Recently, I found out there are morgues on cruise ships. I never thought people would die on a cruise, but when you have thousands of people comprising the population of a small town, the odds are someone will die along the way. 

It reminded me of some of our churches, not as an accusation that something is wrong. It is simply a fact of life. Not all who say they follow Jesus do. Amidst the worship and fellowship of our gatherings, some of those who travel with us and who we thought would be part of our ministry to the final destination are spiritually dead.

The first verse of Scripture I memorized as an 8-year-old boy was John 3:16. I learned it from the old King James version, “For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

The word “believeth” is a verb. It requires action – a choice. This word is defined as embracing Jesus, not just as a concept. It is our conviction and trust that Jesus is the Messiah. It is a belief that Jesus is God’s divinely appointed author of our salvation. This belief, as a result of that choice, will create a lifestyle of obedience to the Lord.

For years we have preached that Jesus didn’t give altar calls. That belonging led to belief because we chose to walk His path. All of that is true, but not to the extent that the verb “believe” was removed from the equation of our faith. At some point, without making that personal choice, we will die in our sin and be placed in a morgue while the ship of our worship expression moves forward toward its eternal destination. 

Maybe it is time to offer those attending our public and private gatherings a simple explanation of what is at stake eternally for not activating our faith by a simple recognition of Jesus and who He is as our Redeemer. It is our choice to make. Years ago, a pastor friend of mine once told me the reason why he invited people to come to Jesus. He said it’s because “Eternity is at stake.”