Our sincere thanks to Judy Notchick,

Jaylene Daugherty, and Anita Alvarado

for typing these transcripts, and to

Melissa Day and the staff of Living Waters

for their editorial help

Springboards for Budding Preachers

Published by:

Living Waters Publications

P.O. Box 1172

Bellflower, CA 90707

www.LivingWaters.com

© 2006 by Ray Comfort. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means—electronic, mechanical, photographic (photocopying), recording, or otherwise—without prior permission in writing from the author.

E-book edition created 2014

ISBN 978-1-878859-33-1 (PDF)

ISBN 978-1-878859-24-2 (ebook)

Introduction

This publication contains transcripts of dozens of open-air preaching sessions which we hope will help you to better reach the lost in your area. If you’d like to listen to the audio versions of these messages, they are available at www.LivingWaters.com/audio/springboards.

To understand the biblical principles conveyed in these messages, we strongly suggest that you be familiar with two foundational teachings: “Hell’s Best Kept Secret” and “True and False Conversion.” You can freely listen to these online at www.HellsBestKeptSecret.com.

To learn more about open-air preaching—how to attract a crowd, handle hecklers, etc.—see The Evidence Bible (Bridge-Logos). For actual open-air preaching footage, see our “Way of the Master” television program, Season Four: Mission Europe. In this 13-DVD set, join Ray Comfort and his faithful team as they travel across thirteen European countries in just thirteen days, witnessing to individuals and preaching open-air to crowds in each country. You will be captivated as you see members of the team being held by Italian police, as they preach outside the famed Notre Dame in beautiful Paris, and as an angry and drunken crowd becomes unruly when they hear the gospel in Belgium. Watch as the team witnesses to the lost at Germany’s infamous Oktoberfest and in the bars of liberal Amsterdam. This resource is available at www.LivingWaters.com.

Contents

Ray Comfort: Introduction

You’ve Violated God’s Law

California Girl

Evil Roy Slade

Falling Boxes

How Could I Have Missed?

I Am the Center of the Universe

Jesus Christ Superstar

John Wayne’s Real Name

Mexican Eye Peckers

No Strings Attached

One of the Dumbest Statements

Parking Tickets

Spitless Natives

The Fifty-Dollar Cat

The A-Frame Roof

The Bible and All It Contains

The Cat Up the Tree

The Chickens and the Curve

The Fly

The Persistent Spider

The World’s Most Valuable Commodity

The Wrong Apartment

The Wrong Key

Tomatoes and Classical Music

Unique—Just like Everyone Else

Roller-Skate in a Buffalo Herd

Judas Was in Charge of the Finances

Emeal (“E.Z.”) Zwayne: Introduction

Cutting the Cord

Grasping His Greatness

He Healed Our Wounds

Lord, Lord

On the Brink of Eternity

Setting the Standard

The Invincibility Complex

The Medium

Transforming Touch

True Value

Who Can Tell Me?

What Will It Profit?

Stuart (“Scotty”) Scott: Introduction

The Mirror of the Law

Notes

Resources

RAY COMFORT

Introduction

There is one God who’s perfect, holy, and righteous. You have violated God’s Law. You cannot guarantee another breath. Have you loved God with heart, mind, soul, and strength?” Down through the ages, God raised up such men as George Whitefield, John Wesley, and others to preach where people gathered. “Come to your senses!” In the open-air. “God is rich in mercy to all that call upon Him!”

Charles Spurgeon said,“No sort of defense is needed for preaching out of doors. But it would need very potent arguments to prove that a man had done his duty who has never preached beyond the walls of his meeting place.” “Think soberly about your eternal salvation. Repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ. You’ll pass from death into life, darkness into light. Instead of God being afar off, He’ll be your closest friend. He’ll seal you to His Holy Spirit and make you a new person. You’ll be born again with a new heart and new desires.”

It is our conviction that God is raising up men and women who will faithfully preach truths that are calculated to bring about revival. Men and women who are not afraid to lift up their voice like a trumpet and show this people their transgressions. “God became a human being in Jesus Christ and this perfect, sinless Man gave His life as a sacrifice for the sin of the world!”

