Saturday Song: The Bee Gees, "Another Cold and Windy Day"

Here's a song you may never have heard before. The Coca-Cola company asked The Bee Gees to record a commercial for them. But none of the Gibb brothers were keen on the idea. They decided to record this song they had handy and add the Coke jingle at the end. The result was perhaps the saddest commercial anybody has heard.

Listen to the song here:

Instead of using this song, Coke hired The Hillside Singers to teach the world to sing. This proves that it is true about those being convinced against their will are of the same opinion still.

We see this happen often with folks who are led to confess Christ without knowing the ramifications of what they're doing.

Jesus gave the example of a seed sower sprinkling seed on four different soil types. Our Lord explained the second type of ground, the one with bedrock under it, in Matthew 13:20 and 21 (BBE). "And that which went on the stones, this is he who, hearing the word, straight away takes it with joy; But having no root in himself, he goes on for a time; and when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, he quickly becomes full of doubts."

Christ also lost many disciples when he taught them that they must spiritually consume him and absorb him into their beings. We read of the crowd's reaction in John 6:66 (BBE). "Because of what he said, a number of the disciples went back and would no longer go with him."

How can it be then that some people seemed saved and then turn away from the Lord? We read the answer to that in 1 John 2:19 (BBE). "They went out from us but they were not of us; if they had been of us they would still be with us: but they went out from us so that it might be made clear that they were not of us."

The way to tell who is saved and who isn't is also given by Jesus in Matthew 7:16 (BBE). "By their fruits you will get knowledge of them. Do men get grapes from thorns or figs from thistles?"

Therefore, the only thing we can do is to wait and see what a person does. Will that one grow in Christ-likeness or quit?

If Christ doesn't return by Monday, I hope to post about the addictive nature of wrong doctrines and illegal drugs.

How Can We Tell If Somebody Is Saved?

In view of what I've written about devotion to our Master, how can we recognize the true Christians from the phoney's? Fortunately for us, the Bible gives us tests to determine true and lasting belief.

One test is seeing genuine change in a person's life. Zacchaeus is a good example. Luke 19:8 (BBE) says, "And Zacchaeus, waiting before him, said to the Lord, 'See, Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone wrongly, I give him back four times as much.'" Jesus said that salvation had come to Zacchaeus' house, showing that his desire was genuine.

Though Peter said the following to justify himself, real followers of Christ leave behind their worldly ways. Mark 10:28 (KJV) quotes this foot-in-mouth disciple as saying, "Then Peter began to say unto him, 'Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.'"

I love Jesus' reply in the next two verses. The Bible in Basic English reads, "Jesus said, 'Truly I say to you, There is no man who has given up house, or brothers, or sisters, or mother, or father, or children, or land, because of me and the good news, Who will not get a hundred times as much now in this time, houses, and brothers, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and land--though with great troubles; and, in the world to come, eternal life.'"

As a side note, Jesus made no secret that suffering would come to true believers in him. That too is another way to tell the real followers from the fakers. In John 6:67 and 68 (BBE), the crowds abandoned Jesus because of his difficult teachings of total commitment to him. "So Jesus said to the twelve, 'Have you a desire to go away?' Then Simon Peter gave this answer: 'Lord, to whom are we to go? you have the words of eternal life;'"

Another indicator of faithfulness is the resultant change in a person's actions. Look at what Jesus said in Matthew 7:16 (KJV). "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"

Endurance is another indicator of true conversion. Matthew 10:22 (KJV) tells us, "And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved."

Joy in adversity is also an indicator we can watch for. James 1:2 (KJV) reads, "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;"

I could write so much more on just this topic. Instead, I'll save other examples for my next book called You Think You're Going to Heaven? Far too many sincere people will end up in hell because they never gave their lives to the rule of Christ. May God use my writing to turn them from the gates of hell.

Next month, I'll deal with the question of repentance and why it's crucial for true salvation.

Saturday Song: Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, "Tell it All"

Those who hadn't lived through the late sixties missed a lot of thought-provoking music. I remember how this song convicted me when I heard it, though I had done none of the things mentioned in it. It's far too easy to excuse our bad behaviour while criticizing others of the same thing.

Listen to this meaningful song here.

The Apostle Paul summed up our proper attitude toward our faith in Romans 13:9 (KJV). "For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

It's easy to love nice people but what about the nasty ones? Christ extended love to even the hateful folks. Matthew 5:43-44 (KJV) says, "  Ye have heard that it hath been said, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.' But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."

