What Is A Christian ?

Q: What does the Bible say about being a Christian?

The Bible defines a Christian as someone who is a follower of Jesus Christ, saved by grace and living in accordance with His teachings. According to the Bible, being a Christian means to be a disciple of Jesus, as seen in Acts 11:26, where the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. This term signifies a personal relationship with Christ, being saved, and embodying His character. It highlights the importance of being not merely a believer but actively following Christ and showing His light to the world. A true Christian is one who has experienced salvation through Christ's sacrifice and reflects that in their life and actions.

Q: How do we know salvation is true?

The truth of salvation is founded on God's Word, which assures believers of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. Salvation is grounded in the promises of Scripture. As stated in 1 John 5:13, we know we have eternal life through belief in the Son of God. This assurance is not based on feelings but rather on the objective truth of God's Word. Assurance of salvation comes through hearing and believing the Gospel, acknowledging that our salvation depends solely on the work of Christ. Moreover, believers can see the transformation in their lives, which serves as evidence of salvation.

Q: Why is being sound in doctrine important for Christians?

Being sound in doctrine is crucial as it ensures believers understand and adhere to the core truths of their faith. Sound doctrine is vital for Christians as it forms the foundation of faith and practice. In Acts 2:42, the early Christians devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, which was essential for spiritual growth and fellowship. Without sound doctrine, believers risk falling into error and being led astray by false teachings. Proper understanding of biblical truth enables Christians to display discernment and guards them against the influences of the world that opposes God’s Word. It is through doctrine that the church can effectively grow and edify the body of Christ.

Q: What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit?

Being filled with the Spirit means being empowered by the Holy Spirit to live a godly life and to witness for Christ. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, as commanded in Ephesians 5:18, involves a continuous outpouring of God's presence in the believer's life. This filling results in a transformed lifestyle characterized by joy, boldness in witnessing, and a rich expression of worship. Spirit-filled individuals exhibit the fruits of the Spirit, such as love, joy, and peace, and are empowered to fulfill the Great Commission by sharing the Gospel. It reflects a believer's dependence on God’s strength rather than their own, leading to a life that glorifies Christ.

Q: What marks a true Christian?

A true Christian is marked by being saved, sure of their salvation, sound in doctrine, surrendered to God, and living separated from the world. The marks of a true Christian include being saved by grace, having assurance of their salvation, being sound in doctrine, living a surrendered life to Christ's lordship, and being separate from the world's values and practices. These characteristics reflect a life transformed by Christ and a desire to grow in holiness. True believers engage in discipleship, demonstrate a commitment to God's truth, and maintain a practical separation from ungodliness, embodying the teachings of Scripture in their daily lives.

Q: Why is the concept of Christian suffering significant?

Christian suffering is significant because it identifies believers with Christ and serves as a testimony to their faith amidst persecution. The concept of suffering as a Christian, as articulated in 1 Peter 4:16, is vital to understanding the Christian experience. Suffering is not merely inconvenience but a means to glorify God and solidify one's faith. Believers are promised that they will face trials for their adherence to Christ, and these sufferings serve as a testimony to the world. Paul reminds us in 2 Timothy 3:12 that all who live godly lives in Christ will suffer persecution, demonstrating that suffering for Christ's sake is a mark of true faith and devotion.

