“For we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things [done] in the body, according to what he hath done, whether [it be] good or bad.” NIV Col 3:5

“For he that doeth wrong shall receive again for the wrong that he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.” NIV Acts 4:12

“And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.” (2 Corinthians 5: 10 NIV)

My last year at the seminary I had an intriguing roommate. He was from the land of the rising sun and before arriving to his destination, he had traveled all over Russia by train, a dream that had been his since childhood. This young man was absolutely amazing. You could pick up any book, ask him to read it out loud, and while he was doing so, you could slowly turn the book upside down and back. He would continue to read as if the pages hadn’t moved.

His favorite pass time was traveling, and one day he asked me if he could borrow my car. Since he was such a terrific roommate in every way, I didn’t hesitate to give him the keys. I was in the middle of a discussion with other students at the time, and I didn’t give it another thought until he showed up, looking pale and horrified, half an hour later.

“Hey my friend,” I called. “You’re back! That was fast!”

“Uh . . .” He began, and if possible his face paled further. ” . . . I had a little problem!”

“A problem?” I asked, not yet feeling the alarm he obviously portrayed. “What kind of a problem?”

“Uh . . . Your car is in the ditch!”

Now my own face paled. “In the ditch? What happened?”

“Well, I was driving along, minding my own business, when a truck appeared in my lane, heading straight for me! It would have been a sure head-on collision if I hadn’t driven it into the ditch!”

“Are you all right?” I asked.

“I’m fine,” was his answer. “Just a little shaken up. I’m just concerned about your car.”

“Are there any damages?”

“None at all. At least I don’t think there are any. But I can’t get it out of the ditch.”

I didn’t figure that would be much of a problem. “We’ll just ask my buddies to come help us out and the car will be out of the ditch in one, two, three,” I reassured him. “By the way, where did it happen?”

“It happened close to the chapel,” he explained. “I’ve never seen anything like it. Why can’t people stay on their own side of the road!”

While we were walking towards the ditch that contained my “stuck” car, my Japanese friend’s eyes opened up wide. “What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Didn’t you see that car?”

“The one that just passed us?” I asked. “Yes, I saw it!”

“Didn’t you see that he was driving on the wrong side of the road?”

“No,” I responded, puzzled. “He was on the right side!”

“The RIGHT side?” asked my friend obviously puzzled. “Shouldn’t he be driving on the left side?”

Then it dawned on me. My roommate, who was from a country that drove on the left side of the road, didn’t know that in mainland Europe, cars drove on the right side. Unknowingly he was the reason my car was in the ditch! He had been driving on the wrong side all along! And when brought face to face with a car driving on the wrong side, instead of moving over to where he should have been driving, he chose the ditch. I felt so sorry for him, and I spent the rest of our walk to my car persuading him that we all make mistakes. We had a good laugh afterwards.

And we all DO make mistakes! And just like my Japanese roommate, one day we will have to face up to them. There will be a day when we will be facing our Almighty God and we will have to give accounts to how we spent our time on this planet. We may think: “Oh, God is all loving. He will forgive everyone.” And yes, His forgiveness IS for everyone, but only when we accept Jesus’ gift.

Or maybe we think that there is no God, so we have nothing to worry about. Again, what if we are wrong? Are we ready to face the consequences of our actions?

There is only one way to avoid the penalty of hell bestowed on all sinners: Accepting the blood of Jesus. He is the One who made it possible for us to be reconciled with God. He willingly died in our place so that we could live for eternity in His presence. The only catch is that we need to accept His offer. Ignoring it keeps us guilty of our sins, keeps us heading straight for trouble, and the consequences are worse than being stuck in a ditch.

Are you on the right side of the road?

Oh no! A truck is coming right towards you! What will you do?

Rob Chaffart