(Matthew 21: 1-11, Mark 15: 1-14)
In our Bible texts above, we find Our Lord Jesus Christ being subjected to two very different kinds of treatments from the same group of people. In one instance, Jesus is being hailed and celebrated; and in another instance, he is being ridiculed and about to be crucified. It was not that Jesus had changed between the time he entered triumphantly into Jerusalem and the time he was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane and appeared before Pilate; what had happened was that the Pharisees and some of the people had grown jealous of Jesus and all that he was doing.
These texts bring to the fore the several different types of Christians that we have. We have the Christian who is one thing in the morning and who is another thing in the evening. We have the Christian who shouts “Hosanna in the highest” in the morning and is shouting “crucify him” in the evening. My question to you today is, what sort of Christian are you?
We have stories of Christians, even Gospel ministers, who beat up their wives. We have stories of Christian sisters who are cohabiting with their boyfriends. A lot of Christian sisters are still keeping sugar daddies. We have stories of ushers stealing money from the church. A lot of Christians still go to nightclubs and ‘owambe’ parties. A lot Christian men still drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes. Some Christians still use swear words and still keep worldly friends. Some women come to church just to look for men.
Several people are in church for various reasons. A lot of people come to church because they are looking for a miracle. These are the Christians that go from church to church, running up and down all over the place. A lot of people even stop going to church because ‘God has not answered’ their prayers. A lot of people are Christians because it is the right and in-thing to do these days. Some other people come into Christianity to escape from reality. They are like Moses who, at the age of 80, was in the desert trying to escape from reality. Life for such people has become a set of clichés. Some people do not have any job because they are Christians. They are suffering and go around begging for money, but will not go and get a job.
A lot of Christians just want to use God for their own purposes. They are like Simon, the sorcerer, in Acts chapter 8. Some people go to church because a particular personality comes to that church looking for business. There is nothing wrong in God blessing a person, but the most important thing is your motivation. A lady told me once that in a particular church which she attended for five years, there was never an altar call for once.
A lot of people go to church, but the Gospel has not had any effect on them. The church must change if it is not going to lose its power. We say the right things but do not do them. We do the right things but do not believe them. A lot of Christians are living a lie. The bottle is clean on the outside, but inside we have dead men’s bones. A lot of people are in Christianity but have not changed their lifestyle.
You need to ask yourself your motive for serving God. What is your motive for going to church? The church has now become a commodity that is to be advertised for miracles, healing and blessings. You have to know and understand that it is the same power that worked in Jesus that is inside you. We were told in the Bible that Peter’s shadow healed people. You have that same power inside you.
In the church today, we have Delilahs, ladies with a spirit that wants to pull men down, going around looking for men that they will wear down. Pastors are now surrounded by Jezebels who have complete control over them. In the church today, we have Sadducees; the old-fashioned Christians who dwell on doctrines. In the church today, we have Pharisees who have become hypocrites. They say one thing and do another. In the church today, we have Ananias and Saphira; Christians who exaggerate. They tell lies without blinking.
I don’t know what kind of Christian you are, but there must be a change in your life and circumstances. I know that you may be going through trials and difficulties, but you must worship God for the sake of God and not because of filthy lucre. They reason a lot of people are having challenges with Christianity is because they are not truly born again. Truly, give your life to God today, so that God can do something new and extraordinary in your life.
