“And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that would be written.”  John 21:25

There are millions and millions of books, articles, commentaries and opinions describing and defining “What is a Christian”, and, how a Christian should think, behave and what they should do.  It can be a bit daunting and confusing, but, it need not be.

The Bible, if read in context of itself and read at face-value (except for the obvious metaphors, idioms and similes) the Truth clearly emerges.

Here is an example of KEEPING IT SIMPLE when asking…

1. What is a Christian?

2. How does a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, think?

3. How does a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, behave?

4. What is a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, to do?

Here are some, out of numerous scripture verses, that may help answer this important, but basic, questions – all without opinions.

1. WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?

Acts 11:21-26 tells us, “And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord.  The news about them reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch. Then, when he arrived and witnessed the grace of God, he rejoiced and began to encourage them all with a resolute heart to remain true to the Lord; for he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And considerable numbers were brought to the Lord. And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for an entire year they met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.”

John 13:34  “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Acts 1:8  “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

John 15:5  “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me, you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.”

 2. HOW DOES A CHRISTIAN, A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST, THINK?

Philippians 2:5  “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

 Philippians 2:1  “Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.  Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

3. HOW DOES A CHRISTIAN, A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST, BEHAVE?

 John 5:19  “Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.”

 John 5:30  “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

John 12:49-50  “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.”

 4. WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN, A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST, TO DO?

 John14:10  “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you, I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves. 12 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. 13 Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”

 MY CONFESSION

(Please memorize and repeat as your confession, and be strengthened)

I WILL THINK LIKE THIS:

 Philippians 2:5  “I will have the attitude in me which is also in Christ Jesus, Who, although existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. I, TOO, WILL TAKE ON THE ROLE OF A BOND-SERVANT OF CHRIST. Being found in appearance as a man, Jesus humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. I too, will humble myself and become obedient to the point of the death of my fleshly desires and passions.”

Philippians 2:1  “Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, I will make Jesus’ joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose, just as Jesus. I will do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind I will regard others as more important than myself; I will not merely look out for my own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

I WILL BEHAVE THIS WAY:

 John 5:19  “Therefore as a follower of Jesus, I confess that, “As the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing, I will do the same; for whatever the Father does, these things I will also do, in like manner.”

 John 5:30  “I can do nothing on my own initiative. As I hear the Holy Spirit, I judge; and my judgment will be just, because I do not seek my own will, but the will of God through the One He sent, that is Jesus.”

 John 12:49  “For I will not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Jesus has given me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Jesus has told me.”

I WILL DO THESE THINGS:

 John 14:10  “I believe that Jesus is in the Father, and the Father is in Him, and He is in me.  The words that I say, I will not speak on my own initiative, but I will allow the Father, Who is abiding in Me do His works through me. I believe it when Jesus says that He is in the Father and the Father is in Him, and He is in me; otherwise I believe it because of the works themselves. Truly, truly, I say to you, I believe in Jesus, so the works that He does He will also do through me; and greater works than these He do through me, because Jesus has gone to the Father. Whatever I ask in Jesus name, that will He do, so that the Father may be glorified.  If I ask Jesus anything in His name, He will do it.”

Let’s pray for one another and hold one another up, until that day – may God find us faultless when He comes.

Your Brother and Friend,

Mike Young

More valuable resources at these links:

Knowing and Doing the Will of God.  Do you ever wonder about “The Will of God for your life” or for your life’s circumstances?  It is recognizing and continually doing God’s Will in the course of my life that determines the outcome of His Will for my life

Experiencing God’s Will.  Have you heard this ‘funny definition’ of Insanity: “Doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results.”  I guess it is sort of funny, but because it bears so much practical truth, it’s really not that funny, especially if you are struggling with an issue. Sometimes it seems, the harder we try, the worse it gets. We might have success for a while, but then we slip back into the same old patterns. We try to lose weight, or we try to stop a habit, over and over and over, we keep using the same old methods, and nothing changes, permanently.   The Bible says to “…be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

What We Believe.  Our saving faith in Christ Jesus and our Biblical Christian World View determine how we approach all ares of life. We express our Christian World View through politics, theology, art, sociology, philosophy, ethics, anthropology, the humanities, science, history, law and government. But, in the end, this music video (creed and confession) captures the essence of what we believe.

