The California Collection/TheCaliforniaCollection.cdr/his101/arrow11.arj/ARROW11.TXT

Text File | 1990-01-24 | 2KB | 45 lines

          IS THE DEVIL A CHRISTIAN?

     Many church members are no more Christians than the
devil is.
     James writes, "The devils also believe, and tremble."
(James 2:19 KJV)
     Giving intellectual assent to the reality of God and
the facts of Christianity does not constitute a SAVING
FAITH.  It is a very good thing to teach new converts and
children the facts of our faith, but the ability to recite
a series of right answers is not the same as actually
putting your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you.

     The apostle Paul wrote to the Roman church, "that if
you confess with your mouth, `Jesus is Lord,' and believe
in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will
be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and
are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess
and are saved." (Romans 10:9-10 NIV)

     If you haven't invested that "heart-belief" in Christ
Jesus, and His death and resurrection on your behalf, then
you have not yet been justified before God.  If Jesus
Christ is not the Lord (Boss) of your life, then you may
mouth, "Jesus is Lord!", but for you that would not be a
CONFESSION; it would be a LIE.

     If the simple unfolding of this passage has pricked
you, don't get mad!  Instead, receive it as GOOD news.  Put
your trust in the Risen Lord, the Messiah Jesus, and
confess Him as the Boss of your life.
     Heaven and Hell (for many folks) are eighteen inches
apart: that's the distance from your head to your heart.

     If you want to know more, read Romans 4, and see what
God means by real faith.  Abraham not only believed that
the facts of God's promises were true, but he depended on
them even when his visible circumstances made the promise
seem impossible.  While you're at it, read the whole letter
to the Romans.  Most folks could read it in less than an
hour.