Who is a Christian?

Summer is in full swing here in Oceanside. My husband is doing very well after his cardiac events. We're fighting with the birds over our tomatoes. They want their share. We keep the birdbaths full so they can bathe and we can have the fun of watching all the splashing. Our little hummingbirds are so jealous and feisty, they can't seem to learn to share their feeder, much squabbling going on! Even the birds are protective of what they perceive to be theirs. I watch the bunnies peeking through our tempered glass fence. They would love to come into the yard and munch on whatever they fancy!

I'll address a few of the comments and questions I've had lately. There is a discussion going on about whether President Obama is a Christian or Muslim. I heard a reporter say,"He's obviously a Christian, he prays everyday". The purpose of this blog is not to figure out what religion the president is, but we've got to ask.....if someone prays everyday, does that make him a Christian? I think NOT; most religions have a form of prayer. It's not the pray that matters, it's who you are praying to, the ONE true God, or one of man's making.

So, who is a Christian? Quite simply, one who follows the teaching of Christ. What did He teach? The Bible shares His story. In order to really understand, you need to be spiritually alive. How does that happen? Well, Jesus said we need to be 'born again'. I know, that sounds 'fanatical'. At least that's what I thought at one time....'here come the fanatics'!

Nicodemus, a Jewish Pharisee, a person of education, respect, probably wealth, had a personal conversation with Jesus after listening to Him speak. He waited until dark. I don't think he wanted his friends to see him talking to Jesus. You'll be able to read this story in John, Chap. 3.

Nicodemus was a very religious man......I'm sure he prayed a lot and he tried his best to live by 'the law', the rules that were in place for his religion. But in listening to Jesus, he became confused and wanted some clarification. He was beginning to understand that Jesus wasn't talking about good, religious people as those who were going to inherit the 'kingdom of God'....we call it heaven. In John 3:3 Jesus told him, ".....no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again'. I didn't know that it was Jesus who said that. I thought a bunch of radical believers had just picked that as a 'hook' to entice people to listen to them.

Jesus goes on to say that we are born the first time physically (of water) and then are born the second time spiritually. If you are a Christian, have you ever wondered why some people don't hear and can't see who Jesus is? It's only when God makes us alive that we can understand. So, how does that happen? Simply, He gives us a new heart and new spirit....Ezekiel 36:26. Have you ever wondered why Jesus so often said, while talking to a group, "those who have ears, let them hear". They all had ears, he was talking about spiritual ears. He knew those were the people who would hear and understand what he was saying.

We must believe, Jesus said. Look at John 6: 28 -29. This conversation took place after the feeding of the 5,000 on the shore of the Sea of Galilee near Tiberias. We were there many years ago, my husband and I. There is a natural 'bowl', like an amphitheater, and it was so easy to picture all those people sitting there listening to Jesus. Actually, women and children weren't counted among the 5,000 so many think there were closer to 10,000 present that day.

Again, these were good religious people who knew they were hearing something different. They came to Jesus personally.....notice how that works?? If we find our self drawn to Jesus, He will respond to us! These Jewish people were interested in following the rules and doing good things and thereby gaining favor with God. They desired a direct answer to a direct question....don't we?

"What must we do we do to do the works God requires?"

We might not ask the question in the same way today.....we may say something like, "What do I need to do to please God and get into heaven?"

Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."

Could it be that simple, just believe in Jesus? What does that look like, how does that work?

First God has to give you the faith to believe. Without faith, it's impossible to believe. God will draw you to Him and give you the gift of faith. We can't earn it, work for it, don't deserve it, we simply receive it. It is a gift! Heb. 12:2 tells us faith comes from Jesus.....so He is the one who we ask to supply us with the faith we need to believe. If you find yourself doing this, He already has given you faith.....or you wouldn't be asking!

Once we believe by faith, we can understand the gospel (I Cor. 15) that tells us Christ died on a cross to pay the penalty for our imperfection (sin), he was buried, and He rose again. He beat death and we who call Him our Lord and Savior are never again under the penalty of the law.

Romans 6:23 "The wages of sin is death, (we will die physically and spiritually) but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord".

It really is that simple! So, a Christian is a person who has been given the gift of faith to believe that Jesus is God, paid the penalty for our sin so we will be acceptable to God, and rose from the dead to show us we too will have new life.

Jesus did not come so we could have a 'religion', He came so we could have a relationship with God, and live eternally with Him.

While checking out a belief, the first question you need to ask is 'Who is Jesus?' There are many groups who call themselves 'Christian' but do not believe that Jesus is divine, that He is God. Don't be misled, see what Scripture says.

*BE FULLY PERSUADED THAT GOD IS ABLE TO DO WHAT HE HAS PROMISED
Romans 4:21

Thank you Lord that you have a perfect plan and we can rest in that knowing all is under your control.