PREVIOUS: SIMPLE CHRISTIANITY – Part 3

 

SIMPLE CHRISTIANITY – Part III

“As a person thinks in his own heart, so is he”

There is a verse in the Bible that makes a great point about the inward thoughts and intentions of a person, despite what they may project to you. This expression means that what someone says or does is not necessarily what they think in their heart. People may be courteous or polite, but have contentious thoughts and sentiments. This is particularly troublesome if that person is you.

Ultimately, “what a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” The book of Proverbs is known for such concise wisdom. People ruled by sin are influenced by the chief deceiver, Satan, and become deceivers themselves – to the point of being self-deceived.

The main takeaway here is that AS YOU THINK, SO IT SHALL BE WITH YOU, both now and for all eternity. It is important to realize that you were created as an eternal being. God placed you into carbon-based organic flesh-blood-and-bone-shell, so to speak. When the sapient outer-you passes away, the sentient inner-you, your true essence, continues to exist. And “as you have thought, so it will continue to be for you.”

If you based your life on the lusts and passions of this world which cease to exist and dies, like your flesh, then that will have directed your after-life existence (sentient) into a wasteland of outer darkness, horrors of torment, rot, decay and fire. (see Romans 8:6-8). This is the result of rejecting Jesus Christ, “being lost, alone without God”.

If, however, you have set your mind, while you live, on things of the Spirit of God, then you will have life and peace. You will live eternally in the presence and light of God. Revelation 21:4 and Revelation 22:1-5 tells us “and God will wipe away every tear from your eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

 “You will see the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb of God (Jesus), in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will reign forever and ever.” This is the result of accepting Jesus Christ and your savior and Lord, and being born again – saved!

In this regard, Oswald Chambers, in one of his devotionals, says, ‘The work of salvation through Jesus is complete and finished forever. “I am not being saved — I am saved’. (Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest devotions on 12/5/2019.)

This made me wonder.

I have heard some say “you are BEING saved”, referring to “the process of Sanctification” (that is, to “set it apart for God’s special use and purpose”. But most of the time, when Christians use the word sanctification, they are referring to the progressive work of God to make a believer more like Jesus Christ.)

First, if you believe (or want to believe), it would be important to know what the word ‘saved’ means. Here is what I have found in the Bible:

SAVED: Strong’s concordance #4982 = sozo = safe, save, make whole, heal, be whole.

1) to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction; (from injury or peril)

2) to save a suffering one (from perishing), i.e. one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health

3) to preserve one who is in danger of destruction, to save or rescue

4) to save in the technical biblical sense; to deliver from the penalties of the Messianic judgment

To be made safe, saved, made whole, healed, to be made whole, and kept safe and sound, rescued from danger or destruction in your marriage; with your family; with your friends; in your career or job; in your body, mind, soul and spirit; where you live; where you travel; while you sleep and when you get up.

(Please Note: In this world you will still have tribulations (troubles and stresses), but the eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous, (those in right standing with Him through faith in Jesus), and His ears are toward their cry for help. (But), the face of the LORD is against evildoers (and non-believers – those who reject Jesus as their savior), to eliminate the memory of them from the earth.

