“If You Died Tonight, Would You . . .”

            My guess is that you can finish the headline of this essay. It is the opening line used for millions of evangelistic conversations. People going door to door. Kids on the beach. Bosses or workers in offices. Total strangers on subways or busses. “If you died tonight, would you go to heaven or hell?”

            I don’t recall ever using that approach with a stranger. I’m not even sure I’ve used it with people I know reasonably well. It isn’t that I want to fuss with people who use that approach, for I’m sure there will be people with Christ forever because someone used that line to get them to thinking about salvation.

            It’s just that most of us aren’t going to die tonight or tomorrow. We’ll live another few days and weeks, perhaps months and years. That’s why I think a better question might be this: “If you wake up tomorrow, do you have a clear plan for using the day to honor Christ by the way you will use it?”

            Think about it. When Jesus talked about what would happen after death, he asked people to think about what they had done for people who were sick, cold, hungry, and homeless. He even wanted to know if they had gone to people who were serving jail sentences. He didn’t ask about the sorts of things we tend to have on our lists. He wanted to know about the fruits of righteousness.

            Jesus clearly believed what his brother in the flesh wrote: “What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, ‘Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well’ – but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless” (James 2:14-17 NLT).

            See there? No mention of the Sinner’s Prayer, baptism, or church attendance – whether Sunday or special services. The focus for Jesus and James wasn’t one-time or special events. It was about a type of faith that went so deep that it actually transforms the person who has it. It makes her into a generous and sympathetic person. It produces integrity in his business dealings and fidelity to his family. It makes others glad they get to be around them.

            So let’s assume that you aren’t going to die tonight. What is in your plan for tomorrow that would count as evidence you’d have gone to heaven if you had?