Faith

Jesus is calling–Amy Grant

 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Luke 9:23 King James Version (KJV)

Can you handle the responsibilities of a role model?

In 1993 former basketball star, Charles Barkley declared to the world in an Ad that he was not a role model. Charles was at the peak of his career, and even though he hadn’t won a Championship kids everywhere looked up to him. They thought he was somebody they could emulate. He was their role model. But he could handle the responsibilities or the pressures of the squeaky clean role model. So, he ran an Ad on TV titled ‘I am not a role model.’

So, I took another look at the Charles Barkley ‘I am not a role model’ Ad, and it occurred to me that every Christian is a role model. It is part of our responsibilities as followers of Jesus Christ.. When Jesus says, “Let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16); He is really asking us to become the light that leads others to Him.

Make no mistake, the world will never find Jesus on its own, and even though it will never admit it, It is morally bankrupt and in desperate need of your help. It needs mentors and role models like you that it can emulate. And since we are Jesus’ representatives here on earth, we must step up and be the role models and mentors the world needs to help steer it back from the precipice. But this is no easy task. Therefore, as committed servants of Jesus Christ, it is of paramount importance that we lead lives that are worthy of the calling we have received. Not only when the spotlights are shinning on us, but also when no one is looking.

Further, as Christians and role models and mentors we must stand out among the crowd wherever we go, and we must never be afraid to embrace who we are and who we represent. The Apostle Paul emphasized this in Romans 12:2 ” Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Do not be misled—you cannot mock God.

A couple days ago I stumbled upon a very disturbing post on the Patheos website, titled, “Why I broke up with Jesus.” The author, Neil Carter is a former church elder; and now an apparent atheist, tried his darnedest to make fun of Jesus. He stated that there were many reasons for the brake up, but one of the  main ones was Jesus wouldn’t return his calls. And since he could not get in touch with Jesus, he asked some of Jesus’ friends to explain. In essence, the purpose of Mr. Carter’s ridiculous post is to deny Jesus’ existence. But God is not mocked. Jesus says,

Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33).

However, aside from the author’s ridiculousness, I was flabbergasted by most of the answers the so-called friends of Jesus gave him. Obviously, none of these people have any knowledge of how God works. Job 33:14 says, “For God speaks once, yes twice, yet man perceives it not.”

Here are some excerpts from the post:

“About five years ago, I broke up with Jesus. Recently someone asked me why. There were plenty of reasons but one of the main ones was that he wouldn’t return my calls.

Since I couldn’t get in touch with him, I asked some of his friends to explain to me why he wouldn’t get back to me, but their answers were never helpful.  Each one had a different explanation and none of them really made me feel any better:

  • Some said he heard my messages but didn’t answer because what I wanted wasn’t the same as what he wanted, and he only answers calls he already agrees with.  Huh.  Okay.
  • Some told me he might not have liked my tone of voice.  Maybe I wasn’t asking for him to call me in the right way?  I dunno.
  • One guy said that Jesus would only answer me as long as I had no doubts that he would answer; but if I doubted, then he wouldn’t.  That sounded kind of sketchy.
  • Some said it was because he wasn’t ready to answer me—the timing wasn’t right somehow.  I wonder how many years you’re supposed to wait before you can conclude the other person has moved on?
  • Others said sometimes he doesn’t answer just because he wants to see how long people will go without an answer before they give up.  That sounds kind of…schmucky…if you ask me.
  • Finally, one guy informed me I shouldn’t expect an answer at all.  Like, maybe it was wrong for me to want for him to actually communicate with me.  Or if he did communicate with me, it would be telepathically through other people who wouldn’t necessarily even know they were communicating on his behalf.  I just don’t even know what to say to that.

Read more: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/godlessindixie/2014/11/10/why-i-broke-up-with-jesus/#ixzz3JBnqvuiQ

What does your attitude says about you?

Your attitude says a lot about you. A Christian with a friendly demeanor is more likely to draw sinners to the Kingdom of heaven than, let’s say one with a repulsive attitude.

It is true; many of my Christian brothers and sisters have attitude problems. (…you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either. Matt. 23:13) We often scoff at sinners and anyone who does not attend our church. Hence, we limit ourselves to the four walls of our sanctuary and refuse to adopt to the changing environment. Essentially, we have become aloof, judgmental and disinterested.

But no one likes being around a person with a bad attitude. So, if we want our light to shine before men, that they see our good works and glorify the Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16), then we must clean up our attitudes.

Since Jesus  is our example, Christians are obligated to follow His lead and strive to emulate Him in every respect. He never turned anyone away. Everybody is welcome in His presence; even the little children. He is approachable, and He never looked down on sinners. As a matter of fact, He sat down and ate and drank with sinners, much to the chagrin of Pharisees. ‘Why does he eat with tax collectors and “sinners”? They asked the disciples. The bible said, “On hearing this, Jesus said to them, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance’” (Luke 5:30-32).

Does your attitude helps to draw people closer to the kingdom of heaven, or does it drives them away?