The righteous, (those in right standing with Him through faith in Jesus), cry out, and the LORD hears and rescues them from all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The afflictions of the righteous are many, but the LORD rescues him from them all. (see Psalms 34:16-19)

With that said, there are 4 essential uses (tenses) of the word SAVED that can apply to you:

John 3:17, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that THE WORLD MIGHT BE SAVED through Him.” (NASB)

Acts 2:21, “AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.” (NASB)

Acts 2:47, “praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those WHO WERE BEING SAVED.” (NASB)

Ephesians 2:8, For by grace YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (NASB)

What struck me is the uses of this Word, SAVED (SOZO) shows a progression:

ALL MIGHT BE SAVED

THOSE WHO WILL BE SAVED

THOSE WHO WERE BEING SAVED

YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED

Why is this significant or interesting?

It is interesting that many believe that they “MIGHT BE SAVED”.

Many others believe they are among those “WHO WILL BE SAVED”

Some believe they are among “THOSE WHO WERE BEING SAVED”

And some of you know, “YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED“.

WHICH ONE OF THESE 4 USES DESCRIBE YOU?

No kidding. Only one of these four scenarios can secure your eternal destiny in heaven with God, that one is KNOWING that YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED.

Anything less can be tragic.

How can you tell which 1 of the 4 fits your situation and condition?

NOW, HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD:

John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”

You will follow Him.

You will yearn to Think as He thinks;

You will endeavor to Act as He acts;

You will desire to Do as He does;

You will long to Be as He Is.

And, His Reward is waiting for you:

John 10:28-30, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand”.

“My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

 “I and the Father are one”.

Be Certain – It will show and it will tell.

Your Brother and Friend

Mike Young

PS: Ultimately, what “a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” The book of Proverbs is known for such concise wisdom. But beware: People ruled by sin are influenced by the chief deceiver, Satan, and become deceivers themselves and of themselves.

:PREVIOUSLY: SIMPLE CHRISTIANITY – Part 2

NEXT: SIMPLE CHRISTIANITY – Part 4

 

Simple Christianity

It is my opinion, (along with the opinions of thousands or even tens of thousands and perhaps millions) of others, that Christianity has both become too complicated and has veered off the course set by Jesus.

The introduction to Christianity that most preachers use is simple enough, it just doesn’t make a lot of sense and it is not Biblical. “That” being the infamous ‘sinner’s prayer’.

During the 1980’s and 1990’s, a movement emerged to make the Gospel message and the meaning of salvation more relatable. It was an admixture of long held Biblical doctrines with human philosophies, i.e., a syncretism. Words were redefined to fit contemporary social norms, hymns were updated and revised to move people emotionally, and many doctrines and confessions were modified or neglected all together. A wide divergence developed promoting differing political views, social views and musical factions.

This movement further splintered from traditional Biblical Christianity into various new age brands of Christianity, a new and improved kinds of positive thinking religion, all sorts of self-help gospels, a not-so-new name-it-and-claim-it gospel, a brand of communal christianity or the social gospel, (i.e., a twisted Socialist and Communist theology).

Most significantly, a new One World Religion, combining Catholicism, Islam and Judaism named The Abrahamic Family House, a collaboration of Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, and His Eminence Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, issue and sign the Document on “Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together”, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The Zayed Award for Human Fraternity is jointly bestowed on His Holiness Pope Francis and His Eminence Ahmed Al-Taye

From this chaos, has emerged polished kinetic, entertainment-based style of “church program” and it is becoming the face of “church” transcending denominational lines and religious philosophies.

This strange transformation of the “church experience” has the uncanny ability to excite one’s emotions, producing adrenaline, dopamine and endorphins. It’s almost like going to a religious rock concert or play. It seems to be an attractive and fun alternative to the traditional church service, especially for the under forty crowd. but is discernably lacking the power to transform a person by the renewing of their mind into what is good,  acceptable and perfect according to the Bible.

The result of this exploration of alternative methods of presenting the Gospel, seems to have created a drift from actually knowing the God of the Bible and the Bible itself. Many theologians and Bible organizations are sounding the alarm regarding the rise of  Biblical illiteracy, especially among professing Christians. According to the “State of the Bible 2020 report” released by the Barna Group and the American Bible Society, U.S. adults who say they read the Bible daily dropped from 14% to 9% between early 2019 and 2020.