Gypsy Lee, and Gypsy had three
years of schooling, just three years. Started out in grade school,
went three years, and because of family troubles, break up,
never went to school again. And when he was older, there
was a fellow who listened to him preach for a number of years,
and he came to him and said, Gypsy, I have never heard you
preach except I got a blessing. And Gypsy said, well, I suppose
that the reason is because I've never lost the wonder of it all. And it's a marvelous thing what
our Lord did for us. We read or sung these last words
here in the song book. Loving that story so tender,
clearer than ever I see. Stay, let me weep while you whisper. Love paid the ransom for me. It is a wonderful thing, a marvelous
thing, how that the Lord Jesus Christ was sent from glory and
came all the way down here to this earth to redeem us by His
death on the cross. And I trust the Lord that we'll
never lose the wonder of it all. I invite you to turn back with
me in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 11. The book
of Acts chapter 11. I want to read the 26th verse. The 26th verse of Acts chapter
11. And when he had found him, he
brought him unto Antioch, and he came to pass, that a whole
year they assembled themselves with the church and taught much
people and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. The disciples were called Christians
first in Antioch. I want to speak this morning
on the subject what is a Christian? What is a Christian. I want to speak this morning
on the subject, what is a Christian? There was a little boy one time
who asked his dad, he said to his dad, what is a Christian? What is a Christian? And so his
dad took the Bible and began to try to show him out of the
scriptures what a Christian was. And after he had done so, the
little boy had this question for his daddy. And he said, Daddy,
he said, have I ever seen a Christian? Have I ever seen a Christian? I wonder sometimes whether I've
ever seen a Christian or not. Now, I've made an effort in my
life to be a Christian. I want to be one. I have prayed
that I might be a Christian. And I know that others have made
an all-out attempt to be a Christian. But I wonder sometimes if I've
ever seen a Christian, a real true believer, a real true Christian. You know one time I heard a sermon
by Mr. Al Martin, and in this sermon
he gave the qualifications for a deacon and the qualifications
for a pastor. And after giving and preaching
on the qualifications for a deacon, and the qualifications for a
pastor, I wondered at that time if I had ever seen a deacon,
or for that matter, had ever seen a true pastor, one that
measured up fully to the teachings of Acts chapter 6 and to the
teachings of Paul in the book of 1 Timothy. Had I ever really
ever seen a deacon or a pastor? Now I'm talking, of course, about
one that is real and genuine. You know, Paul talked about deacons
being filled with the Holy Ghost, about them being filled with
wisdom. He talked about a preacher being fully given over to the
ministry of the Word of God, to the preaching of the Word,
and leaving everything else and just ministering the Word of
God, and him being qualified and faithful. And I wonder sometimes
if we've ever seen a real Christian and a real pastor or deacon. Now I want this morning, I think
it would be a good thing if all of us who are involved in the
religious world would ask ourselves really, what is a Bible Christian? What is a Bible Christian? Now
the word Christian is used three times in the New Testament. First
of all, it's used here in our text, here in Acts chapter 11
and verse 26, where it says the disciples were called Christians
first in Antioch. And then it's used in Acts chapter
26 and verse 28, where Agrippa said to Paul, almost thou persuadest
me to be a Christian. And then it's used in 1 Peter
chapter 4 and verse 16, where it speaks of those who suffer.
If any man suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let
him glorify God, on this behalf. And so, Beloved, this is used
three times, and it's the only places in the New Testament that
you will find the use of this word. Now, the Chinese word for
Christians means Jesus Man. Jesus man. And so we immediately
can conclude, I believe, that it has reference to a man being
involved with a person. Involved with a person, and that
person is the Lord Jesus Christ. Here in our text it says the
disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. Now they were
saved, then they were disciples, and then they were called Christians. The word Christian and being
saved is not used synonymous in the Bible. Now, I take it
that these disciples, they had been saved, I believe that, and
then they were disciples. They became followers after Christ,
but then it was detected that they had taken upon themselves
the very nature and character of the Lord Jesus Christ, and
so men began to call them Christ-like or Christian people. They called
them Christians. Now then, Christ lived inside
of these disciples by the Holy Spirit. They had named the name
of Christ. You know the Bible says, the
foundation of God standeth sure having this seal, the Lord knoweth
them that are His, and let everyone who names the name of Christ
depart from iniquity. Those who are Christians have
Christ living in them by the Holy Spirit, and He is drawn
out in living character in their lives. They are Christ-like people. And that's why I say, you know,
that maybe I've never seen a Christian, is because I don't know that
I ever saw anybody exactly like the Lord Jesus Christ. Now there
was a preacher down south, I'm trying to think right now what
his name was, and I'll think of it in a moment here, but anyway
he was walking down the street one day, he was an old man, an
