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In the video below, Ray Comfort from the Way of the Master has a conversation with eighteen-year-old Josh. Josh makes a few statements which show the general misunderstanding that today’s young people have about Christianity and truth. Notice a few key misunderstandings Josh mentions:
1. One can “try God”
Josh seems to think you can try a religion in the same way you try on a new outfit. I’m sure he took it a little more seriously than that, but here’s the point: he “came to Jesus” for a therapeutic reason, not to be rescued from the depths of his sin. Josh said he accepted Christ and was baptized shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. But then he fell away because he didn’t “feel anything.” Matthew 10:22 reads: “All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.” This is Jesus speaking. Jesus NEVER suggested to anyone to “give Him a try.” Instead, He firmly stated that there is only one cure for what ails mankind (sin), and that is repentance and forgiveness through an exclusive relationship with Jesus Christ, who is God incarnate. Either Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, once and for all, or He is not. This not a subjective (relative) truth, it’s objective. (Fodder for another post)
2. The way to be accepted by God is to “be as good as you can be”
When Ray pressed Josh on what it means to “be as good as you can be” and how do you know if you are, Josh did not have an answer. This is a common misconception about Christianity, again rooted in relativism. Jesus never called people to be “as good as they can be” so that He will accept them in the end. Jesus told people to do good works while on this earth, but as a result of our relationship with Him, not as a way to earn favor with God. The author of Hebrews wrote that ” by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Heb. 10:14, NIV) Perfection is for heaven; striving for holiness is an evidence of faith in trust in Jesus, not a work performed in hopes of earning a pass through the Pearly Gates.
3. I can come to God on my own terms
No, you can’t. This is another common misconception. When asked by Ray when he will finally repent of his sins and trust in Jesus, Josh said “when I’m hurting the most.” I completely understand that people reach out to God in their most desperate time of need. The Prodigal Son did so. I did as well. Those desperate times have a way of opening our spiritual eyes and ears to that we can see and hear from God and respond to Him. Revelation 3:20 states, “I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” (NIV) None of us asked God to knock on the door of our heart. Each person has rejected Him (Rom. 3:23). Therefore it’s only on His terms that we can return to Him. God is the instigator; without His willingness to rescue sinful people from certain death, we would have no hope. But we can have fellowship with God again (i.e. eat with Him) when we set our sinful ways aside and trust in God’s ways, which have been clearly revealed in His Word-Jesus and the Bible.
Photo courtesy of Aidan O'Sullivan's flickr photostream
I recently updated the tag line under the Truth-In-Sight blog title. The reason was to make sure the purpose of this blog is plain and clear to its current and future readers. In using the phrase “think Christianly,” I thought I should take a moment to explain that further.
Yourdictionary.com gives this definition of the word “Christian:”
- of Jesus Christ or his teachings
- of or professing the religion based on these teachings
- having the qualities demonstrated and taught by Jesus Christ, as love, kindness, humility, etc.
- of or representing Christians or Christianity
For all you grammar freaks out there, “think” is the verb in the phrase and “Christianly” is the adverb. The definition above relates to using the word “Christian” as an adjective, which describes a noun. In our case, the definitions are the same but describe a verb, which is to “think.”
Since all people (who are not in a brain-dead state) think, those who profess to follow Jesus Christ as born-again believers have an extra responsibility. That is to train their minds to think Christianly, “having the qualities demonstrated and taught by Jesus Christ, as love, kindness, humility, etc.” This does not come naturally; we must work at it.
1 Cor. 14:20 states, “Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.” (NIV) Just as our minds grow with knowledge as we age in years, so does our spiritual minds grow in faith and maturity the longer we walk with the Lord. We take in His truths, meditate on them, and practice them in our lives. In an ideal world, all Christians would be actively pursuing such a process. However, we all at times tend to get weighed down with the cares of the world and with how busy life seems to get. This is when the world begins to influence Christians much more than Christians are influencing the world.
I hope to use this blog as a positive and informative resource for Christians and truth-seekers. Please engage myself and each other with your helpful comments. I welcome you to join the discussion.
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