Living Without Jesus

-Bill Petite

People every day leave their homes and travel to work, school or wherever they go without giving a thought about Jesus. These people for the most part are not Christians and really don't want Jesus intruding into their lives. For Christians, living without Jesus is like putting on a blindfold every morning while traveling to your destination. Those who are not Christians really don't know any better. They have never taken Jesus serious enough  to include Him in their lives as Lord and savior. There can be many different reasons for this but the fact is they are wandering aimlessly through this life and their final destination is not a pleasant ending. Of course, those who are Atheist will tell us they don't believe that a God exists and therefore they don't need a fairy tale cluttering up their lifestyle. If that is truly what they believe, then I have to respect their decision; I don't agree and have a concern for their spiritual well being but if they refuse to consider who Jesus really is, I can't force them to believe. That is not my place; only Jesus can reach them and change their heart. But, if a person calls themselves an Atheist and becomes a critic of Jesus/God, then I would question their claim of Atheism. If an Atheist is a true Atheist, why would he/she be critical of a god who does not exist. It would be the same as being critical of the non-existent monster in the child's closet. These people are usually looking for a fight with the Christian faith. For whatever reason, they believe they have an axe to grind with Christians. Remember, defending the faith is not an argument, it is a conversation with a non-believer. It is providing the person with truths to consider concerning Jesus. We should do nothing else but give these people information to consider and reason with. We don't return the arrogant comment with another arrogant comment. If the person we are talking to is in attack mode from the start, we give them the information to consider and move on. Jesus tells us not to cast our pearls before the swine (Mt 7:6). They have decided to live this life without Jesus; the seeds have been planted and now we pray that the Lord will send a cultivator and then a harvester.

Christians don't really live their lives without Jesus, they just sometimes forget He is there and they fail to include Him or consider Him in their lives. They bumble along until they hit an obstacle and then remember Jesus. Or, they hit that obstacle and begin to try and figure a way over or around it and after exhausting their attempts, then they go to Jesus. We all have been there and hopefully have learned from it. But, for the Christian who insists on going it alone, there are some serious faith issues here. This is probably as close to living without Jesus as a Christian can get. Actually, a Christian cannot totally live without Jesus. When we are saved, truly saved, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us. He is always with us. Regardless of how we recognize that, He is there. So, Christians don't really live their lives without Jesus, they simply fail to acknowledge His presence sometimes. We all have those times when we want to do things our way and when the Spirit taps us on the shoulder to remind us of our ignorance in the situation, we ignore Him. This is where we Christians get into trouble. 
Think about it in terms of warfare because that is actually what it is; it is spiritual warfare and we are in the battle everyday.

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.  For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.  Eph 6:10-12  NLT

 This should be easy for most people to understand in our current time. With the involvement of 2 wars for over 10 years, it is what people are most aware of in their world view. Everyone has become a so called expert in warfare. So, with that in mind, why would it be so hard to understand that we, as Christians, are at war with our enemy, Satan, every minute of every day? I was in Viet Nam as a Marine infantryman (giving away my age). There was no way I was going beyond the lines of our perimeter without a weapon. That was down right stupid and ignorant! I was well aware of every tool of warfare available to me and I would use every one of them if I had to. There is no talk of heroes on the battlefield. That is for the media and those on the sidelines to discuss. It is the same with our Christian lives. If you ignore the fact that Christianity is at war with the enemy, you will suffer for your ignorance. Christianity is not all peaches and cream. It is an on going battle and we have all the weapons afforded to us for use against the enemy. But, we can't fight the fight on own, we must depend on Jesus to lead the way. Living without Jesus is dumb! A Christian who ignores the presence of the Holy Spirit is dumb! Consider what Paul says to the Colossians,

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand.  Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.  For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.  Col 3:1-3  NLT

This is where most Christians get into trouble; they are more concerned with the things of this life instead of the things of heaven or the Christian life with Jesus. Jesus told His disciples in the sermon on the mount to seek His kingdom first and all the things they would worry about would be provided (Mt 6:33). We all need to fix our eyes more on Jesus and let our lust for the things of this world fade away. As a Christian, living without Jesus is not an option and why would you want to?!

Christians should all know and understand the seriousness of living without Jesus. Christians need to know how to get that message to the non-believing world. Dying without knowing Jesus brings eternal suffering; suffering I don't know how to describe. Jesus tells us there will be everlasting punishment, weeping and gnashing of teeth. This describes eternal torment, a torment beyond our capabilities to understand. We need to be ambassadors of Jesus to the unsaved world. We can't force people to accept Jesus as their savior but we certainly can deliver the message. Don't be a closet Christian, afraid of telling the world about Him. God will open the door for us to tell someone about Jesus; we simply need to be obedient in delivering the message. Tell someone today and tell them the dangers of living without Jesus.

