Are You in Denial?

“They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him” Titus 1:16

There are many people in today’s military that claim to know God. They may display a gold and platinum chain with a cross hanging as a medallion or may even have gone through the physical pain to have the cross or the picture of Christ tattooed somewhere on them. However, the horrifying news is their actions do not reflect Him and worse, many of their actions are directly opposed to Him, therefore denying any credibility that they have a relationship to Him.

If our lives are not a testimony to the glory of God they are futile. If we claim to know God we must be lanterns of His divine mercy and grace no matter where we are or what we are doing. There are many that have grown up in church, attend with some regularity and know the lingo, and if you were to ask them if they are Christians, they would answer yes. I cannot count the multitudes of people I have met in the military who answer, “yes I am Christian”, but there lives look no different from an unbeliever. They just go through the motions possibly attending a Sunday morning’s church service every now and then. They know the location of the church and some Bible words, but not the Lord. These are the ones Billy Graham refers to when he says the greatest field of evangelism in America is the church pew.

Through my military experience I have come across many people that make the claim to know Him in their own special way. This is wrong, there is only one way to know Him. Personally, I joined the Army with the intentions of serving God. The simple fact was God could not and would not use me until I completely surrendered to His will. Although, I saw God working around me, it was not until six years after I joined the Army that I really began to see God working through me as a vessel of His divine grace. Why then? What was different? It was a matter of the heart. My mind wanted to serve the Lord, I was a believer, and I loved God; however, He knew I was not ready. Augustine expresses this in his famous request, when he both longed for sexual purity and innocence and yet was not ready to change his lifestyle and feared losing pleasure: “Lord, give me chastity, but not yet.” It took six years after He called me for me to surrender. To move past the stain of sin which lingered on in my life often undetected. Undetected because I chose to turn my back to it - too embarrassed and proud to confess. The sins of the past literally haunted me with pain and handcuffed me, keeping me from change. I needed to confess my sin (past and present) in order to heal and receive God’s change. I challenge you to examine yourself to make sure you are not denying Jesus, but rather denying yourself of any earthly pleasures and pursuits that may be leading you away from him. It is my hope that after examining your heart, you would surrender your heart and begin a revival, bringing boldness to your individual circle, and live a life worthy of that which you are called.

The strongest argument for Christianity is Christians, when they are drawing life from God.

The strongest argument against Christianity? Also Christians, when they become exclusive,

self-righteous, and complacent.

-       Sheldon Van Auken –