Is Believing In Christ Weird?

Many of you know that I was in the advertising business for many years… so today I want to talk about Budweiser.   

If you’ve watched a football game recently, you’ve seen a Budweiser beer commercial showing male sports fans doing all kinds of funny things as superstitious acts to “help” their team win.  There are guys patting team flags, wearing mismatched socks, and turning their beer bottles so the label’s cosmic force will help a field goal…all while Stevie Wonder sings his hit song, Superstition, in the background.  It’s funny.  We smile because we know that stuff doesn’t really make a difference.  But then, at the very end of the commercial the announcer comes on with a voice-over saying, “It’s only weird if it doesn’t work.” And that got me thinking. 

In the book, The Case for Christ, the author, Lee Strobel, makes the statement that Christ’s claim of being God is only insane if He isn’t God.  And that got me thinking about Budweiser and that funny TV spot. 

There are millions of people, myself included, who can testify that Christ’s claim of being God, given to mankind as a totally free gift, offered without the necessity of doing all kinds of religious acts (like patting a church flag, wearing strange clothing, or holding up their Bibles in a certain way), and being willing and able to change our sinful, selfish lives into lives with significant spiritual meaning – is absolutely true.   

My life and the lives of all those millions (perhaps even you) gives proof to the Budweiser commercial that says, “It’s only weird if it doesn’t work.”  Maybe it’s time to ask yourself what’s working in your life.  What’s meaningful?  What makes you a significant person? Have you been doing all kinds of stuff to convince God He should bless you?  It’s time to just ask Christ to come into your life and change you to a completely new person.  He can do it!  He will do it! 

And if you’ve asked Jesus to be your Savior and Lord, maybe it’s time you just trust Him and quit exhausting yourself with religious activities and ask Him to show you how to best serve Him in your community.   

Too many of us are very, very busy “doing” instead of quietly living our lives based upon the powerful, living, Word of God, revealing a personal relationship with a life-changing, life-directing Christ. 

Although I do not endorse Budweiser, or drinking too much beer, I come back to their funny, wonderful, thought-provoking commercial.  Believing in Christ is only weird if He doesn’t work… And He works mightily! 

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.   Ephesians 2:8–9 

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.   John 1:12

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.   2 Corinthians 5:17  

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”   Matthew 11:29–30  

And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.   1 John 5:11–13  

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.    John 10:10  

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.  Romans 12:1–3 

 

Believing Jesus Christ came to earth

to offer us all the free opportunity to accept Him

as the one who freely died for our sins

so that we could live with God for eternity

and have a completely new life of joy, peace, and blessing

is not weird…

He works! 

Think about it….

 

Can You Count To Ten?

Sitting in a restaurant in Chattanooga, Tennessee I overheard an interesting conversation.  So, blatantly eavesdropping, I listened to two men talking about the 100 verses that every Bible-believing Christian should know.  The discussion was passionate and heart-felt and it got me thinking.  

Since the Word of God is a living, dynamic book which God uses to speak truth into our hearts through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, it is an extremely personal thing to consider what verses have most impacted your life.  What a blessing it’s been to contemplate the last 44 years and meditate on how God has used the Scriptures to quite literally change my life.  What specific verses has God used to teach, comfort, challenge, or convict me?  

Thinking of a list of 100 is overwhelming, BUT I would suggest that every Christian who claims to be a person of the book should be able to point to at least ten places in the scriptures that could be called “life-changing.”  Can you?  Can you count to ten?  Sit down with a blank piece of paper and write a verse that’s meant a lot in your life.  Maybe you can’t quote it word-perfect but you know where it’s found and you understand what it has said to your Christian experience.  I promise, it will be a blessing, a praise to the Lord, and just plain fun. 

And just for fun, I’m giving you the ten verses (or sets of verses) that have, with Christ’s help, changed my life.  They are NOT in any kind of order of importance, but each one is significant to me and my Christian walk. 

1.  (My life verse) The importance of God’s Word in my life - Ezra 7:10 - For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.  

2.   My assurance that I have eternal life because I have Jesus - 1 John 5:11–13 - and the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.  

3.   God is able to do anything with me - Luke 1:37 - “For nothing will be impossible with God.”  

4.   God is able to do anything through me - Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.  

5.   I should be ambitious to lead a life at peace in order to have a good testimony to those outside the faith - 1 Thessalonians 4:11–12 - and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, so that you will behave properly toward outsiders and not be in any need.  

6.   I should consider Christ as THE power controlling my life – 1 Peter 5:6 - Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 

7.   Nothing that happens to me will negatively impact my faith in the Lord - Job 13:15a - “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him…  

8.   I make my plans BUT God is in charge of my life - Proverbs 16:9 - The mind of man plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.  

9.   Even when times are hard and my family doesn’t understand, God renews His blessings in my life – I have confidence in Him - Lamentations 3:14, 21-24 - I have become a laughingstock to all my people, Their mocking song all the day. --- This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I have hope in Him.”  

10.   When I’m surrounded by tough circumstances and I don’t know what to do – I just look to Jesus – He fights my fights - 2 Chronicles 20:12, 17 -  “O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” --- ‘You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the Lord is with you.”  

Well, that’s my list.  What’s yours?  Spend a little time reviewing your life and the times when a verse really spoke to you.  For me, it turned into a real time of worship and thanksgiving.  What an amazing God we have!

Count to ten - have fun and let me know what happens.

 

Think about it….

 

 

About A.W. Tozer and My Battle

A.W. Tozer was an author who spent 44 years pastoring churches, writing books, editing Christian magazines, and mentoring fellow believers.  He received two honorary doctorate degrees in recognition of his contribution to our Christian world view.   

Although he wrote in the 1950’s & 60’s, his words make me think.  He wrote about the church of 2012 as if he was sitting at a computer tapping out Biblical warnings to those of us in the spiritual fight against the world today.  He wrote:

A Great Loss: Power to Wage Spiritual Warfare

And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.  1 Timothy 3:7  

The Christian should always be aware that the devil’s master strategy against us is to destroy our power to wage spiritual warfare! And he has been succeeding, we must add. 

The average Christian these days is a harmless enough thing, God knows. He is a child wearing with considerable self-consciousness the harness of the warrior; he is a sick eaglet that can never mount up with wings; he is a spent pilgrim who has given up the journey and sits with a waxy smile trying to get what pleasure he can from sniffing the wilted flowers he has plucked by the way. 

Such as these have been reached! Satan has gotten to them early.

By means of false teaching or inadequate teaching, or the huge discouragement that comes from the example of a decadent church, he has succeeded in weakening their resolution, neutralizing their convictions and taming their original urge to do exploits; now they are little more than statistics that contribute financially to the upkeep of the religious institution. 

There can be complete victory for us if we will but take the way of the triumphant Christ, but too many have accepted the low-keyed Christian life as the normal one. That is all Satan wants. That will ground our power, stunt our growth and render us harmless to the kingdom of darkness—and we sons of eternity just cannot afford such a thing! ^[1] 

Think about it….

 

---

^[1] Tozer, A. W., & Smith, G. B. (1991-). Renewed day by day : A daily devotional. Camp Hill, PA.: WingSpread.