old white haired man, he was walking down the street, and
there was a lady came to meet him on the sidewalk, and she
looked at him, and as she looked at him he noticed she was staring
at him. And so as she walked on by, she
just kept turning and staring at him. And so finally, he just
stopped and looked back at her and said, Lady, what are you
looking at me for? Do you know me? And she said,
No, I don't know you. But she said, You look more like
Jesus Christ than anybody I ever saw. And she said, I can see
more of Jesus in you by just looking at your countenance.
than anybody I ever saw. Now this was an old preacher
from down south. He's dead now, but I just can't
recall his name. But there was something about
that that impressed me on this man's countenance. He didn't
say a word. He was just walking down the
street. But there was something about
this individual that Jesus seemed just to shine forth in his life. And I'll tell you that those
who have Christ living in them by the Holy Spirit, the more
they are devoted to Christ, the more they give up themselves
and surrender themselves fully unto the Lord Jesus Christ, the
more Christ is pleased to show himself through their lives. Now then, these people were identified
with a person. Jesus is a person. Christ is
the Savior. And whenever we are saved, it's
not that we're saved by a proposition, but we're saved by a person.
Christ is that person, and we're joined to Him, and He lives in
the believer by the Spirit. Now, then we'll say a few words
about Acts chapter 26 and verse 28, where Agrippa, Paul was preaching
to him, And Paul said to him, Agrippa, you ought to be saved. You ought to be born again. You ought to be a child of God. And Agrippa, after Paul had preached
to him and reasoned with him about the judgment to come, then
about repentance and faith and so on, then Agrippa said, Paul,
you persuade me to be a Christian. You almost have persuaded me
to be a Christian. And so the second time this word
is used, it's identified with a persuasion. Now the Christian
becomes a persuader. because he himself has first
been persuaded. Then he sets out to persuade
others. You know, I like what Paul said
in 2 Timothy 1 and 12. He says, For I know whom I have
believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which
I have committed unto him against that day. Paul was persuaded
that Christ, whom he had believed in, was able to keep all that
he had committed to him. And Paul had committed his soul
to him. And believers have committed
themselves to Christ, and they're persuaded. They're persuaded.
In Romans 8 and 38, Paul says again, he says, I'm persuaded
that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, shall be
able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord. I am persuaded. He said, I'm
persuaded that nothing will separate us from the love of God. So believers
are persuaded. Christians are people that have
been persuaded and then they become persuaders. Listen to
what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5 and 11. He says, knowing therefore
the terror of the Lord, we persuade men. Knowing the terror of the
Lord, we persuade men. Now beloved, listen. We recognize
that God's going to send everybody to hell that dies outside of
Christ. We believe in a literal and a
real hell. And we believe that the soul
never dies. And we believe that those who
die outside of Christ will face the terror of the Lord for all
eternity. And so therefore, Paul says we're
persuaders of those men. We persuade men and women that
they ought to repent. We persuade them they ought to
forsake their sin. We persuade them that they ought
to trust Christ and know Christ because we know the terror of
the Lord. We're told in the book of Acts,
that the church and the emphasis was not on the church gathered
so much, but as on the church scattered. And we read about
the church being scattered even in our text here this morning.
Scattered abroad. But the Bible says that they
that were scattered abroad, that they went everywhere preaching
the gospel. Whenever we're preaching the
gospel, whenever we're trying to persuade men and women that
they ought to come to know the Christ of God, that they ought
to come to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 28 verses
18 through 20, the scripture says, Jesus said, is given to me in
heaven and earth, and He said to His disciples, you go into
all the world, and you preach the gospel, and you make disciples
of men, and you baptize them in the name of the Father, and
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and you teach them to observe
all things that I have commanded you to observe. So we are sent
out by God to become persuaders of men. We have been persuaded
ourselves, and now we become persuaders. Now then, listen,
we need to ponder this because today in the religious world
most churches just meet and they eat and then they retreat. Have
you ever noticed that? Meet, eat, and retreat. Well
beloved, we need to ponder the fact that we need to begin to
persuade men and women of their need of repentance and faith
and their need of trusting the Lord Jesus. Now the reason that
we that believe are here today is that we're here to worship
God and we're here to learn that we may go out and that we may
go out and practice it, that we may go out and use it in our
persuasion of other men and women. The purpose for learning is doing,
is doing. In John 13 and 17, it says, if
you know these things, happy are ye. That's not the end of
the sentence. It goes on to say, if you do
them, if you do them. And so, beloved, as a child of
God, we learn in order to go out. We learn in order to become
persuaders of others along the way, to persuade them to trust
Christ. A gripper said, almost, Paul,
