True Eternal Life

...and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. – 1Jn 5:20

There are millions of Christians today who do not know the first thing about Christ. They smile, they go to church on Sundays and they do nice things; and will insist that they are Christians.

However, Christianity is not about piety or niceness; Christianity is about having a whole new nature from the inside, through the working of the Holy Spirit. It’s about having a relationship with Christ.

Incidentally, even among true Christians – people who have come to trust in Christ – Christianity is something else. They came to Christ not because they want to be with Him, but because they were told it’s the way not to go to Hell. Christ is thus a means to an end, not the end in itself.

They are in Christianity not for Christ but because of a Crisis, present or future. They hope to attain Eternal Life in the by and by when they die or at the Rapture – missing the whole point completely. Because Eternal life is not avoiding Hell Fire, or even making Heaven.

In His High Priestly prayer just before His crucifixion, our Lord said to the Father: “The hour has come; glorify your Son, that your Son also may glorify you: As you have given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as you have given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent;” (Joh 17:1-3).

That, is what Eternal Life is: knowing God, and knowing His Son Jesus Christ.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

The Best Example of a Christian

Let your light so shine before men… – Mat 5:16

Who is the best example of a Christian? A ready answer we all have is Jesus. “Yes, Jesus”, many will aver, “Is the best example of a Christian”.

But, in the strictest sense of the word, Jesus is not a Christian! To call Jesus a “Christian” would be as logically absurd as calling Jacob an Israelite. An “Israelite” is a descendant of Israel; therefore Jacob (Israel) cannot be a descendant of himself. In the same vein, since a “Christian” is a “follower of Christ”, Jesus cannot therefore be a follower of Himself.

Who then is the next best person to exemplify, typify and epitomize Christ?

The Apostle Paul would have been a perfect choice considering that he wrote most of the manual of Christianity. But he definitely has nothing on the Apostle John. John isn’t called “the Beloved” for nothing you know. Come to think of it, he’s actually the first human being to be saved after the Cross! That ought to count for something.

And speaking of accounting for something, we can’t ignore St. James, the blood brother of our Lord. Coming from the same womb that nurtured and nursed the Saviour surely cannot be without some significance; (and being a leader of the Early Church and author of a Bible book doesn’t hurt either).

And where does this all place Peter?

Clearly, finding the best example of a Christian is going futile...

But that’s because you’re looking at the question from a wrong perspective. The shocking truth of the matter is that you – yes, YOU – are the best example of a Christian!

Paul, John and James are nothing but intangible characters to your neighbours, co-workers and people around you. If one were to ask them how a Christian behaves, they’ll think of you; if they were asked if they had ever seen a Christian, they’ll respond in the affirmative, because they have seen YOU. In a way that may be uncomfortable to you, the sum total of your personality is the sum total of what people conclude as “Christian”.

I know you're thinking right now, "this can't be true." But that is EXACTLY what every other “Christian” reading this devotional is THINKING as well!

So, if all of us are thinking the same thing, who then is the “Christian” the people of the world are talking about?

This of course is not trying to make you responsible for the collective reputation of all of Christians today. This is only to remind us that how we live right now goes a long way to shape the understanding of people of what “Christian” really means.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

CNN’s Definition of ‘Christian’

“I don’t care that the Bible says a whale swallowed Jonah; as matter of fact, I’d still believe it if it had said it was Jonah that swallowed the whale!” – Anon.

Several years ago, I was watching a Cable News Network report about some new archaeological discovery that would radically change the way we understood the life of the man Jesus and the early apostles! (There usually is always a “radical new” discovery that would presumably shake Christianity to its very foundations being presented every year).  

During the presentation, the CNN reporter defined Christians  as “those who believe in the resurrection of Jesus”

That definition struck me as odd because most secular definitions of “Christian” are something like “a person professing belief in Jesus as the Christ or in the religion based on the teachings of Jesus”. However, this particular definition, coming from a patently secular source, was most interesting; because it would wipe out a significant percentage of “Christians” from the Map if it was applied!

There’re clergymen today – supposedly spiritual leaders of whole masses of people – who openly declare that they do not believe Jesus actually rose from the dead. They usually go on to declare that belief in a resurrection is not that essential to one’s faith as a Christian. These well-versed doctors of divinity probably skipped “Christianity 101” in theology school.

