’s just part of human nature. I remember when I was a boy, my uncle took me up that road, well before it was organized enough to have buses. The place amazed me, and I never thought that I’d be driving a bus, let alone up there. Being in control of the situation is a nice feeling, so whether you are walking or driving yourself, it’s nice to have purpose.
What’s this got to do with the gospel?
Well, Jesus came that we might have life, and brought us the gift of eternal life. Freely offered, freely given, but it must be accepted.
From what I understand, almost all religions offer some sort of salvation after a life of obeying rules and sacrificing, then getting to judgment and finding out if you were good enough to get to heaven or reach nirvana or whatever.
Jesus is different.
He offers eternal life at the start, Then you walk through life with Him, with His strength. You can choose today whether to accept that offer of grace, or reject it and go your own way.
Like the people at the bottom of the hill who thought they were better off going their way, it’s only later that you find that it’s not quite that easy. You can’t work your way to heaven, and you can’t pay your way.
Jesus said that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except by Him. (John 14:6)
What are you going to choose today?
In Western society, we seem to be caught up in a cycle of “my truth” and “your truth”. Perhaps the question that we should be asking today is WHO are we going to choose, Jesus and His way, or me and my way?
Saying that He is the Truth is pretty definite, and worth considering…
Over the years I’ve been accused of using Jesus and Christianity as a crutch to get through life, and I’ve listened to, and watched the people making that accusation as they find their own crutches, and then try to define who they are by their culture, or thier wealth and position. But at the end of the day, those things don’t count.