Truly, Are You A Godly Christian? Why Your “Christian” Faith May Be a Lie.
Consider The Warning You Can’t Ignore! Be A Godly Christian
Uncover the terrifying truth if you are truly a Godly Christian. Jesus demanded obedience to the Commandments and a transformed life. Stop calling Him ‘Lord’ if you don’t obey! This powerful guide exposes the false faith of millions. Time now to contemplate – Are You Truly a Godly Christian?
Are You A Godly Christian? This question demands an answer, not a comfortable assumption. Many people around the globe call themselves “Christian” yet live lives that stand in direct opposition to the teachings of Jesus Christ. If you profess to follow the founder of the Christian religion, you must be willing to face the terrifying truth: What exactly is a real Christian? What is true Christianity? It is time to clear away the uncertainty that has plagued modern religion. Jesus clearly explained what a real Christian is like. He left no doubt about the standards for those who call themselves a Godly Christian.
As we consider what he said, we need to ask ourselves why the qualities he described seem to be so hard to find even in Christian-professing nations. The sad reality is that the vast majority of people—even those sitting in church every week—have been tragically deceived about the requirements for eternal life. The difference between a religious believer and a Godly Christian is stark, and your eternal fate depends on grasping it now.
1. The Obedience Crisis: Why Professing Christians Deny Christ’s Authority
The modern religious landscape has conveniently ignored the foundational demands Jesus Christ made on his followers. Truly, Are You A Godly Christian if you reject the commands of your supposed Master? The evidence of a false faith is tragically visible in our history and daily lives.
Take, for instance, one of Jesus’ teachings in what is often referred to as the Sermon on the Mount, recorded in Luke 6. Surely nothing is more central to Christianity than this portion of the Scriptures. But how often do you see Jesus’ statement in verse 27 put into practice? It says: “Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you” (Luke 6:27).
The Failed Test: Are You A Godly Christian When Facing Your Enemies?
Some of the most bloody battles in history have been waged by Christian nations. “No nations are more warlike than those which profess Christianity,” observed Pierre Bayle, a 17th-century French philosopher of Christian Europe. He could have written the same thing of the 20th century! Profoundly shocking is the fact that professing Christians have risen up in war against each other.
(And, of course, so have other religions.) They have blown each other to pieces on the battlefield, all the while praying to the same God for victory. The English poet Shelley commented: “The same means that have supported every other popular belief have supported Christianity. War, imprisonment, assassination and falsehood; deeds of unexampled and incomparable atrocity have made it what it is.”
How can this be? The one who is supposed to be the founder of the Christian religion—the one whom professing Christians call “Lord”—taught his followers, “Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you” (Luke 6:27-28).
Consequently, this instruction of Jesus is hardly followed by Christian nations in times of war. But then how often is it followed by professing Christians in times of peace? Where is it put into practice in neighborhoods, in social circles, among the people you know on a day-to-day basis?
A Good Leader A Good Follower
Moreover, Jesus also said: “And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.” (Luke 6:31). That has been called the Golden Rule. It is thought of as a good slogan to hang on the wall, or to dangle from a charm bracelet, or to teach little children. But live by it? That is something else! Jesus, however, did not mean it as a suggestion. He didn’t give it as a thought for the day. For Jesus it was a living law that he commanded his followers—Christians—to apply in their daily lives.
He continued, providing a standard of forgiveness and mercy that few ever meet: “Therefore be merciful,” continued Jesus, “as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. ” (Luke 6:36-37). Think now: How often does merciful kindness truly govern what is taking place?
Meditate On Giving, Mercy and Overcoming
Think of the competition and greed in business—the cheating, the gouging. A primary emphasis in today’s world is on getting the advantage over others, even if it is necessary to hurt them a little to do it. And today’s western world is a Christian world—or is it?
The political sphere resounds with name calling, propaganda and condemnation. Gossip and backbiting are ever popular themes in private conversation. Movies, novels and television programs—including children’s shows—dwell on the idea of getting even or seeking revenge. All of this in Christian lands! Where is forgiveness practiced as a way of life? Instances of genuine mercy from one human being toward another in the media are remarkable and memorable because they are so uncommon.
Jesus’ teaching covered the great themes of life, and it reaches down even to simple lacks of consideration such as being responsible for a blaring radio, a loud motorcycle, a barking dog, litter, damage to public facilities, graffiti—factors that make life unpleasant for others. Yet so commonplace are infringements of the principles Jesus gave, it makes one wonder: Where are the Christians?