The truth is, it’s not as much the belief in the Resurrection that makes us “Christian” as much as it is the agreement with the inspired Bible authors.

1Co 15:4 says, “And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES”.

I feel that is the spirit of that CNN definition: a “Christian” is one who believes whatever the scriptures say (and not what “professors”, “scholars”, “experts” or even culture says).

Does this updated definition still enclose you; or does it exclude you out?

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Hope You’re Not a Christian

Let your light so shine before men… – Mat 5:16

As at today, Christianity is ranked as the world’s largest religion. According to the Pew Research Center, an incredible one in three persons on this planet is a “Christian”. Indeed, over twenty countries currently boast of comprising of over 90% “Christians”, (more than ten of them virtually 100%).

However, given the state of affairs in the world, one may want to take such statistics with a pinch of salt. Clearly, you’d need a rather loose definition of “Christian” to be able to get such sweeping percentages.

These loose definitions is actually the part of the problem Christianity faces; and is actually a hindrance to proper evangelism. For example, some insist that since they are already Christian and are good standing members of their local church, it is wrong to still attempt to preach to them. In their opinion, we should take the Gospel message to the Muslims, the pagans and the so-called “un-churched” people.

In an even more bizarre twist, being a “Christian” can even be a hindrance to witnessing. Because, according to some atheists, a “Christian” is simply someone who is in a relationship with an imaginary person and thinks that they are better than others.

Unfortunately, many of us are guilty of the latter part of that definition. As pointed out in an earlier devotional, a Believer who looks down on a sinner is evidently suffering from serious amnesia.

We were all saved by God’s Grace.

Scripture is unambiguous in attributing sin to ALL. It is the Blood of Jesus that washes us and makes us righteous before God, and not any special behaviour of ours.

It falls to us, therefore, to express and transmit that said Grace to all in our immediate environment.

Thank God we are Christians; but it is now our responsibility to the unsaved people around us to distinguish ourselves from the BILLIONS that share that same title by showing them through our lifestyle and conduct what the real Christianity is all about.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Dignity in Battle

“Far above all principality, and power…” – Eph 1:21

Forces of darkness are realities every Christian must come to grips with (Eph 6:12). Battling against Demons and witchcraft powers is not an exercise left for ignorant African Churches who are aren’t yet clean cut away from the primitive, pagan practices of their ancient cultures.

Demons are real. They attack, oppress and even possess people. Our Lord confronted them, the Apostles confronted them, and it’ll only be naïve of us to say we do not believe in demonic attacks.

Having said this however, a lot of what passes off as spiritual battle today leaves a lot to be desired. I find it unfortunate that many of our so-called “Deliverance ministries” deliberately downplay the implications of the Cross in the exercise of their ministry.

The Believer’s battle against the Devil is not a battle between equal or even near-equal adversaries. Satan has no power, authority or legitimacy to operate in your affairs. At the Cross of Calvary, our Lord stripped him and his degenerate hosts of all their powers (Col 2:15). Furthermore, not only were they rendered impotent, we were immeasurably empowered and elevated when we accepted Jesus into our lives (Eph 1:22,23; 2:6).

The Devil himself cannot stand where a day-old believer stands! Yet we see ministers making too much of a big deal that mere demons obey their commands. An army general would not seek for applause if a simple corporal obeys his command, now would he? Yet many Believers act like super Christians because they specialise in “deliverance”.

And to make the issues worse, we’re no longer content with demons obeying our commands; now we allow them to entertain us with ridiculous theatrical and exaggerated behaviour: foaming, braying and threatening NOT to go ostensibly because the host person is guilty of something.

Beloved, how many of the persons our Lord cast demons out of during His earthly ministry was Born Again first? How many of them were guiltless of the proverbial breaking of the hedge? did that stop the demons from obeying Jesus’ commands?

When we look at our Lord’s and the Apostles’ ministries, we’ll observe they had little regard or patience for demonic manifestations; indeed in several passages scriptures expressly states that our Lord “suffered not the devils to speak”! (Mk 1:25,34; 3:12; Lk 4:41; see also Act 16:16-18).

Why? Firstly because demons love ATTENTION and Jesus was not about to give them free airtime. Secondly, it would be the highest form of indignity for the commander of Heaven’s armies to be engaged in petty banters with an infinitely inferior Devil.

Spiritual battles are real; but let us show some self-respect and dignity in our fight. The Devil is not your mate, don’t make him feel he is.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN