Has God Made You a Christian?

© 2012 by Tom Boynton (editing by Kathy Boynton)

Have you ever been asked if you’re a Christian? How do you answer? I have heard people give various answers to this question and am often concerned about the souls of those who answer.

“I go to church,” is a frequent answer. Does going to a hamburger restaurant make you a hamburger? Of course not! Neither does going to church make you a Christian.

“I try to be a good person,” is another frequent answer. However, God’s definition of “Good,” and man’s definition of “good,” are not the same. God has disclosed His standard for “goodness” in the Ten Commandments. However, no man can meet that standard. How do I know? God says so in Galatians 2:16 where He declares, through the Apostle Paul,

“…by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”

God did not establish the law as a road map to righteousness but, rather, to show man the extent of his wickedness so he would ask Christ for mercy.

“Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24).

Many find that surprising. They may respond, “I thought God saved good people.” Actually that’s the opposite of what Jesus said. He declared,

“I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32).

Those that have convinced themselves that they are “righteous,” have deceived themselves about the nature of their own righteousness. God’s evaluation of man’s attempts at righteousness is expressed in the words of the prophet Isaiah:

“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away” (Isaiah 64:6).

When we try to offer our good works to God, it’s like what our cats do for us. They proudly bring us gifts of animals they have caught and killed. Disgusting!

My only hope and your only hope is to reject our sins and call to the Lord Jesus for mercy based on His blood sacrifice on the cross of Calvary (1 Peter 1:18-19).

 

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