The Walls Came Down

My alarm was set for 5:45 AM. The sun hadn't introduced the day yet and I'm out of bed getting ready to attend a day-long conference at Point Loma University in San Diego. I made a quick stop at Starbucks and arrived at our church at 7:15 to board the bus with about 30 other women. You'd think we'd be pretty quiet at that time of day, but the chatter was constant all the way to our destination.

We were there to attend the Daily Disciples 6th Annual Woman's Conference on 'The Power of Friendship' with Bobbye & Tonilee. Also on the program, two local newswomen who together co-anchored the daily news ( S.D. channel 10) for 17 years...Carol LeBeau and Kimberly Hunt. Carol is retired now, but they still make a great team!

Anytime you get over 1,000 women together, and virtually no men, you will hear jokes, about men of course. I liked Carol's joke....'Some women think men are good for only one thing, (pause), how important is parallel parking anyway?!' And this one, 'How many men does it take to change a roll of toilet paper? No one knows, it's never been done!' Jokes are funny because we see some 'truth' there. The joke part softens the reality. And we love to laugh!

We were also entertained by awesome music...wow! There is something so special about a huge gathering of women singing praise to the Lord, acapella! Like angels singing, magical.

Now the really funny thing, think you'll agree that the Lord has a great sense of humor and knows how to keep us humble. After this wonderful day of being refreshed with God's word, we left as 'empowered' women! Nothing would be too hard for us, ready to take on the world! Then, the bus broke down on the way home. It had been a long day, just turning dark, and here we sit in a gas station parking lot. We empowered women got out our cell phones and called our husbands to come get us! It took just a little of the 'buzz' off!

Tonight I'm going to jail to give a message. My friend Elfi will be there too. The Lord already has some of His sheep prepared to come, we'll sing, pray with the women and share God's love. I've prepared a short study out of the OT book of Joshua and thought I'd share it with you also.

Some interesting background - archaeology supports that these events happened between 1200 to 1400 years before Christ. The name Joshua means 'The Lord Saves' or 'The Lord Gives Victory'. In it's Greek form, the word means 'Jesus'. Joshua lived through years of slavery in Egypt, spent 40 yrs in the desert wandering around with Moses and the Jews, and finally entered the 'promised land'.

The book of Joshua is about the establishment of Israel in the land that God had promised to Abraham and his descendants. It's one of several books - Judges, Samuel, and Kings, called 'Former Prophets' in the Hebrew Bible. These books are historical in content, but are written from a prophetic point of view and show how God fulfills and remains true to His promises. You men love to read about all the wars that took place....I'm poor on all the details but coax out the spiritual significance and what it means to our lives....today.

Joshua was the only one who accompanied Moses to the 'holy mountain' when God gave the Ten Commandments. He was a military strategist and statesman. He completed the work of Moses, and died at the age of 110 yrs., Joshua 24:29. He was an OT type of Jesus and foreshadowed Christ, a savior of his people.

THE WALLS OF JERICHO COME DOWN in a most unusual way. You can read about this starting in Joshua 5:13. This passage, vs. 13 -15, gives a clear picture of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. He came on the scene, born as a baby in Bethlehem, but He has always 'been'. John, Chap 1:1-2 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning." Vs. 14, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us". John is talking about Jesus Christ.

Prior to His incarnation, meaning taking on a human body of flesh, Jesus appeared to many OT saints. Notice how quickly Joshua recognized who He was, vs. 13-14. Whenever the person of Jesus has appeared to man, it has been in human form....you see this all through the OT.

If any of our field commanders today approached the capture of a city in the way Joshua did, they'd probably wind up in a 'psych' hospital. You notice not one weapon was used, they marched, blew trumpets, shouted, and the wall of the city collapsed! This wall actually went straight down into the ground leaving no rubble for the army to climb over; they simply went "straight in". This was discovered to be true by modern day scientific type people. We were there in Jericho in '99. Amazing to stand at that site!

In the final two chapters Joshua knows his mission is complete and says farewell to his the leaders. He never takes credit for his part in history, all glory is given to the Lord. He points out ........

** Vs. 23:1 that it was the Lord who gave Israel rest. We struggle with our problems every day, but our attempts our futile, it is the Lord who will give us rest.

** Vs. 23:3 shows who was in charge of what happened to 'all these nations'...the Lord your God! He's in charge of what happens to us too.

** 23:5 Who drove the enemy away? God himself! He will drive our enemies away too. And why were they able to take possession of their land? Because God had promised it to them. He will keep the promises he has made to you, every one!

**23:7 simply says that we are not to mingle with those who get us into trouble...stay away!

**23:10 so often we feel like we have to fight for what should be ours, the Lord has promised He will fight for you....what a relief, give up your battle!

If we have no Savior, we have no one to stand for us in God's presence...Heb 9:24, Jude 24. We are under the law and must keep it perfectly and completely. No one can do that. Romans 10:4 "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes". This is the 'GOOD NEWS'!

You'll find a wonderful summary in Joshua, Chapter 24....hope you read it and maybe we'll 'talk' about it next time. Remember, if you interact with the Bible itself you will be so blessed...open and read!