Thursday. 3-13-08 "Christians"

Greetings Internet Campus,

Matthew 7:21-23 (NLT2): “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’ 23But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’”

How do you know a Christian? Are they easy to identify? Do they have a certain walk...or tone of voice? How about their actions? emotions? I think if we are honest, sometimes it is hard to tell when a person is a Christ-follower. Let's look at today's verse...Jesus is saying several things about Christian identification:

1) Just because you know who Jesus is doesn't mean you KNOW Jesus - "Lord! Lord!" People at the time this was written knew that Jesus was known as Lord. So when Jesus says that many will call out "Lord! Lord!" it isn't because they believe that...it's because they've heard Him called that before. There are a lot of people who claim to know who Jesus is. Some say a prophet...some say a sage...some say a kind, gentle, man...some say He never existed. Christians know Christ as Lord and Savior. Period. Truly knowing Jesus means that you know Him as Creator, Sustainer, King of Kings, and God Eternal. When a Christian calls out "Lord! Lord!" it isn't for the sake of historical identification...it's an act of worship.

2) Doing is not the same as believing - "We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’" - Jesus is telling the people listening that it isn't just about doing things for God...it's about believing IN God. It doesn't matter how many times you go to church, how much money you give, how many houses you build for the poor...all of these are good things... But without faith in Christ, they don't matter. Our connection to God is based on our relationship with Him not just our work for Him.

3) Learning God's laws is not the same as living God's laws - "Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” When Jesus was asked to breakdown all of God's laws into their simplest terms He said...here they are...1) Love God with everything that you are 2) Love your neighbors as yourself. Simple as that. Today's passage says that it's not enough to learn those two rules...we've got to live them out. We've got to put God's laws into practice. If we are Christ-followers...we are following God's commands...love Him and love others.

Write it Down: Which of these three qualities of a Christian do you think is the biggest challenge to the new believer? Which is the hardest to live out?

See you tomorrow for our Friday food for thought...

Blessings!
Pastor Brian