you persuaded me to be a Christian. Now the third time this word
is used, it's used in connection with persecution. In 1 Peter
4, verse 16, it says, Yet if any man suffer as a Christian,
let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God on this behalf. In 2 Timothy 3, verse 12, Paul
says, He says, Ye and all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall
suffer persecution. Not some believers, but all believers
will suffer persecution. Now most of us do not live godly
enough lives to turn the heads of those in the world. We do
not live up to what we believe. We do not take serious what we
believe. We do not take serious enough
what the Bible says to become in any way shape or form a hindrance
to the world. We're not that kind of a light
Our light is kind of like the lights on my car after I'd driven
over the gravel roads on the Fairfield bench last week. I
mean, they were so muddy you couldn't have told if you had
them on or whether you didn't have them on. It wouldn't have
made any difference. And so Christians, many of them, are just like that. The world is in the lap of the
wicked one, we're told in the book of 1 John, and it's against
God, it's against His Christ, and it never will smile on a
true godly believer. This world will persecute those
that know Christ. If you're a Christian, you are
going to suffer if you live godly in this world. If you own Christ,
if you own His Word, if you obey His Word, the world is no friend
of grace to help you on to God. The world is going to be your
enemy. Now then, Christian persecution,
let's think just a little bit about it. It's not trouble in
general. It's not trouble in general. Everybody has a certain
amount of trouble. It's not like having a headache
that you can cure with an aspirin. That's not what Christian trouble
is. If any man suffer as a Christian,
now listen, Christian persecution, and you can write this down if
you have a paper and pencil, is not trouble in general as
we said. Christian persecution is trouble
you get into that you would not have got into if you weren't
a Christian. It's trouble you get into that
you would not have got into if you weren't a Christian. You
get into it because you believe God, believe His Word, believe
His truth, and you stand for His truth and His Word, and therefore
you have trouble because of it. We've got into a whole lot of
trouble maybe for other reasons, not for being a Christian. I
don't know of too many of us that have suffered because we've
been Christians. Now some of us have, and some
of us, I'm sure, this morning have never said anything about
some of their sufferings. But if you live godly in Christ
Jesus, Paul said, you're going to suffer persecution. Hebrews
12 and verse 4 says, you've not yet resisted unto blood striving
against sin. We haven't resisted sin to the
shedding of our blood yet. No, we haven't. I don't know
of anybody here that's done that. But listen to me, the day perhaps
will come when we will have to shed our blood for the testimony
of the gospel. And if you live godly in Christ
Jesus, you will suffer persecution. And so, beloved, listen to me
this morning. We have it easy here, brother,
sister, and we'll have a lot to answer for, I think, at the
judgment. We'll have to have a lot to answer
before God because we've had it so easy, and yet we've made
such little effort to spread the Word and to testify of those
things that we know. Thank God our sins are under
the blood. Now, if we'd be true, real Christians,
Real believers, I mean if we were dedicated to the point where
we were willing to lay down our lives for Christ, be willing
to suffer, if we were just willing one day out of the week, one
day out of the week. Ah, you know, I heard a fellow
tell one time about his church, and he had a big church, and
he said, well you know, if I could find all the members of this
church, And he said, not even the FBI could find all the members
of this church. He said, and they're probably
looking for some of them, but we can't find any of them, but
if I could just get each one of the professed members of this
church to live like a Christian one day a week, we'd solve an
awful lot of the problems that's in this world. And I'll tell
you, it's true, but most of us are ashamed of what we believe,
and most of us are afraid to testify of the gospel of God's
grace in this world. Well, let's get on with our subject.
What is a Christian? Well, I'm going to give you seven
marks of a Christian. I'll not preach on them very
much, but I'll give you seven marks of what a true Christian
is. First of all, a Christian is a saved, S-A-V-E-D, a saved
individual. 2nd Timothy 1 and verse 9 says,
Who hath saved us? It says God who hath saved us
and called us not according to our works but according to his
own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before
the world began. Now I like the word saved. I
like it. I like it. I sure enough do.
Delivered is the word. It means that you have been delivered
by God. It means that God has come to
your rescue. That God has come and through
the price that the Lord Jesus Christ paid on Calvary, it means
that Jesus Christ, that He suffered our hell for us on the cross,
that He died and paid our sin debt, that he satisfied God completely
and we are justified by what Jesus done on our behalf and
that we are saved. We are not savable, we are indeed
saved. You say, preacher, I'm somewhere
between being lost and saved. Well, my friend, you're not saved
if you're still in a position where you can be lost. You're
only saved if you are indeed by grace saved. Now I know there's a lot of people
that are working on it and you know this generation has been
told that Jesus Christ came into this world and paid the down
payment on salvation, and that we just keep on paying installments
