Assuming We're Okay

I remember a time when I was a fairly new driver and, driving my first car (a Plymouth Duster), I took a couple of friends to the mall. The lights in the city were bright and it wasn't until we got to the mall that I realized that I had driven there without my lights on. The vehicle I drive now has an auto setting for the lights. When it gets dark, they come on automatically. When it's light, they stay off. However, I do have to make a point of remembering to manually turn the lights on when it's foggy or snowing heavily during the day. The sensor doesn't recognize those as "dark" so the lights don't come on automatically. And taillights don't come on with daytime running lights. This can make a vehicle virtually invisible from behind in poor visibility conditions (fog, snow, rain, dark). For that reason, my niece's husband, who is a truck driver, says that he hates daytime running lights. They make a driver think he's "okay" because he can see better, but he is definitely not "okay" from behind. 
Last evening, I left the city just around sunset. Ahead of me on the highway, one of the vehicles didn't have his full lights on and hence no taillights. Even though it was not yet fully dark, I couldn't help but notice that the lack of taillights just made his vehicle blend into the surroundings. Further - and darker - into the trip, I saw another vehicle ahead of me also with no taillights. This was getting dangerous and I really wasn't sure if there was anything I could do. He was driving slower than me and as I got closer to him, I was driving in the passing lane, and flashed my brights. Within moments, he had his headlights/taillights on, which I was glad to see. 
People are placing themselves in jeopardy by assuming that they are okay. And the results could be fatal.
I think there are a couple of spiritual lessons to be learned from this. The first is that if you see an opportunity to help someone, you should. Your help may be rejected, but it's still worth it to try. You may save a life.
The second is that we should never assume that we are "okay" spiritually. I've heard statements like, "I'm a good person, so I believe I'll go to heaven." Or even, "God isn't going to keep anyone out of heaven." These are concerning because they're not Biblical. And the Bible makes the way to heaven very clear and it's not by us being good. Nor is everyone going to make it. There is only one way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ. Acts 4:12 says, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." (NIV). And John 17:3 tells us, "Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." (NIV). We must accept Jesus' death on our behalf so that He can give us the life He has planned for us. And we must walk with Him - live for Him. We should never leave it to chance. We must not assume that we're "okay." We need to make sure that we're okay. The Bible tells us that we can know, not just assume, that we have eternal life. "The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn’t have God’s Son does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of God’s Son so that you can know that you have eternal life." 1 John 5:12,13 CEB. 

If you need help, getting to know Jesus, here are some resources:
Steps to Christ - free audio book download
Steps to Christ - free text version download 
Free Online Bible School 
Or you can contact me. There's a contact form on the bottom of the sidebar on the right.