Is it OK for a Christian to....(?)

How many times will I hear a question that starts with these words?

Usually it goes something like: "Is it OK for a Christian to lie in order to get a job?" I guess the person asking such a question is concerned that since they are a Christian, they are held to some standard that restricts them from doing certain things.

Is a Christian held to any higher standard than any other human on this earth?
Some would say "Yes".

In reality ALL people are held to the same standards. Christians are people who have recieved and believed in the death and ressurection of Jesus. Therefore, should adhere to the standards set before them by God. Non-Christians either have not heard the Gospel of Christ, or having heard it, have rejected it.
Yet, they are still under the judgement of God. In cheating, lying, stealing, killing etc... they will still be held accountable for these actions, wether or not they think they will be.

Is the thought of Heaven just wishful thinking, or the notion that there is no such place as Hell?

This brings up the beauty of the Gospel. We have ALL done such things. We are all guilty in the eyes of the Lord. So what can we do?

There are basically two responses to this question.

One popular response is to take the stand that there is no God, therefore there will be no judgement upon me, for what I have done. Somehow, if I just can deny the existence of God I will make Him go away and I will not be judged by Him.
I mean theres really no such thing as "wrong or right" anyway, right? Or is that wrong??
If you believe you somehow, by chance, that you came from a long line of strange mutations, I'm guessing you haven't researched that belief much, have you?

You may also have some sort of notion that this is a "fear" tactic that people use to "get you" somehow. First of all, get what from you? Am I asking for your money, time, your name, credit card number?
No.

This reminds me of an article a vegetarian friend of mine has. It tells the story of how beef cows are fed chicken dung. Apparently, this is a cheap way to feed them, just mix in a little chicken crap to bulk up the feed box. Is his article a scare tactic to try and make me become a vegetarian, is he trying to "get me", or just simply sharing a fact with me? How I respond to his info is up to me.
Just like how you respond to Gods word is up to you. By the way, I still eat hamburgers.
But that doesn't mean his info is false. And just because I choose not to heed his advice doesn't mean I am free from the health risks involved. See??

The other response is to understand that God understands your situation. You know that you have done things that are wrong, you feel guilty for what you have done. You feel guilty even though people are telling you its OK, or even legal (abortion).
You feel guilty for things others don't even know about.
What can you do though? How will you escape judgement from something that you cannot change now?

Relax, theres a fix, its easy, its free, and it works. God understands all this stuff. He does not wish that you have no way out of this. He wishes to live with you forever!

Yes, YOU!

The fact is, that God, knowing our situation, and knowing our complete inability to change it, would change it for us, at His expense.
He sent His only son Jesus (Oh, here we go with the Jesus stuff...just listen this time, OK?) He sent Jesus to die in your place, a terrible death that you deserve.
You may say, "I don't deserve a terrible death". That may be true, but there are those that do deserve a terrible death, and Jesus died for them as well.
Maybe you think that you've done something so incredibly terrible that God could never forgive you. Nonsense!

Certainly Jesus didnt deserve a terrible death!

So Jesus takes the beating, the whipping, the spit in the face, the crown of thorns, the spikes through His bones, followed by an agonizing suffocation on the cross, in order that YOU might be excused from Gods judgement.

He then comes back to life on the third day after His death, and appears to hundreds of people to show His validity as deity and one to whom God truly has sent.

So how does that help you, in todays world?
The offer is this, if you will simply get down on your knees, humble before God. (He's listening, don't worry about that. Put your pride away. No matter how cool, rich or important you think you are, you are going to grow weak, old and die like everyone else before you.)

Just say "God, I want to be forgiven for the things I have done. Even for the things I can't remember. I want to be excused from Your judgement. I have heard that Jesus died in my place. I want to accept His gift to me, and ask Him to enter my life and make me new. I want to be innocent in Your eyes. Please forgive me my sins. I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen."

That my friend is essentially what the Bible is all about. It seems hard to believe that it could be so easy. In fact many don't believe it. They think that they have to really go out and work their way into Heaven. If we could work our way into Heaven, why did Jesus come here? God has made it simple for us, people have made it complex. Go with simple. Jesus said He wants us to be child-like. Innocent like a child, wouldn't that be nice?

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