I put Christianity in quotes, because I am not talking about the group of true believers, but as a group of people who call themselves Christians.

Matthew 7 is full of some of the best lines in the Bible, but unfortunately, some of the verses are twisted beyond belief.  I find myself quoting it alot.

Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.  Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.  Matthew 7:13-23

Above are some verses that have scared the living daylights out of me at least once in my life.  In fact, back when I was a teenager, I had to go talk to our pastor about all of this.  Maybe I will share my notes from then another time.  Who knows, maybe someone will find it encouraging.  Anyway, back to “Christianity”.

What is a true Christian, anyway?  Well, there are many verses that could be listed, but I think these two are probably the best to list, and maybe the most obvious:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. - John 3:16

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. - Romans 10:9

I think it is fairly clear by these two verses, what the prerequisites are to salvation.  It is not by good works, which unfortunately so many “Christians” believe will get you into heaven.  It is not by following the pope into heaven… seriously, don’t laugh, I can’t tell you how many times I have heard this one.  It is not by being baptized.  It is not by being perfect, Romans 3:23 comes to mind.  It is by grace, through faith.  Believing with hearts and confessing with our mouths, that Jesus Christ is the son of God, came down in flesh, lived and died for our iniquity and rose again to pay the price of our sin, which was death.

So many times, you meet people who claim to be Christians and as you get to know them, you realize their relationship with Christ is missing.   I am talking about missing, absent.  I know that all of us fall.  At some point, maybe have doubted or had faltering of faith for a time.  This is not what I am talking about at all.  I am talking about people who’s walk with God is nonexistent.

There are so many who can quote the Bible, that are not Christians.  In fact, a certain person, I have known my entire life, can quote the Bible better than almost anyone else I know and is NOT a Christian.  It is kind of scary, when you think about it.  It would be awesome if there was some sort of detector for Christians, much like a metal detector.  So, how do we know?

Matthew 7, holds the key to “detect” who is or is not a Christian.

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.  Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.  Matthew 7:15-20

“Neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit” is our answer.  Recently, the murder of Tiller, has brought up some interesting questions.  Before I even start, I want to make something perfectly clear.  His death was murder, and murder is sin.  It is never OK.  I will not debate this fact any further.

However, this man was killed in church.  I would guess that Tiller called himself a “Christian”.  As to what was in his heart seconds before he died, God will only know.  As to the fruit he brought forth, I would find it extremely hard to call it good fruit.  He killed babies for a living.  I seriously doubt this man was a real Christian.

When I was a teenager, there was this woman, known as the church gossip.  I watched her destroy other people’s lives.  She destroyed friendships, relationships, and it is believed that she destroyed or nearly destroyed at least one marriage.  The scary thing about this woman was she had a cult like following.  People listened to her.  People considered her to be the model Christian woman.  This woman was destroying families for her own pleasure.  The fruit she brought forth was so bad, it was tearing apart the body.   She was definitely a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and yet, many people didn’t see it.

I feel I must write a disclaimer now, before I find myself feeling bad later, when something is misunderstood.  I understand we are all sinners and have fallen short.  All of us struggle with things in our own lives.  Alcohol, sex, jealousy, drugs, love of money, and the list goes on - does that mean that no one can be a Christian?  No.  That is not what I am saying.  Do not take it that way.

I did not know Tiller and feel like that discussion is done, but as for the town gossip… there was absolutely no good fruit coming from her life.  Her family life was a wreck, the obsession with money was overwhelming, neither her husband or her held a job - they lived off their inheritance, the non-stop inappropriate conversations about inappropriate things in front of little children (and even adults often found it to be too much), I don’t think there was one single part of their lives that was redeeming.  Seriously, this family was a major disaster and only put forth corrupted fruit.  However, their Jesus bumper sticker said they were OK and people followed them as an example.  I still don’t get how many people could be so fooled, but Satan is having a blast watching so much destruction.

Back to the quoting scripture.  This one is scary, but Christians need to realize - Satan can quote scripture.  Usually it is twisted, but he knows how to manipulate people.  This is not a shocking revelation.   And just because people can talk the good talk, does not mean their hearts are believing a word of it.

The bottom line is, a personal relationship with Christ is what saves you.  It isn’t the pope, it isn’t the president, it isn’t going to church on Sunday’s, it isn’t being in a Bible study, it isn’t knowing your Bible from beginning to end, it isn’t having a Jesus fish on the back of your car, it isn’t through good works, it isn’t by sitting in the front row at church, it isn’t by tithing 10% or more every week.  It is having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  It is understanding who He was and believing He did what the Bible says He did.  That He suffered and died, which was the sacrifice for our iniquity.  That He rose again, which conquered death, so we can live for eternity with our Father in heaven.  The best part is, it is free.  And just because we accept this wonderful gift of salvation, doesn’t mean we will never sin again or that we are better than everyone else, it means we were given a clean slate, a second chance that we did not deserve.

I am back.  Life has been incredibly hectic.  So much stuff going on recently, some of it bad, some of it good, and some of it unclear.  I am not sure how much time I will have for the blog, but I will try to update more often (thanks for the ping, Timm).  Ok, now down to a more serious conversation.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.  - Matthew 7:7-12

Jehovah loves His children; He does not forsake them.  Amen!  No matter where we go, no matter what may happen to us, the Lord is always right there.  Sometimes things seem to get so bad, we tend to lose hope and faith that the Lord is going to see us through to the end.  Shame on us!

Something I have learned both in my own life and from talking to my parents, who have most certainly had their fair share of hard times, is that sometimes God wants you in just the right spot for Him to work miracles.   My mom always says God often waits for the eleventh hour.

As humans, we find ourselves wanting instant gratification.  So many times we find ourselves saying: I had this bad thing happen to me, now God, You take care of it right now.  Sometimes we find ourselves on our knees pleading for God to change the situation immediately.  This is not always how God works.

A day in the life of a southern country girl surviving in Northern Virginia!  Be prepared for pictures, diagrams, and stories that tell of the horror of what the people from Northern Virginia are really like!  Be prepared to be amazed and afraid!  More details to come!