For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in His steps. He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth; when he was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He was suffering, He did not threaten but entrusted Himself to the One who judges justly. 1 Peter 2:21-23 HCSB
My mom was a big fan of John Wayne, for you younger readers, he was a movie star who did a lot of western movies. I grew up on a dairy farm and I guess you could say that my dad was a cowboy. He had a large head of dairy cattle, we always had horses. He always wore a cowboy hat and boots. He had an old raggedy hat that he wore in the dairy barn. He had a straw hat for the summer and a felt hat for the winter. He could rope and he could ride. He always made sure that me, my mom and my sisters each had our own horse.
We watched a lot of westerns in my house when we were growing up. Watching westerns didn’t make my dad a cowboy, living the life made my dad a cowboy.
Watching crime shows doesn’t make one a detective any more than watching shows about firefighters make one a firefighter. You can watch medical shows, but that doesn’t make you a doctor. I guess you see where I am going here.
As a child, I was a big fan of Roy Rogers and the Lone Ranger, and yes for you younger kids these were westerns. But I didn’t learn how to care for and ride horses by watching these shows. My dad taught me this. I learned through instruction.
When I decided to give my life to Christ, I couldn’t sit on my sofa and watch a few sermons by Charles Stanley, I had to read the Bible. I had to attend my church as well. I had to learn to live the truth that was presented to me in the Bible. I had to accept and receive instruction from my heavenly father.
Just because you see someone walking around in a cowboy hat and boots doesn’t mean that they know anything about how to ride a horse or rope a steer. Just because someone professes to be a Christian doesn’t mean that they obey Christ’s commands.
My question to you today is when someone looks at you do they think, “So that person thinks they are a Christian”? Or do they think, “That guy’s got to be a Christian!” How we walk and how we talk will clearly let people know whether or not we are a Christian. But more importantly how we love will show others that we are Christians. As the song says, “They will know we are Christians by our love.” Jesus told His disciples in John 13:35, “By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The uniform doesn’t make you a police officer, it’s what’s in your heart that makes you a police officer. The hat and the boots don’t make you a cowboy, it’s your love for horses and cows and your ability to handle them that makes you a cowboy. Saying you are a Christian and putting bumper stickers on your car or carrying your bible around doesn’t make you a Christian, it’s what’s in your heart that makes you a Christian. It’s that love for others that Christ has for you (John 13:34). It’s trusting in God and knowing that He will handle whatever comes your way (Romans 8:28) that makes you a Christian. It’s being able to forgive others and show them compassion because of the mercy and compassion that Christ has shown you (Ephesians 4:32).
So do you think you are a Christian or can you say for sure that you are a follower of Christ? I pray that you can say without a doubt that you are a Christian. Because then, and only then, will you be able to have the peace and joy that God extends to those who have accepted Him and trusted in Him with all their heart and all their soul and all their mind.
Have a great day!