Sermons
How To Know If You're A Christian
HOW TO KNOW IF YOU'RE A CHRISTIAN
Discussion Led By Terry Siverd
Cortland Church of Christ / August 05, 2018
Discovering one's roots continues to be a subject of great interest for lots of people.
For years I worked from the assumption that my ancestral DNA was a combination of English (Enfinger) and
German (Siverd). I was well into adulthood before I realized that my Grandpa Siverd was born out of
wedlock and bore the last name of his mother. His natural father was a Patterson (which is Scottish).
What I want us to contemplate this morning is our spiritual roots.
More specifically, I want us to seek to answer the question, “How are we related to Jesus Christ?”
One of the greatest privileges and honors anyone can have is to wear the name of Christ.
HOW DOES ONE KNOW IF HE OR SHE IS A CHRISTIAN?
DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE
For many of us we can prove our christian status with a document called a “baptismal certificate”.
While our quest to find salvation may have begun well before our actual baptism, we recognize from Scripture
that one's baptism into Christ is a profound expression of one's allegiance and obedience to Christ.
Our journey in faith should begin with two things: soul searching and the searching the Scriptures.
Our growing trust in Jesus gives birth to the repentance of our sins and a confession of our faith in Christ.
As our faith grows even more we experience what Paul calls “the obedience of faith” (Rom.1:5 & 16:19).
Jesus told His followers to, Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit... (Mt.28:19).
Jesus said we become disciples by being baptized.
Therefore, since we have been baptized into Christ we are a disciple of Jesus.
Exhibit A – My Father's baptismal certificate
TEXTUAL EVIDENCE FROM THE SCRIPTURES
The Bible is clear about the connection between baptism and the beginning of a new life.
Rom.6:3-4 reads as follows: Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have
been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with him through baptism into death, in order
that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Gal.3:26-27 states, For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
For all of you who were baptized into Christ have have clothed yourselves with Christ.
Thus far, we have two pieces of evidence.
One is the voice of Scripture. It is a very strong and reliable piece of evidence.
Our baptism into Christ equates with our becoming a disciple - - a Christ-one.
The second piece of evidence is nice to have but not truly necessary.
Some may not have a certificate of baptism, but your baptism is etched clearly in your mind.
Even if you have no documentary evidence of your baptism, you can rest assured that your
name is safely recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life (Philp.4:3 and Rev.21:27). God sees all and knows all.
Page One
Yet, we all know of some who have been baptized into Christ who have fallen away from Christ.
Even though they might possess a baptismal certificate and a ready recollection of their own baptism,
they no longer conscientiously walk with Jesus. These are ones who have fallen from grace.
This “fallen” predicament may not have come about as a result of a verbalized declaration, but nonetheless - -
their actions speak louder than words. Somewhere along life's journey their daily walk with Jesus has been derailed.
They no longer assemble for worship; They no longer gather with others to pray together and sing praises to God;
They have ceased to commune in The Lord's Supper; They no longer lay aside their monetary first-fruits to the Lord.
To speak plainly without meaning to be offensive, they are AWOL - - away without leave.
I can't find a single passage in all of the Bible that gives a person God's permission to absent oneself from The Body.
But I want to dig deeper this morning, because I fear that we sometimes just go through the motions.
There are many in the religious world who are just “playing Christianity”, perhaps some in our church family
So how does one really know if you're a Christian?
PROOF FROM CHANGE
We are charged in Scripture to keep on growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ (2Pet.3:18).
How are you doing in this area?
Are you living a double life - - going to church on Sundays, but acting like the Devil Monday thru Saturday?
Jesus told His disciples (Mt.7:16) - - you will know them (true followers) by their fruits
The apostle Paul enumerates some specific fruit that we must bear (Gal.5:22-23) - - the fruit of the Spirit is
LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS & SELF-CONTROL.
The apostle Peter provides a similar list of Christian virtues (2Pet.1:5-7), and then he adds in vs.8 - -
If these qualities are your and are increasing, they render you neither useless
nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Some of us are not growing. A few may even be regressing rather than progressing in their faith.
You may have been baptized and you may also have a certificate to prove it, but the absence of fruit belies your claim.
How can you know that you are a true Christian? Look at the fruit you bear.
THE SMELL TEST
I know that this sounds crude, but bear with me.
In 2Cor.2:15 Paul speaks of the aroma of Christ.
We sing a song, Jesus, Rose Of Sharon, bloom within my heart...
Do you smell sweet to others? Is there a Christ-like fragrance about you that others can't miss?
Sin is odious to God. That same foul odor (odious) is often clearly detected by others as well.
In delivering God's words, Isaiah the prophet employed a oratorical tendency that we might call “shocked and awe”.
All of us have become like one who is unclean, all of our (self) righteous deeds are like a filthy garment (Isa.64:6).
In reading of the horrors of the Civil War (any war, for that matter), writers often describe the unenviable life
of field surgeons who intently labored under the horrible stench of piles of bloody body parts discarded in heaps.
When we choose to deliberately sin, in defiance of the explicit call of God to live holy lives, we can point
to our baptism all we want, but it the eyes of The Almighty God we have failed the smell test quite miserably.
To state our condition in the briefest way, “We Stink!”
Two more brief, but important points, and then we will close with a prayer.
Page Two
THE DOPPELGANGER EFFECT
For all practical purposes a “doppelganger” is a LOOKALIKE.
You can read about this in my essay in today's FamilyMatters.
This, too, is a very easy test to apply to ourselves - - How much do we look like Jesus?
Our imitation of Christ must not be an imitation, but must be authentic to the core.
The apostle John pulls no punches in addressing this important matter (1Jn.2:6) - -
The one who says he abides in Him ought Himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.
Peter writes similar words (1Pet.2:21): Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example to follow in His steps.
In this citation from Peter the context speaks of following Jesus when its really, really difficult.
When reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats,
but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously (1Pet.2:23).
THE CAPSTONE OF LOVE
1Pet.4:8 / Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.
Here Peter echoes the very words of Jesus, who said (Jn.13:35) - -
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
Song: They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
we will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
And together we'll spread the news that God is in our land,
And they'll know we are Christians, by our love, by our love,
And they'll know we are Christians by our love.
