Jesus

Do you live a good Christian life?

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Every good Christian dream of the day when you stand before Jesus Christ and hear Him say, “Welcome to my Fathers’ Kingdom, thou good and faithful servant. Unfortunately, not every so-called good Christian will see their dream turn into reality. As a matter of fact, Jesus, in one of His discourses made it clear, “Not every one that says unto me Lord, Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). That begs the question. Is living a good Christian life enough to get you into heaven?

Anyone can seem to live a good Christian life, until the truth comes out.  The Scribes and Pharisees appeared good until Jesus exposed them for what they were; hypocrites. In one, instance, He referred to them as: “You blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter that the outside of them may be clean also” (Matthew 23:26). This pious group was more concerned about outward appearance than they were about the heart.

Unlike the Biblical Scribes and Pharisees, we Christians, must not only seem to live a good Christian life, but our hearts, words and actions must be in sync with the teachings of Jesus Christ. In other words, we must practice what we preach in public and in private. “For I say to you, this is Jesus talking, unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:21). The blue print for a good Christian life can be found in Jesus’ ‘Sermon on the Mount‘. (Read Matthew 5,6,7)

Do you always attempt to prove a wrong?

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Who among us have never tried to prove a wrong? Whether it was something which you have said that hurt somebody‘s feelings, or your downright failure to honor a commitment as well as disobeying a command.

Such behavior is common among human beings; Christian and secular. Rather than fess up and accept responsibility for your action or inaction you put up defenses. Then, when, you are backed into a corner you come up with excuses that usually make no sense. Oddly enough, once you start making excuses you are inclined to lie. The Bible tells us “Lying lips are abomination to the LORD: but they that deal truly are his delight” (Proverbs 12:22).

Do you remember when you were a child how you would try to prove a wrong to wiggle your way out of trouble? That was what Adam and Eve did after they ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Here is what the Bible says happened when God confronted both man and woman.

Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” Then Adam replied, “I have heard thy voice in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.” “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?” The man replied, “It was the woman whom you gave me offered me the fruit, and I ate it.” Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What is this that thou has done?” “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.” (Genesis 3:9-13).

So, my dear brothers and sisters, the next time the adversary tempt you to prove a wrong fess up and accept responsibility because that is what Jesus expects you to do.

Rich, young and pretty.

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No reasonable person will deny that the women pictured above are, ‘Rich, young and beautiful. And while nothing is wrong with the combination, without Jesus those women are nothing. God does not look at physical appearance and worldly possession. He looks at the heart.

Incidentally, “Young Rich And Beautiful”, is the title of a 1951 Musical I have stumbled upon recently. The title grabbed my attention, and I immediately thought about the rich ruler in Luke 18:18-25.

And as [Jesus] was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good, but One, that is God. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’ And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.”

So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when he heard this, he became extremely sorrowful, for he was extraordinarily rich.

And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

The grass is not always greener on the other side

How many times have you heard a family member, a co-worker, a friend, a neighbor, or even an acquaintance complained about how much they hate their jobs and how they cannot wait to find a new job? This is a particularly common occurrence in the work place today. I have even found myself in a similar situation once before. I still regret making the transition.

But, my situation was not half as serious as one of my best friends’. We both worked at the same place and were doing very well; until, for some unknown reason Tim developed an eagerness to jump ship for greener pastures.

Sadly, it was no more than seven months after Tim left his old job for the coveted greener pasture, he got laid off, and that was the beginning of a string of bad luck for the poor guy.

As I reflected on mine and Tim’s poor decision making skills from many years ago, I cannot help thinking about my late grandmother. She mastered the art of idiomatic expressions. She had one for every situation. Her favorite ones were, “A bird in the hand is worth a million in the bushes”. “Don’t be like the greedy dog who let go the bone to catch its shadow”.

Now that I am older and wiser, I understand that the grass is not always greener on the other side. It may look green from afar, but a close up view reveals the faults and blemishes.

That is kind of what Satan, the adversary does to us Christians. He paints a nice and fuzzy picture of the world to trap us back into the old way of living, and if we are not careful we will find ourselves eating among swine like the prodigal son. Thank God,  many of us have been there and done that, so we know exactly what it is really like on the dark side–dismal. Nevertheless, some of us still allow the adversary to scam us time and again.

Friends, there is no short term result in the Christian race. That is the reason the apostle Paul who gave up the pleasures of the world to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, advises us to run with endurance the race God has set before us. He even tells us how to do it–by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Paul goes on to say, “Because of the joy awaiting Him (Jesus), He endured the horrible cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in a place of honor beside God’s throne” (Hebrews 12:1-2 NLT). ( Isn’t that wonderful?)

Therefore, brothers and sisters, our reward is not temporary like the glitz and glamour of the world. It is real and lasting, but do not look for it on earth. It is in heaven.

I know my Redeemer lives

Bad things do happen to good people, but every time something serious happens to a good person the critics question their credibility. This is especially true if the person in question is a follower of Jesus Christ. Even fellow Christians who should know better are often the first ones jumping to a negative conclusion.I am here to urge you not to feel guilty if you are a Christian and going through tough times. It is not uncommon for God to order the suffering of an individual to prove to the adversary that he is upright and steadfast.

Maybe you have lost your job, your house is being foreclose, your credit cards are maxed out, the bills are piling up, and there is no end in sight. Regardless of your troubles hold on to God’s unchanging hand. Your current situation might be a test from God.

The Bible tells us about a man in the Land of Uz, named Job. (Read Job 1:1) Job was a man of substance, who was perfect and upright. He was a righteous man who feared God. He never did anything wrong, yet he suffered. Job lost everything he possessed, including his ten children. Further, he was stricken with a skin disease. His wife and some of his friends were adamant that his suffering was punishment from God. They encouraged him to curse God and die.

But Job was not a wishy-washy man of God. His faith was unshakable. The Bible says, in all his suffering, Job sinned not nor charged God foolishly. Job knew his earthly possession, including his family were gifts from God. After the death of his sons, he remarked, “Naked I came out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21).

Job did not know his suffering was a test from God. However, he was confident he had not offended God. Therefore, he was certain that one day God would vindicate him when he stands before the Judgement Seat. Hence, he declared: “For I know that my redeemer lives and that he shall stand at the latter-day upon the earth” (Job 19:2 5).

In the end, God vindicated Job. His health returned, God blessed him with much more wealth than he ever had. His wife gave birth to ten more kids, and he lived for one hundred forty years afterwards. God rewarded Job for his faithfulness, and he will do the same for you and I.