Hi, this is Ray Comfort. For twelve years I preached almost daily in “Speaker’s Corner” in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. During those years, I learned that there were certain principles that should be used to be effective when open-air preaching: how to draw a crowd, how to begin speaking, how to hold their attention, what subjects to cover. But a number of years ago, my son-in-law, E.Z., and I began preaching outside the local courthouse here in the city of Bellflower, California. The dynamic changed completely from what I was used to. We didn’t have to draw a crowd—they were already there. Each day between forty and sixty people lined up waiting to see the judge and they couldn’t get away.

The area in which we spoke was public domain and the local sheriff personally assured me that I had a First Amendment right to be there. So E.Z. and I preached at the courts almost every day for two and a half years. One day I asked our soundman, Scotty, to begin recording the preaching. So he showed up wearing these large earphones. He had a boom pole stretched up about six feet with a shotgun microphone on the top. He’s wearing a battery pack, wires everywhere, and he sat right in the middle of the crowd in the line. Someone remarked,“Now there goes an extremely deaf person.” It was really funny. And as time went on he became more discreet as he recorded us.

Ironically, after thirty days of recording, two police officers stopped me from speaking and issued me a court order. They said that a judge had declared that it was no longer legal to speak there. At the end of the last message, you’ll hear them pull me aside and issue me a court order. It was an obvious infringement on our First Amendment rights. We knew that the judge had no right to do that. So at present our lawyers are suing him for twenty-five dollars, and said that we’ll be back there preaching very soon.

In the meanwhile, Scotty and I went to our local DMV and found even more people lined up, and we began preaching there. The California Highway Patrol told us that we needed a permit to hand out tracts, but amazingly they said that it was our First Amendment right to preach there. So being stopped at the courts actually caused us to find another place to preach the gospel. You might like to check at your own courthouses or local DMV as potential places for you to preach.

Recordings of these open-air sessions are available at www.LivingWaters.com/audio/springboards. Whether you prefer to listen or read, it’s our hope that God will use these sessions to encourage and equip you. Each message begins with a very polite introduction, who we are, etc. We’ve left one or two introductions in for you as examples. Then the message begins in the natural realm, using a thought-provoking springboard as an “attention-getter.” Then we spring to the spiritual, go through the Law, opening up the Commandments, into Judgment Day, the reality of Hell, into the cross, the resurrection, repentance, the necessity of faith, then a call to immediate action. Always remember you’re heading for the cross.

To conclude, we always thank people for their attention and offer a free “What Hollywood Believes” CD (available at www.LivingWaters.com).

It’s vital to enrich the gospel with the Word of God because Scripture has the promise that it won’t return void. It’s quick and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, and cuts through to the marrow of the bones. In the following transcripts, you’ll find biblical references for Scriptures used in each message.

Please feel free to use these springboards and make them your own; they’re not copyrighted. Thank you so much for your concern for the lost. May God bless you as you serve Him.

You’ve Violated God’s Law

Some of you are here today because you have allegedly violated man’s law. The Bible alleges that both you and I have violated God’s Law; that is, the Ten Commandments. So what I’m going to do is put you on the stand, just for a few moments, and examine you under the light of that Law. You can make the determination of your innocence or your guilt, and what your eternal destiny will be, whether it be a place called Heaven or a place called Hell. So this is a very important issue and I’d be grateful for your attention.

Let’s begin with the Ninth Commandment, “You shall not bear false witness.”¹ Have you ever told a lie? Are you innocent or guilty of breaking that Commandment? Or the Eighth, “You shall not steal.”² Have you ever stolen something, irrespective of its value? Or the Third Commandment, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”³ Have you ever used God’s name as a cussword to express disgust—something called blasphemy? Or the Seventh Commandment, “You shall not commit adultery.”⁴ But, guys, listen to what Jesus said of that Commandment. He said, “But I say to you, whoever looks upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery already with her in his heart.”⁵ Have you ever done that? You say, “Man, have I ever done that? That’s all I ever do. I’m guilty of that one.” In fact, you say, “You know I’m guilty of breaking those four Commandments.” Well, if that’s true, on the Day of Judgment, God will see you as a lying, thieving, blasphemous, adulterer at heart—very serious crimes in His sight. And the Bible makes it very clear your eternal destiny will not be Heaven, but a place called Hell. The Scriptures warn, “All liars will have their part in the lake of fire.”⁶ No thief, no adulterer, no fornicator (those who’ve had sex out of marriage) will inherit the Kingdom of God.⁷

You say, “You don’t have to worry about me. I’ll be fine. I won’t end up in Hell, because I confessed my sins to God. I tell Him I’m sorry.” Folks, that won’t help you on the Day of Judgment. That’s like saying to the judge today,“Hey, Judge, I confess I committed the crime. Sorry.” He’d probably say, “So you’re confessing your guilt. You should be sorry. You’ve done wrong.”

