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(1) It's More Than Being A Church
Member
In all three of the
above portions of scripture, we find the word
Christian. The word Christian
means "to be CHRIST-like; to be a follower of
CHRIST". (Many are going about under the "flag"
of Christian, yet they are following
everybody and everything BUT Christ.) Our
scripture lesson tells us that the disciples
were called Christian first in Antioch.
From that time on, the word Christian was
used to designate Christ's followers. To be
considered a Christian or follower of
Christ in those days meant one's very life
was in mortal jeopardy.
In our day and
time, many who attend church automatically
consider themselves to be a Christian,
but on the Authority of God's Word, a
Christian is more than a regular attendee
or church member. As Billy Sunday once put it:
"Going to church does not make a person a
Christian any more than going to a garage
makes one a car." Many who profess the label of
Christian commit sin throughout the week,
but on Sunday morning, they put on their pious
front and religious garb. They may teach a
Sunday School class or hold some other office
(position) in the church. Because they've got
the church folks fooled, they (mistakenly) think
that God will overlook their sinful,
hypocritical life. My friend, we need to
remember: God does NOT OVERLOOK sin; neither
does He overlook the hypocrisy that goes on
among "religious" people. The Word of God sets
forth a clean-cut Gospel message. Holy living is
a requirement of Almighty God.
The term
"Christian" is used very loosely today. There is
so much false pretense and sham that goes on,
that many times the person who really wants to
find God, does not know where to look. Many of
us have heard someone make a similar comment to,
"That person goes to church on Sunday, but you'd
never know it Monday through Saturday! If that's
Christianity, I want NO part of it." Or
perhaps you've even witnessed to those who were
disgusted with church because of certain folks
they knew who "talked the talk" but didn't "walk
the walk".
There are ministers and
various other offices of leadership in our
churches across the land (and around the world)
being occupied by those who don't live according
to the Word of God. Of course, they defend their
actions (and so do many others) with the phrase,
"Judge not." It's not a matter of being
judgmental, it's a matter of knowing what we
see. Those of us who profess to be
"Christians", that is, followers of Christ, are
supposed to live the witness of the changes
Jesus Christ has wrought in our lives by
salvation! One of the reasons ministers no
longer preach and Sunday School teachers no
longer teach the straight-forward truth of the
Word of God is because they are no longer living
it themselves!
(2)
"Be Thou An Example"
Christian people do not have time
to find fault, criticize, and backbite one
another. We have only enough time to live the
message before others in our homes and
communities so that we may win every honestly
seeking heart to God. What kind of witness of
the power of God to change lives is it if folks
don't see any change in us? If all a person sees
in us is bickering, unhappiness, defeat, why
would they want to change from the way they are
currently living? What do they see in us that
would draw them to our Savior??
My
friends, our Heavenly Father sent His Only
Begotten Son into this world. His Son paid the
supreme sacrifice upon the Cross of Calvary for
the salvation of our souls. If we think we can
live as we please and get by, we are just lying
to ourselves.
It takes good, everyday
living and diligence to get to Heaven. Oh my!
Folks don't like to hear that! You will hear
them say: "You are not saved by works!" That's
true, we are NOT saved by works, but once we
have been saved by salvation through Jesus
Christ, our works (that which we do everyday)
WILL show it. Our everyday lives are a witness
of that which lives within us: if it is of God,
it will show through. If it is of the world,
that too, will show.
Those who would lead
you to believe that "Christianity" consists of
merely shaking some deacon's hand and signing
their membership book, are leading you down a
pathway of ignorance and deception. Certainly,
we are saved by Grace, not by works, but there
must be works in our lives. Jesus, Himself, said
Let your light so shine before men, that they
may see your good works, and glorify your Father
which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16. Our
"works" (that which we do daily) are the witness
of Jesus Christ and the changes He has made in
our lives. If there have been no changes, I ask
you, where is the witness of salvation? For
the Son of man shall come in the glory of his
Father with his angels; and then he shall reward
every man according to his works. Matthew
16:27. Believe me that I am in the Father,
and the Father in me: or else believe me for the
very works' sake. Verily, verily, I say unto
you, He that believeth on me, the works that I
do shall he do also; and greater works than
these shall he do; because I go unto my
Father. John 14:11,12. Oh yes, many "profess
to know God", but in works they deny him,
being abominable, and disobedient, and unto
every good work reprobate. Titus
1:16.
