What Have We Become?

Well? What, as Christians, have we become?

On the whole – not too much!

When’s the last time you:

Gave your testimony to someone you didn’t know, in hopes that they too, would find Jesus as their savior?

Planted an “evangelical seed” – and I don’t mean the kind that the prosperity preachers mean – money – I mean the kind where you tell something to someone that gets them thinking of their spiritual future?

Spoken out on issues which are sin in the eyes of God, but legal but hurtful to humanity?

Ouch! It hurts, doesn’t it? If it doesn’t. then you really need to question your faith and salvation – because far too many “Christians” have done none of these basic things.

Do you know, that your testimony is the most valuable tool you have in your evangelistic toolkit? It’s the story of how Christ and the Holy Spirit worked in your life. to bring you to repentance, and acceptance of Christ as your savior.

It’s your story – no one can refute it. No one can tell you that you’re wrong! It also can provide a valuable message to the hearer.

Jesus said, just before He left this earth: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” – our job is therefore, to “go, and tell” – to evangelize.

One of the best examples of evangelism is found in the fourth chapter of John – the woman from Samaria at the well. The disciples had gone to buy food and left Jesus there alone. Along comes a woman to draw water from the well of Jacob.

Jesus requests a drink.

The Samaritan woman in verse 9 said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” You see, Jews had no dealings with Samaritans they would go around Samaria, than to set foot into the country.

Jesus then proceeds to tell her all about the living water that He could provide.

Finally, in verse 15, we find her asking for some of this “living water” – now, Jesus pulls the “repentance card” – in verse 16:

Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.”

You see, Jesus got her to confess that she wasn’t married, and that He already knew that she’s been married five previous times, and she was living in sin with number six.

Did He judge her? Nope. He did, however plant the seed as to who He was. After a little theological small talk, in verse 25:

The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”

She knows it now – so what does she do? Verse 28:

So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?”

Now you have to understand something about this woman – she would be considered a loose woman (to put it mildly) today. She came to the well when all of the other women were gone – but she ran to the town back, and became the town evangelist! Come, and see a man who told me all that I ever did!

And they came!

That, people, is evangelism!

So, when are you going to use your testimony?

Planting that “seed” – My wife and I watched “God’s Not Dead 2” on a service called PureFlix.

Here’s the trailer:

We don’t permit NetFlix in our home – there’s too much material that’s against God’s Word – that glorifies sinful things such as homosexuality, and so forth.

Anyway – both the original God’s Not Dead, and this sequel – show the planting of seeds of faith in the minds of those who don’t believe.  In this case a student in a public school – and the persecution of a Christian teacher in that school.

Are you afraid of planting seeds, or sharing your testimony, because you might be teased, bullied or even persecuted? Jesus warned us that this would happen when He told the disciples:

“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes. (Matthew 10:16-23)

Verse 22, says it best, “you will be hated by all for my name’s sake.

The name of Jesus packs a punch!

Have you ever seen what a bunch of unbelievers does when the name “Jesus” is mentioned? Try it sometime – the emotions that will be on display are from the pit of Hell itself.  You know that Satan himself is in your midst.  It’s the best time to start evangelizing – to cast the evil one out!

That leads me to my last point … speaking out on issues you know to be sinful – things that may be legal, but hurtful to humanity.

Yes, so many call that “judging” – that we’re being judgmental.  When it comes to sin, we are to judge.

We are not to judge the sinner however, but we’re to call out the sin whenever we see it – whatever it costs us.

Jesus did it to the woman at the well – He called out her sin, but he didn’t judge or condemn her.  He did it in the eighth chapter of John with the woman caught in adultery. She was caught red-handed, but he didn’t condemn her. Here’s my short teaching on the subject on judging others.

Again, while it’s true that we’re not to judge the sinner, we are to call out the sin!

How many of you consider abortion, an act of murder?

I do – because God’s word tells us that God knew us in the womb. That means that the baby being carried by the mother is a separate and distinct human being – not just a clump of cells!

Watch this short 4-minute video – and then tell me that abortion isn’t murder.

Yet, we now have states such as New York, Vermont,. New Jersey, Alaska, Colorado, New Hampshire, New Mexicio and Washington DC which have absolutely no restriction on aborrtion.

New York has now also taken “personhood” rights away from the baby – meaning that if the baby is killed during the commission of another crime, the person committing the crime would normally have been charged with the murder of the child – but no longer.

Illinois now wants to become the “place to go” when it comes to abortion. No limits on fetal gestation, no parental consent for minors, no restrictions whatsoever. Murder your baby at any time – even up to birth – for any reason whatsoever.

Are you not appalled by this?

And the federal government tried to pass a bill to ban late term abortions.  Catholics have been opposed to, and have spoken out against, abortion for years.

But so-called “good Catholics” such as:

Maria Cantwell of Washington

Susan Collins of Maine

Dick Durbin of Illinois

Kirsten Gillibrand of New York

Tim Kaine of Virginia

Patrick Leahy of Vermont

Ed Markey of Massachusetts

Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada

Claire McCaskill of Missouri

Bob Menendez of New Jersey

Lisa Murkowski of Alaska

Patty Murray of Washington

Jack Reed of Rhode Island

all voted to allow the type of abortion depicted in the video above.

They should all be excommunicated – but they won’t. They wield too much political power and provide much needed cash to the Vatican – that “Christianity be damned” – they will get away with murder.

If they’re your senators – you should be standing up and publicly rebuking these politicians.  And pastors in these states should do all they can to make the issue, a central one in the next election.

Did I condemn these people? No! I didn’t say that these people deserved to be in Hell.

Did I call out their sin? Yes! I would hope that they would repent and change their ways.

Pointing out sin is always done for the purpose of Restoration. Salvation for the non-believer, and Restoration to the Body of Christ for the backslidden believer.

To the woman caught in the act of adultery – Jesus told her to “Go, and sin no more”. There is forgiveness all around when one repents – and turns from their wicked ways.  Our pointing out sin is for one reason, and one reason alone – to get that person right with God.

So – are you being real?

Are you doing all you can to “Go, and tell the world” – even if the “world” is your own backyard?

Are you using your testimony, to show how God worked in your life – to lead others to Christ?

If not, you’re not being real.