No, you need someone who can pay your fine. And, folks, that’s what God did for you and I two thousand years ago. The Bible says He sent forth His Son, made of a woman,⁸ born of a virgin.⁹ Do you know what that means? That means that Jesus of Nazareth was different than you and I. He was morally perfect. He was without sin, and this perfect Man gave His perfect life as a perfect sacrifice for the sin of the world.

Now you know that, because you live in America. You know that Christ died for your sins. We just celebrated Christmas a couple of months ago—the birth of the Savior. We’re celebrating Easter coming up soon—the death and resurrection of the Son of God. We know that Christ died for our sins, but what does it mean to you as an individual? What are the implications?

Let me put it this way. Do you realize that you’re on death row—that you’re waiting to die; that you’re in a holding cell? Normally it has a nice blue roof, good lighting, good air-conditioning—but this life is a holding cell. Ten out of ten die, and the reason you and I will die is because we’ve violated God’s Law. God said, “The soul that sins, it shall die.”¹⁰ The wages of sin is death,¹¹ and the proof that you’ve sinned against God will be your death.

But the same God that the Bible says is the Judge of the Universe is rich in mercy and He sent His Son to suffer and die on the cross on our behalf—to take the punishment for our sins; to pay the fine in His life’s blood. That means God can commute your death sentence. He can nullify your death sentence. He can allow you to live, because of what Jesus did on the cross. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”¹² Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God can now dismiss your case. He can forgive your sins. He can allow you to live. So what must you do?

The Bible says that there are two things you must do. One is, you must repent—turn from your sins. Don’t just confess your sins to God—confess and forsake them; and don’t just “believe” in Jesus—trust in Him, like you trust a parachute to save you. You don’t “believe” in a parachute. You put your faith into it. You put your trust in it. And that’s what you must do with the Savior. And, folks, please do it today. Don’t wait until tomorrow. You don’t know if you’ll be here tomorrow. The only thing you can guarantee for sure is the air going into your lungs at this present moment. You cannot guarantee another breath. That comes by the grace and mercy and patience of God.

Every day 150,000 people die.¹³ They’re swallowed by death. People, like you and me. People with the same desires, same concerns and the same plans for the future. We’ll be snatched into eternity one day, and today could be your turn. Your number could be up. Mine could be up. So please consider seriously your eternal salvation.

* * *

California Girl

The other day I spoke to a young Korean girl. She was dressed kind of different and I wrongly surmised that she would speak to me in broken English. She didn’t. She spoke like a typical California Girl. Lots of “likes” and “totallys.” She had to give a testimony in a church. It was a ten-minute testimony. So as an experiment, I’d see how influenced she was by the American culture … by the California culture. I decided I would count the number of times she said the word “like” … you know, like, like like totally.

In ten minutes, she said “like” 81 times, believe it or not. Eighty one times, like. It really shows that you and I are subconsciously influenced by the culture that surrounds us. We’re influenced by what we say, by what we even eat, by the clothes we wear, how we talk, etc. In fact I could go to a university, I could point out certain people and by the clothes they’re wearing, and I could tell you what music they like, even their life’s philosophy.

The Bible says we’re like sheep.¹⁴ Sheep tend to imitate one another. I come from a country that has a lot of sheep. Seventy million sheep, three million people. A lot of sheep. I can tell you, people are like sheep. Sheep tend to imitate one another. One sheep in the line jumps, the next four, five, six will jump. And I know people are like sheep because I give out a lot of Christian literature, and I know from walking along a line, and one person says, “Yeah, I’ll take one,” the next six people say, “Yeah, I’ll have one too.” One person says, “Nah…no, thanks,” and the next six people will say,“No, thanks.” We are like sheep.

The Bible even says we’re like sheep that are prepared for the slaughter.¹⁵ I don’t know if you realize this today, but that’s so true. You and I are like sheep waiting to be slaughtered. Now one thing when it comes to sheep, when they want to slaughter them … they have what’s called a “Judas” sheep. Because sheep tend to follow one another and imitate one another, the Judas sheep goes to the top of the ramp and turns to the right … the rest of the sheep go forward and get their throats cut.

I want to show you that you’re like the sheep that go to the slaughter, and what I’m going to do, if I may, is take you through the Ten Commandments and show you what a dangerous state you are in. So, please bear with me.

The First of the Ten Commandments says, “I am the Lord your God; you shall have no other gods before Me.”¹⁶ That means, God commands, as your Creator, the giver of life to you, that He be the focal point of your affections. You and I are commanded to love the Lord our God—our Creator—with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves.¹⁷ Do you love the God who gave you life? Do you realize the eyes you see with, the brain you think with, the taste buds you eat with, the ears you hear with, come as a gift from God? You didn’t evolve. You were created by the genius of God’s handiwork.

God has blessed you with this abundant land. You’re not lying in some place in Africa on the dirt with flies crawling across your face. God has blessed you beyond your wildest dreams. Do you love God? It’s only right that you do. Before you say yes, let me ask you another question: Have you ever used God’s name in vain? You say, “Ah, yeah, yeah. I say that GD, JC just slips out.” So what you’ve done is taken the name of the God who gave you life and used it as a cussword to express disgust. Adolf Hitler’s name wasn’t despised enough to use as a cussword, but you’ve taken the name of God and used it in blasphemy, which is a terribly serious sin in God’s sight. The Bible says, “The Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.”¹⁸ So if you’ve ever used God’s name in vain, then you don’t love God.

You love the god of your own creation, the god that is a figment of your imagination; the god that you’ve created to conform to yourself and your own sins. That’s called idolatry when you make a god with your hands or your mind, and the Bible warns idolaters will not inherit the Kingdom of God.¹⁹ The God who gave us life is holy and just and righteous. The Bible says He has “prepared a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness,”²⁰ and the standard with which He’ll judge the world is the Ten Commandments.²¹ Jesus said, “You’ve heard it said by them of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’” but then He said, “But I say to you whoever looks upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery already with her in his heart.”²²What will you do on the Day of Judgment when you stand before God and He judges you by that standard? Ever lied or stolen? Then you are a lying thief, and the Bible says, “All liars have their part in the lake of fire.”²³ No thief will inherit the Kingdom of God. Can you see that you’re waiting as a sheep to the slaughter, and if you die in your sins and God gives you justice, you’ll end up in Hell? Folks, that’s not God’s will. He provided a way for you to be forgiven. And He did it through His Son, Jesus Christ. God became a perfect human being and gave His life on the cross of Calvary, taking the punishment for the sin of the world.

When Jesus was on the cross He was bruised for our iniquities. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”²⁴ Folks, that’s what God offers you today through the gospel: everlasting life. So come to your senses. Do what the Bible says. Repent.²⁵ Turn from your sins and put your trust in the Savior, Jesus Christ. And the moment you do that, you will pass from death into life. You’ll pass from darkness into light. Now Mr. Blower is on his way to blow me away,²⁶ so please think seriously about what you’ve heard today. Get a Bible. Don’t only just pray. Get right with God. Pick up that Bible and obey what you read. The Bible is God’s will for you on this earth. Thank you very much for listening this morning. God bless you.

* * *

Evil Roy Slade

A number of years ago I saw a movie called Evil Roy Slade. You may have seen it yourself. The opening scene is a wagon train being attacked by vicious Indians. Almost everybody is slaughtered by the Indians (it’s a comedy). Then there’s a cry from a crib and an Indian goes up to the crib. He’s dressed in horrific war paint. He pulls back his tomahawk to kill the little baby. As he looks in, he takes a look at the face of this baby—it’s Evil Roy Slade. He looks horrified and runs off in terror. The Indian had gazed on the face of Evil Roy Slade as a baby.