The study found that the proportion of Americans who read the Bible daily also fell to fewer than one in 10 (9%), the lowest number on record during the 10 years of the State of the Bible research study.

Unapplied knowledge is just idle information.

There are a multitude of churches which have remained theologically faithful and doctrinally sound, but often they will present the Gospel Message and the Bible in ways that are theologically complex and hard to understand for daily living. Many of these remining faithful churches and preachers and pastors who tend to be “educationally academic” in their approach to preaching and teaching the Bible, may be good at disseminating information and even for indoctrination. But when presented this way it can have limited effectiveness to inculcate the power of the Gospel which for salvation to everyone who believes.

“From Keeping It Simple Stupid” to “Simple Is As Simple Does”

“Simple is as simple does” can mean that a person’s approach to matters in life and spirituality can be judged by their actions; if someone behaves in complex and unintelligible ways, it reflects their inability to find simple solutions to problems and the inability to relate to most people. This phrase emphasizes that actions are more telling than appearances or claims of the ability to reason or to think critically.

The Bible was written for every man, woman, boy and girl to read and understand. It has not remained that way and for some very good reasons, many would say. But, God intended His Word to be intelligible and useful for everyone who would believe.

Maybe We Should Make It A Little More Simple?

The Gospel Message literally means “good news” and occurs 93 times in the Bible, exclusively in the New Testament. The gospel is, broadly speaking, the whole of Scripture; more narrowly, the gospel is the good news concerning Christ and the way of salvation.

The Old Testament Law was given to Israel during the time of Moses (Deuteronomy 5:1). The Law can be thought of as a measuring stick, and sin is anything that falls short of “perfect” according to that standard. Despite our “goodness” or “badness” relative to each other, we are all in the same spiritual boat, i.e., we have sinned, and the punishment for sin is death, i.e. separation from God, the source of life (Romans 3:23), and in order for us to go to heaven.

The Jewish Law which was the forerunner of Christianity, established the fact that being made spiritually clean from sin or “perfect” can only happen through a blood-letting sacrifice of an innocent life (Hebrews 9:22). (Although this makes little sense to the contemporary mind, it was well known and was a legalistic and burdensome thing to the ancient Jew.)

The Gospel involves Jesus’ death on the cross as the sin offering to fulfill the Law’s righteous requirement (Romans 8:3–4; Hebrews 10:5–10). (Just for your information, under the Jewish Law, animal sacrifices were offered year after year as a reminder of sin and a symbol of the coming sacrifice of Christ (Hebrews 10:3–4). When Christ offered Himself at Calvary, that symbol became a reality for all who would believe (Hebrews 10:11–18). The work of “atonement”, being made “at one with God”, is finished now, and that’s good news. No more burden of guilt, shame or fear from one’s lack of perfection or sinlessness, for anyone who believes in Jesus, what He has done and what He promised to His followers.

The gospel also involves Jesus’ resurrection on the third day. “He was killed for our sins and was raised to life for our “justification”, or our being declared “not guilty”, justified and in good standing with God (Romans 4:25). The fact that Jesus negated the penalty of sin, (our faults, failures and imperfections), and death (sin’s penalty) is good news, indeed. The fact that He offers to share that victory with us is the greatest news of all (John 14:19).

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16).

The gospel is a bold message, and we are not ashamed of proclaiming it.

It is a powerful message, because it is God’s good news.

It is a saving message, the only thing that can truly reform the human heart.

It is a universal message, for Jews and Gentiles both.

And the gospel is received by faith; salvation is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8–9).

The gospel is the good news that God loves the world enough to give His only Son to die for our sin (John 3:16). (This statement is only useful to those who choose to believe it).

The gospel is good news because our salvation and eternal life and home in heaven are guaranteed through Christ (John 14:1–4). “He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3–4).