Why Calling Him “Lord” Is a Dangerous Lie
The Bible describes a society when its religion is a mere form, not having the power to change people’s lives. It reads like the front page of many newspapers. “For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding the form of religion but denying the power of it” (II Tim. 3:2-5, RSV). It all sounds so familiar!
As Jesus was speaking, he knew there were some listening to him, who would call him their “Lord,” who would profess to belong to him, but who would not put his teachings into practice. These are the words of Jesus to them: “Why do you call me, Lord, Lord, and do not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). A “lord” is a ruler, a master, one who is to be obeyed.
In plain words, Jesus said: “If you don’t obey me, don’t call me ‘Lord’!” Too often people talk about “the Lord,” or “the Lord Jesus,” when they don’t have the faintest idea what Jesus said his followers are to do. Jesus exclaimed: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” (Matt. 7:21).
Following Christ The Sure Way
That, in simple terms, is one facet of what makes a person a Christian. He or she does what Jesus said to do. He or she follows Christ. The ones who are allowed to become members of his spiritual family are “these which hear the word of God, and do it” (Luke 8:21). Jesus went on to state: “ You are My friends if you do whatever I command you” (John 15:14).
Again, He emphasized: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Clearly, only a person who does what Jesus said to do—who puts into practice the great principles he taught—has the right to call him “Lord.” Truly, Are You A Godly Christian if your actions contradict your words?
2. The Defining Requirement: A Godly Christian Keeps the Commandments
True Christianity involves faith and belief—but it is not merely a set of beliefs. It is not casually joining a church or being born into the Christian religion. This is not something to be practiced one day a week or at odd intervals. It is a way of life.
Early Christians referred to original Christianity as “the way of the Lord” (Acts 18:25) and “the way of God” (Acts 18:26). Indeed, Christ declared: “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). True Christianity is the Christian way of life. No one can follow what Jesus taught without experiencing a marked change in life and life-style.
What Christ Taught Rich Young Man Teaches To Become A Godly Christian
Notice how this fact is illustrated in the following example, which is a fearful warning to those who believe “works” are not required. A rich young man once came to Jesus and asked: “ Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” (Matt. 19:16).
This man knew following Christ involved doing something. He asked: “What good thing shall I do?” Many today would have answered: “Why, there is nothing to do. Just accept Christ and it’s all done for you.” How different was Jesus’ answer! “So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” (Matt. 19:17).
There was no doubt that Jesus was talking about the Ten Commandments. When the young man asked, “Which ones?“, Jesus named specifically the commandments having to do with showing love toward one’s neighbor. To this, the rich man responded that he had been keeping those commandments since childhood (Matt. 19:20). The young man, of course, had been reared a Jew.
But he wanted to become a follower of Christ. Jesus required in his followers true depth of conversion. He knew the young man had a problem—keeping in their true intent those commandments regarding love toward, giving to, one’s neighbor.
God Gives a Chance To The Wealthy
So Jesus bluntly told him that his wealth was an obstacle to him, that he needed to get rid of it. Only after that could he become a follower of Jesus—a Christian. Of course, just because one is wealthy does not prevent a person from being a Christian.
Abraham was righteous before God and a very wealthy man. But human nature and one’s attitude tend toward concentration on self and one’s wealth instead of on others’ needs. Sadly, the young man departed, unwilling to change his attitude toward life.
Most people, it is true, do not have excess wealth as their major problem. The fact remains, though, that keeping the Ten Commandments is essential if you are to develop character and inherit God’s free gift of eternal life. So said Jesus! Therefore, try something.
Read them off one by one (they are found in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5), learn how to apply them (as explained by Jesus—Matt. 5:21-32) and see if there is not room for improvement in your life. In this materialistic, industrial age, you may be especially surprised at what the fourth and tenth commandments have to say.
I John 2:3-4: The Bible’s Test for “Knowing” God
Being a real Christian involves developing the mind and attitude of Christ, thinking the way he did every moment of every day. Every activity, every social situation, every endeavor, every goal and plan—Christ has revealed principles that bear on every facet of life. We are even to let our innermost thoughts be ruled by the Lord Jesus, “bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ,” as the apostle Paul expressed it (II Cor. 10:5). To some that sounds extreme. But it’s in the Christian Bible. The apostle Paul was only repeating what the Bible says time and again: To do God’s will is to follow his way of life totally.
