A True Christian?

Some things we as Christians need to ask ourselves. Things pertaining to who we are serving really?

Do we live to please others often? Maybe to dress the finest way or do something finest way to have attention and to please others.

Do we credit ourselves often of how good we are or have become?
or, do we self-glorify with how good we have become as Christian?

In other words, do we credit everything to most of our actions.

Do we say to ourselves -"I have got this! I am enough". Relying on ourselves often?

Going further,
Are you amazed for the breath that you have each day?
Are you amazed at the sovereign grace of God that you wake up each morning as a believer in Christ? Are we amazed, in awe of that?

Let us go even more further,
Do we glorify God in our worst situations?
Do we only remember Him on Sundays?

A little more further,
Are we with Christ because we want eternity? In other words, do we just believe in Him ONLY because we do not want hell and only heaven. My heart cries for those who are with Christ only because they want something for themselves, that is eternity. Those who are with Christ only for selfish reasons.

The Lord says for current generation..Depart from me who says-
-Did I not go to church for you,
-Did I not teach Sunday school for you,
-Did I not give money to poor for you..
-Did I..did "I"..."I"

Matthew 7:21 says those who say 'Lord, Lord' will not enter BUT who does the will of Father will enter the kingdom of heaven. He is referring to people who recognize Him as Lord. Even satan recognize Jesus as Lord. (Mark 5:7)

There are people who talk like Christians, sing songs like Christian..your conclusion would be, "That man is a Christian." Yet Jesus says many of these will never see heaven.

In other words, it is true that some who are members of church will never see the glory of Christ.

He explains what He means when He says, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?"(Matthew 7:22). No doubt, had He continued further He would have said something like this for current generation..

"Others would say to me in that day,
In Your name did I not go to church?
In Your name did I not raise my children well?
In Your name did I not help the poor?
In your name did I not experience physical healing?
In Your name did I not teach Sunday School?
In Your name did I not do apologetics and defend Your name?...."

There are those who sincerely believe they are going to "heaven" but really not headed there.

"And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; leave Me, you who practice lawlessness"(Matthew 7:23)

The word here is "lawlessness" or evildoers(in NIV), so people can pursue all the sinful desires of body while doing things in His name. In other words, fulfilling the desires of body/worshipping the world and all the while using His name and people. Some people who want to be with the world more than being with Christ. Heard about wolf among sheeps? Wolf among sheeps do that. You can read further in Matthew 7:15-20.

Now let’s come back to Matthew 7:21 referring to who does the will of Father will enter the Kingdom of God.

So, What is the will?
The will of Father is that everyone who relies upon, look upon, depend, trust Him with everything & believe in Jesus’ sacrifice for them and His resurrection will have eternal life. (John 6:40)

Becoming Christian is not a matter of saying or doing something in His name or for Him but trusting someone.

There are those who are trying to save themselves by saying or doing something instead of trusting the only One who can save them. Because the moment we begin to trust Him as our only way to heaven, we enter the relationship with Him in which He knows you and you know Him through His unmerited grace and overflowing love.

And John 1:12 says that as many as received the Lord, to them Lord have the right to become children of God, to those who believe on His name and what He did for us.

Becoming a Christian is not a matter of saying or doing something but trusting someone. Don’t depend on something, depend on someone and that is Christ, our Lord.

So, what is trusting our Lord from His life to His resurrection and to every need of ours? What is the essence of that trust?

1. Do we really know Him? You and I, do we know Him? Before we go further I want you to read John 8:42 and John 5:42.

Now we do not and cannot know true God if we don’t receive Jesus.

What is the nature of loving and receiving Jesus?
Is love mainly doing what Jesus said? Or is it deeper and have to do with affection? This is what He says in Matthew 10:37 which makes us ask ourselves, do we treasure Him more than our father, mother and children? If not, we are not worthy of being in His presence or won’t have Him. Apostle Paul goes further and speaks the truth boldly “If anyone does not love the Lord, let that person be cursed!”(1 Cor 16:22)

“Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, ...”

Many say isn’t love based on doing what He says to do as He says in John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commandments..” Is love about obedience even if you don’t feel anything particular about Jesus? Is it just doing what He says? No, far from that thought.
Love is not only about obedience. Let us read John 14:15 again. It says If you love Him, then that love will flow forth with obedience to Him because we treasure Him above all. It is not that following what He says speak of our love but our loving Jesus will follow into following His commandments. Because love Him and treasure Him above all, it follows into following His commandments.