on it as long as we live, and if we miss one of them installments,
then we'll finally at last die and go to hell. There's not a
bit of truth in that. There is no truth in that. That
is a tragic error. That is tragically wrong. It
is not so. Jesus Christ came and the Bible
says that He paid it all. The Bible teaches that He paid
every bit of it. Now somebody said, I can't understand
how that Jesus could become a substitute for a sinner and how that He
could pay the debt in full. Well, the Lord Jesus Christ did
the work. He paid it off in full. And Paul
said, by grace are you saved, not of works lest any man should
boast. You're saved entirely on the
basis of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done. Now, beloved,
listen. I do not believe that any of us, I think we should
be very, very careful that we do not un-Christ Christ. Now listen to me. Listen to what
I'm saying here. I am the sinner. I am the sinner. Jesus is the Savior. He is the
Savior. I'm the sinner. I will never
be anything else but a sinner. A sinner. Jesus is the mighty
Savior. Anytime that an individual makes
or thinks he is making a contribution to his salvation, he un-Christ
Christ. Christ is who He is because He
is the all-sufficient Savior. He is able to save you and He
saves everybody that gets saved. He does the saving. You don't
help Him. You don't assist Him. You make
no contribution. It's all of Jesus from the beginning
to the end. He paid it all, the old song
says. And we're not in the position
where we can lose our salvation. You say, I don't understand that.
I don't understand that. Well, because I didn't have anything
to do with it to procure it? then I cannot lose it. Now you
say, Preacher, can a man just go ahead and sin after he's saved? The Bible teaches us that if
any man says that he has no sin, he's a liar, and the truth is
not in him. He says if a man says that he
does not commit sin, then the Word of God is not in him. Every
one of us know we commit sin. We commit sin every day. I said
I'm the sinner, and Christ is the Savior. And you, every one
of you, are guilty of sin, but Christ died for all of our sin,
past, present, and future when he died on the cross and he paid
fully for our sin. And the Lord does chasten his
people. He does indeed. David said, the Lord chastens
me every day. God does correct his people.
We have a three-fold salvation. We've been saved from the penalty
of sin. We are being saved from the practice of sin and we shall
finally be saved entirely from the presence of sin. But the
Savior is the Lord Jesus Christ and we dare not un-Christ Him.
I'm here to tell you that salvation is God's project and that Christ
did all of the doing and the doing and dying has been done
and we're saved all together not on the basis of what we've
done but what another has done in our room instead in place
and the father has accepted what he did just as if I myself had
been there on that cross. The Father accepted it, and the
payment is made in full. Do you trust the Lord Jesus? Are you saved? You say, well,
can you explain it? You know, when the Lord saved
me, I couldn't explain salvation. I couldn't explain regeneration.
I couldn't explain justification. I could not explain imputation. I couldn't explain sanctification.
I could not explain election. I couldn't explain the atonement
and what are all involved. and I couldn't explain the resurrection.
I couldn't explain any of that stuff. Certainly couldn't explain
glorification. But I'll tell you this, I believed
what God's Word said. I trusted Christ. I stood on
the Lord Jesus Christ and I got saved even though I didn't understand
all those things. And I'm telling you that the
mark of a Christian is this, is that he's saved. He is S-A-V-E-D. He is saved. And Christ did it
all. Some little boy one time, he
had a memory verse, and he come to his preacher. And he said,
preacher, I've got a memory verse. And the preacher said, well,
what is it? And he said, well, it's Matthew 11, 28. And the
preacher said, tell me what it is. And he says, come unto me.
He said, all ye that labor in a heavy laden, and I'll do the
rest. No, that's not what it says.
Jesus said come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden
and I'll give you rest. But the little boy said and I'll
do the rest. Come unto me all you that labor
and are heavy laden and I'll do the rest. And he had it right. He had it right. The Lord Jesus
Christ does the saving. It's his work. He's the one that
does it. It's not something that you and
I have a part in. Now then listen to me. The second
mark of a Christian is not only that he's saved, but number two,
he's sure. He's sure. He is sure that he
is saved. Now we talked about this last
Sunday morning. Assurance of salvation. Do you
know for sure that you are saved? We told you last Sunday morning.
that we're not to trust feelings, that there's only one basis for
assurance of salvation, and that's the Word of God. These things
have I written unto you that believe, that you may know that
you have eternal life, and that you may believe on the name of
the Son of God. 1 John chapter 5 verse 13. And so we know by the Word of
God, by what the Scripture says, And in Isaiah 40 in verse 8 it
says, The grass withereth, and the flower thereof fadeth, but
the word of our God shall stand forever. We believe that the
word of God is going to stand forever and our confidence is
in the word alone. The testimony of God alone. We
believe the record that God gave of His Son. And that record is
eternal life. And this life is in His Son.
And he that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the
Son of God hath not life. We believe the record. And that
record is going to stand. The Word of the Lord is forever
settled in heaven. And we believe God's Word and
