You've heard the quote, "Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than being in a garage makes you a car." Have you ever thought about what that really meant? Have you ever asked yourself if that quote pertains to you? What does being a Christian even mean?

Growing up, I never doubted God's existence. I knew he created the universe, He sent His only perfect son to die on the cross for my sins. I knew that sentence and I labeled myself as a believer because I knew who God was and I went to church on Sundays. I prayed to him when I needed help, I thanked him for my life and everything in it, I didn't do drugs and I was a pretty good person.

Yeah, I partied and may not have seemed like a Christian during the week, but since I went to church and I believed that everything was in His plan, I could just pray for forgiveness and I'd be good to go... The bible says He loves me, right? That belief was what I ran with. That was my "ticket into heaven," I guess.

What I didn't realize was that believing in God wasn't my ticket. Believing in God didn't make me a Christian. Believing that He has a plan didn't mean that I trusted His plan. Which brings me to the question I faced around this time last year; what is the difference between believing and trusting in God?

Let's say you went to a doctor's appointment tomorrow and were told that you had cancer... It wasn't looking good. In fact, you don't have much time left to live. "However," the doctor says, "Not many people know about this and it's not in the media... but there's actually this pill we have. If you take it, you won't die. You'll be completely healed and in full health."

What are you gonna do? Well, most would say they'd take the pill. You're not going to live unless you do. It's the same thing with God. You can believe that something is going to save your life but that's not going to do any good. It requires action, or "taking the pill," if you will. It requires you to be willing to give up anything for a life with Him. It requires you to repent of your sins and do all things for His glory. He can't just be your Savior, He has to be your Lord too.

Another thing I didn't realize was that heaven isn't a default destination. We're all doomed for Hell. We were all born with evil hearts and no sinner is worse than the other. My best friend showed me Romans 6:23. It was the first time I had ever dug deep into scripture. She broke it up into three different parts.

"For the wages of sin is death..." Because we were born with an evil heart, we have earned Hell. "...but the free gift of God is eternal life..." because our Creator loves us so much, he wants to give us this gift of a perfect heaven even though we have done nothing to deserve it. "...in Christ Jesus our Lord." Nothing we do on earth will make us deserving enough for this gift. Endless bible studies and going to church every week will not give you this gift. Telling people you're a Christian and locking yourself in your room instead of going out on the weekends will not give you this gift. It's because of what Jesus did that gives us this gift.

This is what the quote is talking about. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than being in a garage makes you a car. It's like throwing pebbles into the Grand Canyon. I went to church. *throws pebble* I joined a ministry. *throws pebble* I went on a mission trip. *throws pebble* I donated money to charity, I did something nice for someone, I prayed that God would save me so that must mean I'm saved.

These are are little pebbles you are throwing in hopes that they will build up to the very top of the Grand Canyon so you can walk across to the other side. That's impossible! There's no way you're going to throw enough pebbles.

So what gets us to the other side? The cross. It builds a bridge for us. You walk across a bridge because you trust it will hold you up long enough for you to get to the other side, right? That cross is your bridge. Trusting that Jesus lived a perfect life of no sin, and died a death that you deserved on that same cross you're walking across is what gets you to the other side.

So what's on the other side of the cross you're walking on? That, my friend, is eternal life with Jesus Christ, your perfect Creator who has been fighting for you since the day you were born. Your Father who will never walk away from you, will never stop loving you, and will fulfill every empty hole in your heart for the rest of your life.

Do you trust that bridge will hold you? Are you going to take the pill? Are you going to stop calling yourself a car every time you walk into a garage? Are you going to give your life up to Christ?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17