The scene changes and you see the baby walking through the desert. He’s about two years old. He’s wearing diapers; he’s carrying his teddy bear and he’s kicking cactuses. Evil Roy Slade is a two-year-old.

Next scene, twenty years later, you see a six-foot bronze figure, hairy chest…a man fully grown, walking through the desert, still wearing diapers, still holding a teddy bear and still kicking cactuses. Because this is Evil Roy Slade, and what the producers wanted to tell us is that, if you kicked cactuses with bare feet…you’re tough, because you’re the one that gets hurt. Think of it. Kicking cactuses with bare feet, you’re going to get hurt. But not Evil Roy Slade.

Jesus said the same thing to Saul of Tarsus on the Road to Damascus. Saul was a man who was anti-Christian. He was running around “killing Christians for God.” If you read in the Bible, he thought he was doing God a favor by torturing and killing Christians.

The Bible tells us Saul was on the Road to Damascus to kill some more Christians for God, when suddenly a light shone from Heaven, above the brightness of the sun. And a voice came from Heaven, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”²⁷

And Saul said, “Who is it, Lord?” which is a good response—when a voice comes to you from the heavens you’ve got to know it’s the Lord. It’s got to be God.

He said, “Who is it, Lord?” What is Your name? And the voice came back, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.”²⁸ That’s the Old English version. In other words, “Saul, by doing what you’re doing, you’re kicking cactuses with bare feet.” And the same applies for you and me. If we fight against God’s perfect will for our lives, we’re not going to win. We’re kicking cactuses with bare feet. We might as well try to fight a hurricane with our fists, or a tornado by blowing at it, or try to hold back forked lightening. You cannot fight against God.

You say, “What do you mean, ‘Fight against God’? I believe in God; I love God. He’s my friend. I talk to Him regularly.” You know, when I became a Christian thirty something years ago, I got the shock of my life because I saw the Bible tells us that God is not our friend. In fact the Scriptures say God is our enemy. You say, “Ah, man, I don’t believe that.” Well, it’s what the Bible says, and the Bible is God’s Word.

Writing to Christians, Paul said, “You who were once enemies in your mind by wicked works.”²⁹ The Scriptures say that whoever’s a friend of the world is an enemy of God.³⁰ If you think God is your friend it’s probably because you don’t understand your relationship between you and your Creator. You see, we’re not ordinary people standing before God. The Bible tells us we’re criminals standing before a very good and righteous Judge. You say, “I’m not a criminal; I’m a good person.” Well, let’s see. Let me read the Law to you. Let me go through what’s called the Moral Law—the Ten Commandments—and it will help you see your state before your Creator.

Let me ask you a question. Have you kept the First of the Ten Commandments? Is God first in your life? Do you love Him with heart, mind, soul, and strength? God lavished His goodness upon you. He gave you life. You were not an accident. You didn’t crawl out of some slime and evolve. God gave you a brain to think with, eyes to see with, and taste buds to enjoy good food. He gave you ears to enjoy good music. He’s lavished His goodness upon you. You’re not on some famined land, lying in the dirt with flies crawling across your face, as we often see in Africa—countries like that. God has blessed this land, and it’s only right that you and I love the God who gave us life. You say, “Oh, yeah, I love God. I believe in God.”

Well, listen as we cross to the Third of the Ten Commandments: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”³¹ Ever taken the name of God in vain? You say, “Ah, yeah. I do it all the time. It’s just a bit of a habit.” What you’re doing is taking the name of God—the name that godly Jews won’t even speak, it is so holy—and bringing it down to the level of a four-letter filth word to express disgust. Adolf Hitler’s name wasn’t despised enough to use as a cussword, and yet you’ve done that. And the Bible says that the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.³² Jesus warned, “Every idle word that a man speaks, he’ll give an account thereof on the Day of Judgment.”³³ So you haven’t loved God. The Bible says we hate God without cause.³⁴What you’ve done is violated the Second of the Ten Commandments, which says, “You shall not make yourself a graven image.”³⁵ That is, you should not make a god, an idol, something you bow down to. And you can do it with your mind, when you create your own concept of what you believe God is like.