Loose, unconcerned living will not
be the witness of the new creature we were made
into when we accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as
our Savior! We had better mean business with God
and take Him at His Word. We MUST settle it in
our hearts and minds that others are watching
our lives--they see the witness, or lack
thereof, of what is in us! Look at what Paul
told Timothy: Let no man despise thy youth;
but be thou an example of the believers, in
word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in
faith, in purity. I Timothy 4:12. Whether we
like it or not, God expects those who "profess"
to be a "Christian" to be an example.
And
whether ministers like it or not, they MUST live
lives that say to their congregation, "Follow
me, as I follow Christ." The elders which are
among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a
witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a
partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking
the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but
willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready
mind; Neither as being lords over God's
heritage, but being ensamples (examples)
to the flock. I Peter 5:1-3. Paul wrote,
In all things shewing thyself a pattern of
good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness,
gravity, sincerity, Sound speech, that cannot be
condemned; that he that is of the contrary part
may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of
you. Titus 2:7,8. And just who is "he that
is of the contrary"? Our adversary, the devil.
Let me tell you, sometimes we have to get after
old self, and that right firmly, to turn away
from temptation!
The "world" needs to see
the example of Christ in our lives. I said,
Christ, you know the term, "CHRISTian"?
Followers of Who? C-H-R-I-S-T. Sadly, the term
"Christian" is now used to denote only the
difference in those who (sometimes) admit there
is a God as opposed to those who won't, or to
differentiate between various "religions" of
this world, such as Pagans, "Christians",
Satanism, etc. Let me tell you, to be a
"Christian", a TRUE follower of Christ entails
more than merely admitting "there is a God".
What doth it
profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath
faith, and have not works? can faith save
him? (This is talking about physically
"saving" or "rescuing" a person.) If a
brother or sister be naked, and destitute of
daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart
in peace, be ye warmed and filled;
notwithstanding ye give them not those things
which are needful to the body; what doth it
profit? (That's what too many do: merely say
they "wish someone well", yet do nothing to
physically help them along.) Even so faith,
if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea,
a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have
works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and
I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou
believest that there is one God; thou doest
well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But
wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without
works is dead? James
2:14-20.
Yes, in this day and age of ours,
the term "Christian" also includes those who
follow everybody BUT Christ. There is only ONE
DOOR, my friend, to eternal life and it is not
through some earthly man! The ONE and ONLY DOOR
to eternal life is by Salvation through Who? Not
the pope, not St. Peter, not Mary, not St. Paul,
Collective Great Spirits, Mother Nature or Lady
Luck, but through JESUS CHRIST, the ONLY
Begotten SON of GOD!
The world
desperately needs to see examples of true,
dedicated, sold-out to God CHRISTians; those who
are living according to the teachings of God's
Word. It is a serious thing when we say, "I am a
follower of Jesus Christ." By doing so, we are
telling others that we are adhering to the
teachings set forth in the Word of God. People
ought to be able to see that we are living for
God. What did Jesus say about it? Ye are the
light of the world. A city that is set on an
hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a
candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a
candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that
are in the house. Let your light so shine before
men, that they may see your good works, and
glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16.
(3)
Forsaking The Old Life
Let's
consider some of the characteristics that make
up a true follower of Christ. First, before a
person can ever become a Christian, he (or she)
must realize that they are lost, that he needs a
Savior. That person must realize that he has
sinned against God and His Word. He realizes
that Jesus Christ gave His life for him upon
Calvary's Cross. Once this realization has been
accomplished, that person can then seek (ask)
Christ for forgiveness of his sin. Merely
raising your hand, mumbling a few words, joining
a church, singing in the choir, being dipped or
sprinkled, or any other submission to man-made
creeds (dictates) will never make you a
Christian. There must be good "old-fashioned"
repenting, confession and forsaking of
sin!
