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Hello. My name is Dottie Freeman and I have no fancy titles or degrees, I am simply a blood bought saint like you. God has recently called me to preach and I am willing to accept that call. He has also provided this opportunity on this site to share the Good News about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
CHRISTIANS SHOULD BE CHRIST-LIKE
I get so tired of inviting people to church and getting the same response from them. "I've seen what the church calls Christians and that is not for me." There are many other excuses, but this is the most common one in my experience. This makes me ashamed. It makes me want to say, "my church is not like that, give it a try" and usually I get a "maybe." This is the sad state of our churches today. They are filled with people who call themselves Christians, but whom live ungodly lives outside the doors of the church. What a terrible testimony for our Lord. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying all the Christians or all the churches, but it is a very big problem in many.
I opened the phone book the other day to look up the number for a local church. My goodness! There were so many for such a little town. Wouldn't it be nice to have one listing for "The Church?" I believe that is the way it is supposed to be. I am going to stop right there, as I do not wish to get into the different "religions" of the world today. It would ruin my day! I will just say that any church that does not teach that Jesus is the only way is in deception. Enough.
If you belong to Jesus, I know you know exactly what I am saying. It is pitiful to watch how people congregate to churches on Sunday morning to see and be seen. It is more "the thing to do" instead of the privilege of joining together with like-believers to praise and worship our God and be taught the Word from a true man of God.
It is no wonder that the unsaved want no part of it. We are pitiful examples of what Christ has called us to be. Again, I am not talking about everyone, but am talking about many. It is not only the unsaved having a problem, it is other Christians. There are many out there going from church to church looking for a place where they feel they belong. This is very unsettling. We have got to get on the ball if we are going to be the Light for Jesus that he desires. His Word says that you have the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16). Let me tell you something--if you have the mind of Christ, you don't spend your time in the lustful pleasures of this world and end up in church on Sunday morning as if all is well. All is not well. It bothers me to think of all the people out there stumbling around in darkness because they can't see the Light in us.
The second chapter of 1 John sums it up:
And how can we be sure that we belong to him? By looking within ourselves; are we really trying to do what he wants us to? Someone may say, "I am a Christian; I am on my way to heaven; I belong to Christ." But if he doesn't do what Christ tells him to, he is a liar. (Yes, God's Word says we are liars!) But those that do what Christ tells him to will learn to love God more and more. That is the way to know whether or not you are a Christian. Anyone who says he is a Christian should live as Christ did. (There you have it!)
…and as we obey this commandment, to love one another, the darkness in our lives disappears and the new light of life in Christ shines in. Anyone who says he is walking in the light of Christ, but dislikes his fellow man is still in darkness. (Verses 4-6 and 8).
I used the Living Bible for this translation because it makes these verses easy to understand. Simply put, don't say you are a Christian if you do not hear and obey Christ in all things and love one another. It will be a horrible day when you stand before God and he calls you a liar. Think about that for a while.
The churches need to be cleaned up and the saints or Christians need to start walking the walk and talking the talk. It's simple really. It starts with each one of us who call ourselves Christians. We better be "Christ-like," if we call ourselves that. If we are not, we need to get before God on our knees and get our hearts cleansed and make a conscious decision that we will live as Christ did and is calling us to do.
We have everything we need to accomplish what God intends for us. It is all written in the Word of God. You can't get that Word inside you to change your sinful nature if it is sitting on the shelf or in the floorboard of your car (where you will be sure and have it for Sunday morning). We all need to get that Word inside of us and live it. It is not a storybook! The key is to LIVE IT. When we see more Christians doing that, I believe flocks of people will be attracted to the beauty of it and they will want what we have. The churches wouldn't hold them all. It is time to step out from among the rest and proclaim the name of Jesus Christ and not be ashamed of His gospel. It has got to begin in us individually and it has to be taught in our churches.
Do you realize that the letters Paul wrote to the churches are for us today? They are! They shouldn't be overlooked as a message for the church back then. I tell you what—if today God rose up an apostle/prophet like Paul to start writing letters to our churches, their very foundations would begin to shake. But why should God do that? He has already done it—read the books! But if Paul were to write a letter to the church today, it might go something like this:
Dear Preacher No-name:
What is going on down there? Why are my people in bondage? Why do they go home after church and not live as they should? Let me point out a few things for you. You need to be feeding my people. Why are they so hungry? Oh, I see, you've allowed people to claim they are Christ-like and they are living in sin. Hum. You say you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Hum. Perhaps you should stop pampering them and tell them that sin is sin and hell is hot. Oh, you've done that? Hum. Do it more. Do you recall the letter I wrote to the church at Corinth? The one about the man in the church living in sin with his father's wife? Do you recall what I told the church? I told them to deliver that man unto Satan for the destruction of his flesh so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Go back and read it again, I am afraid you have forgotten it. You will find it in the 5th chapter of the second letter.
You have such people in your congregation. Yes, you are to love them, but you are also to correct them and if they cannot be corrected, you are to put that wicked person away from among yourselves. STOP TOLLERATING SIN IN THE CHURCH. You will save the souls of these wicked persons and be an example to the unsaved world. When the world sees the love flowing from a congregation of Christ-like people, they will come.
Love, Paul
Whoa! Would that blow you away or what? I'm sure it did that church at Corinth. It is still God's message to the church today. We need to clean it up and clean it up in a hurry. Christ is coming for His bride (the church) and the one He is looking at today has too many blemishes. When we get where we are supposed to be and the bride is pure we will see Him in all his glory and we will dwell with Him forever. I don't know about you, but forever is a long time to me.
I want you to know that this has been a difficult message for me to write. As a matter of fact, I was half way through a message on "Praise" when the Lord spoke and told me to put it away. Then He started showing me some of these things. It is His heart that we all be saved and it is time for those who are pretending they belong to Him to see the Light. That is His message for today.
I pray that God blesses everyone who reads this message and that the convicting power of the Holy Spirit does His work in all our lives.
Please write to me if you need prayer for any reason: freeman5@friendlycity.net.
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