Most " Christians " Really Aren't Christians!
Why are there so many religions that claim to be Christian? The answer lies in the way in which each religion interprets the Bible. Some adherents of American Christianity don't even know that they are usually reading a Bible translation, rather than the Bible, itself.
Some religious people are even ignorant of the fact that the Bible contains truth that originated with God, and has come down to us in 66 inspired writings, which we usually call the " books " of the Bible. So all sorts of things are being taught as Christianity, and much of it is not what Jesus Christ, the Messiah taught.
Those that claim the Bible as the source of their beliefs, what is called the mainline denominations, the Baptists, the Methodists, etc. frequently refer to those with different beliefs as cults.
Religions like the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Mormons frequently refer to the mainline denominations as false teachers.
The Roman Catholic church claims to be the original Christian church, and frequently refers to tradition as their source of authority, in spite of the fact that the Bible clearly identifies the original Christian church, as the church founded at Jerusalem by the apostles, and led by James, the half brother of Jesus. ( See Acts 12:17, Acts 15:13, and Acts 21:18. ) Church history records that for the first 20 years, James was the bishop of Jerusalem.
It seems logical that a religion that claims to be Christian would follow the teachings of the one, whom the western world calls Jesus Christ. YET, VIRTUALLY ALL OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED CHRISTIAN RELIGIONS BASE THEIR TEACHINGS, NOT ON THE TEACHINGS OF JESUS ( YESHUA ) BUT UPON OTHER ISOLATED VERSES TAKEN FROM THE BIBLE.
The gospel of John contains the only written record of the early teachings of Jesus on the earth. Matthew, Mark, and Luke contain nothing about the initial calling of the disciples, His first miracle at Cana in Galilee, His first stay in Capernaum, His first cleansing of the Temple, and most important of all, His first teaching on what is necessary to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. His first teaching was that, which is recorded, in John 3:1 - 21. This teaching was given, in the presence of, at least some of, His disciples to a religious leader named Nicodemus. Bible believing Christians have read this account dozens of times, but most have missed some key points.
The term " born again " is based upon a mistranslation of the Greek word, ανωθεν, which can rarely mean " again " but usually, at least 90% of the time, means " from above ".
When Jesus said that a man must be reborn ( see John 3:3 ) in order to see ( understand ) the Kingdom of God, Nicodemus thought that Jesus meant being physically born a second time. But Jesus quickly lets him know that He is talking about being born from above. ( John 3:4-5 ). He then goes on to contrast the natural birth, born of water, ( born of the flesh ) to the spiritual birth ( born of the Spirit ). Read this section carefully and you will see that being born of water has nothing to do with water baptism. For 9 months, the unborn child lives in a water environment in the mother's womb. Jesus wraps up the first part of this teaching by stating that " YOU MUST BE BORN FROM ABOVE ".
THOSE WHO DENY THIS TEACHING ARE DENYING THE FIRST ,AND MOST IMPORTANT, TEACHING OF JESUS. THEY ARE NOT REAL CHRISTIANS, AND HAVE NO HOPE OF ENTRANCE INTO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN!
The only thing recorded, that Jesus ever said a person MUST do, is to be BORN FROM ABOVE. He never said that a person MUST go to church, or that a person MUST be baptized, or that a person MUST pray, or MUST DO a lot of other of worthwhile things. Of course, these things are important, and are stated in other ways in scripture, but the FIRST AND MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT Jesus says we MUST do is to be BORN FROM ABOVE. When you think about it, doesn't it make sense that the birth MUST come before anything else?
There are many different English translations of the Bible. Those who teach that the Bible is infallible should add which Bible it is, that they think is infallible. Some of the translations are relatively good, some are not so good, while the New World Translation bible contains many, many errors, which were added deliberately to match their beliefs. But, even the JW interlinear translation of the New Testament, from the Greek, acknowledges the necessity to be born from above. Most of those who come to your door have never seen their own interlinear.
So, is accepting Jesus as your Savior, being born again from above? Of course not. Is inviting Jesus into your heart, being born again from above? No! Is being baptized by immersion in water, being born again from above? No! Baptism by water immersion is a picture of the death and burial of the old selfish life, and the arising to walk in the newness of the new God given life.
What about surrendering control of your life to Christ ( to the Messiah )? Now we're getting much closer! This approach gets us to a change in our thinking, which is called REPENTANCE. Even this is not the whole story. We are told in many places and in many ways that God looks at the heart, not the organ that pumps blood, but the inner person, what many call the human spirit.
Most will admit that Jesus is the Mediator of the New Covenant. To learn what the New Covenant is, we must go to the Old Covenant ( Old Testament ) especially to the books of Jeremiah and Ezekiel.
To learn about the New Covenant, you need to go to the latter writings of the Old Covenant ( the Old Testament) to Jeremiah 31 and 32, and to Ezekiel 11, 18, and 36. We find that the New Covenant is that God will do a creative work, taking out the old self serving heart, and implanting a new heart, or inner person, who will delight in serving Him. That is what the new birth, or being born again from above is all about. Jesus paved the way for this new birth, by dying on the cross for our sins. The new birth was not possible, until Jesus fulfilled His role as our Mediator.
So, how does one get this new birth from above? It involves repentance,- the surrendering of control of our goals and desires. A prayer, stating just that, is the beginning. God answers prayer, but He doesn't automatically jump through hoops when He hears something coming out of your mouth. It's when He hears a sincere plea coming from your heart.
How do you know when you have been born again from above? You know that when you see a change in yourself. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 gives us a good test. Are those things in verses 9 and 10 what you were, or what you still are? If they are what you are, you are not born again from above. If they are what you were, you have been born from above. You have been born of God! You are now His adopted child, and on your way to heaven to be with Him!
Don't be misled. Evangelists and priests and pastors can�t give you the new birth. They can help point you in the right direction, but only God can give you the BIRTH FROM ABOVE!
Our Sunday AM services are being held at the Mexico Beach Civic Center. In accordance with federal laws, we have permission to use this heated, and air conditioned, facility on Sunday mornings at 9:30 AM central time. We begin with a short time of greeting and fellowship, and then TJ leads us in worship. After the service we have holy communion, a time when people can request prayer, especially for healing, and sometimes, a pot luck luncheon.
The Mexico Beach Civic Center is located at 105 N. 31st Street. It is the white building with the dark green roof, which is just behind that new Mexico Beach restaurant, Mango Marley's. It is behind Parker Realty, and is on the northeast side of Rte 98. It is about 7/10 mile south of the Mexico Beach Welcome Center. For a map showing the location of the Mexico Beach Civic Center, click below the photo:
Mexico Beach Civic Center