Furthermore, the Apostle John, whom Jesus loved most, wrote about the deepest meanings of Christianity and about how we are able to have fellowship with God and with Christ. He revealed how one can know who is and who is not a real Christian: “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. He who says, I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (I John 2:3-4). Why? To “know” God and Christ—and they are “one,” in full harmony as Jesus said—you need to experience the kind of character they possess.
Obey The Royal Laws
And God’s very character is expressed in his law—the Ten Commandments. Those who say they are Christians and yet do not keep God’s commandments do not know by experience the character of God! What is the character of God like? Notice! “For God is love” (I John 4:8).
Again, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous” (I John 5:3). So a true Christian will “walk with God,” will live by God’s law of love—the Ten Commandments. And, by exercising this kind of godly character, he will come to understand and “know” God. The true Christian will have God living in him.
“The royal law: break one, break all” James 2: 8-10), meaning that if you follow God’s law to love your neighbor but show favoritism (treating some people better than others), you are sinning and guilty of breaking the entire law, because all commands are unified under that greater law of love; failing one means failing the whole, just as the same God who forbids adultery also forbids murder
3. How A Godly Christian Overcomes Human Nature
At this point, some may be wondering how they can become “perfect.” They have heard ministers say: “The law is spiritual, and you can’t keep it.” Both points are absolutely right! The law of God is spiritual. And man, by himself, cut off from God, cannot keep that spiritual law perfectly. The answer? First, God does not demand instant perfection. Rather, through his inspired Word, he tells us, “but GROW in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (II Pet. 3:18).
The true Christian life is one of learning, overcoming and growing toward the God-like character that is our ideal. It is not based on the false premise that we don’t even have to try to keep God’s law and follow the example Jesus set for us. For Jesus said, “I have kept my Father’s commandments” (John 15:10). And Paul wrote: “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” (I Cor. 11:1). But how can we keep the spiritual principles of the Ten Commandments when we ourselves are weak, physical and inherently sinful human beings?
The Barrier: Why the Carnal Mind Cannot Be A Godly Christian
The apostle Paul’s description of the problem makes the stakes crystal clear. Notice: “The carnal [natural] mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom. 8:7-8). Paul is clearly saying that what causes the normal, fleshly (carnal) human being a “problem” with God is that he is antagonistic to God’s law and will not submit to it!
We all are certainly “in the flesh,” in the sense that we are human, aren’t we? But is that what Paul means? Continue reading: “But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” (Rom. 8:9). In other words, unless Christ dwells in you through the Holy Spirit, you are not his; you are not a truly converted Christian!
Again, the Apostle states: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:14). This is the ultimate key to true Christianity! If you have been deeply humbled and converted by your Creator, have surrendered—even though not yet perfectly—to allow God and Christ to live in you through the power of the Holy Spirit, then and only then Are You A Godly Christian!
The Price of Becoming A Godly Christian
There is a price to pay, however, and for some that price may be too high. That price is surrender of the SELF. God requires a radical change, not a mere sentimental belief. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts…,” God says through the prophet Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55:7-9).
A real Christian is one who seeks God’s way of life, his thoughts, his will. What Isaiah was describing is genuine repentance—the kind of repentance necessary to begin the Christian way of life. When multitudes asked the apostle Peter how to become Christians, Peter responded that they must repent—profoundly change (Acts 2:38). But these inspired instructions are seldom followed today.
Study The Bible and Begin Your Day With Prayers
Why in the mass evangelistic campaigns of the Christian world are people encouraged to make a spur-of-the-moment “decision for Christ” and to come forward in an “altar call,” and to be pronounced “saved” or “born again”? That is not how Peter said to receive the Holy Spirit, which is God’s free gift that leads to eternal life. No wonder such “conversions” often last only a matter of days or weeks!
Of course, you will still have human nature, the world around you and the invisible influence of Satan the devil to overcome. You will grow in grace and in knowledge. By studying the Bible for instruction with an open mind and heart. Begin with praying for understanding of what you read and for the spiritual strength to live God’s way.
Then, through the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit, you will be growing in the knowledge and in the very character of Jesus Christ. God will be making you his child by putting his very nature in you through the Holy Spirit (II Pet. 1:4). Step by step, you will reflect in your daily life the character and the obedience to God the Father that Jesus demonstrated in his human flesh. You will become more and more Christ-like. You will then truly become “a Christian“—one in whom Christ lives through the presence of the Holy Spirit! This is the Bible definition of a Godly Christian.
