“In Christ”

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17. Remember when you first accepted the truth of the Gospel and invited Jesus Christ into your life? You were changed at the instant you first believed. Old things, things you weren’t very happy with in your life, were deleted (passed away). Why then do you dwell on those things God has tossed away? Why do many believers go back to what influenced them and moved them towards evil desires?

That’s how Satan works. He knew you before you were a new creation, and he thoroughly enjoys watching you squirm as he reminds you of your past. But it doesn’t need to be like that. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus...” Romans 8:1. What does Paul mean when he refers to those who are “in Christ Jesus”? There is a spiritual union between Christ and believers. We are “In Christ” by faith, and Christ is in us by His Holy Spirit.

Condemnation only comes from Satan or his minions of evil, never from the Holy Spirit. But oh how we moan and groan as we’re reminded of our past failures. We have been changed in God’s eyes and He now sees us through His beloved Son, Jesus the Christ. If that’s how God sees us then it makes sense that Satan would have his work cut out for himself trying to get us to look back at what we once were. Sadly, many believers today allow Satan to have his way with them. Not only by looking back but going back to what we know is not of God.

Satan has no authority over the heart, soul, mind, or spirit of a believer. He can’t touch who we are unless we allow him access through what we allow to enter our minds. The actions of many Christians today prove he has been allowed access to their hearts. In other words, every time we, for even just a moment, take our eyes off Jesus, Satan is there to move us further away from God and His truths until we either realize what he’s doing and make a beeline back to God, or we fall flat on our face having given in to the flesh once again.

Satan’s influences in this world are quite pervasive. It’s very difficult to live in this world and not be conformed to it. As believers it’s even more troublesome trying to get through life untouched by Satan’s influences. “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:” Ephesians 2:2. Satan is the prince of the power of the air and as such he controls the minds and the actions of many who have influence over us. Satan has his hand in our government, our news media, our movies and television programming, and sports that so many are completely addicted to. Satan’s influence in this world should be a daily reminder to believers of just how depraved this world is, and how we were once a part of that depravity.

Going to church on Sunday and Wednesday will help keep us focused on God, but it isn’t enough to completely stave off Satan’s influential attacks. We fellowship on those days and for a while all outside influence seems to melt away while we are worshipping God and our minds are being renewed and refreshed. Then we step back out into the world, and many of my brethren no more than reach their couches than they grab the remote and voilà the church’s influence wanes and Satan begins to take control and project his messages into their minds.

In most secular homes where there is little or no godly influence, we can expect the average individual’s mind to be filled with what’s spewed from the airwaves and cable and have little regard to how all that filth might be affecting their outlook on life. But for those who are “In Christ” it’s more than a little disheartening that they too would allow their minds to be opened to such a huge evil influence as TV. Many of my brethren are shocked when I tell them that my family and I exist without television programming in our home.

“In Christ” means that we are different than those who don’t believe, it means we do everything we can to eliminate the evil that can corrupt our minds as well as the minds of our loved ones. Satan will attack us through whatever means possible and his influence over the media and entertainment industry is obvious. If we are truly “In Christ” then we are a new creation, and as such we are not of the world any longer but we are of God. Everything we do and every decision we make should be as though God were making the decision with us. How many times a day do we mindlessly allow Satan to have his way with our minds?

Why are there so many problems in my life? Why can’t I have a good solid loving relationship with my partner? If we live together aren’t we married in God’s eyes? Why do I need to be married to have sex with the boy I love? Why can’t I view pornography, I’m not hurting anyone, and how can it be a sin if it is only something my eyes are seeing? Why can’t I get a divorce, if I don’t love my wife any more I should be able to seek and find happiness with someone who will love me and fulfill me, shouldn’t I? These and many other questions come to me via the email inbox on my computer. Again, I must ask you, the reader, what does Paul mean when he makes the statement “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17. Ask yourself are all things new with me or am I still of the world?

Are you allowing Satan to bring to the forefront of your mind all the past sins you were involved in so he can bring you to a point of despair? If so, you’re allowing Satan to win and you will lose the joy God has given you through Jesus Christ our Lord. I’m not saying you’ll lose your salvation, but you will be miserable as you allow Satan’s attacks to numb your mind to his evil influences.

When we first believe we’re excited even energetic and become like a magnet drawing others to us. Even those who don’t believe see a difference in us. Then we get a little further in our walk with Jesus and many times we become complacent and can even become a little discouraged. Eventually many turn back, they’re back in the world again and begin to take up where they left off doing many of the things they did before they were saved. I’m not using a wide brush here saying this happens to every born again believer, but it does happen to many who are professing Christians and the question is why? Why do so many professing Christians allow themselves to be influenced in such a way that they would return to a life that they once wanted out of?