Of course, it includes obedience, but it is not less than being transformed by love of treasuring, admiring, delighting Him and being satisfied in Him.

How will we know if our love, reliance and treasuring Him which enables us to follow His commandments, is truthfully there? Word of God through Paul’s experience answers for us in Philippians 3:8. Now if we look into this verse- All things! Paul and we treasuring Jesus more than anything this world has to offer, even our parents and kids, everything. How do we arrive at this experience of what Paul said in Philippians 3:8? I want you to read the “Parable of the Two Debtors”(Luke 7:36-50). This says that she was stunned by the grace and love of God, she was overflowing and overwhelmed with Jesus glory and grace upon her that the most treasured perfume she poured on Him. She was gripped and delighted in Jesus love, grace and glory.

So, when we are gripped with His love for us and His grace upon us & we treasure Him above all things, all people around us, then we will happily in overflowing joy spoken in Phil 3:8.

2. 2^nd explanation on what is the essence of trusting Jesus.

Disciples asked Jesus, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”(Matthew 18:1)

Jesus called a little child and set him before him and others around him to see the little child as an answer to the disciples questions(Matt 18:2)

Jesus replied to them, unless you turn and repent/cry out with contrite sorrowful heart and ask for forgiveness for the old ways and become like little children, you will never see the kingdom of heaven. So it is repentance & childlike faith that enables one to see kingdom of heaven. There is a short sermon based on this, you may read here and then continue further.

So now, that you have read the short sermon and above, it is revealed to us in Christ that trust/faith/relying on His overflowing future abundant grace with a repenting heart is important. Nothing we do has significance for being with Lord. Our actions do not merit us in any way to be with Lord. And before that in Point 1 we saw, seeing and savouring the glory of Christ and loving Him which results in obedience to Him until death for even anything in all creation can ever separate us then from the love and glory of Christ. (Romans 8:38-39)

So summarizing 1^st and 2^nd, no one can be with Lord even when they say “Lord, Lord”. Holy Spirit convicts us, convicts the heart each moment when follow our flesh which produces sin. Even at the slightest tarnish of deceitful heart, we cry to Jesus alone.(Ref John 16:8, Titus 3:5).

If we have no conviction of sins we do/did or unknowing sins or “unless we repent” in Jesus’ word. We will never be with Him. If our faith is not like little children, we won’t be with Him.

3.   Moving further, James says, “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also”(James 2:26 NASB)

Faith without works is a dead faith because the lack of it reveals that we do not treasure Him and trust Him like little children with a repentful heart. Lack of it reveals our life doesn’t see the glory, love and grace of Christ which is bestowed upon us; lack of faith without works reveals an unchanged life not conforming to Him.

Sometimes James 2:14-26 NASB is used by many Christians to define work based system & being obedience like the Jews even if we don’t treasure Him and trust with a repenting heart; even if we don’t see the grace of Christ revealed unto all.

So is it work based obedience system?
Far from that thought, James do not say that our works make us righteous but faith itself pours inside out through the love of God which has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit given to us(Romans 5:5 NASB) and reveals forth bearing good works to glorify His grace upon us.

Paul also says that 1 Cor 6:9-10. If we look carefully at that verse it reminds us of the word “idolator”.

Idolator-Loving the father/mother children more than Him, loving your wife more than Him, anything that replaces His foremost glory is idolatry whether it be a person/task/habit.(2^nd part of Romans 1 tells us how people exchange glory of God, thus idolatry) There are many who profess to be Christians, but their lives and priorities indicates otherwise. As Paul puts in 1 Cor 16:22, unless we treasure the Lord foremost of His overflowing grace, we are cursed and on path to destruction as we become idolator and do not see His grace and love for us.

Jesus put it this way: “"You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’" -Matthew 7:16-25
For more reference one may read Parable of Barren Fig Tree in Matthew 21:18-20.

So simply saying we believe in Jesus does not save us, nor does religious service or anything.

To summarize all three points in a single sentence, it would go like this-

A repentant heart gripped with Jesus' gracious unmerited love for us, making us treasure Him above all things; all the while enabling us with faith(like little children) that is flowing in one’s life through the ongoing obedience from the regenerated convicted heart as naturally as water flows from a spring.
Everything else becomes secondary when He is primary source of our eternal joy which would then make us say like Paul in Romans 8:38-39 & Phil 3:8 or as Pastor John Piper puts it- God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.