Impact

This past weekend I was at a Christian event and left very disappointed.  I came expecting to be challenged in my walk with Christ, but all I got was a bunch of christianized self-help principles.  Even though the speaker was a Southern Baptist, I wondered if he really understood what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. 

The speaker challenged men to be mighty men of valor and to fight for what is right so we can change America.  He told us how we should be like Hezekiah, Sampson, John the Baptist, and Paul.  The problem is he never challenged us to be like Jesus Christ.  This is my concern, have we traded the truth of Jesus Christ in for a pop culture inspired christianity? 

So as I sat there God reminded me of a couple of truths that I want to share.  First is our salvation is based on the mercy of God as revealed and fulfilled through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross and resurrection from the dead.  If I want to experience the mercy of God then I must accept the person of Jesus Christ as Lord and accept His work on the cross as the foundation for salvation.  Here is the truth I think most miss, I must also accept the fact that Jesus Christ is alive and surrender my life to His control.  I am a Christian because I believe that Jesus Christ is God, that His death and resurrection provided salvation, but even more I am a Christian because I know Jesus Christ lives and I want Him to impact my life today.  A Christian is someone who is impacted by Jesus Christ living in their life.   

This means that as a Chistian I must ask everyday, “How will Christ impact my life today?”  It means that I surrender to His control so that He can impact any area of my life.  Finally, it means you desire to be impacted by Jesus Christ in your daily life.  

 I left that Christian event convinced that people need to experience the impact of Jesus Christ and this reality is the only hope for America.