Seek ye the Lord while he may be
found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let
the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous
man his thoughts: and let him return unto the
Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to
our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my
thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your
ways my ways, saith the Lord. Isaiah 55:6-8.
(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time
accepted, and in the day of salvation have I
succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted
time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
II Corinthians 6:2.
To be a TRUE
Christian (Child of God), the wicked are to
forsake their ways (read the above scripture
from Isaiah again). The unrighteous are to
forsake their thoughts. When one truly repents
and receives forgiveness for his sins, it WILL
change his mind, his affections, his desires,
his very nature. The Word of God tells us,
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a
new creature: old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new. II
Corinthians 5:17.
What a grand and
glorious declaration! Oh, you may "appear" to be
the same person: your nose may still be as
crooked as it was a year ago, or you may still
have that bit of a bow in your back; you may
still have big ears or frizzy hair, but you ARE
a NEW CREATURE in CHRIST! No matter what "the
world" knows about your past, it is sealed as
forgiven; your sins have been cast as far away
from you as the east is from the west. You will
have a "new look" shining forth from you. Your
outlook on life (the way you feel about things)
won't be the same, the way you perceive others
about you will be changed. Let me tell you, when
Jesus Christ changes a life, IT IS CHANGED! No
matter how hard you have tried to change
yourself before, when Jesus Christ changes you,
those changes reach into every aspect of your
life! He doesn't forget any of the
details!
And you won't have to wear a
sandwich-board to declare it, either! Folks will
look at you and know there is "something
different" about you. It is an immediate
change--you won't talk the way you used to talk,
you won't think the way you used to think. That
"peace that passes all understanding" that you
had "heard about"? It will be there, too. The
Word of God tells us that many of the things you
used to love you will now hate, and many of the
things you used to hate you will now love. Those
things of the world that used to be so
attractive to you will lose their appeal. You
will want to know more about God and this
wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ. You will have a
burning desire to share the good news with
everyone you meet. Do it! Do NOT let "the world"
talk you into being ashamed of the changes that
Jesus Christ has made in your
life!
Secondly, when you receive Jesus
Christ as your personal Savior, you will die out
to self. What does that mean? It means you won't
be pampering and petting and cultivating selfish
desires. You won't be having pity parties; they
are gone! We all know of someone who has
"professed" to be saved for ten or twenty years
(or even longer), but they have to have special
treatment, special attention to get them to do
anything, even attend church services. They need
to grow up! It is a shame when pastors, or for
that matter, anyone has to take time away from
witnessing to the lost to pet and pamper someone
who knows better than to act the way they
do!
"Well, I had my feelings hurt." Get
over it!! You think Jesus Christ didn't have His
feelings hurt? Not only was He wounded
physically, He was hurt deeply, wounded inside,
for peoples' rejection of Him. "But I'm not
Jesus Christ!" Nobody's crucified you, either!
Jesus was spat upon, beaten, publicly stripped
and humiliated, and HE was WITHOUT SPOT or
BLEMISH. None of us can claim that! Look at the
end of Stephen's life: he stood there that day
before that group of "learned" men, knowing full
well he was preaching his very last sermon. He
knew it was going to cost him his life on this
earth! Yet did HE back down? And you and I get
offended over a "look" or a word? And then we
wonder why we can't lead souls to Christ? What
do they see in our lives worth taking on, I ask
you?
Go back and read our scripture text,
Acts 26:24-29. There stood Paul before King
Agrippa, pouring out his heart as he witnessed
to the king. Read again what Paul said: "King
Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I
know that thou believest." See
that look on Paul's face as he pled with the
King, not for his own life, but that the King
would believe on Jesus Christ. Had that been you
or me, would we have done that? Or would we have
been pleading for our life? What did Jesus say
about it? Paul did it perfectly: And he that
taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is
not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall
lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake
shall find it. Matthew 10:38,39. Paul wasn't
worried about his own life; he wanted King
Agrippa to accept Jesus Christ as his personal
Savior! What would you and I have done that
day?
Old self wants his way. He loves to
sit on the throne of our lives and give orders.
