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An older, gray-haired man said to my husband the other day that he had found the way, and that he needed to school the younger generation of African American males on “what time it is.” As his dialogue continued, it was apparent that the way that he discovered was not at all the knowledge that God’s Word declares. As the conversation deepened, and one after the other as the more militant layers of his argument were exposed, there wasn’t much there. When stacked against the truth of God’s Word, the information that he was trying to present as enlightenment was not enlightening at all. It was a vain philosophy. I’d like to provide some truths from God’s Word that will help us to not only discern the truth when confronted this way, but to also plant seeds that might help people come to Christ and steer themselves away from dangerous and dark paths.
Jesus Christ is the Way
Hebrews 11:4 (KJV) tells us, “It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts.” God’s Word doesn’t tell us a whole lot about the daily life of Adam and Eve after their fall, but we know that they had children; two of them were sons, Cain and Abel. We can also deduce that God must have educated Adam and Eve in the importance of making sacrificial offerings, because their sons knew it well and put it into practice.
Both Cain and Abel brought offerings to God; one was accepted and one was not. Many have speculated about Abel’s offering—the one that God accepted, but no speculation is needed. The Word tells us that righteousness was evidenced in Abel’s offering, and this is all we need to know. Everything about his intention, his heart, and his desire to please God is known by this one word, ‘righteous’.
Romans 3:22(NIV) tells us, “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile.” God stamped Abraham ‘righteous’ because of his faith. Abel’s sacrificial offering was such that he earned this stamp as well. You and I have nothing like the circumstances and living conditions that they encountered, but we have a Savior that has redeemed us from the curse of sin and death, and because of our faith in him we are righteous!
There is nothing that you and I can put forth and call excellent without first seeing it in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We can point to Jesus as the pattern of the highest, greatest level of perfection that can be achieved. One of the differences between us, as Christians, and the many who claim to know the truth should be that we will forever and always point to Jesus as the way. We recognize that it isn’t because of our righteousness, for without him we have none. It is because of God’s grace that we have a way through Christ of standing before Heavenly Father clothed in righteousness, with a heart that is ready to worship, praise, and glorify Him.
Remember from whence you came
Jesus Christ said in John 14:6 that he is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one can come to the Father except they come by him. It is an egregious mistake to forget who we are and how we were before we came to Christ. All of us are works in progress now that we’ve made Christ the head of our lives, but we were in dire straits—on a path straight to hell—before this happened. We were born in sin, and sin is in our members. The bible tells us that there is a war going on inside us, and we have to wrestle daily to put on the mind of Christ, abstain from walking in the flesh, and walk in the Spirit.
Sometimes we lose the fight. We make mistakes; lots of them. Our loving Heavenly Father will forgive us when we ask in earnest, but the humility to recognize that we have been given what we could in no way have earned is key.
There are so many people who think themselves good and noble. Cain made this mistake, and did not offer his best to God, but instead thought himself in a position of deciding what is good and acceptable, and his offering was rejected. God is the only Righteous Judge, and only He determines what is good and acceptable. We hear people heralding the goodness of others all the time. I, myself, have referred to many dear friends as good Christian people. Jesus asked the question in Mark 10:18 (KJV), “Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.” He reminds us how easy it is for arrogant thinking to slip in, and then we forget that we are but dust, and that any claim of more than that is due totally and completely to the goodness of God.
There are many living today who actually believe that they are gods or some form thereof; they believe they should be honored, revered, and adored. Such attitudes are spun from the creator of them, and hell is his home. Remember the arrogance of the devil, and how he thinks of himself as equal to the One True God. Wanting to be worshipped like our Heavenly Father, the devil will never admit that he is wrong; he will never repent, for evil is his nature. So we can know for sure that an unrepentant spirit is a bullseye for someone that is not of God. It is a characteristic that we must be able to recognize in those that seek to undermine the truth of God’s Word. We must also be honest enough to recognize it in ourselves as well, for sometimes we are won over and overly impressed with some people merely based on their popularity and charisma.
Ephesians 2:2 (NLT) tells us, “You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.” A good way to clear a church is to preach about the consequences of sin. Many people hate to hear about it because they do not want to face the truth, and they do not want to stop committing the sins of which they derive some form of pleasure. A repenting heart is a Christian’s trademark. It is a heart of conviction and faith; one that is continually aimed at pleasing God instead of trying to dodge the truth. The trademark of darkness is a heart that refuses to repent.
The sin that is in our members must be confronted, acknowledged, and then released; or it will continue to keep us trapped and too heavy to reach the finish line of faith. It will weigh us down to such an extent that we are lowered by the gravitational pull of all that is beneath Godly living. Repentance is not only a process, but it was intended by Heavenly Father that it should be a perpetual practice, one where we come square with our actions. We are to give them over to the spirit through prayer, and let him comb us through and through. If there’s anything but a right spirit within us, it will be revealed through our circumstances and conditions. When we recognize this we should repent.
I shake my head at some of the things I hear today; it is such arrogance, but many of us are buying into it. We would all do well to remember how subtle a false doctrine can be. When it comes to our faith, often the aim isn’t to get us to change our beliefs immediately. It is to sow a seed of doubt that will eat away at the fabric of our trust over time. And it isn’t always a stranger bearing seeds of darkness, sometimes it’s those we look up to and admire. The bottom line is that we have to remain humble, so that we ourselves are able to discern properly. So keep the goodness of God firmly anchored in your heart, then you will be prepared to truly enlighten, educate, and if need be, turn a deaf ear to those who are filled with darkness and refuse to repent.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“The Trademark of a True Christian is Repentance” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2016. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.
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