we stand on it. And that's the only grounds of
assurance. I can't re-preach that sermon
I preached last Sunday morning. Now the third thing is this.
Not only are we saved and sure, that we are saved. And you will
never be worth anything in service to your God until you know for
certain that you are indeed saved. And you can know it for sure. And if you can know it for sure,
then why don't we know it? Why don't we know it? You begin
to ask yourself that question. Why don't I know I'm saved for
sure if a man can know it? And the Bible says he can know
it. Number three, a Christian, somebody
that is a genuine true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is sound. He is sound. We're told in Acts
chapter 2 and verse 42, and they continued steadfastly in the
apostles' doctrine and in fellowship, the breaking of bread. They continued
in the things of God. They studied. They learned what
the truth was and stood with the truth. They knew their book.
Well, do you know how people get into cults? They get into
cults because they do not know the Bible. They do not study
the Bible. They do not give themselves over
to searching the scriptures that they might know whether or not
these things they're hearing, whether or not they be of God
or not. I'll tell you something, we're lazy. We're lazy! And there's
so many lazy people today that will not take up the Bible, will
not read it on their own, will not study it. And I, this morning,
want to challenge you young people to read a verse every day, to
write it down on a piece of paper, put it in your shirt pocket,
and every time you have a moment to take it out and to read it,
to memorize the Word of God. I was criticized a great deal
when I was in high school. Because I spent my study halls
memorizing the Word of God. Studying the scriptures and memorizing
the scriptures. But before I was 18 years old,
by the grace of God I could quote many, many verses out of the
Bible. You need to take up the book.
Those that are true Christians are sound in the faith. Well, there was a Methodist deacon
and there was a Baptist deacon. They got on a bus one day. And
the Methodist deacon said to the Baptist deacon, I'll bet
you I know more about the Bible than you know about it. And the
Baptist deacon said, no, he said, I'm sure you don't. And the Baptist
deacon said, I'll bet you $5. I know more about the Bible than
you do. And so the Methodist said, OK, so I'll take you up
on it. And so the Baptist deacon said
to the Methodist, he said, you tell me, you give me the Lord's
prayer. And the Methodist deacon thought
a little bit and he said, and lay me down to sleep. Lord, I
pray my soul to keep and so on and so forth. Bless father and
mother and brother and sister and so on and so forth. Amen.
And the Baptist deacon gave him the five dollars and said, I
didn't believe that you'd know it. And so, beloved, that's about
the case we're all in. I'm sorry, but it's true. We
don't know anything about the Bible, whether we're Methodists
or Baptists, either one. But those that are genuine Christians
are sound in the faith. They're sound in the faith of
the gospel. Now let's go on to the fourth
thing. Number four is these that are Christians are surrendered. They're surrendered. They're
not in rebellion against God any longer. They bow their knee
to the Lordship of Christ daily. They're surrendered to the Lord. Now we read in Romans 12 and
1, I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God that you
present your bodies as living, sacrificed, holy, and acceptable
unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed
to this world, but be you transformed by the renewing of your mind,
so that you may prove what is that good, acceptable, and perfect
will of God. Now beloved, that sounds to me
like that the people of God are to give up their bodies unto
the Lord Jesus Christ. They're to surrender themselves
as those that have been conquered. They're to surrender themselves
unto Christ. They're to give up themselves
and they're to be holy and there to be consecrated, not conformed
to the world, but consecrated unto the will and purpose of
God from the crown of their head to the sole of their feet, to
be genuinely given over, surrendered to the Lord Jesus. There are
many professing believers that says, Lord, I'll give you one
or two hours on Sunday morning, but after that, there ain't no
way I'm going to do what you want me to do. Well, a true Christian
is somebody that recognizes the claims of God in their life and
respond to it by giving up themselves daily to the will of God, whatever
it be in their life. They surrender unto the Lord. Now the Moravian brethren have
a picture in some of their meeting houses and on one side of the
picture there's a picture of a yoke like the oxen used to
have on their necks when they worked oxen. And on the other
side of the picture there's an altar of sacrifice. And down
there's an inscription on the bottom that says this, ready
for either. ready for evil. I'm ready for
the yoke, if that be the will of God, and I'm ready to die
for what our Lord wants me to do, if it be His will. I'm ready
to die. The yoke or the sacrifice, the
altar of sacrifice, whatever it is Lord, Your will be done. I bow my knee to your will. Not
in rebellion against God. A true Christian is somebody
who is surrendered. And then number five quickly,
he's somebody that is separated. Separated. In 2 Corinthians 6
and 14 we're told that we ought to be separated from unbelievers. Be not unequally yoked together
with unbelievers. It means that a true child of
God is not to in any way clasp hands with and join themselves
to in any kind of life relationships with an unbeliever, with an individual. the light of God has never dawned