Since we call Christ our Lord and king, his sayings are our orders. James 2:8 (KJV)  "If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:"

But our Lord doesn't leave us defenseless against those who might oppress us. Jesus told his disciples in John 14:16 (KJV), "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;"

Sadly, there are those calling themselves Christians but who don't obey Christ. Paul wrote of them in 2 Corinthians 11:13 (KJV) saying, "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ."

How wonderful that Jesus told us how to recognize false believers. Matthew 7:16 (KJV) reads, "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"

What a wonderful truth this is. The world is watching to see if we truly believe what we teach. May we all be found to be true disciples of Christ.

Saturday Song: Manfred Man, "I Can't Believe What You Say"

Have you ever known a person who says one thing but does another? I'm sure we've all met somebody like that or been like that at one time.

This is a song about a girl who claimed to love her boyfriend and that she'd marry him. By her actions, he could tell that she was lying.

Listen to this single here.

Fruit is often used as a metaphor in the Bible. It's an indication of results. Even in secular language, we say that somebody had a fruitful or fruitless search or endeavour.

Jesus said that we can tell what a person is truly like by how they behave. It's easy to boast but the proof is in the results. Matthew 7:16 (KJV) says, "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"

The Apostle Paul also showed that we can tell a person's character by their actions. After listing the fruits of wickedness, he wrote in Galatians 5:22 (KJV), "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,"

As he also wrote in Ephesians 5:9 (KJV), "(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)" In other words, righteous is as righteous does.

It's obvious as well when somebody's faking piety. God looks at people's hearts, that is, their characters. He doesn't judge by externals like nice clothing and lofty promises.

So, what do you think of this song and what I wrote. Please leave me a reply. It makes my day when people do that. I wish you a happy and productive weekend as well.

By the way, Monday's post will be about how statistics don't reveal how many Christians are real.

Saturday Song: Sweathog, 'Hallelujah'

Young Christians are fortunate to have so many God-honouring rock bands to listen to. Their styles range from soft rock to death metal. This is because people realized that music is merely a vehicle for a message. And since the Lord was praised with instruments and voices in the Psalms, there's no reason why rock music can't be employed for gospel purposes.

But things were so different in the early seventies when I was a teenager. Many Christian elders claimed that rock music was evil. They said it was the Devil's music and some claimed I'd be possessed by a demon if I listened to it.

I thank God that not everybody thought so. A few bands actually sang about Jesus, though some of them weren't born again believers. One song stands out in my mind as being a wonderful song which praised my Lord and Saviour. A band called Sweathog released a song called "Hallelujah" in 1972.

Hear this song here. Sorry about the commercial.

Though my church friends condemned me for listening to that "satanic" music, I cranked the volume whenever a god-honouring song came on. And though it was trendy to mention Jesus in songs in the early seventies, I still enjoyed those songs.

I felt sad when I found out later that Norman Greenbahm, Ocean, and The Doobie Brothers weren't devoted to Christ. Even so, I enjoyed their hits.

This also shows that people can profess to be saved but their lives show that they're lying. As Jesus said in Matthew 7:16 (KJV), "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"

So, what do you think? Were you around when these hits were brand new? Did you enjoy them? If you want to, please leave me a comment in the box below. And if not, have a wonderful weekend anyway.

Should We Celebrate Spiritual Birthdays?

John MacArthur spoke on Grace to You recently regarding the proofs of salvation. In one sermon, he asked the congregation to raise their hands if they could remember the exact time and date when they gave control of their lives over to Christ.

John pointed out that this isn't a guarantee that a person is saved. It merely tells people that you committed yourself at a certain stage in your life to the lordship of Jesus and that you follow him.

But what of those folks who don't remember the transition from believing about God and believing, a.k.a. trusting, in Christ? Are these people not Christians because they can't pinpoint their exact time of conversion?

Look at what Christ himself had to say about the matter. During his Sermon on the Mount, he said in Matthew 7:16 (KJV) "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?" Jesus spoke of those who seemed like believers in the Father outwardly but were unchanged inwardly.

As Christ concluded in Matthew 7:20, (KJV) "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." This means that their lifestyles will reveal which sort of persons they are. If people have a genuine desire to obey God and crave more knowledge about him from the Bible, that indicates their salvation is genuine. If, on the other hand, those people live the same way they did before, it's certain that their profession of faith wasn't from the heart.

So it is today that our lives reveal if we really were changed by our commitment to Christ or not.

Yesterday was the forty-sixth anniversary of my surrender to the Lord. I can see by what I wrote in my How I Was Razed memoir that I truly was changed. Even in the face of taunting from schoolmates regarding my love for Jesus, I still stayed true to him. Check out my wonderful testimony at Amazon.