I did that before I was a Christian. I had this image of what God was like. He was loving and kind and a benevolent figure, and you went to Him when you had a problem. But the Bible says that God is not like that. He is perfect. He is holy. He is righteous, and the Scriptures say He’ll “by no means clear the guilty,”³⁶ because He is just. That means He will punish injustice.

Look across to the Seventh Commandment: “You shall not commit adultery.”³⁷ Jesus said, if you look upon a woman to lust after her, you commit adultery already with her in your heart.³⁸ The Sixth Commandment says, “You shall not kill,”³⁹ but the Bible says, “If you hate your brother you are a murderer.”⁴⁰ Jesus warned if you get “angry without cause you are in danger of judgment.”⁴¹ Have you ever lied, or ever stolen? If you say, “Yeah, I have. Then you’re a lying thief, and the Bible says, “All liars will have their part in the lake of fire.”⁴² No thief, no adulterer, no fornicator, no blasphemer will enter heaven.⁴³ The Bible makes that clear. Can you see how that Law shows us our state before a holy God? We are criminals. We’ve a multitude of sins, and the Scriptures say because God is good and just,“His wrath abides upon us.”⁴⁴

We’re like a very heinous criminal standing before a good judge, and the judge is angry that this man has raped a young woman and slit her throat. The judge is fuming, ready to bring down that gavel. That’s what God is like. His wrath abides upon us.⁴⁵ But in the Bible, it tells us that this same judge is rich in mercy. The same righteous, holy God is love and mercy, and He provided a way for your case to be dismissed. He paid your fine in the life’s blood of His Son. Jesus Christ was God in human form, giving His perfect life as a sacrifice for the sin of the world. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”⁴⁶ “God commended His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.”⁴⁷ Can you understand that? What a wonderful thing God has done for you. He took the punishment for your sins, so God could forgive you completely.

What you must do to partake in that forgiveness of God, that mercy He’s extended toward humanity, is to repent. Turn from all sin. Confess and forsake sin, and put your trust in Jesus Christ. Don’t just believe in Jesus. Trust in Him. You trust in many other things. When you go in a plane, you trust your life to the pilots. When you step in a taxi, you trust your life to the driver. When you have surgery, you trust your life to a surgeon. How much more can you trust a faithful Creator?

The Bible says, “It’s impossible for God to lie.”⁴⁸ You can trust every word that God has said in the Bible. So, please, come to your senses today. Realize that if you die today and God gave you justice, you’d end up in Hell, and that’s not God’s will. He’s “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”⁴⁹ God sets before you a way of life and a way of death. Choose life and live.⁵⁰ Cry out, “God, forgive me. I’m a sinner.” Confess your sins to God. Forsake your sins. Put your trust in Jesus and you will pass from death to life. You’ll pass from darkness into light. Every day, 150,000 people die.⁵¹ So get right with God today. The Bible says, “Today is the day of salvation.”⁵²

* * *

Falling Boxes

Recently I was reminded about physical law or a law of physics that goes something like this.⁵³ Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. By that I mean if you push against a wall, a law of physics says that that wall pushes back to you with the same intensity that you push against the wall.

I was up a ladder when I was reminded of this law. Eight feet up the ladder. I had to pick up a piece of wood that weighed about 30 pounds. As I pushed the wood to the back of the shelf, this law kicked into action and saw myself and the ladder as one entity.

Suddenly that entity passed through me through the ladder, and the bottom of the ladder kicked out about 12 inches. So I found myself precariously hanging from the shelf about eight-feet in the air above a ladder that was about to fall. I thought, Oh, I could get injured any second!

I learned something about myself. I learned that I’m a very proud person, because I thought, You know, about now I should call out, ‘Help! Somebody help me!’ But I didn’t want to. The reason for that is that my staff would come running in and see me hanging from an eight-foot shelf and think, This looks stupid. What an idiot this guy is.⁵⁴

So I looked around, and on my right hand, on my right side was a steel cabinet. And I thought, If I reach out from the shelf, I can put my foot on the cabinet to save myself. And that’s what I did.

We will not call out for help if we think we can save ourselves, because we’re proud creatures. And why should we anyway, if we can save ourselves? Now the Bible says, “Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”⁵⁵ And if you’ve not called on the name of the Lord it’s because you think you can save yourself. You say, “What do you mean, ‘Save yourself’? What are you talking about?”