or never shown anybody that's an unbeliever. It means that
you young ladies should never date a young man that is an enemy
of Christ, that hates the things of God, that would spit on the
things of the Bible, that would joke about the virgin birth,
that wouldn't have anything to do, that would laugh about the
resurrection, would laugh about the resurrection of Christ, and
has no use for the Bible. There's no way that you should
join hands with that individual. That's what the Bible teaches.
And you young men, the same way is true. When you're hunting
a mate for life, make sure that God has switched on the light
of His grace and power in the life of that girl that you are
going to date, that girl that you're going to marry. Make sure
that they know the Lord. Be not unequally yoked together
with unbelievers. Now in James 4 and 4 it says
that they that are friends of the world are the enemies of
God. So we need to be separated from
the world. separated from the world and the things of this
world. Now we have to live in the world.
It's impossible that we go out of the world. And we would have
to go clean out of the world to get all the way away from
the world. But we still, as we live in the
world, you know, if the water, if the ship's in the water, that's
one thing. But if the water gets in the
ship, That's another thing. And so when the world gets in
you, that's when you have the problem. In 2 John 10 and 11,
it says that we're to be separated from those who hold false doctrine. It says that if a man come to
you and have not the true doctrine of Christ, then bid him not God's
feet. Don't say God bless you as he
walks away from your door. If he doesn't know Christ, if
he doesn't know and if he doesn't stand for the Christ of God,
then don't bid him God's feet. Be separated from him. Romans
16 and 17 tells us that we ought to be separate from church disturbers. Mark them which cause divisions
among you and avoid them, Paul said. And so the believer has
got to be a separated individual. A Christian is a separated person,
somebody who's separated unto God. Number six, a true Christian
is somebody that is filled with the spirit, spirit filled. Now
in Ephesians 5 and 18 it says be not drunk, with wine wherein
is excess, but be filled with the Spirit. There's two commands
there. One, be not drunk with wine wherein is excess. Number two, be filled with the
Spirit. And then we notice in the Bible
that there are three times that the Spirit is spoken of in the
same verse as alcoholic drink. And in Luke chapter 1 and verse
15, let me read that scripture to you right quick about John
the Baptist. It says, For he shall be great
in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor
strong drink, and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost from
his mother's womb. Then we quoted the verse in Ephesians
5 and verse 18 where it said be not drunk with wine where
it is excess But be filled with the spirit and then in Acts chapter
2 in Acts chapter 2 on the day of Pentecost We read where the
scripture says in verse 13 and 15 Others walking when the brethren
got up to preach and they spoke with different tongues as the
spirit gave them utterance Others walking said these men are full
of new wine And then Peter said in verse 15, for these are not
drunken as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the
day. But there is some similarity between the drunken man and the
man filled with the Spirit. Now listen to what I'm saying.
Number one, they look different than other people. Oh, it's evident. You can tell when a man is drunk
by his looks. He's just different. He looks
different. And a man that's filled with
the Holy Spirit, he also looks different. There's something
about his countenance. There's something different about that
individual. I'm not saying they're the same.
I'm just saying that there is some similarity between a drunken
man and a man who is filled with the Spirit. They talk different
and they talk more. You get a man that's filled with
the Holy Spirit. You know, some Christians are like arctic rivers. They're frozen at the mouth.
But a true Christian is somebody, beloved, who has a word on his
tongue about the things of God. He has a word to speak for the
Lord. And he talks different and he
talks more. I've heard some drunks that never would shut their mouth.
And I've heard some people that the only time they would talk
is when they were drunk. But a believer, a child of God,
somebody that is filled with the Spirit of God, oh may God
give us more of them, whose tongues are loose on both ends, and whose
tongue is as a pen of a ready writer who can speak the things
of God. And when you're filled with the
Holy Spirit, you will be able to speak for God and for His
glory. And then they walk differently.
A drunken man, you know how a drunken man walks. I heard a story about
one who was going down the sidewalk. He had one foot up on the sidewalk
and the other one down in the gutter. And somebody stopped
him and said, what in the world are you doing? What in the world
are you doing? He said, you're walking that
way? He said, you're going to fall directly and hurt yourself
bad. He said, well, what do you mean? He said, well, you got one foot
up on the sidewalk and the other one in the gutter. He said, well,
thank goodness. He said, I thought I'd lost half
of my leg. He was just walking funny, you see. And you know,
a true believer is somebody that walks different. They walk different
because they're led of the Spirit. They're led of the Spirit. In
my age, we could just talk for a long time about how God's Spirit
leads His children. They that are led by the Spirit
of God are the sons of God. God's Spirit leads His people. Then a drunk creates a commotion
every place he goes. Why if there was a drunk in here
