Bridge to LifeSample

Can You Hear Me Now? Remember those old Verizon Wireless commercials? From 2002-2011, the Verizon “Test Man” character wore a gray Verizon jacket and a pair of horn-rimmed glasses as he asked the question, “Can you hear me now?” while holding a cell phone to his ear. The goal, of course, was to bring maximum cell coverage while eliminating all the dead spots. You can almost imagine Jesus asking a similar question as he traveled from place to place during his earthly ministry. In John 5:24 he says, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (NIV) Some translations begin this verse with, “Truly, truly…” (ESV, NASB) or “Verily, verily…” (KJV). When Jesus introduced a statement with two words in a row like this, he was calling attention to the importance of the words which would follow. Our listening ears should be fine-tuned to take note instantly of what Jesus is going to say. “Can everyone hear me now?” Jesus is about ready to tell His listeners how they can secure eternal life which is no small matter. It boils down to hearing the words of the Son of God and believing the Father who sent His Son. In order to hear something, we need to position ourselves to listen closely. To believe something is to put our full weight into. When we sit down on a chair, we are trusting that it will hold our full weight. It’s not merely agreeing that Jesus was a person who existed in history, but truly believing that He’s my only means of salvation from my sin. If you’ve ever done something called the “trust fall”, you know there’s a point of no return as you fall backwards, trusting others to catch you. When you and I place our full trust in Jesus and His Father, we are doing a trust fall into their arms. It’s a position of total surrender with no “Plan B” in our back pocket. The last half of John 5:24 says that the person who hears and believes, “will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” Jesus is the bridge that allows us to cross from the zip code of death into the zip code of life. Our sin created such a deep and wide chasm between us and God that nothing could bridge the gap outside of the cross that Jesus spilled his blood and died upon. “There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone.” (1 Timothy 2:5-6a NLT) Some may say, “I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.” Please don’t delay. None of us is guaranteed tomorrow. (James 4:14) Jesus, the “Bridge to Life”, stands ready for you to place your full weight into Him. Can you hear Him now? Prayer: "Father, I believe You sent Your Son into this world to save me from the destruction I deserve. I acknowledge there is no other way to salvation outside of Jesus. When I was well on my way toward eternal death, You reached into my life and brought me into Your eternal life. Give me ears to hear and eyes to see the wonder of Your Word. It's in the glorious name of Jesus I pray, amen." To download your Bridge to Life coloring pages, lettering practice sheets, and prayer journal, please go to Living Colors Online