4. How A Godly Christian Thinks and Acts Daily
As you truly study and research the Bible to understand it, and as you pray to God daily on your knees for guidance and strength, you can come to know what the life of a real Christian is like. God will become more and more real to you. You will see that his laws are living laws—just like the law of gravity. They work automatically—no matter whether you, or this or that theologian, believes in them or not.
The Galatians 2:20 Reality For A Godly Christian
The apostle Paul stated one of the deepest truths of Christianity: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20). This is the key that unlocks the power of obedience. How will Christ “live” his life in you through the Holy Spirit? Will he refuse to keep in and through you his Father’s law—the Ten Commandments—which he faithfully kept and even magnified during his human life on earth?
Will he keep in and through you different days holy than the ones his Father commanded and that he kept during his physical lifetime? No! For your Bible says very plainly, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb. 13:8). The true Christ of the Bible is the Word—the Spokesman of the Hebrew Scriptures (John 1:1-3). He was the God of Israel the Rock that protected and guided ancient Israel throughout their history (I Cor. 10:4). He is the one who gave and spoke the Ten Commandments! And with respect to eternal spiritual principles he said, “For I am the Lord, I change not…” (Mal. 3:6).
The Law of God: The Blueprint for A Godly Christian
So the key is to realize that the true Christ of your Bible will live exactly the same life in you that he lived on earth some 1,900 years ago! Jesus said, “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30). Jesus came to reveal the Father (Luke 10:22). God and Christ preexisted together from eternity. They are one in mind and purpose and in character. Through the Holy Spirit, they both come to live in, strengthen and guide the true Christian!
As Jesus said: “If a man love me, he will keep my words [the “words” of the Bible!]: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him” (John 14:23). With this in mind, it will become progressively easier for you not to have self before the true God, not to bow down to physical representations of the spiritual family of God, not to take God’s name in vain.
And, as God becomes increasingly the very center of your life as a true Christian, you will want to keep holy his Sabbath—the very day Jesus made holy. How did this kind of preaching and teaching come to be so misunderstood by traditional Christianity in our present society?
5. The Great Deception: Why A Godly Christian is a “Little Flock”
How did there come to be so many who have been deceived into thinking they were Christians, yet who have not had the Holy Spirit dwelling in them, enabling them to live by every word of God? The answer is a prophesied and fearful falling away.
Beware the Lie: False Teachers and “Another Jesus”
The apostle Paul warned first century Christians: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day [the day of Christ’s return to earth to restore the government of God] shall not come, except there come a falling away first…” (II Thess. 2:3).
Throughout the New Testament we are warned of men who would come unawares into the fellowship of the church, even in the time of Jesus’ apostles in the first century A.D., preaching “another Jesus” (II Cor. 11:4)—not the Jesus of the Bible!
And it is clearly indicated that those false teachers and their spiritual descendants would lead astray the vast majority of those who call themselves and think themselves Christians. In other words, false teachers have taken over the name of Jesus Christ and of Christianity. They are willing to have you believe in their concept of Jesus, but they deny the message he preached, the law of God that he magnified, and the way of life he set us an example in living!
The Narrow Way: Are You A Godly Christian in the Present Age?
This deception explains the terrible scarcity of true, obedient Christians. Jesus told his disciples: “Enter by the narrow [restricted] gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many [the millions, the hundreds and thousands of millions] who go by in it because narrow [restricted] is the gate and difficult is the way, which leads life, and there are FEW [talking about now, this present age] who find it” (Matt. 7:13-14).
You probably have not understood this before. The true Christians are described in the Bible as comparatively few in number—the little flock (Luke 12:32), the “woman” who, as the Scriptures prophesied, fled from the politico-religious system that dominated the Western world during the Middle Ages (Rev. 12:6).
Here is where many people stumble. They begin to think they know what real Christianity is all about. Then they look around them at the people they know. Or they think of individuals they have known in the past—friends, relatives, perhaps. And they use them as standards of comparison.
All The Commandments of God Are Important (Luke 1:6)
They say to themselves: “Uncle Henry and Aunt Ruth and my friend John did not obey Jesus’ explicit instructions. But they weren’t ‘bad’ people either. They lived the way they thought was right. I’ll take my chances along with them and with the millions and millions of other professing Christians who are just average good people. Surely God won’t deny eternal life or salvation to them! God is merciful.”
God is merciful. That’s true. But then what did Jesus mean when he said keeping the commandments and other lesser requirements are necessary for the development of character if we are to inherit God’s free gift of eternal life? He meant exactly what he said.
