P.O. Box 53055    
Los Angeles, CA 90053   

KNOCKING ON HEAVEN'S DOOR #9

OUR ACE IN THE HOLE

There's a wonderful old story making the rounds these days, written by Robert Strand. It's entitled The Final Bid, and has to do with the art collection of an English baron named Fitzgerald. This man had lost his wife, and then his son, both to premature deaths. But even during all the grieving, he used the Fitzgerald wealth to build up a valued collection of the great "masters."

Finally, when he died as well, eager collectors and museum curators from all over gathered to bid on the paintings. The entire art estate was being auctioned off.

As the story's told, the auctioneer prefaced the sale with a little painting — locally done, not very good — of the baron's son. Nobody really wanted it, but people hung around because they were eager to get to the Picassos and Rembrandts that were soon to come. Finally an old servant who had worked for the Fitzgeralds for many years bought the painting for sentimental reasons . . . and paid less than a pound for the paint-by-the-numbers little portrait. Everybody kind of sniffed and said, "Okay, that's over with. Now let's get on with the real stuff."

But the auctioneer abruptly stopped the whole thing. "Auction's over." What?! People began to throw their checkbooks at him. But he told them: "It says in the Baron Fitzgerald's will: ‘Whoever buys the painting of my son GETS . . . ALL my art collection.' The auction is over."

You can understand that Christian preachers and writers would like a story like that one, because of its obvious moral. Especially as we explore a Christian truth like the one where Jesus says: "I am the Door." Friend, if you have Jesus, then you have it all. You get eternal life and fellowship with the Father and the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life and all the promises of the Bible and everything. A mansion in heaven. The guarantee of "no more disease, no more tears, no more death." A reunion with your loved ones who have died. If you have Jesus — if you walk through His Door — then you get it all.

In fact, Christ Himself said, in Matthew 6:

"Seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God, and His righteousness." Which we do, of course, by seeking JESUS, by walking through that Door. Then His conclusion: "And all THESE things shall be added unto you."

I want to very personally share with you today a reason I rejoice in that promise. In fact, I want to call it a protection.
Just a few months ago, we had a painful moment happen here at our radio ministry. A radio station contacted us and said they were cancelling the program. How come? This was very difficult news to hear. They served an important market; we liked their station. We felt honored to be on it. What was the matter?

As the station manager — a fine Christian man — explained it to us, on one week of radio broadcasts, we had shared a biblical perspective from a dramatically different slant than they held to. We were suggesting X, and they were quite convinced that Y was closer to the truth. Several listeners had called in. A couple of local pastors had registered their opinions. And to this very sincere station manager, it just didn't serve the community to have any kind of controversy over the topic in question.

Now, this is a relatively rare occurrence . . . but there it was before us. The station in question was absolutely gracious and fair, but their decision held firm. We continue to be brothers and sisters in Jesus, but this one Bible teaching is still an "X or Y" point of difference.

And we had to do some thinking and soul-searching after that episode. Because here we are on the radio, on several hundred stations. Some overseas broadcasts. Internet listeners. And just on this daily broadcast, we're airing 260 radio sermons a year.

Do you realize how sobering that is? What if, in our Bible study, we make errors? Everyone who works here — me, Ken, Armando, David — we're all humans. We're all sinners. Our study skills are limited. Our interpretive abilities are finite. And all four of us — in fact, the entire staff — brings to the table of Christian dialogue the denominational heritage of just one church. What happens when we get something wrong over the air? Or in a letter we write? Or in a Bible lesson in our Discover Bible Course? All the prayers, all the sincerity in the world don't mean that human men and women, frail vessels that we are, won't get something wrong. It's going to happen. It'll be on the script wrong; it'll come out of my mouth wrong, and it will come through your radio speaker and into your ears wrong.

And you know, really, all I can say to that is two things: First of all, God help us. And I mean that reverently.

The second thing I say to you is this: "Thank God we have Jesus!" For my sake and for your sake: "Thank God we have Jesus!"

Now, why do I mean that . . . besides the million obvious reasons? Because of this vital principle right here: "Doctrines are important, but JESUS saves." If you are saved in God's kingdom, and if I am saved there, it won't be because we had all of our doctrines in a row. It won't be because we were correct on the radio for 70 years. It will be because we walked through the Door marked Jesus Christ. It will be because of Calvary.

Friend, I can't tell you what a precious safeguard that is! Jesus is the Door! I might slip and fall over some teaching I don't understand. I might get something in my head wrong, and share it with you incorrectly. But if we have both walked through this Door, if we have both embraced Calvary, then we're protected. We can study truth together in perfect safety — agreeing sometimes, disagreeing sometimes, but in perfect safety.

In recent months many good Christians and believing scientists have been wrestling with various concepts regarding Creation Week and the age of the earth. How do we reconcile what APPEAR to be scientific facts with the plain words of Scripture? How do people of faith respond to various bits of evidence which point in various directions? Good people, honest scholars, peer into their microscopes and plot geological tables on their laptop computers. And sometimes when the evidence prints out, they don't know what to do with it. Now friend, I haven't waded into that fray. That's someone else's challenge to grapple with, not mine. But I would say again: Thank God we have Jesus! Thank God we have that Door we've walked through. We're going to all be in heaven someday as God Himself, the great Creator, explains how He did it all. We could be wrong in what we thought, and still be perfectly safe, as long as we have walked through the Door into eternal life.

There's an old joke floating around that maybe you've heard . . . and let me put some frosting on it right here. A man gets up to heaven and meets St. Peter at the gate. And he says to the venerable gatekeeper: "What have I got to do to get in this place?" And Peter says: "Basically, it takes a thousand points." Have you heard this one? So the man thinks and thinks. "Uh, I went to church every week my whole life." Great. That's two points. What?! Only two? And I need a thousand? "I was faithful to my wife — never cheated on her." Wonderful. That's another point. Now he's up to three. He thinks and thinks. He gave lots and lots of offerings. There's a point. He served as a missionary. That's a point. And here I could start adding: He had correct doctrinal interpretation. One point for that. He knew and understood all the prophecies of Daniel. One point. In terms of the debate on premillennialism, postmillennialism, pre-trib, post-trib, the rapture, etc., he had picked the right model. One point for that. Regarding the many discussions going on about the human soul and death and the afterlife, he was correct there. One point. The balance between faith and works — one point. Is speaking in tongues a biblical gift in modern times? A point for knowing about that. And the list goes on and one — and even this wonderful Christian is up to maybe ten or eleven points total, with one THOUSAND being the benchmark.

And finally he cries in despair: "Woe is me! This is hopeless! The only way I'll ever get in will be through the grace of Jesus Christ!" And St. Peter throws open the gate. "Come on in!"

Well, friend, speaking of points . . . do you GET the point? Our discussions and debates are fine. We dialogue with you as humbly and respectfully as we can. But how very thankful I am that ALL of us, as we visit together, have JESUS. If you and I don't see eye-to-eye on some biblical doctrine — we can be eternally SAFE in our dialogue, because we have Jesus.

Our ministry founder, Pastor H. M. S. Richards, began preaching on the radio in 1929. Over the many decades, and multiplied THOUSANDS of sermons, I know he made mistakes. He predicted certain prophecies would pan out a certain way . . . and they didn't. Now he's gone and so are those predictions. But friend, his SALVATION didn't depend on those predictions. When people asked him, "Brother Richards, what's the message?", they always got the same two-word answer. "Jesus only." That was his ace in the hole, his protection. And it's ours today and always.