The Question that Hit a Spiritual Home Run posted by jwatson on Mar 26, 2012

My entire life has revolved around a church community whether I was singing in the children’s choir, attending youth group, getting involved in a college ministry, or volunteering with a youth ministry.  I thought for a while that my attendance at church and its activities made me a Christian, then, at FCA in October of 1992, I learned that my good works could never gain me favor with God.

As I sat in our high school auditorium, the leader of our FCA, Coach A (for Atkinson) asked us a poignant question: “If you were to die today and stand before the Lord, and He asked you why He should let you into His heaven, what would your answer be?” I quickly ran through my list of reasons. I knew I had this one right. “Well Lord, I’ve gone to church all of my life, I’m a good kid, I help people, I am a Boy Scout. That’s why you should let me in.” Coach A followed with some rhetoric that seemed to give confidence to my answer. “Some of you may have said that you go to church, you are a good kid, you help people.” I internally nodded, encouraging myself that I was right with God and that He would be honored to have me in His Kingdom.

Then Coach A hit me with a metaphorical baseball bat. “If those are your answers, you’re wrong.” I was entirely confused. All that I had just asserted came crashing down in one fell swoop. If those weren’t the answers, then I have no hope. He said that our answer needed to be Jesus – that all of those other things were trusting in yourself and that we needed to trust in Jesus’ death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sin. I saw Jesus in a new light. I didn’t know I was repenting, but I did so right there in my seat and I then placed my faith in Christ.

I knew all along that Christ died on the cross for my sins, but I had not really thought that you needed to make a decision to place your trust in His person and work; I thought it just came with my lifestyle.  I became humbled by the fact that I was a sinner and I needed a suffering servant to take away my sin so I believed on Christ as my Savior!

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This is the testimony of and written by Dr. Andy Johnson.