The term Christian is thrown about quite loosely and I think a lot of people call themselves a Christian because they believe in God. Or they (mostly) do nice things for people. Or they go to church for Christmas… and maybe Easter if they feel like it. Maybe they think they are Christian because they were baptized as a baby. Or maybe they asked Jesus into their heart as a child.

Do any of these things make you a Christian? In and of themselves, no. Being baptized doesn’t make you a Christian. Asking Jesus into your heart once, or twice, or a whole bunch of times even, doesn’t make you a Christian. These are stepping stones on the way to becoming a Christian, sure. But making you a Christian? No way.

Let’s put it this way. Do your friends and family and co-workers know that you are a Christian? If not, then you need to do some serious soul-searching and figure out why that is. I’m not saying you need to evangelize to them all (but if you are at all concerned about their eternal souls, which you should be, then you should be talking to them about the hope within you, right?), but you need to live a lifestyle that, without a doubt, reflects that you are a Christian. Does this mean you need to be perfect? Nope. I’m far from perfect. And I am pretty much scared spitless to evangelize to people — I am more than willing to talk about Jesus and my hope and faith and love for Christ if it is brought up, but to just out of the blue talk to someone about it? I have a real hard time with that, and it really takes some prayer and dependency on the Holy Spirit to move me beyond my natural tendency to clam up.

But at the same time, I know that when people spend some time talking to me, they know I’m a Christian. I haven’t always been this way, of course, but as I’m growing and learning, I am becoming more public, more obvious. Things like saying “God bless you” roll off the tongue with such ease now, when they were so hard to say before. Taking my Bible to church was something I would do if I remembered it, but it didn’t really matter if it didn’t come with me. My Bible goes with me every time I’m at church now. And instead of tucking it away or hiding it in a stack of whatever else I happen to be carrying, it’s on top, shining for the world to see.

These are a few examples, but they convey a very important thing: I’m not ashamed or trying to hide who I am. And this is a very very important thing to realize, because Jesus says:

““Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.”” (Matt 10:32-33, NKJV)

Being denied before God means an eternity separated from God. And if God is in heaven, then that means we will not be in heaven. There’s only one place left.

Look at what else Jesus says:

“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matt 4:13-16, NKJV)

I heard this the other day and it really made sense. As Christians, we are the Bride of Christ, right? Ok, so all you married people out there… you do acknowledge the fact that you have a spouse, right? That you’re married? You don’t tuck your significant other in the closet and bring him or her our when the lights are off and no one is around, right?

So if we, as the church, are the Bride of Christ, why are so many of us denying the fact that we have a “husband”?

Think about it! If you ignored your spouse, didn’t spend any time with them, didn’t give them any affection, didn’t stand up for them… how long do you think your spouse is going to remain your spouse? He or she might suffer it for a while, but I’m pretty sure that at some point they are going to pointedly say to you that you’re doing something wrong and you need to acknowledge them and treat them better. Shape up or ship out. I’m pretty sure that most of us would feel the same way. Dejected, lonely, frustrated, angry — these are things anyone who is consistently ignored by their spouse feels. So then the question becomes: if we feel this way when we are neglected by our spouse, how do you think Jesus feels when His spouse-to-be is neglecting Him?

We are salt and we are light. We need to make the fact that we are Christians known. People need to look at us and know there is something different about us without us even opening our mouths and saying a word. God’s light should be shining from within us. We should be doing, and acting, and speaking, things that befit someone who belongs to a body that will be married to the King of Kings! Our attitude should be so Christ-like that people will know that we are more than just “good people” without even bringing God into the conversation. And when they ask why you’re so happy, or joyful, or what makes you so different, why do we hide the fact that it is our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ that has transformed and redeemed and saved us?

Living lives that are righteous, holy, and obedient before Father God are what will draw people to us and let them know that we are different without us even having to try. We need to love our neighbours as ourselves:

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35, NKJV)

Finally, look at the origination of the term Christian:

“So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” (Acts 11:26b, NKJV)

The disciples were called Christians! Not “the good people”, not the people who “went to church sometimes” — none of these were called Christians. The disciples were called Christians. If we profess to be Christians, we need to be disciples of Jesus Christ! There are three keys in this half of the verse: the first is that they were disciples. The second is that they assembled with the church (“spirituality without the church” is not Christianity!). The third is that they taught people.

