Last Sunday was known in the American English speaking world as “Super Sunday” the day of the “Big Game.” For those that don’t pay attention to sports, I am talking about the Super Bowl.

For over half the game, the Baltimore Ravens were outplaying the San Francisco 49ers. Now, I am a staunch Pittsburgh Steelers fan and if there is a team we hate, it’s the Ravens. However, I was rooting for the Ravens in this case, so I was pretty happy about the fact that they were double digits in points ahead of the Niners. It really looked like Baltimore was gonna run away with the game.

That’s until the lights went out. Oh yes, the fact that Ravens were leading 28-6 in the third quarter on the grandest stage in football wasn’t dramatic enough, suddenly, half the stadium was plunged into…well, I can’t say darkness, more like shadow. For 33 minutes, the teams stretched on the sidelines or chatted with their teammates. I remember thinking, if the lights don’t come back on, will they call the game?

That might seem unfair to the Forty-whiners…sorry, Forty-Niners, but let’s face it, they had been playing the same amount of time as their opponents; they just hadn’t scored. Had their chance…muffed it.

It hit me that many people put off thinking about their spiritual life and their eternal destiny until later in their lives. They plan on doing that “tomorrow” or “in the future.” That is a foolish attitude to have.

Your life could end tomorrow. Wait, it could end today. With no second chances after death, this life is for you to make the decision where you will end up when your eyes close for the last time.

Rather than listing all the ways that won’t get you to heaven, I’ll just tell you the only way to heaven.

“Jesus said to him [the disciple Thomas] ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me.'” (John 14:6)

I don’t care if you’re a spiritual person who loves the idea of a God that loves and accepts everyone, because He will not, He cannot accept you into His presence if you are a sinner, and believe me, if you are breathing and reading this, you are human and therefore, a sinner. We all are. Every. Single. One.

Hence Jesus. He is God, so He couldn’t be a sinner. He was also fully man so that He could take the punishment of sin and die. Death is punishment for sin, that’s how we know we’re sinners. Because we all will die. Jesus took that death and conquered it.

So, that was His part. Our part is to accept 1) We have sinned. 2) We are going to die because of that, and 3) Nothing we can do can erase or forgive our sin except 4) Trusting in the finished work of Jesus the Savior for dying for our sins.

It’s as simple as that.

One day, God will say “light’s out” on your life. Had the Super Bowl ended in the third quarter, there would have been a lot of heartbroken 49ers fans, but that heartbreak is nothing compared to dying and ending up in hell and the fact that you’re separated from God forever.

But if you do make the decision to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31), there is only abundant joy forever.