In the parable of the sower, Jesus points out four different soils, but here I’m only going to address the first of the four. Where did some of the first seeds fall? “And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:” Matthew 13:4. In Luke’s Gospel we are given a clear look at what’s behind this parable. “Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.” Luke 8:12. Interestingly, Jesus is telling us that this group of people heard the word of God preached and it actually entered their hearts. A question I get all the time is “Can a Christian lose their salvation”? The answer to that question is an emphatic no. Those mentioned above who heard the word but allowed Satan to remove it from their hearts may actually think they are saved. But Jesus says “lest they should believe and be saved.” There is no salvation for them to lose. They never had it.

Could this be the reason so many who’ve professed to being Christian and seemed at times to be following Jesus turned back to what they gave up after they first heard the word? We can’t be “In Christ” and of the world at the same time. That would be a contradiction in terms. We can’t worship God one or two hours per week, and then arbitrarily turn off our Christianity so we can assimilate into the world system, and then back to Jesus on Sunday again. Jesus doesn’t want that kind of follower. Jesus bought and paid for us with His blood and He owns every part of us which gives Him the right to all our time for all our remaining life, not just our Sunday morning worship time. We must make up our minds to which of these we will serve: the Lord Jesus or Satan. Allowing our minds to be filled with perverse influences is not following Jesus’ commands. Allowing Satan to creep in and remind us of all our past failures is also a failure to follow Jesus exclusively.

Most parents love and protect their children at all costs, and rightfully so. Then they turn right around and allow them access to the TV, and the internet (unsupervised), music with all its satanic messages, and worst of all is the humanistic secular government run public school system and then they wonder where they went wrong with their children. “Why are my children so rebellious? I don’t understand why they started experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Why did my daughter get pregnant at such a young age and she’s only seen the boy once. After all, I sent them to Church every Sunday.”

Stop asking yourselves these questions. If you’re born again you know the answer to these questions. We only have ourselves to blame, and not God, for the lack of discernment involved in our daily decisions; we can’t let down our guard for a moment. I can’t stress enough that allowing our minds to be filled with satanic sewage will only result in a journey away from God.

Loving Jesus means keeping His commandments, and keeping His commandments will entail leaving behind all the worldly satanic influences which cause what I call “satanic cancer” to grow in our bodies. Anything that Satan has his hands into is not for the born again believer in Christ.

Recently I received an email from a person who took exception to a statement regarding watching soap operas which I made in my last commentary. They wrote “I don't agree with your soap opera example because those women were adults and because they watch the soap does not mean they allowed their children or grand children to watch the soaps. I know soap operas have gotten worse since the day that my grandmother watched them but I think your wording was a little strong.” Interestingly, in this person’s opinion, its fine for adults to allow this filth into their minds as long as we adults don’t allow our children to watch this filth. In other words it’s okay to corrupt the minds of adults but not children.

Not only do these shows, and others like them, promote an immoral lifestyle, but they erode our moral convictions and little by little Satan is able to chip away at what was once a taboo to society. Eventually this erosion results in a collapse of all barriers that once held a moral society together, thus immorality becomes the norm.

You may think that shows that denote immorality are harmless for adults to watch, and even though I strongly disagree, let’s take a look at another scenario. What you may not see is what’s behind this seemingly harmless choice. For example, what else gets promoted when you watch TV? Commercials. What’s behind these commercials? In many cases a deeper and more pervasive evil.

For example, you say you don’t promote the homosexual agenda, as a matter of fact this base lifestyle sickens you, and you know it’s an abomination to God. Well many of the products that you promote by watching T V commercials openly promote this evil satanic agenda. You and all the born again believers “In Christ” who continue watching TV, are unwittingly promoting the homosexual agenda. The only way to stop such promotions is to eliminate the source of the exposure. There are over one hundred major corporations that are heavily into the support of the homosexual agenda and they all vie for you dollars through TV commercials. Again, most of the choices we as believers “In Christ” must make on a daily bases are moral choices.

I know my suggestions, for the most part, will fall on deaf ears. But if I may, I’ll put forth these final questions. Are you “In Christ”? Truly “In Christ”? If so, do you love Jesus more than Satan? Is Jesus truly your Lord, your Savior, your God? Are you putting Him first in your life as you surf the TV channels, or the internet for that matter?

There is only one answer, only one response to these questions. “Yes Lord Jesus, you are first in my life. Get thee behind me Satan.” You and I must make a choice here, I’ve made mine. The TV was turned off in the Graham home ten years ago. Do we miss it? NOT ONE BIT. But you must decide for yourselves who you wish to serve. “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood ... but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15.