Cool To Be A Christian

     It is so that there are some misperceptions out there that have perhaps dissuaded some from converting to Christianity. There might be some who believe that Christianity is predicated upon many rules and regulations, and that it is a life of restriction.
     There might be some who believe that in order to be a Christian that they have to give up having fun in life. There might be some who are afraid to admit that they are a Christian because of what people might say.
     But to the contrary, I say that it’s cool to be a Christian. Psalm 34:8 says “O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him.” The Lord wants you to experience for yourself how good He is. The Word says “blessed is the man that trusteth in Him.”
     Many people believe that Christianity is a life of restriction, but the Word says in 2 Corinthians 3:17 “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” In Christianity, you have “liberty” or freedom. You have freedom from sin.
     Many people are discouraged with Christianity because they believe that you have to earn your way to heaven through doing good works. But the Word says in Ephesians 2 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
     Salvation is a gift from God. It is not something that can be earned through doing good works. If a person could be saved by doing good works, they could boast, trying to tell people that they are better than them because they did good works that other people didn’t do. God made it easy. You are saved by grace. Grace is giving you something that you didn’t earn. You cannot earn salvation, it is a gift from God. Romans 10:9 says “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Salvation is not based on doing good works and your own self-righteousness.
     Many people believe that you have to earn righteousness by doing good works. Many believe that in order to be righteous (in right-standing with God) that they have to do a lot of good works through their own self-efforts. But the Word says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
      It is not your righteousness that keeps you saved, but it is Christ’s righteousness that keeps you saved. The Word is saying that God “made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” In other words, Christ knew no sin, and when Christ died on the cross, He was made to be sin for you, or in other words, He took your sin and gave you His righteousness.
     So when God looks at you, He doesn’t look at your righteousness, He sees Christ’s righteousness. Jude 1:24 says “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,” Many believe that you have to be perfect in your actions to be a Christian, but the Word is saying that God is able to keep you falling, and that He is going to present you as “faultless”.  Romans 5:17 tells you that righteousness is a gift.
     Notice in 2 Corinthians 5:21 that the Word says “that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” It didn’t say that a person earned righteousness through doing good works. It is saying that you might be “made” the righteousness of God in Him. Christ gave you His righteousness.
     Many people believe that as a Christian that you have to be unauthoritative and just be a doormat. You want to be humble and demonstrate the love of God, but Jesus also said in Luke 10:19 “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” You are not a doormat, you have power over the enemy that tries to come against you.
     Many people believe that as a Christian the poorer you are, the more holy and spiritual you are. But poverty is not of God. Psalm 35:27 says “…Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.” The Lord wants you to be prosperous.
     1 Corinthians 15:49 says “And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.” Many people believe that you have to just accept the struggles in life and just try to make it through the best you can. But the Word is saying that you “shall also bear the image of the heavenly.” You do not have to accept the struggles of life and just try to make it through. You are supposed to “bear the image of the heavenly”. You don’t have to wait until you get to heaven to experience heaven in the earth. You can infuse heaven into your life now!!!!!
     Hosea 6:2 says “After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.” Many people get discouraged in life because of the perspective that they are looking from. But God has raised you up to “live in His sight”, or in other words, He wants you to see things as He sees them, from the heavenly perspective.
     Many people get discouraged because they don’t know their future. But the Word says in 1 Corinthians 13:12 “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” God wants you to “know even as also you are known”, or in other words, God wants you to know for yourself what He already knows about you. There are many things that God wants to reveal to you.
     Many people are fearful and intimidated by the enemy. But why be afraid of someone who is in reality afraid of YOU?????  In Luke 10:20, Jesus was was saying “that the spirits are subject unto you…” Again in Luke 10:19, Jesus said that He gave you power over all of power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. The enemy is afraid of YOU! Why acquiesce (give in) to what you have authority over?
    Proverbs 18:21 says “Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” Either you can speak death, or you can speak life. Psalm 103:20 says “Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.” The angels “hearken” or “respond to, pay attention to” you when you give God’s Word a voice. The angels are there to help you. They do God’s commandments and they “excel in strength”. They are strong.
     Again, the Word says in Psalm 34:8 “O taste and see that the Lord is good…” Please take the opportunity for the Lord to demonstrate to you just how good He is.