What does it mean to be a Christian? Have you ever giving that any thought? Have you ever been confronted by people who wanted to talk to you about faith in Jesus Christ? People who had all the right words to say to you concerning God and his creation, who gave you answers to questions you never asked.
For far too long that's how Christians tried to sell their message of the Bible. These dedicated people wanted you to see things in their light. To see the world through their eyes, so that the wickedness which they described in detail was as obvious to you as day and night.
Christians, although meaning well, in many instances have done more harm than good. What's worse is that these so called "Holy men and women" often times lived lives that totally contradicted their message. In other words many did not practice what they preached. Yes, they knew all the right words to say, they knew which verses to quote, but when it came to being examples they fell astoundingly, like many others, when struggles and difficulties came their way they threw their arms in the air and basically gave up.
Is that what faith in Christ is all about? Is it a mere running after a soft fuzzy feeling, a mere pleasant emotion experienced from God when things are going the way you think they ought? Or is there more to it? Is Christianity merely a pursuit of trying to be good, of scoring brownie points each time you share the message of the Bible with someone?
Many Christians believe that's all there is to it. You live a good life. You love your family and neighbors and you take care of the dog. Is that it, do the right things and you're in?
Friends that may be how Christianity appears to you. You may have had one of these "holy men or women" come up to you and talk about the Bible. You may have been impressed and watched how these people lived their lives. Doing so might have given you a wrong impression. In the next few paragraphs you'll find the true message of the Christian faith. You'll find that faith in God is not something that you bring on yourself. You'll see that it is God reaching down to you, calling you into a close relationship with him. You'll see that Christianity is a lifestyle. A way of life lived out each day.
Let begin by debunking some of the myths. Myth number one, if I live a good and upright life I will be saved. I will be going to heaven when this life is over.
Although one would presume that Christians ought to be good and upright people, they are not perfect. They fall just like you and I when we err and go the wrong way. The difference with them is that they know who to turn to, to seek forgiveness.
In this then, Christianity differs from any and all religions. In all other religions man tries to appease the god(s). He tries as he might to do things that will make him holy. In Hinduism men and women will go to all sorts of extremes to prove their worth, to do "good". It is not uncommon for a Hindu monk to spend year after year standing under a tree without resting or sitting down just to be closer to his god. It is not uncommon for men and women in these Eastern Religions to inflict all sorts of harm to their bodies just to try and be more accepted by their god(s). In other words, in religions other than Christianity man tries to reach up to god in order to be accepted by them or it, all the while the opposite is true in Christianity.
In Christianity, God reaches down to man and seeks to save him. All that we are required to do is to confess with our mouths that Jesus Christ is who he says he is, and to believe he lived, died, and rose again to help us reach God.
Jesus then stands as a mediator between God and man. He paid the price for our evil our badness as it were. Badness in Christian circles is referred to as "sin". So then Jesus paid the price for our sin. And as a result has made us pure, clean and spotless before Almighty God.
Why did he do that? Why did Jesus come and die for us? Because the God of the Universe loves us! So much so that he gave His one and only Son for us. That's quite a difference.
According to the Bible then God's love reaches down to save us. Isn't that great? We don't have to do anything but accept it! To say to him, "Yes Lord, I want it."
When we then do accept it we are free. Free to go on living with him. Because of our thankfulness towards him for setting us free, we as Christians do good works. So you see the motivation for doing good is not in order to please God. But rather in order to thank him for what he's a already done.
The second myth is one that would obviously be nice to believe that is that in the end all will be saved anyway. Like stated it seems great if that was the case, but nowhere in the Bible does it say that. No where does it say that we will eventually all be okay. Not at all! In fact it says the opposite. Some will live forever, yes, but some will also be dead forever.
This is not some theory that's made up by those on the outside looking in. No! Even people in church believe that. But nothing can be further from the truth.
God is a loving God who desires for all, that means everyone to be saved. For everyone to one day experience heaven and the life that that entails, but that's not what the Bible says will happen. It basically says that some will not enter it. Some will go down to Hell. And contrary to what some individuals say, hell will not be a place where you and your friends can party on forever. In fact it tells us that hell is a place of solitude and confinement. A place where it'll be as though you're on fire forever. Does that sound like fun?
Heaven on the other hand, will be a place of quiet and rest. A place where you will spend time with others doing all the things you enjoy doing. Quite a difference, isn't it?
Now as to getting there, we cannot do it on our own. We will never, on our own, be good enough. No matter how long we stand under a tree. No matter how dedicated we are to doing and saying the right things. Only faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ can give one the assurance of eternity in Heaven. And that only comes when we acknowledge Him as the God of the universe. When we give Him control of our lives.
Giving him control is not like being a zombie. Yes we ask him to come into our lives and guide us each day. But that does not mean that we can put all our faculties to the side, for He was the one who gave them to us. In other words, we must use our minds and our ability to do what we think is right, but only in consultation with Him. That means to pray about the decisions you make each day, to seek his advice and allow him to guide and lead you. Now that doesn't mean that you should pray for every minute decision you make. You do not have to consult him as to which fork your going to use to eat with. Be rational, when it comes to major decisions or decisions that have direct affect upon your life, then consult him, and seek his will earnestly. How do you do that? By communicating with him.
Communication with God means to be open and to listen to him. God speaks to us by means of His Word, by circumstances, by and through our consciences, by and through the church, and through prayer. Any one of these avenues will be used by Him to communicate with you.
He speaks to us by his Word only when you take the time to read it. Its amazing how at different times you could be reading the same passage and it meaning different things for you. Daily Bible reading will allow God to speak by means of the examples and ideas in the Bible.
Another avenue that he uses to communicate is by circumstances. Sometimes we need to get hit over the head in order for us to listen. Sometimes it takes a tragedy. For example, you have a friend who is slowly dying of cancer. You can't help but begin to wonder about life here after. As he get worse and worse you talk to him about the end of life as we know it. And to your amazement he talks to you about going to be with God. He so moves you by his earnest and strong faith that you can't but help wonder yourself. In that case your friends "tragic" death, has spoken volumes to you about God.
Yet another way God speaks is our consciences. You know yourself that if you do something wrong your conscience is right there reminding you of the wrong. If you're like many others it will plague you until you try and set things straight. That too is a way God speaks to you.
God also speaks to you by means of the church. The collective Body of Christ. When you are involved with others in a church setting God often times speaks just by the way things are done and handled. Now of course not everything in church will lead you to hear God's voice, but on the whole it is a vital linkage one can have with God, because it is His instrument for this time and this place on earth.
Prayer is by far the greatest way we have of communicating with God. During prayer you speak to Him as friend to friend. And if your attuned to Him you will hear Him speak to you, just like you do to Him.
Another myth often considered by those who do not know Jesus as Lord is that if they come to know Him, He'll expect them to do things they just cannot do. Like telling the newcomer to pack up all and move to Africa. God is not like that. If you are meant to go to a place of His choosing, He'll prepare you for it. He'll give you the desire to go there, because He never forces Himself on anyone. We are free to choose. But our choice does have consequences.
So you see, there's nothing to be afraid of, nothing to worry about when you give your life to Christ. Doing so will give you a peace and assurance that you've never had before. Are you willing to accept Him? Do you desire to have that peace? Then seek His face, pray and ask Him to come into your heart. And He'll do the rest. If you are genuine in your desire to serve Him, He'll give you your heart's desire.
Why not do so today?
If you have any other questions or concerns feel free to drop me a note. My Email address is:
Marck@aisl.bc.ca