When I ask you if you are a Christian, I am not asking you if you are a Baptist, or Methodist, or Assembly of God, or a member of any other denomination. I am not asking you what church you attend. I am not asking you if you have joined a church. I am not asking you if you have shaken the preacher's hand. I am not asking you if you have been water baptized. I am not asking you if you have walked an aisle. I am not asking you if you sing in the choir at a church. I am not asking you if you are a good person, or if you pay your taxes, or if you don't beat your wife, or if you have a job. I am not even asking you if you read the Bible, pray or believe that God is real.
When I ask people if they are a Christian, these are some of the answers I have received. When I ask you if you are a Christian, what I want to know is whether Jesus Christ is your Savior and Lord. I don't want some answer that includes various religious behavior or activity that you participate in. Instead, tell me, are you following Jesus? Is He in control of your life? Does He have the "steering wheel" and "driver seat" of your life? Are you more concerned about pleasing Him than you are about pleasing yourself or others? Does your lifestyle show it? Is your life a reflection of who He is? Do others see Him in you or do they hear an empty profession that is not backed up by any proof? Is your life surrendered to Him and His will? Are you loving Him and serving Him with your whole heart? Are you denying yourself and living for Him? Do all the comments you post on Face Book always line up with your profession of being a Christian? Are you the same no matter where you are or who you are with, or are you a "different" person in church and on Sunday than you are the rest of the week-- on your job, in the classroom, at a social gathering?
You can profess to be something but that doesn't mean that you are what you profess. You can believe "in" God, and Jesus, but that doesn't make you a Christian-- even the devils believe in Him, but they don't love, serve or follow Him. There is a children's song that we use to sing that says, "If you're saved and you know it then your life will surely show it." There are so many people who say they are "saved/Christians" but their lives don't attest to what they profess. In other words, their lives don't "line up". The Word Christian means "Christ-like". There is nothing that is "Christi-like" in their behavior or lifestyle.
It is amazing to me that almost everyone I ask if they are a Christian says they are. That means that the majority of people are Christians. It means there are a lot of Christians-- more that are than aren't. That isn't right. Jesus said that those who were true Christians were on a straight and narrow road and that there were few of them. He also said that there are many more who are on the broad wide way that leads to destruction than there are that are on the road leading to heaven and eternal life. If you are professing to be a Christian, you better be sure you know what that really means. You better make sure you are among the few who really are than the many who aren't but think they are.
Have a great day. When I ask you if you are a Christian, how will you answer that question?
For further reading:
Matthew 7:13,14
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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell
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