NO. 1039 - THE MARK OF A CHRISTIAN!

No. 1039

Jim Davidson -- NEWSPAPER COLUMN

THE MARK OF A CHRISTIAN!

John Maisel, founder and Chairman Emeritus of East-West Ministries International, once said, “Most of us go through life as only two-thirds a person. We develop ourselves physically and mentally, but not spiritually.” It is along these lines that I would like to share some thoughts with you today, and my topic will be “The Mark of a Christian.”
Do you know for sure how to tell if a person is a Christian or not? Well, believe it or not there is a way, and before we come to the end of our visit, I will tell you what it is. If you don’t already know, I believe you will agree with me. The basis of my remarks will be my own personal journey of going from two-thirds of a person to being whole.
I grew up in a small town in Southeast Arkansas, born in 1938. While my parents loved me, worked hard to provide for me and my sister, and had high ethical and moral standards, they were not Christians. Over all the years I knew him, my father, who was a good man, was in a church one time to attend a funeral. To be sure, I was not reared in a Godly home, and looking back I paid a high price for it. My mother would have gone more if he had supported her, but I attended church a good part of the time, mainly because this is where the girls were.
Ever since those early days, church has always been important to me. Looking back I know now that I was not a Christian but rather I was a church member. Sadly, there are millions of people in our churches today who, like me, are members of a church but they are not Christians. They believe they are Christians but they are really not. They go to church on Sunday but do not live like Christians the rest of the week. This changed for me on Feb. 26, 1984, when I gave my life to Jesus, was baptized and began a new life. You see, being a Christian is all about change. Hear these words recorded in II Corinthians 5:17 – “If anyone is in Christ, he has become a new creature, old things have passed away and behold, new things have come.”
A part of that change that takes place in our heart is to be born again. In John 3:3, Jesus replies: “I assure that unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” He elaborates more in verses 5 and 6: “Unless someone is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh and whatever is born of the spirit is spirit.” I mentioned earlier that my life changed when I gave my heart to Jesus as I began to read and study the Bible. I have now read it all the way through, once each year, for 25 straight years. What a blessing that has been as I see and understand things now, through the power of the Holy Spirit, that I could never have known any other way.
In those early years, and even more so today, I asked God to bless me and He is truly faithful to His word. Things are happening in my life today that I would never have dreamed possible. The thing that is truly exciting is that the more I trust Him, the more He blesses me. It was during my Bible study that I came to truly understand “The Mark of a Christian.” The answer is found in John 13:35: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples (followers) that you have love for one another.” My friend this is the mark of a Christian.
Here is how this simple concept can make a difference in the lives of millions of our citizens and the future of America as well. When our people have true love in our hearts, we won’t have the crime, riots, mass murders, cheating and corruption that we have today.
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(EDITOR’S NOTE: THE DEAL OF THE CENTURY – Begin your day on a positive note – 365 days for $12. This will benefit the Bookcase for Every Child project. Go to www.apositivemomentwithjim.com to subscribe.)