Saturday, September 2, 2017

Where's the Proof?

Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, "I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!"

—Luke 19:8

It seems to me there are people running around today who claim to be Christians, but their lives have never shown any evidence of it. I am not suggesting that I’m the one to determine who is, and who is not, saved. But as I have often said, there will be three surprises when we get to Heaven: A lot of the people we thought would be there won’t be there, a lot of the people we never thought would be there will be there, and we will be there.

I say that with some humor, of course, but I do believe there will be surprises in Heaven.
Having said that, I also believe that if you really are a Christian there will be evidence in your life to confirm it. There are people who say, “I’m a Christian. I’m saved. I believe in Jesus.” Meanwhile, they’re out partying and getting drunk with the best or the worst of them. They’re ripping people off. They’re stealing. They’re lying. And we look at them and say, “What is wrong with this picture?”
If you’re really a Christian, there should be evidence to back it up. For example, when Zacchaeus came to faith, he was a dishonest man. He took advantage of people financially. But after his conversion, what did he do? He made restitution and paid back what he had taken from others unjustly, even adding interest.

A lot of people say they are Christians, but they have never made any attempt to right wrongs or make restitution or even give evidence to a watching world that Christ is really living inside of them.

Could people look at you and say, “I see something in you that tells me you’re a follower of Jesus”? Is there such evidence in your life?