‘Look
at how immoral Western society has become! Is this what Christianity has done
to the West?’ Some people think that Christianity has caused the problems.
Perhaps that is what you think, too. Let me urge you to consider the following
points.
1. Genuine Christians are grieved by
the immorality they
see in Western society
The
ungodly lifestyle of most people in Western society is heartbreaking. It has
caused a great deal of pain for the true followers of Jesus Christ. Immorality
is everywhere: Idolatry, drug and alcohol abuse, girls going around
half-dressed, divorces, infidelity, fornication, family breakdown, the
rejection of marriage... the list goes on!
Many
Muslims wrongly think that Christians encourage an immoral lifestyle. This idea
is completely false. God is the origin and founder of Christianity. The Tawrat,
Zabur, and Injil have always warned people to be careful not to grieve God by
living an ungodly life. Muslims are often surprised when they read the Bible
and see how seriously it speaks about moral and ethical issues. Take the
example of man-woman relationships. The Bible is absolutely against any sexual
relationship outside marriage. In fact, Jesus said that if a man simply looks
at a woman and desires her in his heart, he commits adultery. The thought
itself is wrong. It is as if he has actually slept with her. Jesus taught
husbands and wives to be loving and faithful to each other; He taught parents
to bring up their children to obey God and respect His commands; He taught
children to obey their parents. Jesus even taught people to love their enemies!
I could give many more examples.
The
truth is that the moral state of society is getting worse and worse because
people refuse to listen to God’s Word. They want to live without God. They want
to be the gods of their own lives. So many people have no idea what the Word of
God (the Bible) is all about! No wonder, then, that they live in a way that
displeases God. The problem is that Muslims think that every Westerner is a
Christian. This is not true…
2. Not every European is a Christian
I
use to think that everyone born in the West is a Christian. I thought that,
just as everyone born in a Muslim family is automatically Muslim, so every Westerner
is Christian by birth. When I first came to
The
Bible does not teach that someone who is born in a Western country is
automatically a Christian. Being born in
3. Not everybody who claims to be a
Christian is a real Christian
Many
people call themselves ‘Christians’ simply because they occasionally attend
church, or because they are not Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, or Spiritist,
or because they were born to Christian parents, even though they themselves
have never received Jesus Christ as their Saviour. They are ‘Christian’ in name
only. They have never had a transformation in their lives. They have never
allowed Jesus to forgive their sins and make them into new people. Therefore
they keep on doing detestable things even though they call themselves
Christians.
There
are others who, under the cloak of Christianity, seem to be pious and
righteous. On the outside they look good, but on the inside they are full of
hypocrisy and wickedness. Jesus opposed people like this and told them plainly,
“you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but
inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also
outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and
lawlessness” (Matthew
4. How do true Christians live?
God’s Holy Word gives us many examples of
how true followers of Jesus Christ live. When the disciples had received the
promised Holy Spirit (the Helper), the apostle Peter stood up and spoke to
people about Jesus. This is how people responded:
Then those who gladly received his word were baptised; and that day
about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly
in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in
prayers… Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and
sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had
need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread
from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,
praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the
church daily those who were being saved.
(Acts 2:41-47.)
These
verses describe the lives of the first Christian believers. Today, true
followers of Jesus seek to live in the same way. They do these things not to
try to earn salvation, but because God has already saved them and changed their
lives. In other words these things are marks that someone has become a true
follower of Jesus Christ.
Baptism.
In
the Bible, baptism follows conversion. It is a symbol to show that the person’s
sins have been washed away. As someone is plunged under the water and brought
back up again, believers are also reminded that they have left their sinful
life behind. It is as if they have died, and are being raised up again to live
a life that pleases God.
Doctrine
When
people become followers of Jesus, they long to understand more of God’s Holy
Word, the Bible, and to put what they read into practice. In this passage we
see that the believers were devoted to the study and practice of what the
apostles taught. True Christians love the Bible. They love to read it and to
hear people explaining it to them. They have been delivered from the power of
sin in their lives, so they are able to put what they learn into practice.
Fellowship
The word ‘fellowship’
has been translated from the Greek word koinania,
which means ‘the sharing of things in common.’ Christians come from all walks
of life. Some of them have degrees, while others have had virtually no
education. There are Christians from all sorts of racial, cultural and social
backgrounds. Some are young, some are old. All of these diverse people come
together because they have ONE thing in common - Jesus Christ. He is the basis
of their fellowship. A true follower of Jesus wants to be part of that
fellowship.
Prayers
Christians
love to talk to God, their heavenly Father, in prayer. They pray together and
alone. They worship God and thank Him for all He has done for them. They
confess their sins. They bring their troubles to Him and they pray for other
people.
Providing for the needy
In
the passage we also see that the early Christians sold their possessions in
order to help those who were in need. Jesus often made statements such as, “By
this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”
(John
Worshipping God
Followers of Jesus meet together regularly to praise and worship God,
adoring Him for who He is and for what he has done for them.
Conclusion
It
is true that some people who profess to be Christians are hypocrites, but it is
not true that that all Christians are hypocrites. There are many genuine,
committed Christians who have been forgiven and changed by Jesus Christ. They
seek to live their lives by Jesus’ standards. The Holy Spirit who dwells in
them helps them to live in a way that pleases God. They love Jesus and follow
His commands to be holy and to live righteously.