Will the True Christian, please stand up!
Jul 14, 2017 19:58:25 GMT -6
Gary, whatif, and 1 more like this
Post by kjs on Jul 14, 2017 19:58:25 GMT -6
This thread has the potential to be stepping on some toes, if not being outright offensive to some. That is not my intent for this post. The intent is to examine what is required to be a “Believer” or a Christian. All through this website (in various threads) there have been comments made about “Carnal Christians”, “Christians in Name only”, “Intellectual Belief but not Heart Belief”, “unfruitful Christians”, and I suppose this list could go on and on…. These phrases are all meant to show those in one of these groups is not a True Christian.
So just who (or what) is a True Christian?
We are told in the Bible “No one seeks after God”. Psalm 14:2–3 paints a picture of God searching in vain for even one heart that seeks Him: “The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.” The unregenerate person doesn’t desire God and is actually an enemy of God (Romans 5:10)
The clearest verse on God’s drawing to salvation is John 6:44 where Jesus declares that “no one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
The Greek word “helkuo” means draws or specifically “to drag”. The drawing is a one-sided affair. There is no doubt that we respond to His drawing us, but the drawing itself is all on His part.
In Romans 3 we learn that “no one does Good” Our very best is nothing more than filthy rags before God.
Anyone, notice the theme going on here? There is nothing in our individual self’s that recommend us to God. There is nothing about us that makes us deserve even attention from God, let alone a gift from Him.
Now, I could continue on going page after page showing how our natural human condition (or how we enter this world) is DEAD to God. That God had a plan to resolve the entire mess and he enacted His plan through His Son Jesus Christ. It all boils down to Humanity has a NEED and God provided a way to meet that need.
When a person realizes they are a complete failure to meeting God’s Standards, When they realize they are in need of a Savior is the exact moment when The Gospel makes the most sense. When they learn that Jesus Christ is that Savior, that He accomplished everything to meet God’s Holy Standards – it is that point they are able to accept Jesus Christ as their own personal Savior. It is at that point they become a Child of God and a sibling to Jesus Christ.
This is who a True Christian is.
Allow me to share a story, to drive this point home – That it is all God and None of me.
Donald Grey Barnhouse recounted the following story of an old Scottish lady:
“The story goes that a young minister came to visit in the home of an aged woman who was dying. He was recently out of theological seminary and had more theology than Bible in his head, and had not known much of the experimental joys of long and close living with the Saviour in the knowledge and power of the divine love. He was somewhat appalled at the apparent joy and certainty of the patient and began to counsel her to give diligence to make her calling and election sure. But the dear old saint had been walking with the Lord for many a year and was long past the stage of learning the ABC’s of the gospel. She gave a testimony so clear that the young man was frightened and pressed her to go back and be less presumptuous with God. She answered, ‘Young man, if I should nae be in Heaven the guid Lord would lose more that I cauld ever lose.’ This amazed him more than her first attitude, and he broke out at once, asking for an explanation. The old lady answered, “If I should nae be in Heaven all that I could lose would be my own soul, for that is all I have to lose. But if I should nae be in Heaven the guide Lord would lose His name and honor, for He has promised to save them to the uttermost that come to Him by Christ, and that is the way which I have come.”
Now, I cannot read a person’s heart – I cannot tell if someone is lying when they give a wonderful testimony of how Jesus Christ saved them. Oh, I can observe them and their external activities, I could also speculate on the amount of any Spiritual Fruit – but that speculation proves nothing what-so-ever.
All I can do, is make sure everyone understands that Salvation is All God’s work and None of an individual’s work.
Is That you? Are you a True Christian?
If so, then welcome Brother or Sister – we will be spending an eternity praising and singing about the worthiness of the Lamb of God – who was slain since the foundation of the world!
So just who (or what) is a True Christian?
We are told in the Bible “No one seeks after God”. Psalm 14:2–3 paints a picture of God searching in vain for even one heart that seeks Him: “The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.” The unregenerate person doesn’t desire God and is actually an enemy of God (Romans 5:10)
The clearest verse on God’s drawing to salvation is John 6:44 where Jesus declares that “no one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
The Greek word “helkuo” means draws or specifically “to drag”. The drawing is a one-sided affair. There is no doubt that we respond to His drawing us, but the drawing itself is all on His part.
In Romans 3 we learn that “no one does Good” Our very best is nothing more than filthy rags before God.
Anyone, notice the theme going on here? There is nothing in our individual self’s that recommend us to God. There is nothing about us that makes us deserve even attention from God, let alone a gift from Him.
Now, I could continue on going page after page showing how our natural human condition (or how we enter this world) is DEAD to God. That God had a plan to resolve the entire mess and he enacted His plan through His Son Jesus Christ. It all boils down to Humanity has a NEED and God provided a way to meet that need.
When a person realizes they are a complete failure to meeting God’s Standards, When they realize they are in need of a Savior is the exact moment when The Gospel makes the most sense. When they learn that Jesus Christ is that Savior, that He accomplished everything to meet God’s Holy Standards – it is that point they are able to accept Jesus Christ as their own personal Savior. It is at that point they become a Child of God and a sibling to Jesus Christ.
This is who a True Christian is.
Allow me to share a story, to drive this point home – That it is all God and None of me.
Donald Grey Barnhouse recounted the following story of an old Scottish lady:
“The story goes that a young minister came to visit in the home of an aged woman who was dying. He was recently out of theological seminary and had more theology than Bible in his head, and had not known much of the experimental joys of long and close living with the Saviour in the knowledge and power of the divine love. He was somewhat appalled at the apparent joy and certainty of the patient and began to counsel her to give diligence to make her calling and election sure. But the dear old saint had been walking with the Lord for many a year and was long past the stage of learning the ABC’s of the gospel. She gave a testimony so clear that the young man was frightened and pressed her to go back and be less presumptuous with God. She answered, ‘Young man, if I should nae be in Heaven the guid Lord would lose more that I cauld ever lose.’ This amazed him more than her first attitude, and he broke out at once, asking for an explanation. The old lady answered, “If I should nae be in Heaven all that I could lose would be my own soul, for that is all I have to lose. But if I should nae be in Heaven the guide Lord would lose His name and honor, for He has promised to save them to the uttermost that come to Him by Christ, and that is the way which I have come.”
Now, I cannot read a person’s heart – I cannot tell if someone is lying when they give a wonderful testimony of how Jesus Christ saved them. Oh, I can observe them and their external activities, I could also speculate on the amount of any Spiritual Fruit – but that speculation proves nothing what-so-ever.
All I can do, is make sure everyone understands that Salvation is All God’s work and None of an individual’s work.
Is That you? Are you a True Christian?
If so, then welcome Brother or Sister – we will be spending an eternity praising and singing about the worthiness of the Lamb of God – who was slain since the foundation of the world!
