By Chris WittsThursday 26 Sep 2024Morning Devotions with Chris WittsFaithReading Time: 1 minute
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Transcript:
I wonder if you could sometimes sit down and write a simple definition – “What does it mean to be a Christian?” That’s a good question. What would you say? Is it being a nice person, going to church on Sunday? I have an idea. You know that many people don’t even know what true Christianity is. What is a definition? A simple definition of true Christianity?
I wonder what would happen if we took a survey today of the man or the woman on the street. I wonder what kind of opinions and ideas people would have about Christianity. I think we’d get a diverse number of answers.
One thing I’m sure about – the answers would probably be inaccurate, because the view of Christianity that would perhaps top the list would be the one that says Christianity is all about keeping rules and regulations. And most people think that’s what we emphasise in the church. Most people think that whenever these rules and regulations are broken that they will be judged harshly and so to boil it all down for lots of people, Christianity is all about – well, do this, don’t do that.
What is the true definition of Christianity?
Now of course, there are, unfortunately, some churches that are legalistic and harsh and judgmental. Some churches do have a lot of rules and regulations, but that’s really not what we’re talking about today. That’s not true Christianity. What is very sad, I think, is that many people have rejected Christianity based on this idea, this misinformation of what Christianity really is.
So where do you find the truth about Christianity? You could well be interested this morning to find out. Well, I say you don’t find it in tradition or in the church history examples.
You may not have found it in the lives that people live and for a real definition of Christianity, I think there’s only one thing you can do. And let’s go to the Bible, because in the Bible you’ll find that true Christianity hangs or falls by the law of love that’s lived out by a person when Jesus Christ lives in that person.
The truth of Christianity is that when a person, a girl or a boy or a man or a woman receives Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, that person is different because they are empowered to love.
But then again, what is love? It’s a word that we use for everything. It’s really an imprecise term. We use it in so many ways. So to understand its meaning, we’ve really got to try and understand the context. For example, I might say to you, I love ice cream. I love the blue skies. I love my dog. I love my wife. I might say I love you. So it’s obvious that my love for my wife is different to the way that I love ice cream. So it’s important to understand what we mean when we use this word love.
So I think that people have no idea of what true Christianity or love really is, but love is the greatest thing that people need. Josh McDowell said – “I believe two of the greatest fears people struggle with today are the fear they will never be loved and the fear that they will never be able to love.”
Well, Christianity is all about meeting that need.
Listen to the Apostle John and here’s the Epistle 1 John 2, he said – “As we obey Christ’s commandments to love one another, the darkness in our lives disappears. The new light of life in Christ comes in. Anyone who says he’s walking in the light of Christ but dislikes his fellow man is in darkness.”
But John said, “whoever loves his fellow man is walking in the light, and he can see his way without stumbling around in darkness and sin.”
So here he tells us how to walk in the light, and that’s emphasizing the importance of fellowship with God and one another. So the basic commandment of Christianity is all about love. In fact, it’s the law of love and explains to us that love is old, but it’s also new. In fact, it goes right back to the Old Testament to the words that say, Hear O Israel, the Lord our God is one, love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength. And this is the commandment to love God. And so it’s not just something that belongs to the New Testament. Love is found from the beginning of the Bible, right through to the end. It’s a great concept, isn’t it?
Let’s Pray
Well, we do sing often, Lord of your love and your justice. We know that it’s new every morning. You’re a great God. And we thank you that you are full of understanding and a God of provision. We know that your love never fails. Thank you, in Jesus’ name, Amen.