Are you a Christian? How do you know if you’re a Christian? You know you’re a Christian if you lead a life of selfless abandon to Jesus Christ, that you love Him, that you strive to be obedient in all things. That you put on your robes of righteousness for His Name’s sake, not yours. That you do everything you can to lead a holy and righteous life. That you teach people, through words and actions. That you are a city on the hill, a light uncovered for all to see. That you do not deny Jesus — at any time. That you love His Word, that it is your daily bread. That you put Jesus before everything, before relaxation and recreation, before music or books or TV or video games or “hanging out”. That you love the Body of Christ, the church, and your brothers and sisters in Christ, and you strive for unity in all things with the Body. That you are a bride that wants to wear robes without wrinkle or spot and that you are head-over-heals in abandoned love with the only One who can save, who has given you the free gift of salvation and eternal life! That you repent of your sins, get baptized, and be filled with the Holy Spirit and then let the Holy Spirit shine through you!

Lord God, make more disciples for you! You are calling Your people to repentance, to holy and righteous living, just as You are Holy and Righteous! Shape me into a vessel of honor for Your Name’s sake, Lord, not mine. Never for me, but always for You! Jesus I love You, I exalt You, and I magnify Your precious Name! Father, thank You for sending Your Son to die on the cross for our my, to bridge the gap between you and me, so that I can know You and, more importantly, that You know me. Thank You Jesus for all that you have done for mankind, are doing for mankind, and will do for mankind. Thank You that You love us so much! Help me to be a worthy disciple, showing you through my words and deeds, showing a lost and dying world the one true path to everlasting life! Amen and Amen!

“Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice: ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!’ And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sites on the throne, and to the Lamb forever and ever!’” (Rev 5:12, NKJV)

Can you imagine the glory, the praise, the continual worship, the adoration and love and gratitude and blessing poured upon Almighty God and His Son Jesus Christ, in heaven? I can’t. This world is such a shadow, such a dim thing compared to what eternity will be like. And even here on earth, with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the absolute abandonment and joy we can receive when we worship our Lord Jesus in spirit and truth, that anointing and blessing that comes from God the Father… I honestly believe it pales in comparison to what heaven will be like, despite how absolutely beautiful and fantastic it is.

Last night at church, as we were worshipping, I felt such an impression of “worthy, worthy, worthy”… it was so heavy, like it had weight, an importance behind it. It bubbled out of me like a desperate cry… God, You are so infinitely worthy! Worthy of my love, my time, my attention, my energy, my hopes, my dreams. You are worth more than I could possibly ever offer You!

And after such a wonderful encounter with God, and an awesome message, the reality hit me.

If He is so worthy (and He is) why aren’t we giving Him our best?

I mean, we sing songs about how worthy He is, how He sent His Son to die for us, how we owe Him everything. We sing songs about living lives pure and holy before Him, about inviting Him in, about becoming living sacrifices. And yeah, singing those songs are great and there can be a real heartfelt passion there, but… if He is so worthy, why aren’t we giving Him our best. I mean our absolute best?

So many times in the last few months I have been absolutely humbled by the overwhelming realization of who Jesus is and what He did for me. The absolute brutality of the cross — the suffering in body, in soul, and in spirit. Jesus took on the sin of every man, woman, and child as they pierced His flesh and hung Him on a tree. He felt the hatred of men towards Him as they cried out “crucify Him! Crucify Him!”. In the spirit, He felt the judgement and wrath of a holy and righteous God, poured out upon Him because He took all of our sin as the sacrificial Lamb of God. A wrath and hatred for all things evil, all sin, all the awful things that you and I and every human being from Adam until Jesus comes again — that burning anger was poured out on Jesus who took that on Himself because He loved us, He loved me, enough to suffer that in order to bridge the divide that sin created between God and man. And the really amazing thing is that I know that if there were only one person on the planet, He would have done the same thing anyways.

