Which Way?

Application:

We all have an eternal destination. The choice is ours. But, Jesus wants to write our names in His Book of Life and in an instant change our eternal destination to Heaven!

Materials You Need:

Two signs depicting "HEAVEN" and "HELL" and an arrow sign.
A clear glass canning bottle or large glass (it must be round).
A jug of water.
A dish cloth.

Preparation:

Set up the signs, arrow, water and empty glass as shown in the first picture above.
Place a clear glass in front of the arrow, but the arrow still points to "HELL."
Fill the glass up with water and the arrow now points to "HEAVEN".

Effect:

The Bible tells us that there is a "Way that leads to Destruction," but with Jesus in our life, this changes it to the "Way to that leads to Eternal Life", and an arrow that pointed to "HELL" is seen to instantly change to "HEAVEN".

Texts:

Romans 3:23 and 6:23.

Lesson:

As Christians, we believe that the purpose of our lives is to choose to live with Jesus in Heaven for all eternity. However, if you look at the signs that I have on the table, you will see there is a problem. (Display the two signs and the arrow pointing to Hell). You see, the arrow is pointing in the wrong direction. This is because we all have sin in our lives and Romans 3:23 tells us:

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

Sin is not meeting God's standard of living. It is disobeying God and refusing to obey His commands and instructions. It is also the wilful and rebellious refusal to live according to God's ways. This means we deliberately go our own way and our sin prevents us from heading in the direction that leads to Heaven. It actually directs us toward Hell like our sign!

Going God's Way:

Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages of sin is death, which is to be eternally separated from God. If we do not turn away from our sin, and go God's way, we could eventually find ourselves in Hell. Fortunately, the above verse goes on to tell us:

"The gift of God is eternal life."

I'm going to show you what happens in a person's life, the moment they ask Jesus to be their Lord. God wants our lives to be clean vessels, like this glass. (Hold up the glass and inspect it for cleanliness). I will place this glass in front of the arrow. As you can see, the arrow still points toward "HELL". (Place the empty glass just in front of the arrow sign).

Cleaning Up Our Lives?

Maybe if I clean the glass it will help me get to Heaven. (Clean the glass with a dish cloth). I can do that in my own life by going to church, reading my Bible and by being real good! That should get me to Heaven, shouldn't it? (Let the children respond). It won't? Of course it will, look, I'm putting the glass back in front of the sign. (Place the empty glass in front of the arrow sign again).

See, now it points to Heaven! (Let the children respond). It doesn't? Oh no, you are right, it still points to that hot place and I don't want to go there! Looking at the glass again, it seems that no matter how "clear and clean" our lives are, without Jesus in our lives we are not only empty inside, but we are headed for an eternity in Hell. The Bible says that none of our good deeds can please God and earn us Salvation!

Jesus is the Only Way:

We can't do anything to please God because we cannot reach and keep to His standard and Isaiah 64:6 says:

"All our righteous acts are like filthy rags."

The water in this jug represents Jesus, because it is pure and clean. (Hold up the water jug). Let's see what happens when we pray and ask Jesus to forgive all our sins and come into our lives:

Dear Jesus,
Please forgive me for all the wrong things that I have done and make me clean inside. Come into my life as my Saviour and change my eternal destination to Heaven. Amen.

Changing Our Destination:

(Pour water into the glass until it is full). Look, the direction of the arrow has changed to point toward Heaven! This illusion shows us a truth that can change our lives forever. If we ask the Jesus to forgive our sins, 1 John 1:9 says:

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just
and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Jesus forgives our sin and grants us eternal life. He writes our names in His Book of Life and changes our eternal destination in an instant. When Christ lives in us, and we live in Him, we become children of God and we are on our way to Heaven! Now that God is our Father, the Holy Spirit will fill our lives with joy. He will direct us and make sure that we stay on the road that leads to Heaven.

Perhaps, you would like to invite Jesus to come into your heart today and change the direction of your life. Just talk to Jesus in prayer and ask Him to come into your heart. He will change your eternal destination to Heaven!

Explanation:

This illusion is based on the principle of refraction where light is "bent" through a lens. When water is added to the round bottle, we make the bottle into a lens. The light rays from the arrow are bent so we see a reversed image of the arrow, and this is the effect that we see.

God bless!