Forty-Five percent of Americans say they have a personal commitment to Jesus Christ, have confessed their sins and accepted Christ as Savior according to The Barna Group. But even survey author George Barna agrees that NOT ALL BORN AGAIN CHRISTIANS ARE BEARING FRUIT. What we’re finding is that there is still a lot of superficiality related to the fact that a lot of people have recognized that the spiritual dimension of their life is important. George Barna finds that 36-percent of Americans are what he calls THEORETICAL CHRISTIANS, they describe themselves as Christians but DO NOT meet the born-again definition. Jesus said that to see or to enter the Kingdom of God we must be born (gennaō: God making men his sons through faith in Christ) again, but He didn’t say when or how we are to make this change.
This is what He did say: “The wind blows where it wants to. You hear its sound, but you DON’T KNOW where it comes from or where it is going. That’s the way it is with everyone who is BORN OF THE SPIRIT.” (John 3:8) “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by BELIEVING IN YOUR HEART that you are made right with God, and if you CONFESS WITH YOUR MOUTH the Lord Jesus, then YOU ARE SAVED. For with the HEART one believes unto righteousness, and with the MOUTH one confesses unto salvation.” (Romans 10:9-10)
Paul is saying this to born again Christians, “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall ALL BE CHANGED— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:50-52) But for now, “Behold what manner of love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God. Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now WE ARE CHILDREN OF GOD, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be. But we know that when JESUS SHALL BE REVEALED, WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, for we shall see Him AS HE IS. And everyone who has this hope on him PURIFIES HIMSELF, even as Christ is pure.” (1 John 3:1-3)
Take a moment and make sure your heart is right with God, ask Him to forgive you of your sins and to COME INTO YOUR HEART! Will Jesus come into your heart? “Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and YOU ARE IN ME, AND I AM IN YOU.” (John 14:19-20)
Your personal Pastor -Bill Stockham