As I read others on facebook and hear different statements about their lives, it struck me how many believe that their relationship with the Lord is based on them being good. Just listen to what people say or the little sayings they write. In our messed up world, people are looking for decency where people pay honorable debts, keep their word, be nice and good to our neighbors which is good in itself but the message from God is being shaped by these kind of attitudes and desires.
Followers of Jesus reflect His agenda in their lives. Followers of Jesus center their hearts on His teachings and look to Him for their guidance in His righteousness. If we are going to be the so-called Christian, a follower of Christ, our minds and lives need to be shaped by Him and not what we hear and see around us.
Following Jesus makes one serious about being faithful, both in word and actions. Following Jesus brings a kindness and loveliness into our lives. Following Jesus makes one live up-right morally and concerned for moral behavior. But wait, a non-follower, an unbeliever can live and be concerned about the same things, can't they? In fact, I sometimes see unbelievers live more up-right and serious than those who profess Christianity.
Too many are approaching their Christian lives to be nice people! It seems being nice, saying nice little religious statements are what Christian's are driving at. We have become molded into the thinking of the world that nice is right so we have lost our way as to what Christianity is all about. People aren't saved because their are nice and morally upright. No one is in a relationship with Jesus because they are good people. All sinned (Rom. 3:23). There is none righteous (Rom. 3:10). Sin enslaved us and became our master. Sin separated us from God and declared our end without Christ. Christianity is based totally and completely on the death of Jesus. It was His death in our place. It was His death that brought us holy and clean before God. It was His payment for our sins that makes us anything before God. It has nothing to do with our 'niceness' or good moral behavior. We have been created in Christ for good works because we are His workmanship (Eph. 2:10). Being good for goodness sake is based on us, not Jesus!
Maybe Jesus was wrong! Maybe the only thing that matters about Christianity is being a nice person. Maybe Jesus lied when He spoke that all will die in their sins without Him. Maybe His dying in our place was not really for salvation but for a bunch of 'good 'ole folks' to continue to be 'good 'ole folks'! Christian's have lost their way as to their purpose in life and that is leading others into the saving blood of Jesus. That's why the church taking on the world's mind set. There are going to be millions of nice people separated from God in the end because they see no need for needing their sins pardoned because they are just nice people with good moral behavior! They really don't need Jesus! Have we lost sight of what it really means to be a Christian?
2 comments:
Sadly I think that some have lost sight or maybe have never seen what it means to be a Christian, whole-hearted and faithful.
You cannot accept what is outside of Christ to be Christ-like. The music of the popular "religious" bands is one example, I feel that is wrong and to accept that to be right is accepting the message that they send to be a righteous message.
In short I see it to be following the world, for anyone outside of Christ is the world.
Yes, we have lost sight of what it means to be a Christian.
We go through the motions and believe doing so is what makes us a Christian. You hear things like "I am always here when the doors to the building are open" and the like. Or "I give of my time and money to the Church". We show concern, when necessary, for those that are hurting.
However, we are consumed with "our lives" and "our needs" and "our family" and the likes. We attempt to do good and be good in what we do while all along believing it is "our" actions in themselves what is going to put us right with God now and in the end.
I look at the Christians and the Christian life in Acts and it does not take a lot of reasoning to realize that we have lost our sight. No, the world is not the same as it was duing that time and that is an arugement used often to justify our actions today. Maybe we should realize it is not about the world then or today.
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