Self will be with us for as long as we live, but
we must get "old self" under control! You don't
think "self" still rules in many "Christians"
lives? Just cross them and find out. Instead of
a humble spirit coming forth, you will see their
eyes flash and a nasty attitude come forth. Ugly
words will come out of their mouths. Oh yes,
some folks professing "Christianity" are hateful
and ugly if you cross them in any
manner.
Let me tell you, if we do not
"have the goods", God will expose it sooner or
later! We might fool folks for a time, but in
God's time and in God's way, something will come
up and we will display an attitude we did not
think would ever show to the world! Whatever we
have on the inside shows forth on the outside!
We need to check ourselves, daily. Do we have
"old self" under control? Is the Holy Spirit in
control of our lives, so that even under
pressure, we still act the way we ought to as a
follower of Christ? Or do our actions give the
devil the ammunition to say, "I knew you didn't
have anything to begin with!" Let me tell you,
if the Holy Ghost is directing our bark, even
under pressure we will still act the way we
should!
(4)
Overcoming Others
Thirdly, for one to be a
Christian, he must die out to what others think.
This does NOT mean that we are to live just any
old way we want to and not care how the world
observes our “Christian walk”!! This means that
we are not let what others think rule our lives,
our “every day walk with Christ”. Many people
would be a Christian today if it were not for
the influences they have allowed other people to
have in their lives. Beloved, God wants men and
women today who have the backbone and
“intestinal fortitude” to take a stand for God
and not be as a “reed shaken in the wind”. Let
me tell you, each and every one of us has an
influence on somebody. Someone is watching us to
see if we really are what we claim to be. Have
you ever had a great deal of confidence in
another Christian, only to have it blown away by
something they said or did? We cannot place our
confidence in others--it MUST be in Jesus
Christ! Certainly, our lives are to be examples
to the lost, but as Christians, we cannot follow
mankind--we MUST follow WHO? CHRIST.
With
all the “televangelists” that come into our
homes each week, we’ve all “heard” of those who
have wreaked havoc in the cause of Christ. So
many of their congregations and those who watch
them on tv have been discouraged, or even lost
faith in serving Christ, because of the way they
have conducted themselves. Their works shall be
tried by fire, but in the meantime, they have
caused all manner of confusion. My friends, we
need to keep our eyes upon Jesus, not some
preacher or teacher. Sure, we enjoy listening to
them, we learn from them, but we are not to
focus our confidence on mankind! We are to
follow Jesus Christ!
Another direction
from which we cannot allow what people say or
think about us, is when our loved ones try to
discourage our Christian walk. So many times,
that which our loved ones see in us convicts
them of their sins, and they don’t want to
change their lives, they don’t want to give up
that which they are doing, so they try to stop
or at least discourage us from living for God.
We cannot allow it. Sometimes, we find ourselves
here: And a man's foes shall be they of his
own household. He that loveth father or mother
more than me is not worthy of me: and he that
loveth son or daughter more than me is not
worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross,
and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Matthew 10:36-38. Oh, it is a hard way to keep
going for Christ sometimes, but there is an
eternal reward for however we live. It’s going
to be one way or the other, my friends, it won’t
be both. Heaven or hell, which will it
be?
Oh yes, there is coming a day when we
will step off this stage of life and stand
before God. Have we allowed opposition in this
life to cause us to turn from Him? People can
cause us to go down if we let what they say move
us. What was King Saul’s flimsy excuse? And
Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have
transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and
thy words: because I feared the people, and
obeyed their voice. I Samuel 15:24. We need
to consistently realize that we are individually
responsible before God. God knows how each of us
are living: He knows our conduct, our actions,
our words, our lives. He knows what we do in our
homes, on the street, in our businesses and in
our church buildings. It is God Who has the
final say. Not some man on this earth. So we
need to not let mankind rule our Christian walk,
my friends.
(5)
Laying Aside Hindrances
Fourth, for one to be a
Christian, he (she) must set aside those things
that can hinder spiritual growth. God does not
require that you set aside anything that is good
for you. Now understand one thing: that is not
"our" definition of good--that is God's
definition of good. Those things that feed our
soul, cause us to grow in the Lord, make us seek
more of Him, help us to be stronger in Him,
those are for our good. We must "lay aside"
those things that cause us to not be our best
for Him.