Uncle Henry and Aunt Ruth and friend John and all the millions who have professed Christianity without ever understanding what it really is to become a Christian—a follower of Jesus Christ—will eventually have their opportunity to understand.
They too will learn that in order to have the mind of Christ in us, to think the way Jesus thought, it is necessary to keep the commandments. And that involves deep heart-felt repentance, belief in Christ’s message of the kingdom of God, baptism and receiving the Holy Spirit. One must come to a realization of what one really is like and what one should be.
God Gives Everyone A Chance To Be A Godly Christian
If learning this doesn’t happen during this life, then it will happen in a future period of judgment when God’s government rules the earth. At that time all the dead who have not had an opportunity for salvation will be resurrected and given the opportunity to choose the way of life based on obedience to God’s laws—the only way to true happiness.
That period of time is described in Ezekiel 16:55 and 60-63, Matthew 11:20-24, Luke 10:12-14 and Revelation 20:11-12. This period of judgment occurs after the 1,000 years (Rev. 20:2-4). “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished…” (Rev. 20:5).
This judgment will provide for a life-time of new experience—like the judgment in this life-time that is occurring on true Christians today (I Pet. 4:17). Every human who ever lived will have an opportunity to receive salvation—the opportunity to inherit eternal life in the kingdom or family of God as God’s free gift.
For most people that time will come after they have lived their entire lives, died and are brought back to life in a future resurrection. God is just not trying to save the entire world now. That’s why the Scripture says that in general, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this [in a future resurrection!] the judgment [not a sentencing, but for the vast majority of human beings a period of testing and judging—their first and only genuine opportunity for salvation]” (Heb. 9:27).
Don’t make the mistake of judging what the Bible describes as true Christianity by the beliefs of people you have known who may not even have understood what real Christianity is.
A Final Warning and Call to Action- A Challenge To A Godly Christian
But, since the days of the apostles, there have always been true Christians who believed in living by the inspired words of the Bible, and who grasped the key of understanding that Jesus is to live his very life in them by the power of the Holy Spirit. Scattered and persecuted, often labeled in the footnotes of church history books as heretics, these people have constituted the true Church of God.
Aiming toward perfection, they walk in the way of life of the Ten Commandments. They keep holy the days God made holy—the same days Jesus and the apostles kept. They study and understand prophecy and the awesome purpose that is being worked out here below among men and nations. These brethren know what is just ahead on the world scene and are preparing for and announcing specific prophesied events to come as Jesus foretold them!
The real Christ of true Christianity is destined soon to return to this earth as King of kings. God’s angels will shout, “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever” (Rev. 11:15). Christ will be King over all the earth.
And real Christians, having lived and died over the centuries, will rise in the first resurrection and become kings under him. Those who assumed they were Christians, but were deceived, will not be there to rule with Christ. They will yet have to become converted!
Follow Christ To Be a Real Christian- A Godly Christian
Before Jesus gets here, what could be more vital for you than to make sure what his message really is and to get your life in line with it? To be a real Christian one must become willing to do what Jesus said to do. He showed the way to truly abundant living. His words are recorded in the Scriptures. But they will only profit someone who reads them there and then decides to yield himself or herself to God and follow them. If you know these things, Jesus exclaimed, blessed are you if you do them.” (John 13:17).
And obey everything I have commanded you” is a key phrase from the Bible, most famously from Matthew 28:20 part of the Great Commission (include Matt. 5:17-19), where Jesus instructs His followers to teach new disciples to follow all His teachings, promising to be with them always. It also echoes commands in the Old Testament (like Deuteronomy) emphasizing total submission to God’s will and His Messenger as a path to blessing, guidance, and a covenant relationship.
STOP gambling with your eternal life! Be A Godly Christian. The time for casual belief is over. If you are honest with yourself, you see the distance between your life and the obedience Jesus demanded. Repent now! Be a Godly Christian. Begin the deep, honest process of surrendering your will, your thoughts, and your ways to the living law of God. Seek the Holy Spirit’s power so that Christ may truly live His life of obedience within you. Your salvation depends on whether you are merely professing or actually doing the will of God!
With God Almighty Now! No One Can DESTROY Us.
That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.” (1 Cor. 2:9 NLT, Rom. 8:31)
The Reward Awesome! There is no Second Thought!
Contact me TODAY how to begin the life of OVERCOMING.
Read this also: https://iccog.com/after-death-what-happens/
After Death What Happens- Read The Shocking Truths and Promises
Discover more from Independent Christian Church of God
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