You may not realize it, but you are hanging in a very precarious position. When you think about it, you and I are hanging from this life over eternity. Every one of us. And in an instant we can fall through death. In the back of your mind you’re thinking, “Yeah, if that happens … if there’s a God … if there’s a Judgment Day…if there’s a Heaven or Hell, I’ll be fine. My hope is that I’m a good person.”⁵⁶

That’s how you think you can save yourself.⁵⁷

What I’d like to do this morning is show you that what you’re hoping in is actually a parachute filled with holes. What you’re doing is extremely dangerous. What I want to do is show you there is no steel shelf or anything for you to put your foot on to save yourself.

So, you are trusting your own righteousness⁵⁸ to save you on the Day of Judgment—and there’s going to be a Day of Judgment—and you think that you are basically a good person. Let’s see if you are. Let’s look at the Commandments and see God’s standard for morality.⁵⁹ The first of the Ten Commandments says, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”⁶⁰ Is God first in your affections? Do you love the God who gave you life? You and I should. He gave us taste buds to enjoy good food. He’s lavished His goodness upon us. We’ve a free land to be in, and enjoy the pleasures of this life—good food and friendships, health, a mind to think with, ears to hear with, eyes to see with. You’re not some person in Africa, part of some famine, lying on the ground with flies crawling cross your face. God has greatly blessed you as a person. So you should love God and put Him first in your affections. Do you do that?

Some of you might say, “I do that. I love God.” Well, let me ask you a question: Have you ever used God’s name in vain?⁶¹ You say, “Yeah. Once or twice.” So you’ve taken the name of the God who lavished His goodness upon you, gave you life, and used it as a cussword to express disgust. Folks, that’s called “blasphemy,” when you use God’s name as a cussword.⁶²

Adolf Hitler’s name wasn’t despised enough to use as a cussword, and you’ve taken the name of the God who gave you life, and blasphemed Him—which shows that you don’t love God.⁶³ And the problem is this: You’ve probably created a god to suit yourself. The Bible says there is one God and He is perfect,⁶⁴ holy,⁶⁵ and righteous.⁶⁶ The Bible says He’ll “by no means clear the guilty.”⁶⁷ What you’ve done is transgressed the Ten Commandments, which say, “You shall not make yourself a graven image.”⁶⁸ That means you shouldn’t make a god to suit yourself, either with your hands or with your mind.

Come across to the Sixth Commandment.⁶⁹ It says, “You shall not kill.”⁷⁰ You say, “Well, I haven’t killed anybody.” The Bible says if you get angry without cause you’re in danger of judgment.⁷¹ The Scriptures say, “Whoever hates his brother is a murderer.”⁷² The Seventh Commandment is, “You shall not commit adultery.”⁷³ Maybe you’ve not committed adultery, but listen to what Jesus said. He said, “But I say to you, whoever looks upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery already with her in his heart.”⁷⁴

Have you ever lied or stolen? The Bible says, “No liar will inherit the kingdom of God, no thief …”⁷⁵ In fact the Bible says, “All liars will have their part in the lake⁷⁶ of fire.”⁷⁷ See, if you are trusting in your own goodness to save you, realize you’re not good. You’re like the rest of us. Your conscience is defiled,⁷⁸ the Bible says. It even says you’ve got an evil conscience.⁷⁹What you do when you judge yourself is judge by a standard you don’t even judge other people with.⁸⁰ That’s because your conscience is dead. You know it’s wrong to lie and steal and lust and blaspheme. So, on the Day of Judgment you’ll be guilty and the Bible says you’ll end up in Hell. That’s not God’s will.

Folks, the same Judge that condemns us the Bible says is “rich in mercy.”⁸¹ Even though we’re guilty, He’s provided a way for you to be forgiven. He’s provided a way of escape. He’s provided a way so that your case can be dismissed.

The way He did it was in becoming a human being in Jesus Christ, and giving His life as a sacrifice for the sin of the world. Jesus paid your fine in His life’s blood, so you could leave the courtroom on the Day of Judgment. The Bible says that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”⁸²

Folks, God offers you the gift of everlasting life. Please, today come to your senses.⁸³ Repent⁸⁴⁸⁵