Humbled yet? I know I am. I keep thinking about Isaiah and the vision he had of God sitting in heaven:

“And one cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!’ And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. So I said: ‘Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.’” (Isaiah 6:3-5, NKJV)

This is how I feel! I am a man of unclean lips! What I felt yesterday was that God is so worthy of our best and we’re giving Him leftovers. God demands the best of all we are, and we’re giving Him scraps fit for dogs! God forgive us — compared to what God has given us, we’re giving Him so very little of what we can, and should, offer Him! I am giving Him less than He deserves, so much less than what He deserves but God knows I am desperately trying to give Him more. Lord, take me, use me, help me to live a life of no compromise.. to be a living sacrifice, to be a witness and example of Your love and Your life in me!

If God is our King, and He is our Lord, then we need to start treating Him like it! We need to give Him the best of our attention — when we’re in church we should be there to adore Him, eager to consume the bread of His word for the Life it is! We should be taking notes, following along in our Bibles, lifting our hands and our feet and singing our hearts out! Not holding back, not texting on our phones, not leaving our Bible at home because we can’t be bothered to take it with us.

We need to give Him the best of our time — if the church God has placed us in has more than just Sunday-morning service, we need to go! This wasn’t an easy thing for me because I like my “down time”, but I’ve since realized that with God, He is my down time! Today work was getting crazy and busy and overwhelming and I was getting frustrated and tired. Then I felt such an impression to worship that I just turned up the worship songs, stood up, and lifted my hands before my God and worshipped Him as hard as I could for 15 minutes. It was brief, but it was powerful! And after tha,t there was peace, relaxation, an energy that I didn’t have before (I honestly felt like I had just woken up, refreshed, and having just downed an espresso or two!). What an amazing thing God gives us when we turn to Him! I could have easily gone and had a coffee, grumbled, muttered, whatever… but nothing would have given me the peace and vitality that just worshipping my Lord and Saviour gave me. Thank You, Lord, for that! But there is a very real key here: God honors the time we give Him. I have experienced this over and over again. Give God time and He will give you back whatever you sacrificed for Him. Did you give up sleep? The sleep you do get will be sounder, better, and you’ll wake even more refreshed. Did you give Him time that belonged to family or work? You’ll get that “time” back in increased productivity, a deeper quality to your family life (honestly though, your family should be in church with you! That is family time!).

(I need to quickly qualify the family time because there is a point of extremes. Yes, you should be in church as much as you can, and your family with you. But if you’re running around all the time, going to this church or that, or to that event, and not taking some time with your family, then you need to rethink what you’re doing. Good family time is so important, and we think it’s all rush rush rush, going here or there, when we need to take time to grow in our family units. That isn’t to say family time is sitting in front of the TV; if that’s your idea of family time you might as well be in church. I mean good engaging family time: playing board games, reading stories or the Bible, spending time talking and, more importantly, teaching your children about God is absolutely vital to maintaining a good strong family unit. As well, praying together, as a family, is more vital than you can imagine!)

So instead of skipping church to “minister” to a friend, you need to go to church (with or without them) — that will minister to them even more. They’ll know where your priorities are! Instead of spending time watching TV or playing video games, we should be spending our time at church or in His Word, or praying, or worshipping Him. I’m not saying don’t watch TV or play games or enjoy recreation, but what I’m saying is that the best of your time should be given to God and after you have honored Him and been obedient, then watch TV or whatever. Make all of that secondary, because God should be primary!

We need to give Him the best of our money — tithes and offerings. This is something God demands from us. 10% belongs to Him. We need to be faithful here; I believe it so deeply because I’ve experienced it. Tithing is so critical to receiving the full blessing of God. Offerings and alms are like lending money to God and He pays back with interest! But most importantly, because He asks us, we should do it. He’s worthy, right? Right!

We need to give Him the best of our talent — we need to be using our gifts and talents and skills for the increase of God’s kingdom! Whether this is serving in the church, whether this is ministering to people on the streets — whatever it is that God called you to do we should be doing it cheerfully and without grumbling. At our work, at our church, at our homes… everything we do should be done as if we were doing it for God. He deserves the best we have, and that includes the best work ethic! People should be scrambling to hire Christians, not wanting to get rid of them because we’re no different than the world in our work ethic! We need to be working hard because God gave us talents to improve and increase, and because He gives us the strength we need if we ask Him. We’ve got a huge advantage over worldly workers if we would only see it!

