A man went to his doctor for a checkup. The doctor did a very thorough examination and then asked the nurse to send the man’s wife into his office. The doctor said, “I have some very bad news, your husband is very sick. The good news is that there is hope. If you will take him home, cook him three hot meals each day and take care of all his needs, he should be recovered in about one to two months!”
The lady left the doctor’s office and went out and got into the car with her husband. The man asked, “Well, what did the doctor say?” The wife looked at her husband and said, “You’re gonna die!”
-Some people go to the doctors after they become sick, some people go to the doctors to keep from getting sick, and some people go to the doctors to get even healthier than they are.
-Anyone who goes to the doctor knows they run a lot of tests to determine the condition you’re in. For example, the doctor gives you a pregnancy test to see if you’re pregnant, or if you’re sick the doctor runs a blood test to see if you’re white blood cells are elevated to see if you have an infection.
Thought: A test will reveal what you know or what type of condition you are in. It can also reveal what something truly is.
Example. Take for example gold or iron pyrite or what is called fool’s gold. To the ordinary person these minerals look the same. I’m sure an untold number of treasure seekers have been disappointed because they thought they had something of value only to find out it was worthless as the tests were run.
Question: Do you know what would be worse than that? To think you are a Christian going to heaven only to arrive on judgment day and not make it!
: You might think that could never happen. Jesus tells us it will happen. He gives us a picture of judgment day in Matthew 7: Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, many will say to me on that day Lord did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you, away from me, you evil doers!
: Can you imagine thinking you’re a friend of God only to find out you are his enemy? I personally think this is one of the devil’s greatest joys.
Question: Well is there some sort of test, some sort of standard that I could hold against my life to determine how I am doing or to answer the question, am I truly a Christian, does God view me as a follower of his?
Today we will look at what the Bible says we need to do.
TITLE: The Great Test
TEXT: 2 Corinthians 13:5
I. We are to examine ourselves. “The unexamined life is not worth living.” – Socrates
A. Today it is easy to say we love God or call ourselves Christian. But the real question is: Does God consider me his own? Does God call me a Christian?
1. Throughout the Bible you see people who think they are ok with God only to find out later they weren’t.
-The children of Israel in the Old Testament, they went to church (temple), paid their tithe, worshipped their God but they worshipped God the way they wanted. They thought they were in good standing with God only the prophets would declare judgment was coming. The Lord was so angry that he wiped out the religious system that was supposed to teach people about God. He destroyed their church.
2. In the New Testament in the book of James.
-James is the pastor in Jerusalem and he is struggling with people who call themselves Christians but they aren’t. They’re running around claiming they believe in God but they have no actions (fruit).
-James responds, good, even the demons believe that – and shudder. What James is saying the demons believe more than you do but yet they’re still in Hell.
Point: Over and over again throughout scripture you see people think they’re ok with God but they’re not. This is why Paul tells us to examine ourselves.
B. The Greek word “examine” literally means to objectively scrutinize, to test yourself, to put on trial.
1. Who is on trial – you are, not your friends or acquaintances but you.
-It’s easy to put others on trial but we don’t like to put ourselves on trial to see if we make the grade.
2. The text says we are to examine if we are in the faith. In other words does Christ really live in you, are you truly a new creation or are you a counterfeit?
-I can’t tell you how many people I have encountered who thought they were Christians who went to church only to find out later they were not really true believers.
-As they’ve had that born again experience Jesus describes they look back and see that they really did not believe.
C. Quick test. See how you do on these 5 questions.
1. Do you have the witness of the Holy Spirit in your heart?
-Romans 8:9, 16, “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”
Question: Does the Spirit of God communicate with your spirit?
a. My own experience, it was 1983 sitting in a church service, Pastor gave an altar call I went forward confessed my sins asked the Lord to come into my life. I’ll never forget this experience was like an awakening that everything is ok, now and then I sensed God wanted me to go into the ministry to tell others about the gospel.
2. Do you love your fellow man? 1 John 3:14, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.”
a. I am amazed how many so called Christians I meet who can not stand the Jews, blacks, the Mexicans, or whatever race.
-If I truly am a child of God I will love all nationalities. Why – because God loves them all and he lives in me. Jesus just didn’t love the Jews or the whites he loved all humans.
b. When you think about it, Jesus tells us to love even those who we would consider our enemy. (Matthew 5)
Point: We are to love everyone no exceptions, that is if you are a Christian.
-Jesus tells they will know that you are my disciples by your love.
-Paul in his famous love chapter (1 Corinthians 13) says if you have not love you are nothing.
3. Do we obey his commandment? I John 2:3, “We know we have come to know him if we obey his commandments.”
a. If we claim to be a Christian, we will obey his word. Far too many folks think they’re covered by the love of God.
-Their belief is like this gentleman I saw on the news this week. The soul force (gay and lesbian rights) 33 people 51 day journey 18 stop tour to colleges to protest against them.
-The spokesman claims to be a Christian who is actively living a homosexual lifestyle. “God loves homosexual, lesbian, bisexual, transgender lifestyle as they are without change.”
b. I would say yes God loves you but he loves you enough not to leave you the way you are.
-When we become a follower of Christ, I am transformed into a new creation. I follow the Lord’s values not my own.
4. Do you practice sin? 1 John 3:9, “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.”
a. The idea is - do you continually practice sin with no regard.
-It’s the idea God accepts me the way I am and I don’t have to change (I’ll do as my desires tell me).
b. The truth is, if I’m a Christian I follow the word of God because he lives in me. I don’t practice sin.
Example. When I played baseball as a pitcher I practiced hours a day because that was who I was. I lived, ate, drank baseball.
-As a Christian I don’t practice sin because if I do I’m really not a Christian.
5. We must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:5c-6, “This is how we know we are in him: whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”
a. This is a huge task. But the truth is, if God truly lives in me I will do what Jesus did.
-My desires should be to do the will of the Father in heaven. I should love the unlovable. I should look to advance the kingdom of God. I should turn the other cheek. I should go the extra mile. I should have a desire to share the good news of the gospel.
b. If I don’t maybe I don’t have God living in me.
Summary: This is just 5 questions, there are more but for time’s sake—
Conclusion:
Paul says to test yourselves, to see if you’re faith is genuine.
-The Greek word used here is stronger than to examine. It means the trying of metals by heat. The idea – in the midst of a trial look and see if you have the qualities of God or the qualities of the world.
Simply put: When the pressure is on do you act like the world or Christ?
Thought: Far too often you hear Christian respond, oh God knows my heart, justifying their sinful behavior.
-I’d respond, no you don’t know your heart.
Example. Apple tree will produce apples. You don’t have to take a drill and drill into the core of the tree to see what type of tree it is. You just look at the fruit it produces, likewise to know Christians you just have to look at their action (fruit they produce).
