Here’s one question I heard over the radio on my way to work recently: “If we were to be tried for being Christians, would there be enough evidence to convict us?”
The honest answer to that question is, “probably not.”
Sad but true, as most of us believers do not have clear-cut understanding of the essence of the Christian faith. All we know is that we grow up in a family that goes to Church every Sunday. We make the sign of the cross and we have gone through some required sacraments.
But wait, didn’t we come from Los Angeles where there are a lot of Christian mega churches, and the city hosts the biggest Christian evangelical TV station in the world, and that over 80% of people have not known any religion but Christianity? Sure. That is the evidence that will verify that we are Christians.
The court will say, “Nope. You are not Christians. The evidence presented to the court is all circumstantial. They have nothing to do with Christianity.”
In E. Peterson’s The New Testament In Contemporary Language, our Lord warns Christians: “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is full flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even crowds of people do. The way to life – to God – is vigorous and requires total attention.”
And then in Matt. 7:21: “Knowing the correct password – saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance – isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience – doing what my Father wills. I can see it now – at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You are out of here.”
Not enough evidence, that’s why.
Backup to 168 A.D. Polycarp, the well-known Bishop of Smyrna (now Izmar, Turkey) was under trial for his Christian faith. Polycarp studied under the Apostle John and he was the last living link to the twelve Apostles. The Roman proconsul tried to get Polycarp to deny Jesus Christ: “Bow to the throne of Caesar. Curse Christ and I will release you.”
The old bishop stood his ground. He replied: “Eighty six years I have served the Lord Jesus Christ, and He never once wronged me. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?”
The proconsul threatened Polycarp with hungry wild beasts and burning fire, but Polycarp remained unafraid. He told the proconsul: “You threaten me with fire that will burn for an hour and then will go out, but you are ignorant of the fire of the future judgment of God reserved for the everlasting torment for the ungodly. But why do you delay? Bring on the beasts and the fire, or whatever you choose; you shall not move me to deny Christ, my Lord and Savior.
Before he was burned, Polycarp prayed: “O Father, I thank you, that you have called me to this day and hour and have counted me worthy to receive my place among the number of the holy martyrs. Amen.”
The story had it that Polycarp was engulfed by the fire, but did not burn. Those who watched the execution said, “He was in the midst of the fire, not as burning flesh but as gold and silver refined in a furnace. And we smelled such a sweet aroma of incense and some other precious spice.”
The fire did not burn Polycarp, so the executioner had to stab him with a sword. A great amount of blood flowed from the bishop’s body that it put out the fire.
Polycarp was a genuine Christian, a martyr of the faith.
There are still Christian executioners in non-Christian countries around the world, but in America religions, even the funky ones, are protected by the law. Too bad, nowadays our faith cannot be tested by fire.
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The older I get, the more I appreciate God even more. The bible has taught me what I should know above all else. I don’t know how people think we are going to keep the America we know and love without God. Already, we see evil on the news nearly every day in this country. Christianity is a philosophy, not a religion, and it made America the greatest country in the world. Without it, America will fail. That is because we are not capable of running things on our own. People in power will become corrupt if they choose to live without the guidance and wisdom of the Lord. He helps us be the best that we can be.
@Sam,
America is not the greatest country in the world , The lord Jesus Christ does not want you to praise America ,So some one could say that their car is the best car on the block /and my wifes dress is better than your wifes dress , Jesus did not want you to praise worldly things ,
I have a saying which I made up myself,
( HE WHO HAS EVERYTHING – HAS NOTHING
BUT HE THAT HAS NOTHING – HAS EVERYTHING )
This is the person that Jesus Christ our Lord Loves not a person that wants or says mine is better.
America is not great , The world is GREAT for these countries to abide in love and kindness on its surface.
1 country does not make a world.
The Lord Jesus Christ gives us knowledge to see and seek the truth.
What country is greater? America has advanced because of the Christian philosophy that inspired our Constitution. If we answer to God, we can govern ourselves to our highest ability and be the best we can be. A moral society does not need a tyrant ruling over it. I praised what Jesus/God has done for America. We are surely blessed. Other countries may hate us for that but if they chose to rule by the same principles as our Constitution, they too would prosper greatly.
NONE IS GREATER! The religious hope to dismantle America with all their lies and rhetoric about how it WAS a theocracy. America was founded to protect us FROM a theocracy. Religion needs to stay in the church and out of government and the lives of people that refuse to believe in mythology.
Jeeezzzzaaazzz I just love people that think they can speak for God! Well…why not he is just a fairy tale anyway…
Jesus Christ said, “I am the way, the life and the truth.” Salvation and peace comes from Jesus Christ only. Our country is suffering under the regime of a dictator because of our sins against God. America has fallen from the grace of God because of her sins. God is removing His blessings from America because she has proven to not be a truly Christian nation anymore. He put us to the test and our Christianity is lacking. We need a rebirth of our nation. We need to return back to our God or we will perish.
America was NEVER a religious theocracy and never will be. That was the reason it was founded. You radical religious talking smack to turn it into a theocracy has to stop!!!!
Turning to a book of mythology is ridiculous. Even by your own belief there is no God here to do anything and even if he were his own law stops him. We are on our own…YOU are responsible for doing something…not a flying imaginary man.
@ David Barbeni,
Can I add a note to your report ,
The Lords Sabbaths day in on the seventh day which is a saturday ,and not sunday according to the gregorgian calendar.
Religious believe that science theory exists just to prove that God does not exist. Religious belief is also just a theory but not to the Fundi. Truly, belief and theory are synonymous. The fighting over what “nobody knows as fact” truly is a twilight zone script. This is a rhetorical battle of imagination where everyone loses and has for over 2500 years. How long is it to continue? Do the religious realize that science is not fighting? Science simply goes about the daily business of discovery and research. All the word twisting to make an enemy of science and the none-believer will never make it so. We are pacifists not war mongers.