We need to give Him the best of our adoration — God deserves it. In heaven we will be crying out “worthy, worthy, worthy” for all eternity, so we might as well start practicing it now! We need to give God our reverence, we need to worship and pour out our love on Him because He is so very much worth it! We need to bless Him, crave His Presence, do whatever He asks of us because we love Him so much, because of what He has done for us and just because He loves us! He is called our heavenly Father for a reason! Now, I know that’s hard for those of us who don’t have fathers that pour out affection on us or make time for us, but realize that our Father is not like our earthly fathers. I mean, I love my daughter… I love her a lot. I would spend all of my time with her if I could. She’s beautiful, she’s smart, she’s kind, she’s generous, she has everything that makes her attractive to be around. I love her with all my heart. And yet, my love for her pales in comparison to God’s love for her. Jesus died for her too! God loves her with such an abundant love that I couldn’t even know it to describe it.

But what is amazing to me is that she loves me without question, without reservation. My daughter loves me to the point where it makes my heart ache because I am the recipient of that love. And I think God designed the family unit in this way so that we as parents can actually feel how God feels when kids love their parents unconditionally. And so that we as parents can feel how He feels when our kids misbehave or are not obedient, because that’s what we do to Him.

I also think that the way we feel pride in our kids when they excel and put their heart into something and give something their all (a test, a sport, whatever) is similar to the pride God feels in us when we give our tasks our best. And similarly, how we feel when our kids don’t try, lack ambition to succeed, when they’re not listening to us, when they don’t talk to us, when they don’t want to hang out with us… that disappointment we feel is small compared to the disappointment God feels when His children (us!) don’t listen (obey), don’t want to talk (pray), don’t want to hang out (go to church), don’t want to try, don’t want to persevere, don’t want to care, and so on.

The bottom line is that if we profess to love God, we need to bear witness to that. God sees the heart, He is not fooled by our silly justifications. He isn’t fooled when we want to watch a talk show rather than read His Word and justify it by saying we’ll do it later. You can’t trick God by saying that you’ll skip a service because you got to that really good part in a game, or a book, or you’re having a good time with friends, or the big game is on TV. God sees all, and He sees where our priorities lie by how we act, what we say, and what we do.

The Old Testament is full of examples of the sacrifices and offerings God ordained for His people. They were commanded to give the best of their flock, the best of their crops, the first fruits. I think that we’ve forgotten this, or haven’t read our Bibles enough to know it. We were bought with the most awful price, our lives are no longer our own. Yes, we are slaves to Christ because of the currency He used to pay for our redemption, His own blood. We can’t possibly pay Him back for what He gave us, but the very least we can do is live our lives obedient to His Word and express our love for Him in the most obvious way possible — by giving Him our absolute best, because He is worthy, worthy, worthy!

Since angels are in the Bible, I whole-heartedly believe in them. Absolutely and without question. What I do question is what people describe as the purpose of angels. I question this need to describe the angelic hierarchy, to categorize them, to find out their names, to talk with them, pray to them, or order them about like they are our own personal genies. We have been told to worship God, yet I believe that what a lot of people are doing is worshipping angels.

The definition of “worship” is: adoration, reverence, devotion. When people focus on angels, seek after them, talk to them, concentrate on them, then they are, in essence, worshipping them. There is a stern warning about worshipping angels, and people who read their Bibles would know it:

“Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”” (Rev 22:8-9, NKJV)

John was told not to worship the angel who had shown him such amazing and wonderful things as indicated in the book of Revelations. Why then would we think it is ok to give angels this same reverence and adoration today when it wasn’t ok to do it 2000 years ago?

As with all things, the Bible is our litmus test. So what does the Bible say about angels? It doesn’t talk much about angelic hierarchies, and very few angels are named. But it clearly says that angels are messengers of God, that they lead or prepare the way according to God’s Will, and that they also stand in the way, hinder, and destroy certain things — again, according to God’s Will. Angels are always met with reverence — not only because they are supernatural beings, but because they were a manifestation of the Will of God, because they brought God’s message to people. Heb 1:14 says that angels are “ministering spirits” . Psalms 91:11 and Psalms 103:20 say that angels do God’s commands, not ours. Matt 13:41 indicates that Jesus commands angels, not us.

There is another very clear warning against angel worship:

“Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.” (Col 2:18-19, NKJV)

I like how the Message reads for that passage as well:

“Don’t tolerate people who try to run your life, ordering you to bow and scrape, insisting that you join their obsession with angels and that you seek out visions. They’re a lot of hot air, that’s all they are. They’re completely out of touch with the source of life, Christ, who puts us together in one piece, whose very breath and blood flow through us. He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us.” (Col 2:18-19, MSG)

The warning is clear: don’t chase after angels, chase after Jesus — He is the Head, and He is the source of life. Don’t follow vain ideas, outlandish obsessions, things that satisfy the flesh. This is what angel worship is.

Also look to Heb 1:4 and 1:6; Jesus is superior to angels, and angels worship Jesus. So if Jesus is so much more than angels, why do people put faith in angels, and pray to angels, and worship angels. Why worship the created rather than the Creator?

I also find it very dangerous because a lot of the “reading materials” about guardian angels and information on angels, sounds suspiciously like New Age spirit guides. Any Christian will tell you that a “spirit guide” is nothing but demonic, but why do we go soft when talking about angels? In particular, why is it that the same meditational practice to talk to your angel is so similar to that of talking to a “spirit guide”, but because it’s an angel it’s ok? Read the following quote and tell me if this is something that a Bible-believing Christian should ever do:

Make yourself comfortable, sitting or lying down. Be aware of your breathing… Let your body become limp and relaxed. Empty your mind; create space, just as though the whole of the universe was there, inside you. Now just be. No doing. Only being. Communicate to your angel that you wish to connect with her/him. Wait in peace. Be aware of what happens. It may not seem much at first. Be patient. Subtle changes will occur. You may see light, colors or form. You may be aware of a presence. You may feel tingling sensations. You may feel emotion. You will feel love. You can ask or invoke, use stillness for clear reception, use “heart sensing,” pay them by sending them love, and maintain harmony in your aura and home environment.

The source of the above quote is a catholic web site that is devoted to angels and information on angels. The mission statement and beliefs of the site, as stated, all sound great: they believe in the Holy Trinity, they believe in prayer, in anointed worship, and so forth. It sounds very inspiring and very Christian. Until you read the above. If you were to do a search on how to contact your spirit guide, you would find similar themes as the above: be aware of breathing, relax, empty your mind, visualize, speak with your angel (aka spirit guide). What kind of heresy is this! Confess Jesus as the Christ and then tell people that communicating with angels in a prescribed meditational way that is identical to New Age or spiritist/medium/occult mechanisms is ok? No, more than ok, that people should be doing this? That it is ok? What nonsense is this? And more importantly, why do people who call themselves Christian buy into this rot when it is so clearly spoken against in the Bible?

To conclude, I know what kind of angels these people who claim to talk to them, visualize them, converse with them, and so forth are actually dealing with. There are two types of angels: the holy angels that obey God the Father and Jesus the Son, and the fallen angels that follow Satan. Since we know that the New Age movement and “spirit guides” are of the devil, then would it not make sense to conclude that angels contacted in the same fashion are from the same origin? Rev 9:11 says that Satan is an angel and Rev 12:7-9 says Satan has angels.

“But what I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.” (2 Cor 11:12-15, NKJV)

Satan comes as an angel of light, with subtlety, with feelings of love and warm fuzzies. Do not be deceived! We are told to test the spirits, but how many do? So wrapped up in the wonderful feelings, the adoration, the worship of these beings they do not think to question. Yet we are told explicitly to test the spirits:

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.” (1 John 4:1-3, NKJV)

I think the message is abundantly clear. We do not command angels. They are not here to do our bidding. We are not to worship them or chase after them. We are not supposed to pray to them. They are servants of Jesus, just as we are. Their purpose and function is to praise God and do His Work, just as it is for us. Anything that puts esteem on angels, or a focus on angels, is taking away glory that belongs to God. A holy angel of God would not at all want to take away glory from God. But an angel of darkness sure would. That was the reason why Lucifer was cast out of heaven to begin with! He thought to exalt himself above God. Any doctrine that tries to do the same thing is of the same origin.

As Christians we need to be aware of this and not chase after or find a fascination in this kind of thing. This is demonic, New Age teaching to the core. It has been spruced up to put a “Christian” or “Jewish” face on something that is of terrible danger, to make it more palatable to people. We need to discern this kind of teaching and be aware of it, and toss it out when it comes at you, rebuking it in the name of Jesus. Anything that takes His Glory away from Him is not anything we as Christians should participate in, even slightly. My prayers belong to my Saviour and Redeemer, Jesus, and if He sees fit to send an angel to answer them, then blessed am I! But if not, that is ok too. No angel will be receiving my prayers, thank you very much!

The dictionary describes “faithful” as: loyal, constant, true, devoted, unswerving, staunch, steadfast, dedicated, committed, trusty, trustworthy (or “worthy of trust”), dependable, reliable. These are some powerful, yet intimidating, words. Keeping these words in mind, look at this scripture:

“And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” (2 Tim 2:2, NKJV)

Paul is talking about men that are trustworthy, dedicated, and loyal — to such men is the Gospel given in order to teach others. This shows us that Jesus wants to trust us with things, and know that we are going to be faithful to them. Just like an employer wants an employee that is dedicated and loyal, so does Jesus want followers that are dedicated and loyal.

If you’re not faithful, you’re unfaithful. There is no middle ground. The antonyms for “faithful” from the dictionary are: traitorous, unreliable. This is the definition of being unfaithful.

Seeing what the words mean (beyond a “spiritual” definition of faith) really lets us know why most people desire to hang out with, know, and associate with faithful people — whatever they are faithful to. Faithful to their spouse, their job, their family, their church. No one wants to associate with people that abandon their spouse, come to work late and do a half-hearted job, leave their family to go drink at the bar, or jump around from church to church. People are drawn to faithful people. At the same time, people are repelled by unfaithful people.

Look what Jesus says about being faithful:

“He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.” (Luke 16:10, NKJV)

This is a very real truth and there is spiritual principle here. I know this for fact when my wife and I started tithing years ago, despite the fact that we felt we couldn’t afford it. We wanted to be obedient to God’s Word, so we were faithful in the little that we had, and God gave us increase. We had proven that He could trust us with money, and He has been faithful to provide for both our needs and our wants. His Grace was sufficient, and while there are always times that are tight, usually it is due to us spending money on something silly, rather than the tithe being the burden.

The same holds true with employment. To the employee that is loyal and dedicated in their job, regardless of how menial it might be, to them is given favour over those who despise their job or don’t do a good job. People notice and appreciate good work! This doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll receive promotions overnight or higher wages, but it could very well mean that when it is time for the axe to come down, you survive the cuts. I have experienced this scenario personally as well.

Keep in mind, however, that there is always a test. Just as we get tested before we can get a drivers license, or tested in school before we can move on in studies, so we are tested in life. The test is what determines whether we learned what we needed to learn and can progress, or whether we need to learn the lesson again. There will always be a test to see if you are faithful. Your loyalty will come into question, whether by people or circumstances or temptations. Loyalty to your marriage, your family, your job, your church, your relationship with Jesus. These things will be tested, and your faithfulness (or unfaithfulness) will prove itself.

Will you pass the test? Will you be faithful in the little so that you can be faithful with much? Will you tell God that you will tithe when He gives you more finances? Will you get into ministry when the church is bigger? Will you have fellowships and visits in your home, but only when God gives you a bigger house?

Are you a Christian that tells God what your definition of Christianity is and think that because Jesus loves you, it’s ok? That it’s ok to compromise? That it’s ok to hold back? That it’s ok, because Jesus loves me and I can do no wrong, so here God, this is what I’m willing to do but don’t ask for more because I’m in this for convenience and ease?

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12, NKJV)

There are two things to note here. The first is that as Christians we weren’t called to a life of convenience and ease. We are called to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Reverence! Worship! This is Almighty God we serve!

Secondly, Paul is talking about faithfulness in the same verse. He is saying to the church that they were obedient, faithful, when he was with them but they are also faithful, when he is not there. Isn’t that the sign of a good employee? Someone who can work without direct supervision, or their manager breathing down their back having to correct them or encourage them or keep them on track?

