Reverence For God
I've, recently, written two new articles that pertain to what it takes, and what it means, to become a Christian. One is entitled How to Get to Heaven, and the other is called Relationship Status.
Shortly after writing these, I began to realize that there's one more topic, that's important to address, when it comes to following Christ. It's about continuous self-evaluation, and discerning whether or not our relationship with God, is genuine.
If you've been a Christian, for any significant length of time, and have been regularly going to church, you've probably come across the ordinance of "communion".
Most churches practice it. It's when the congregation is given a chance to eat bread, which is often a cracker, and drink wine, which is often grape juice, in order to remember the sacrifice that Jesus made to cleanse us of our sins. It's an activity that's only for Christians who are walking in right fellowship with God.
If you're in the audience, you'll, often hear that, unless you're a Christian, or if you're on any sort of church discipline, you shouldn't partake. The pastor will encourage Christians to evaluate their relationship with Christ, and make sure that they don't have any unconfessed sins, before partaking.
All of this is a reminder that, following Jesus, is an ongoing choice. It's not a decision that you declare once, and then you're okay to just continue your way of life, in the same manner as before making the decision. It's a continuous, life-long decision, that requires constant work and commitment.
The Bible is filled with warnings about falling away from Christ. Jesus talked about this, in many forms.
One example, is when Christ spoke about the four ways that a person responds, upon hearing the Gospel. As I've mentioned, in other articles, every person falls into four categories. The second category, is the one where a person hears the Gospel, starts following, immediately, but they fall away, because their faith isn't sincere.
I've written an entire article about this, which is entitled Category Two.
However, this isn't the only time that Jesus spoke about the dangers of a fake faith. He, also, said that, people can evaluate their relationship with him, in a similar way that we can identify a particular tree, based on the fruit that it bears.
Jesus mentions this in Matthew 7:15-20.
If you look at most of this chapter, you'll see that he consistently explains the dangers of having a fake faith, and he reminds his followers that, following him, isn't easy.
Matthew 7:13-29, reads as follows:
"Go in through the narrow gate, because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there are many who travel it. But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard, and there are few people who find it.
"Be on your guard against false prophets; they come to you looking like sheep on the outside, but on the inside they are really like wild wolves. You will know them by what they do. Thorn bushes do not bear grapes, and briers do not bear figs. A healthy tree bears good fruit, but a poor tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a poor tree cannot bear good fruit. And any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire. So then, you will know the false prophets by what they do.
"Not everyone who calls me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only those who do what my Father in heaven wants them to do. When the Judgment Day comes, many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord! In your name we spoke God's message, by your name we drove out many demons and performed many miracles!' Then I will say to them, 'I never knew you. Get away from me, you wicked people!'
"So then, anyone who hears these words of mine and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, and the wind blew hard against that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on rock.
"But anyone who hears these words of mine and does not obey them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, the wind blew hard against that house, and it fell. And what a terrible fall that was!"
When Jesus finished saying these things, the crowd was amazed at the way he taught. He wasn't like the teachers of the Law; instead, he taught with authority.
-Matthew 7:13-29
1