this morning, he'd create a commotion. He'd either be saying amen loud
to the rest of you, wouldn't have to talk very loud and say
amen loud to the rest of you. But anyway, he'd create a commotion
before he got out that door this morning. And a man whose spirit
filled is a man who will create a commotion out here in the world. I heard about a fellow that went
into a barber's chair and that barber, he was cursing. Cursing and he said I'll be damned
this and I'll be damned that and that fellow listened to it
Just as long as he could directly he jumped up out of the chair
And he said you don't have to be damned you can be saved you
can be saved and I'll tell you beloved We need to have somebody
open her mouth sometime and a true Christian is somebody filled
with the spirit and they've got something to say and they may
create a commotion and just like a drunk man would, but that's
exactly, that's what happened on the day of Pentecost. These
fellas got up, they created a commotion. I mean, something happened. when
they got up. All right, now the number seven
thing, I want you to turn with me to Psalm 40. Psalm 40, and
I apologize if the message has been a little bit long, but like
I've told you many a time, that we only have the opportunity
to preach one time a week, so we'll give it our best shot.
Psalm chapter 40, and look at verse 3. And the last point is
this, that a true Christian is a singing person. He's a person
that has a new song. A person that has a song in his
soul. Listen to this verse. And he
hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. Many shall see it. Doesn't say anything about them
hearing it. Many shall see it and fear and shall trust The
Lord many shall hear it or see it and fear and shall trust in
the Lord Now I I love this verse of Scripture You know the believer
Not a good testimony when they run around all the time with
a long face with their chin hanging down, with their hearts hanging
on a willow tree. Not able to say, not able to
sing, not able to utter praise unto God. Our hearts should be
filled with a new song. And when God saves a man, and
when that man is surrendered to Him, they'll have a song in
their heart. David said, the Lord's put a
new song in my mouth. He gave me a song. He used to
sing this song and that song but since the Lord saved me,
I got a new song. I got a new song and that song
is praise unto God. We're to have our own atmosphere
as a believer. I heard a story about a fellow
who was down in a mine. And a friend of his came to look
him up and to see him. So he talked to the boss up at
the top of the mine, the opening of the mine. And the boss said,
well, just go on down. And he said, well, he looked
down in that hole, and he said, it's dark down there. He said, it's
just black down there. And he said, how am I going to
know it when I see it? And the boss said, well, you
just go on down, and he'll be the one to sing it. He'll be
the one singing. He sings all the time and you'll
be able to find him. So he went down there and sure
enough, sure enough, he couldn't tell the difference between all
them minors, but just one fellow was singing, the way of the cross
leads home, the way of the cross leads home. It is sweet to know
as onward go, the way of the cross leads home. And so, beloved,
he had his own atmosphere, you see. And so the believer has
a new song. He's a Christian if somebody's
got a song in their soul. And if you don't have a song
in your soul this morning, you better be thinking about it.
Look and find out what the problem is. Is it that you're not surrendered?
You know, I'm going to just mention these things to you. A true Christian
The marks of a true Christian is they're saved, they're sure,
they're sound, they're surrendered, they're separated, they're spirit
filled, and they have a new song in their soul. They have a new
song in their soul. Are you singing this morning
unto the Lord? Are you surrendered to Christ? Are you separated? Are you saved? Are you sure? Well, this is the
making of a Christian. The making of a true Christian. Now, as I have given you these
things, do you ask the question that the little boy asked? Daddy,
have I seen a Christian? Have I ever seen a Christian?
Well, I think that once in a while, people were around, they might
say, well, I think that fellow there is a Christian. But then
there are days, and sometimes there are weeks, and sometimes
there's months, and sometimes there's years when the people
being around us have to shake their head. I don't know whether
that fellow's a Christian or not. I can't tell whether he
is or not. So may the Lord be pleased to
enable us to examine our own hearts and to deal with this. Am I a Christian? And do those
that live around me, are they convinced? that I am a Christian. Father, in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, bless this message and use it to the glory and praise
of your own name. If there be one here now who
says I'd like to get in on that being a Christian, I pray that
they may be moved by the Holy Spirit this morning to become
a seeker after the Lord Jesus Christ. I ask, Father, that they
may close with Christ. The scripture says, whosoever
shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. I pray that
there will be a moving of the Spirit upon the lost and they'll
be brought to Christ ere they depart this life. I pray it in
Jesus' name, amen.

What Is A Christian ?

What does the Bible say about being a Christian?

How do we know salvation is true?

Why is being sound in doctrine important for Christians?

What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit?

What marks a true Christian?

Why is the concept of Christian suffering significant?

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