And have no fellowship with
the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather
reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of
those things which are done of them in
secret. Ephesians 5:11,12. To have a
fulfilling, wholesome relationship with Jesus
Christ, we must set aside those things that
defile our minds. But ye are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation,
a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the
praises of him who hath called you out of
darkness into his marvellous light. I Peter
2:9.
There are many ungodly things that
we allow into our lives; we defend our allowance
of them with the excuse, "It won't affect me."
And whether we "care" or not, others are
watching our lives to see if we truly do have
Jesus in us. The Word of God very plainly tells
us that we are to Abstain from all appearance
of evil. (I Thessalonians 5:22). The Living
Bible puts it, "Keep away from every kind of
evil." The NIV reads, "Avoid every kind of
evil." Now you don't find that to mean "some
kinds", do you? It very plainly states, in all
three versions, "all" and "every"--two totally
encompassing words that mean the same thing. No
picking and choosing there!
...I will
walk within my house with a perfect heart. I
will set no wicked thing before mine eyes...
Psalm 101:2,3. Now we come to another venue
through which the devil gets at us, that hinders
so many: that which we allow into our homes. We
call it "entertainment" and that's exactly what
it does--it "entertains" us AWAY from the things
of God! How many of us have known better when we
discovered someone reading a filthy magazine and
they told us they bought it for the "articles"?
Well, the joke is on ALL of us who watch
ungodliness on tv and listen to it on
radio.
Sadly, it's not a joke at all--it
is pulling the hearts and minds of countless
numbers away from their Christian walk. Far too
many times, we allow the tv to babysit our
children (or grandchildren) because we "don't
want to be bothered". If it's something our
children cannot watch, why are we sitting there
taking it in? Even those who don't claim to be
Christians wince at the vulgarity shown on tv,
but we who "profess to know Christ" go about our
business mindlessly, seemingly unconcerned with
the vile filth that invades our homes.
It
has often been said that nothing restores
conversation in the home like a good old power
outage. It's true. We eat our meals crouched
around a tv--no communication (other than to
yell, "Get out from in front of the tv!"). We
don't have any discussions about God; we don't
talk to our children about coping with this
challenge or that adversity--but we sit for
hours, totally immersed in "soap operas". I ask
you, where is there anything in them that is
uplifting to Christ? We wonder why our children
won't obey us--we get our parenting lessons from
the "cut-downs" and barbs on tv shows; they get
their pattern of behavior from thinking that all
children are supposed to behave as those on tv
do.
Some might say, "I watch the
preachers on tv." That's fine, but it's not an
adequate substitute for assembling ourselves
together, in one accord, to worship the Lord!
Being a Christian is NOT living a life in
isolation. That is pure old out and out
selfishness. God wants us to share Him with
others, whether it's in word or deed. Living a
life of isolation does not allow others to see
Jesus in us! It doesn't allow us to witness to
others, when the opportunities arise. It doesn't
allow us to speak a word of encouragement to
someone who may need it more than we could ever
know. Assembling with others doesn't mean you
have to "put your name in membership on some
church's roster", but we need to be around
people. Our testimonies, our prayers, our
worship, lift one another up and we are (or
should be) strengthened through Christian
fellowship. This is not talking about those who
are physically unable to get out to church--this
is about those who don't "feel well enough" to
go to church, or spend time in prayer, but they
are completely recovered in time for work on
Monday. What are we allowing to be more
important than God in our lives??
Let us
be reminded of: Love not the world, neither
the things that are in the world. If any man
love the world, the love of the Father is not in
him. For all that is in the world, the lust of
the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the
pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of
the world. And the world passeth away, and the
lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God
abideth for ever. I John
2:15-17.
(6)
Keep The Temple Of God
Clean
The fifth
characteristic of a Christian is that he (she)
must be willing to set aside, (give up, abandon,
no longer partake in or of) anything that
defiles the "temple of God". This temple of God
is not an earthly building, my friends. Then
answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign
shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest
these things? Jesus answered and said unto them,
Destroy this temple, and in three days I will
raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six
years was this temple in building, and wilt thou
rear it up in three days? But he spake of the
temple of his body. John
2:18-21.