The gospel is good news when we understand that we do not (and cannot) earn our salvation but God offers this “Gift” without cost.

The gospel is the good news that we, who were once enemies of God, in His sight, have been “reconciled” or brought into agreement with God and with His standard of perfection, by the blood-sacrifice of Christ, reestablishing unified relationship with God.

The gospel is the good news that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

Simpler Yet

Even if you don’t know it or can’t recognized it or won’t accept it, in so many ways, you and I are messed up – in fact, you can truly say that you were born that way! And it is because of that innate condition, even though it is no fault of your own, your life will always be a struggle. No matter how intelligent, no matter how rich or connected you become, your “messed-up condition” will always present new obstacles. And, you will die frustrated and unfulfilled unless you change your core-self and your core-beliefs. Additionally, unless you succeed in changing the “Inner Person”, you will die and your soul, your spirit, will descend into what is described as an outer darkness, where there is misery, wailing, endless terror and intolerable pain for eternity. But it need not be this way. You must be born again, in your spirit.

God loves you and has given you a choice. Follow Him. Believe in His Son, Jesus and follow Him and His accept and adopt His Mindset and His ways – or perish.

The Benefits of Christianity                       Without Christ

Unconditional Love                                           Only conditional love

Satisfying, lasting Joy                                      An insatiable search of happiness

Peace that transcends understanding         Peace only from gain

Inexplicable Patience                                        Results oriented patience

Undue Kindness                                                 Requite kindness

Unearned Goodness                                          And eye for an eye goodness

Dependable Faithfulness                                 Faithful to laws or dogma

Comfort Giving Gentleness                             Occasional gentleness

The Power of Self-Control                               Control over or by others

IF YOU WILL ACCEPT IT, GOD GIVES

• Mental, emotional and spiritual relief through forgiveness of your sins, faults, and bad deeds – past, present and future – if you surrender your life, your mind, will and emotions to Jesus and conform thinking to His Gospel Truth.
• Ongoing forgiveness and cleansing from sins through confession to Jesus and a new turning away from wrong doing, with continual forgiveness and peace by forgiving others of their misdeeds and sins.
• God’s abundant provisions for your life according to your true needs and more than you can even think to ask.

I WOULD, BUT I AM NOT READY TO GIVE UP SOME THINGS…

If you are thinking that you would like to have all that knowing and following Jesus has to offer, then it this is all far away from you. The correct question to ask is, “What do I have to give in trade?” And the answer is, “Just You”.

If you are thinking I have to give up this or that to be a Christian well think again. God really does not want your this or that bad habits. In fact, God cannot tolerate those things anyway, so you keep them – or not. But like I said, it is those things that are causing your problems in the first place. So think it over. Shed the things that are causing your misery, loneliness, poverty, ill health, worries, low self-esteem, etc., and find peace and true personal and spiritual fulfillment or stay the way you are, being uncertain of your future and miserable. It really is your choice.

IF I WANTED TO BE “BORN AGAIN”, HOW WOULD I GET THERE?

Just go! Go to God and talk to God. Tell Him your situation. God knows that most people cannot just unload a lifetime of thinking a certain way and shed each and every practice or habit they have accumulated over a lifetime. He will speak into your heart and mind and begin to unburden you of your this and that, one thing at a time. Later on, you might want to find a Bible church to meet people who are on a similar journey and learn some things from them. Maybe you’ll want to get a Bible and see what else God has to say to you.

And believe it or not, you really can hear from God through prayer, through the Bible, through His Church, and circumstances, IF you trade in your natural mind for a Spiritual mind by being born again in your spirit. Just tell God that is what you want and them pursue Him. It’s simple. Don’t make it harder than it needs to be.

Or, hey, drop me a note and let’s talk.

Your Brother and Friend,

Mike Young

whitestonefellowship1@gmail.com

NEXT: SIMPLE CHRISTIANITY – PART 2