Thursday, September 13, 2012

Bad Company


Bad Company

I am going to be blunt.  You can know about Christ, you can even believe He is God and died for your sins.  But if you don’t act on that information, you are not a Christian.

So why do I say this? 

The Bible is very clear; Satan and his demons know that Christ is God.  Yet they rebelled against Him and are condemned to an eternity in Hell.

James 2:19-20 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

Mark 5:6-8 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him, And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not. For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.

To read about Lucifer’s (Satan’s) fall, read Revelation 12:7-10 and Isaiah 14:12-15.

Here is a straightforward analogy to clarify this point.  Do you know what a parachute is?  Do you believe that if properly designed, manufactured, maintained and packed a parachute will work?  OK then, let’s go jump out of a plane together!  Do you see the difference between knowing, believing and acting?

Secondly, the parable of the four soils (see Mark Chapter 4) teaches us that you can:
  • Have no response to the Word of God (seed that fell by the wayside);
  • Have an emotional response to the Word of God (seed that fell on rocky ground);
  • Have an intellectual response to the Word of God (seed that fell among the thorns);

and still not become a Christian (not transformed and bearing fruit).  Per James 2:20 above, ‘faith without works is dead’.  Only the seed that fell among the good ground bore fruit (indicating genuine conversion and the good works that followed).

And finally, a Christian puts Christ first in their life.

Luke 14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

Philippians 3:7-8 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

Honestly, it is a gross oversimplification to take these and related verses out of context and conclude that Christ was saying that in order to be His disciple, everyone must sell everything they own, give it all away, have no joy in life, literally carry around a big wooden cross, etc., etc.

These verses are teaching us we must be obedient to Christ and His commandments.  We must be willing and ready to give up anything He tells us to (some may be called to sell their possessions; others may called to use the wealth God has blessed them with to honor Him and care for others; and everything in between).

The message here is very simple: as a Christian, put nothing above Christ and lay aside anything in your life that does not honor and glorify His name!

So why is the title to this devotion, ‘Bad Company’?  If you know about Christ, understand what He did for you, and you haven’t acted on that information (respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and ask Christ to forgive your sins and be the Lord of your life), you are in with some very bad company – Satan and his demons).

If you have any doubts as to your standing before God, please seek out a Bible believing church and/or a Christian friend and ask them to tell you about the love of Christ and what is means to be born again.

Prayer

Dear Father, my prayer is that you will reach someone through your Holy Word as presented in this devotion.  Only You know the heart of a man.  Only You can save the lost through Your grace and the faith You give us to truly believe and accept salvation in Christ.  All praise to You.  In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen.