Just Pretending

When I was eleven years old, I responded to the pressure I felt to walk to the front of the church and to tell the preacher that I wanted to know how to receive Jesus. I was baptized and became known as a Christian. I felt relief because I had finally had the courage to walk to the front and to go through the steps I had heard about all my life. But, did I actually become a Christian? I lived a morally pure life. But, was it because of being a Christian or because I was too introverted and timid to get into trouble? When I graduated and got out on my own, I quit going to Church and enjoyed sleeping late on Sunday. I also gradually began to delve into pornography and wrong ways of thinking.

But, eventually, God brought me to a real experience of Him and a genuinely changed life. One of the first things I noticed was a deep desire to get into God’s Word and to know how it related to my life. Sin took on new meaning as I recognized that my bad habits, wrong ways of thinking, and “little failures” were actually driven by a Sin nature in me that liked sinful thoughts and sinful actions. While some part of me desired to look at or think about wrong pictures, there was a new part of me that wanted to be pure and clean and that had new strength to find freedom from the bondage of sinful habits. Another change was a new, deep desire to be involved in Church relationships where there was genuine delight in knowing and seeking God as a “family” rather than as a congregation. Finally, we wanted everyone to experience this new life and looked for people or opportunities where we could share about it.

At eleven, I thought I had done what was necessary to become a Christian but it was twelve more years before my life showed the signs of real change and genuine spiritual life. I recently read an article that compared how the health of new born babies is evaluated immediately after birth with evaluating whether one has been genuinely born into God’s Kingdom. We should evaluate ourselves and consider whether we have the signs of a healthy spiritual rebirth.

1. A new awareness of sin. When we are born again, we receive the Holy Spirit. He enables our consciences to discern words, thoughts, and actions that displease the Lord. “Hereby know we that we dwell in him [Jesus], and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit” (I John 4:13).

2. A new desire to stop doing evil things. Many have said that after being born again they stopped drinking, taking drugs, cursing, being immoral, and committing a host of other sins. This desire to stop sinning comes because “whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin [habitually or characteristically]” (see I John 3:9) and is made possible because “whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (I John 5:4). We also have the assurance that “if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (I John 2:1).

3. A new love for God’s Word. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (I Peter 2:2).. “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments” (I John 2:3).

4. A new love for fellow believers. At salvation, there is an immediate bond of fellowship with other Christians, because we are now members together of the body of Christ. “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren …” (I John 3:14).

5. A strong desire to witness to others. I had a new love for people and concern for their relationship to God. “… Love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God” (I John 4:7). **

If these desires are missing from our life, our friend’s life or from our children’s life, it would be wise to re-evaluate the validity of the salvation experience. Being “born again” is a function of the Holy Spirit and His presence in our being will cause us to have desires, awareness and love that we didn’t previously have. Let’s not play games with ourselves or others and let’s ask the fundamental questions. Are we the genuine article? Are our friends genuine Christians? It would be terribly sad to be just pretending or to be sharing in a pretense.

However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But, if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. (Read Romans 8)

** (this list is from the Daily Success devotional)