I am sure you have heard the story of the tightrope walker pushing the wheelbarrow across the Grand Canyon, but if not I will retell it briefly:
The crowd watched as the skilled tightrope walker pushed a wheelbarrow across the Grand Canyon repeatedly. After several trips back and forth, the tightrope walker asked the crowd if they thought he could safely push the wheelbarrow across with one of them in it. The crowd cheered an affirmative. The tightrope walker addressed one man who was cheering loudly and said, "Sir, do you think I could safely carry you across in this wheelbarrow?”
“Yes, of course,” the man replied.
“Then get in,” said the tightrope walker.
Getting into the wheelbarrow is faith. Standing firm on solid ground, even though you "believe" that the tightrope walker "could" push you across safely, is lack of faith. But the tightrope walker won't put you in the wheelbarrow; he will only push you across in the wheelbarrow if you have first gotten into the wheelbarrow on your own.
Now, here's the situation. The tightrope walker is Jesus. The crowd is humanity and they are all standing on one side of the Canyon, which represents this world. The other side of the Canyon is Paradise, salvation, and eternity with God. There is no way for a human to cross the Canyon; the only way to Paradise is to be taken across by Jesus. But as with the tightrope walker, Jesus won't put you into the wheelbarrow; you must get into it yourself.
