I was brought up in a Christian home.

That doesn’t make you a Christian.

My mother always went to church.

That doesn’t make you a Christian

I believe in doing good, and helping others.

Quite right, too, but so do most people. That doesn’t make you a Christian.

I believe in God.

Most people say this, but that doesn’t make you a Christian. Many people think they are Christians but rarely if ever bother about Jesus Christ.

I was baptised when I was young.

That doesn`t make you a Christian. If baptism made you a Christian you would have no need to repent. God commands men everywhere to repent not just to be baptised.(Acts.16:30)

Well, what is a Christian, then?

Let’s begin at the very beginning. When God made human beings, he made them perfect and good and sinless.  He wanted us to be his friends and look after the earth. He did not make people robots or machines, but gave us a precious gift, free will to choose between right and wrong, good and evil.  He did not want to force us to love him.  He wanted us to love Him freely. People chose to disobey God; they chose sinning.  They preferred to please themselves rather than God. They sinned, and so sin entered into the world.  It is a choice we all made because all have sinned (Romans 3:23).

What Sin Is

Evil, wrong and sin are there in the life of everyone who has not yielded their lives to God.  We see this in all the hatred and violence, greed and selfishness in the world.  We see it as we look at our own lives, if we are really honest with ourselves. It has become second nature to all of us.  I sin when I fall short of god’s standard for me “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”.[Rom. 3:23] If the pass mark for an exam is 50 and you get 49 marks, you have failed.  If someone else gets 5 marks, he has failed also. It is no good you saying, “I did much better than the one who got 5”.

You may think you are not so bad, better than most.  But that’s not the point, for not one of us has come anywhere near god’s perfect standard in His son Jesus Christ.  We cannot even come up to our own standards.  We may not have done anything especially wicked but we are sinners because we have all missed the mark and are just not good enough. I sin when I do what I want. The Bible says “Each of us has turned to his own way” (Isaiah 53:6). Doing what I want: this is the cause of our trouble, unhappiness and quarrels. Sin is not just killing, stealing, or telling lies.  It is when I live to please myself rather than God. I sin when I can’t be bothered with God or with other people; when I say “I’m my own boss; its my life, I can do what I like with it”,-this is sin-I in the middle or in other words -me first. I sin when I do not love God with all my heart. Jesus said, “ You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind, this is the first and greatest commandment”.  (Matthew 22:37-38) Not one of us has loved God like this. We have broken the great commandment.  We are all self centred rather than God centred.

What Sin Does

Sin is like an ugly blot on a clean page.  Being selfish, lazy, thoughtless, telling lies and dirty stories ruins your character. Sin destroys the happiness of a home and a friendship.

Sin Spreads

Sin is like weeds in a garden; if not rooted out, they will soon overrun it. Little acts of dishonesty and disobedience soon become habits we cannot break.

Sin Separates

Sin is like a thick cloud which blots out the sun. That is why God seems to be miles away.  He is pure and holy.  He hates sin. He cannot and will not look at sin.  It blocks the way to him. Sin cuts you off from God in this life and in the life to come.  Be quite clear about this; Hell is a grim and dreadful reality for all who reject Christ in this life.

Something To Consider

Jesus never promised its would be easy to follow him.  Expect opposition, sneers and misunderstanding. Every part of your life, work, friendships, time, money, must all come under his control.

Something To Do

Accept Jesus Christ into your life to be your Lord to control you, your saviour to cleanse you, your friend to guide and be with you. So many miss this last step and thus never come to know Jesus Christ.  Perhaps no verse in the Bible makes this step clearer than Revelation 3:20.  Jesus says “Behold I stand and the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him......”

Jesus Christ waits outside the door of your life.  He will not force his way in. He wants to be asked in. The handle is on the inside; only you can open the door.  You become a true Christian when you open the door of your life to Christ and let him come in and live in your heart and life.