Who is Responsible Here?!
Who is Responsible Here?!
By Don Twobears
Some where along the way, some people have the idea, that once they are saved, then that’s all there is to it. In a certain sense, they are correct, once you give your life to Jesus Christ (In absolute Truth) you are definitely saved and no one can reverse that or take it away from you! Does that mean, that you are able to live however you wish, act how ever, be what ever you wish? The answer of course is NO. This is the area, most people have a problem with. It is then more important to read Gods Holy Word to us, the Bible, to find the answers to questions like these that perplex us the most;
2 Corinthians 5:15-18 “And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation.”
Please note in the verses above, that are highlighted, that it is imperative for the “Born-Again” to understand, they are no longer the person they were, before giving their lives to Christ. “All things are become new” is the part of the verse that says the most. This is where the Rubber-meets-the-road, so to speak. This is the exact spot where we fail our Lord and Savior the most, because we drift from this spot so easily. I do NOT mean just you…but all of us! If we take a moment and think on this, we see at that point, we are Babes in Christ, we are subsisting on the “Milk of the Word”. In easier terms, we have not made it to the point where we are eating solid food just yet! Having said that, do you see why it is so easy for the New Born-Again individual to slip away?
This is the exact time, the more mature Christian, needs to step in and remind the Babes in Christ, to keep their eyes on our Lord and their nose in the Bible. How many times have you heard these new Christians, complain of how hard it is to maintain themselves in the Lord, when Temptation is so prevalent around them? It seems it is something akin to being placed on a very strict diet, no fun, no pleasure! It is in these times that they need to be reminded why they gave their Lives to Christ in the first place, the desire for Heaven, for Eternal Life and that the opposite is Eternal death and separation from the Lord.
I Remember when I was a new Dad, my Daughter would wake up, sometimes not hungry or in need of a new Diaper, but something near and dear to her was absent. The Mothers Heart Beat! I would hold my Daughter close to my Chest, so that she could hear my heart beat. Then I would put my arms around her and lay back on the couch and we would both fall asleep, content to each other. This went on for weeks and weeks and I found that it met the needs for both of us. My Daughter would feel the safety of my Heart Beat and my arms around her and I would feel the safety of her being so close, that I could care and nurture her. To be very honest, we both benefited from this, she slept soundly and safely and so did I. It is the same thing with the new Christian, if they are constantly coming to the Lord for all their needs. As with a new born baby, the baby does not know to crawl to the Father, the Father must hear the cry and respond. What would happen if there is no cry, no knowledge of need? Hunger and starvation, a stunting of Growth! They need the more mature Christian!
As with so many, they don’t want to ask for help, it makes them appear weak and frail, thus the Mature Christian is able to know the needs of the New Christian and apply the answers. Often it is the lack of mature Christians, that spawns an opposite effect. The New Christian fails and jumps back into their old lifestyle, they then realize they have sinned, but they have no idea of what to do. They fear telling anyone out of shame and thusly they give up on their new found Faith and the fall continues unabated. They do not realize the answers are right there in the Word of God, in essence, they have no idea of which way to turn and the Bible is then relegated to the dusty table, to be forgotten.
It would then appear that there is no one responsible for this failure, so we must then turn the tide and look in the Scriptures for the answer. It should be at that moment when the Mature Christian, that was helping the New Christian, to see where they dropped the ball. Many times though, other people would not want to be considered responsible for them. Somewhere along the way, they feel they have done all there is to do, as far as the “Great Commission” is concerned. Here are some examples from the Word of God;
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.”
Romans 14:19-21 “Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another. For meat destroy not the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence. It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.”
Probably the most telling of Scripture concerning our duties as a Born-Again Christian, is found in Ezekiel 3:17-21 “Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.” As you can see this is not something, the Lord leaves as something weak, or ineffectual in any manner, it is profound to every Born-Again Christian and we must be Conscious of it. We talk a great deal about the “Great Commission”, evidence like this from the Bible, out-shines many other areas, in the Responsibility area.
Daniel 5:24-31 “Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written. And this is the writing that was written, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin. This is the interpretation of the thing: Mene; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. Tekel; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. Peres; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.”
The adages of old, need to be remembered and adhered to! These sayings are important for all of us to know because there is cause and effect, an answer for all things and every one of us are responsible to the Lord. This is exactly true…no matter…whether you are saved to Jesus Christ…or NOT! If a man is foolish enough to say “There is NO God”, then He deserves the just rewards for his ignorance, which is by choice on his part!
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
God’s way, it’s HIS way or the Highway! And the Highway leads to destruction, therefore one might want to contemplate their position and their future! The unsaved know nothing, that is why they need YOU and I, the Born-Again Christian should be reading the Bible and learning everything he can, you will be responsible, ignorance is NO excuse!
Jesus Christ still Saves!!!