Isn’t that also the sign of a good Christian? Someone who is motivated to get into the Word, to pray, to worship, to live a life of witness to those around them — without having God on their back telling and correcting, but simply doing it because they just plain old love God and want to be obedient and loyal and faithful?

Good intentions don’t count when it comes to faithfulness. In the words of Yoda: “Do, or do not. There is no ‘try’.” (sorry for the Star Wars reference, but it is far too relevant!) People fail the test of faithfulness because they are self-absorbed, and self-seeking. They are against unity and want to do things on their own, being a Lone Ranger. This is not what God has called us to be, or to do.

The final point to mention is that we need more Elishas. Elisha was the kind of man we all need to be. He was tenacious, he was loyal, he was dedicated — both to serving Elijah and also to serving God. He did not waiver, he didn’t go behind Elijah’s back to start his own thing. He didn’t go into ministry on his own until Elijah’s mantle was given to him. If you read 2 Kings 2, you see that Elisha refused to leave Elijah despite being told to stay behind. Three times Elijah asks him to stay behind and three times Elisha vows “As surely as the Lord lives I will not leave you”. Twice he has the prophets telling him that Elijah is going to be taken away from him that day, and not once did this disheartening news make him turn from following.

His faithfulness was rewarded. But it wasn’t Elijah that rewarded him. It was God. God rewarded Elisha’s faithfulness and granted him what he requested (the double-portion). But if Elisha would have been unfaithful, even once, he never would have received what he asked for. Only because he was faithful, did he receive the double-portion of Elijah’s spirit. If he had tried to do things his way, or fast-tracked God’s plan and become a prophet before it was his time, he would have lost out on the huge blessing God had in store for him. His faithfulness earned him that.

Thanks, Pastor Mark, for the awesome message. Hopefully I did it some justice with my post. My spirit got all wound up with this message because it’s so true and so relevant (to anyone, whether you are a believer or not). My prayer is that you find it relevant in your life, just as I find it relevant in mine, and you ask yourself the hard question (and answer it honestly): Am I faithful? And if so, what are you faithful to? Are you faithful in the little things? Are you faithful in all things? A friend once said that if you had a glass of water that was 99% water and 1% cyanide, it’s still poisonous. If you are 99% faithful but 1% unfaithful, don’t kid yourself — you’re still unfaithful.

Don’t preempt God. Don’t put your selfish desires before His — even if you desperately want to do something for God. Remember Waiting on the Lord? Be faithful with what He’s given you, and if it is a vision, hold fast to it but don’t preempt God into starting or doing something when the time isn’t right. Seek God, pray, and He will reveal His good and perfect timing. Until then, be faithful in what He has already given you, and prove your faithfulness, and then rest assured that God will lead you out into bigger things, for His glory and His Name’s sake.

It’s all about His Name, not yours, and certainly not mine. Be patient, be obedient, be faithful. Be worthy of trust.

This is a powerful message, and it is one that many will find offensive or “dated”, and the only reason you would think that is if you have bought into the “contemporary Christian” or “carnal Christian” mentality that is so prevalent in western churches today.

I don’t want to reiterate what Paul Washer said — if you know you are a Christian, you need to watch this. If you think you are a Christian, you really need to watch this. If you are not a Christian, you should watch this as well. The guts it took for this man to stand before an audience of 5,000 people (most of them youth), and preach this message, is astounding.

What I would like to do is focus on one thing he says because it really resonates with other things that I have really been feeling in the last few weeks, particularly in the areas of righteousness and holiness.

“‘Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way the leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.’” (Matt 7:13-14, NKJV)

Many Christians today think that righteousness and holiness is a lifestyle choice, like choosing to eat Subway over McDonalds, or drinking water over soda pop. Unfortunately, the Bible never taught that (as Bible-believing Christians) we had any choice on how we live as Christians. We were called to be holy and righteous — not as a lifestyle choice, but as a mandate. We were called to examine ourselves, line ourselves up to the Word, to be like Jesus as much as we can in this fallen earthly flesh. When did we get the idea that we ever had a choice?

