Recently, I ran across a fascinating list of unusual answers given by children on some tests at school. Let me share some of these with you.

In answer to the question, “When was our nation founded?” One little boy wrote: “I didn’t even know it was losted!”

Another said, “A myth is a female moth!”

Still another said that Socrates died from an overdose of “wedlock”!

Asked to describe the famous painting of Whistler’s mother, one student explained: “It shows a nice little lady sitting in a chair, waiting for the repairman to bring back her TV set!”

And then how about these interesting answers: “A horse divided against itself can’t stand”!

“The death of Thomas Jefferson was a big turning point in his life!”

But here is my favorite:

A little girl was asked to define the word “People,” and this is what she wrote:

“People are composed of girls and boys and men and women. Girls are nice. Boys are no good until they are grown up and married. My mother is a woman, which is a grown-up girl with children. My father is so nice that I think he must have been a girl when he was a boy!”

What we learn from this is that right answers are important. But, have you thought about this… so are right questions!

And a right question for us to ask today (as we confirm these young people into full membership in our church) is this: “What does it really mean to be a Christian?”

There’s a wonderful old story that Billy Graham tells on himself. It happened early in his ministry. He arrived in a small town to preach a revival. Early in the day, Dr. Graham was walking around on Main Street of the little town looking for a place to mail a letter. He saw a little boy and asked him where the post office was.

The little boy said: “You go down Main Street for two blocks, turn right, go one block then turn left… and you will see it right there on the corner.”

Dr. Graham thanked him and said: “If you will come to the fairgrounds tonight at 7:00, you can hear me preach, I will be telling everyone how to get to heaven.”

“I don’t think I’ll be there,” the little boy replied. “You don’t even know how to get to the post office.

The great thing about that story is that, Billy Graham tells it on himself with obvious fun and delight.

But, also, the story reminds us that all of us in this life are looking for something… and that we need someone to help us find the way. We need someone to guide us, and lead us, and advise us, and comfort us, and encourage us. We need someone to save us from our lostness!

That was the Rich Young Ruler’s problem. He was lost. He couldn’t find his way. He had all the things that our “Madison Avenue world” tell us that we need to be happy… Wealth, Youth and Power… and yet despite having all those things, he felt empty inside, he felt unfulfilled, he felt lost… but give him credit for this… He realized that the answer was with Jesus. He came to Jesus looking for help, but when Jesus told him… “Come and follow Me, come and join Me, come and walk with Me… and you’ll have a richness of life that’s just indescribable.”

The young man turned and walked away sadly. Can’t you see him?

Shoulders slumped
Eyes downcast
Feet trudging away in sorrow
Just bent over… the picture of defeat
Emotionally spent…

Because he knew Jesus was right, but he just couldn’t do it. He couldn’t drop everything and put Christ first. He couldn’t make that commitment… and he missed the new life that only Christ could give him.

In this young man’s failure to respond and follow Jesus that day, we find some key insights into what it means to be a Christian… and they are all rooted in Jesus Christ. Let me show you what I mean… with three very quick thoughts.

I. FIRST OF ALL, HE IS THE ONE WHO SHOWS US THE WAY TO COMMIT OUR LIVES TO GOD.

When he was a young boy, Michelangelo came to a master sculptor asking to be accepted as a student. The master sculptor said to young Michelangelo: “You don’t know what you are asking. Do you realize what this means? This will take your life!” Michelangelo replied: “What else is life for??”

This is what Jesus Christ teaches us about our commitment to God… “What else is life for?”

Jesus shows us how to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength… and to do it joyfully saying “What else is life for?”

II. SECOND, HE IS THE ONE WHO SHOWS US THE WAY TO LOVE OTHER PEOPLE.

There’s an old hymn that says it perfectly…

“Lord, help me live from day to day
In such a self-forgetful way,
That even when I kneel to pray,
My prayer shall be for others.
Others, Lord, yes others
Let this my motto be
Help me to live for others
(Listen now closely, to the last line)
That I may live like thee.”

Jesus teaches us that the best way to show our love for God is to love others just like he did… tenderly, graciously, sacrificially, unconditionally.

III. THIRD, HE IS THE ONE WHO SHOWS US THE WAY TO CELEBRATE LIFE.

The joy of life is not in material things… they rust, they corrode, they break, they go out of style. The real joy of life is found in following Jesus Christ. If you want meaning and purpose and fulfillment and zest and joy and power and excitement in your life.. then follow Jesus. He is the way, the truth and the life.

You want a great formula for life, here it is:

Life is worth living
People are worth loving
Jesus Christ is worth following.

Follow Him. Imitate Him. Learn from Him. Serve Him. Trust Him.

Some years ago, a fire broke out in a hotel in Chicago. Flames and smoke blocked the normal escape routes. Some people on the tenth floor went out on a balcony to escape the smoke, but they were trapped there. It looked as if they were doomed.

However, one young man in the group braved the smoke and went back into the building. Fortunately, he found an exit to a fire escape.

Courageously, he made his way back through the smoke and flames and led the group to safety. Another person in the group said later: “You can’t imagine the feeling of relief and joy we felt when that young man came back for us and said, ‘Follow me! I know the way!’”

This is what the Christian Gospel says to us:

Here is the One who knows the way to safety and life! Here is the One who can deliver you! Here is the One who can save you. Follow Him and you can live. He will lead you to commitment, love and to life.