've always loved to walk down railroad tracks on a warm summer afternoon. I'd look ahead and think about where the rails would eventually lead. But unless I had a map, the only way to find out where the tracks would go was to keep on walking.
Occasionally I'd encounter a switch, an intriguing device that allowed a train, that otherwise had no control over its path, to make a change of direction. Any railroad vehicle couldn't change tracks without one. On a double-track railroad, a special system of switches called a 'crossover' allows a train to change from one track to the other (as in the photo at right).
Our lives, like trains, are running down one track on a double track mainline. Both tracks on the mainline parallel each other for some distance, then diverge. One leads to life, the other death. All of us have ended up on the track to death as a result of our own sin (Romans 3:23). There is no way that we can change tracks on our own.
There's good news, though. The builder of the railroad has provided a crossover. All you have to do is choose this switch to change the path of your life.
God has provided a simple way for you to be saved. He sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth as a man, who died to take the punishment that you deserved. After Christ's death on the cross, God raised Him to life again. The Bible says that all you must do to 'cross over' to eternal life is to believe this (John 3:16). So great was the penalty for our sin that Jesus' death was the only sufficient payment. But God loved us enough to make that sacrifice, even though we didn't deserve it (Romans 5:8).
If you've never 'crossed over' to eternal life, you can do it now by coming 'over to the cross'. Just call on Jesus now and tell Him you believe and accept the payment He made for your sins. Then your sins will be forgiven and you'll have the authentic guarantee of eternity in heaven (Romans 10:13). Not only that, but God will send the Holy Spirit to help, teach, comfort and encourage you in your life (Acts 2:38).
I made this decision to believe in Christ in December 1993, while walking along railroad tracks and reading a tract similar to this. Since then God has been changing my life and helping me along the track of life. And all of the signals along the way have been green-over-red: 'All Clear Ahead'.
If you've made a decision for Christ, the Bible says that you should be baptized and join a church that will help you grow in your faith. If you've become a Christian recently, I'd love to hear about it. Just send me an email. I'd like to pray for you that you would grow in your new faith in Jesus Christ.
-Dan Robinson
