Our world is full of passwords. I’m sure I must have a dozen different ones for various computer accounts. If I lost my password book I would be in huge difficulty. Through the years it has gotten difficult to use because of having to change passwords that have timed out. The old passwords are crossed out with new ones scribbled in any available space. My great grandmother’s maiden name just doesn’t work anymore because now we have to add &*%#’s. No, that isn’t code for bad words. It really is &*%#.
In Judges 12 there is an interesting story about the password Shibboleth. One could know the word but if they did not pronounce it correctly, not only did it keep them out, it meant death. Ouch. 42,000 were killed. (And we think the world is violent now!) So what’s the password for heaven? If we don’t know it, it also means death. Paul lets out the secret in Romans 10:13. “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” And we don’t have to worry about pronunciation. You don’t even have to say it. All you need to do is think it! We don’t have to worry about it timing out. As He is eternal so it is eternal.
Now I realize some will say, “Hey, that is too easy. You are giving away heaven.” And my answer is, “You’re right. It is easy. But I’m not the one giving heave away. Jesus is.” Do you remember the parable about those who complained about workers who only worked one hour receiving the same as those who worked all day? I have always loved the master’s response, “Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?” God is generous!
Written by Roger Bothwell on July 14, 2016
PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
rogerbothwell.org