“They claim to know God, but by their
actions they deny Him…” (Titus 1:16)
Do you believe in God? Chances are, you
do. A recent study showed that 3 out of every 4 Americans claim to believe
in God. And about 7 in 10 actually claim to believe in the Trinitarian God of
the Bible. However, when we look at society and even in the church, it does not
take long to see that there is a vast difference between the lifestyle and
theology that the Bible teaches and that which the majority of those who claim
to be Christians live out.
For example, more than half of those who
claim to follow the God of the Bible reject Jesus’s eternal nature (Isa. 9:6;
John 8:58; Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:11, 12; 13:8; Rev. 1:8). Those who know God
understand what He is like. Another shocking statistic is that 70% of those
who claim to be Christians agree that there’s only one true God. However, 64%
also thought that this God accepts the worship of all religions, including
those that believe in many gods (http://thefederalist.com/2016/10/10/survey-finds-american-christians-actually-heretics/).
Therefore, even though the majority of Americans claim to be Christian, they do
not actually know the Christian God. This is one sense in which there is
virtually no difference between many of those who claim to be Christians and
those who claim to be atheists. Craig Groeschel, the pastor of one of the
largest churches in America has rightly labeled individuals like this as
“Christian Atheists.”
The question that needs to come to our
minds is this: do you actually know the God whom you claim to follow? The Bible
says that the demons fearfully believe in God (James 2:19); however, they do
not know God through a personal relationship with Him. Similarly, there are
many who know God intellectually, the Pharisees were like this, but they did
not know God personally (John 8:54-55). There are a lot of people who will miss
heaven by 18 inches: they know God in their minds but not in their hearts. Those
who truly know God long to spend time with Him. David said, “O God, You are
my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You,
in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Ps. 63:1). Does this match
the relationship that you have with God?
Lastly, those who truly know God obey
what He commands. The Apostle John said, “We know that we have come to know
Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, ‘I know Him,’ but does not do
what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3-4). Are
you obedient to what God commands?
Those who genuinely know God understand
what He is like, they long to spend time with Him, and they obey what He
commands. Are these 3 things apparent in your life? Or are you like most who
claim to believe in the God of the Bible, but in reality are a Christian
Atheist?
I pray that you may know Him and His love
that surpasses knowledge, for if you do, it will make all the difference in the
world! God bless!
In His service,
Matt
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