Know ye not that ye are the
temple of God, and that the Spirit of God
dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of
God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of
God is holy, which temple ye are. I
Corinthians 3:16,17. When you are a child of
God, your body is the temple of God. It is where
the Holy Ghost dwells! That makes our bodies
sacred unto God. We must be very careful what we
allow into that temple! What? know ye not
that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost
which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye
are not your own? For ye are bought with a
price: therefore glorify God in your body, and
in your spirit, which are God's. I
Corinthians 6:19,20.
It takes more to be
a Christian than just superficial living. It
gets right down into the very depths of our
hearts and lives. It is going to take the best
that is within us to produce the life of a
Christian. It is a full-time job. If we dedicate
our efforts to being the best that God would
have us to be, we will not have time to pick at
anybody, or find fault with those we see (and
meet). All our time will be taken up with
keeping "old self" straight.
We all know
that there are certain habits that are
detrimental to the health of our bodies. Now, we
may not have been convicted in our hearts that
they are sinful, but we need to honestly examine
that which we do, or that which we partake of,
and see if our conscience is knocking at our
heart's door about it. We try to crowd too many
things into a day, and we have no time left to
spend in quiet contemplation of the things of
God, or time to spend before Him in prayer, so
that He can deal with us on various issues in
our life. This is vital to each and everyone of
us as Christians. Far too many resist the
leading of the Holy Spirit to make needed
changes in their lives, and they lie to
themselves about having been convicted of
something they are doing.
Friends, we can
lie (and perhaps get away with it--at least for
a time) to anybody else, but we cannot lie to
ourselves and we cannot lie to God. The fact
that God hasn't physically appeared before you
to take that cigarette out of your mouth or that
beer bottle out of your hand doesn't mean that
it's OK for you to continue in those habits. The
fact He hasn't personally appeared to escort you
out of the gambling hall or out of the adult
video store doesn't mean that it's OK with Him
if you continue to go there! Anyone who is
honestly sincere about serving Christ with the
rest of their life will seek to know Him in all
His fullness. They will want to read and study
the Word of God. And as the Holy Spirit opens
their understanding, they will be convicted of
that which is wrong in their lives. God does ALL
things perfectly. We need to make certain we are
allowing God to lead, guide and direct us in all
things that we do.
(7)
Willing Obedience
And
finally, the last characteristic of a Christian
that we are going to touch upon is that we must
be willing to live in obedience to God. We must
keep ourselves in the love of God. We must be
willing to forgive and get past that which we
feel someone may have done to or towards us.
Doesn't mean we have to like what they did, but
we have to forgive them of it. Therefore if
thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there
rememberest that thy brother hath ought against
thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and
go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift. Matthew
5:23,24. Forgiveness is a two-way street by the
way: it not only frees us from harmful feelings
towards another, but it also loosens the grip
that anger and resentment may have on us! The
Grace of God is sufficient under every
circumstance.
Oh yes, things may be said
to or about us, or done to us that wound us to
our very core, but we must be able to pray,
"Father, help them. Deal with them about this,
Lord." If we allow strife or hatred to set up
housekeeping in our hearts and minds, we will be
drawn away from the love of God and we will
suffer for it.
Friends, it means
something unique and unlike anything else in
this entire world to be a real, genuine
CHRISTian, a true follower of Jesus Christ! God
can see whether our heart's desire is to be the
best we can be before Him. There is no peace of
mind when we lay our heads down at night and
know we are putting on a sham! Conversely, it is
good to be able to pillow our head at night and
know that all is clear toward God and our
fellowman. That is the kind of peace that cannot
be bought with gold or material possessions.
True peace of mind can only be acquired from ONE
source, and that is the Giver of Peace, Almighty
God.
In summation, a person who is
willing to commit his (her) life to Christ and
walk in obedience to the Word of God is what
makes a Christian. Not the church we attend or
hold membership in, not the clothes we wear, the
car we drive, where we live or who our friends
are. The experience of Salvation through Jesus
Christ makes life truly worth living. It is the
best and most honorable life to
live. | |
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