Sadly, society and the idea of being un-offensive to people have told us the lie that we do have a choice, and when we read that verse we think of only the narrow gate, and think only that when we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour, then that’s it. Done deal. I’m going to heaven now. And we never change how we live our lives. Nothing changes! We continue to be of the world, rather than in the world. Two very different things!

Yes, the narrow gate is the first step and I believe that gate is coming into a personal relationship with Jesus. Nothing else counts. His Name is the only Name by which men are saved. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one comes to the Father but by Him. Period.

But we’ve glossed over verse 14 where it says that the way is difficult. That means the gate isn’t the final destination. There is a path after the gate, and it too is narrow. It is difficult. It is a life of discipline, of surrender, of change. It is a life of being led by, and changed by, the Holy Spirit. It is a life of transformation and regeneration, becoming a “new creation” or a “new man”.

The gate is not the end of the road. It’s the beginning!

In western civilization, there is so much sensitivity, compromise, and tolerance. None of these things were taught in the Bible. Look at how “harsh” the church in Acts was:

“It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immortality as is not even named among the Gentiles — that a man has his father’s wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you [...] deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Cor 5:1-5, NKJV)

Would we even think of doing something like that today? But this is where Paul preached a “no tolerance” message. Why then, do we look the other way? Are we taking “turn the other cheek” too far, turning it into “turn a blind eye”?

It is no wonder that power is lost in the church when the messages delivered from the pulpit are all “feel good” messages or talks about current events. I thank God that He put me into a church that preaches the Holy Word of God, regardless of whether it is comfortable or not. That teaches Christian life through the Bible and not through someone’s handbook or some fanciful ideals.

Too many people today consider themselves Christians, or saved, and refuse to allow God to transform their lives. They are full of pride, go to the bars, get drunk, show off their bodies with sensual dress, do drugs, chase after money, watch pornography, live with their girlfriend or boyfriend without making a commitment to marriage, get divorced without taking their marriage before God and making an effort to fix things, tell crude jokes, lie, steal, cheat, show unkindness to people — the laundry list of sin goes on. And then these people have the audacity to consider themselves Christian? Many of them go to church on Sunday, raise their hands, worship God, and then are at the bar getting drunk on Monday, or going home with their common-law “significant other” to persist in a life of sin! God forgive me, but I have been guilty of some of these myself and bought into the lie that it was ok, I’m a Christian, I can ask for forgiveness and I’ll be forgiven. But until I repented and turned away from what I was doing, I was no different from anyone else who calls themselves Christian. Jesus forgive me for making a mockery of Your Most Holy Name!

People, the term “Christian” embraces proverbially all that is noble, and good, and Christ-like!

How then can we call ourselves Christian if the things we do are not noble, not good, and not Christ-like?

I’m not saying that overnight we have an encounter with God and turn around to become perfect. This is a life of repentance, discipline, and serving Jesus with our every last breath. This is a life of going to God with our struggles and concerns and worries and having hope, faith, and trust that He will guide us through His Holy Spirit. And there will be evidence! To have an encounter with God that lasts a week, or a month, and then go back to the same old thing that you were doing exactly before having that encounter with God is not proof that you are saved. Having your mind transformed and continually improving, changing, and leading a life that is pleasing to God is proof! Not everyone will become evangelists or preachers after an encounter with God but you will start displaying the fruits of the Spirit!

If you have never read Galations, below is a verse that is the litmus test for anyone who professes to be a Christian. Which are you? Flesh or Spirit? This is where we have been called to examine ourselves. Examine your fruit and if the fruit you find is not the fruit of the Spirit, then perhaps you need to rethink the life you are leading. I know that listening to Paul Washer’s sermon has made me look at my life again. I am so far from perfect that it isn’t even funny, but by the Grace of Almighty God I know I am a new creation and I know that He is doing a good work in me because I see changes in me that were not there years or even months ago. Thank you Lord for continuing to change me into a vessel that would honor and glorify You!

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in times past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Gal 5:19-26, NKJV)

I pray that you really take this to heart, and that you have the courage to listen to Paul Washer’s sermon in its entirety. God bless him for the courage it took to preach a message that is not dated, not irrelevant, and not “old school” but is so desperately pertinent to today’s declining church!