 

A Witness For Jesus

-Bill Petite

Can you remember the first time you actually shared your faith in Jesus with someone else? Maybe it was a family member or a friend. Whoever it might have been, they responded by listening willingly, thought you were crazy or actually wanted to know more! I remember being questioned about the change in my life. I stumbled through an explanation of how I was now a Christian and not a drunk anymore. People will respond in a number of different ways and that is to be expected. We should never cower and be afraid to continue telling others after we receive a negative response from someone. The important thing is to be obedient when we hear the Lord telling us to talk to someone about Him. The Apostle Paul heard that when he went to Corinth.

One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent!  For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.” Acts 18:9-10 NLT*

When Jesus, by His Holy Spirit, speaks to us concerning the spiritual welfare of someone, we should act upon that directive and follow through. In the case of Paul in the scripture above, Jesus assured him he would be safe and there were many people in Corinth who would be saved. Jesus knew these people, He knew they would listen to Paul and He knew they were among His chosen for salvation. When we hear the voice of Jesus telling us to talk to someone, why should we question Him? Who are we to argue with Him? He already knows the person will listen. The person might just listen and move on, with the seeds which have been planted. He might hear the next witness and be saved or it might take 3 or 4 more witnesses. We don't know and it is not our place to know. Our responsibility lies in the fact that He wants us to tell others about Him. Be obedient and speak the truth to others when Jesus directs us to. He has opened the door for us when He tells us to talk to someone, so there should be nothing to fear. D.L. Moody put it this way, "If God calls a man to a work, He will be with him in that work, and he will succeed no matter what the obstacles may be."  That is so true; it doesn't matter if it is just going across the street to tell a neighbor about Jesus or going across continents to preach about the Lord. Before Jesus ascended back into heaven, He told his disciples the following,

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

We are to continue that work. The disciples started it and we are to carry it on. We simply have to make ourselves available. If we look around at our world today, it is easy to see there can't be much time left. We need to step it up because Satan has really stepped it up and wants to take as many people to Hell with him as he can. We need to be all about the Lord's work. Jesus said the harvest is plenty and more workers are needed (paraphrased). Be obedient to the Lord's direction and tell others about Him!
I was not always obedient when the Lord told me to talk to someone. The following is a story that actually happened to me and I did not want to be obedient. I wrote this for a writing contest which I never entered. I hope you enjoy and I pray it will be encouraging.

There will be those times in a Christian’s life when the Lord will present a situation to us and we will know without any doubt that it is God who is urging us to take action. I was faced with one of these some years ago while traveling from Phoenix, Az. back home to Barstow, Ca. My wife, Jeanne, and I were closing in on Needles, Ca. which was a normal fuel stop for us when making this trip. I checked the fuel gauge and decided I really didn’t need to stop but Jeanne wanted to use the restroom and get something to drink. I pulled into a gas/convenience stop and parked along the building away from the traffic which was crowding around the gas pumps. Jeanne went inside to use the restroom and get something to drink and I got out of the car to stretch my legs. As I stood next to the car, I noticed a homeless man walking across the parking lot. Now, it was the middle of summer in the Mojave Desert and the air temperature was in the neighborhood of 105 or hotter. The homeless man had on an army type field jacket, zipped all the way up and no shoes. The pavement had to be at least 120 degrees or hotter and he walked calmly across the lot. He had been carrying something that looked like a sign board which usually said something about working for food or something of that nature. I paid little attention to what he was carrying because I was totally amazed by the fact that he was calmly walking across that pavement in his bare feet. My first thought was, “This guy is crazy! He must be on something or he has fried his brain!” My wife had not returned to the car yet and for some reason I decided to put gas in the car while I waited. When I pulled around to the pumps in front of the building, it was then that I noticed where this homeless man had decided to make his stance. He had positioned himself off to the side of the main entrance to the store with a sign that read, “Need shoes.” I thought, “No kidding!” Then it happened. I heard the voice loud and clear, “Go over there and talk to him.” I knew it was the Lord and it was then that the argument ensued. “Lord, that guy is crazy. He walked across that hot pavement without shoes on! I’m not talking to him.” God made His next move. A pick-up truck pulled in on the other side of the island and the driver was headed for the store when he saw the homeless man and said, “Oh, you need shoes?” He turned around and went back to his truck and I couldn’t believe what I saw. The back of the truck was filled with old tennis shoes! He grabbed a pair that was close to the man’s size and gave them to him. Wow, what are the chances of this! The Lord then told me, “Go over and tell him how I gave the nation of Israel shoes that lasted for 40 years in the desert. Tell him about my Son Jesus and how I can give him shoes that will never wear out.” Of course I knew the Lord wanted me to witness to him and the reference to shoes never wearing out was actually pertaining to his salvation. I lost the argument. I went over to talk to the man but I wasn’t sure how to approach him so, the first thing to come to mind was, “Nice shoes.” I told him about the nation of Israel wondering the desert for 40 years with shoes that did not wear out and also told him that Jesus could do that for him. He seemed to be interested at first but then when I asked him about his knowledge of Jesus, he became a little irritated so I backed off. I went back to my car knowing I had done as God had asked. The seed was planted and now the decision was in the hands of the homeless man with shoes. My wife returned, made a comment about pumping gas and why and I told her it was God’s idea.

*All scripture is NLT