ASHAMED OF CHRIST?
Mathew 10:32-33 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.”
In this modern world that we live in,everyone is obsessed with being up-to-date with the latest fashions, trends and lifestyle. Everyone wants to be accepted by society, and not to be looked down on as being old school.
This means that for real born again Christians who want to live a holy life,life is harder for them,as people look down on dressing modestly, staying away from artificial beauty which includes fake nails and nail painting, artificial hair,makeup and many other artificialities, wearing of trousers for women, sagging of trousers for men and all manner of worldliness. 1 Timothy 2:9-10,1 Peter 3:3,James 4:4.
As a result, the world puts pressure on them because they are regarded as backwards and not modern.
Due to the pressure,many people end up compromising in one way or another because they want to fit in.
I’m here to encourage people who are living such a compromised life due to this,speaking from my own experience and the things I have learnt in my Christian journey and to tell you what you should do to overcome this.
When I first came to the Lord in 2011,I was 17 and had just completed my 12th grade. I was a teenager and was in no sense any different from any other teenager,and had a strong desire to fit in.
Many people think that coming to Christ automatically means your desire for the world will just disappear but that is not true. It is a constant battle between what your flesh wants and what God wants and that is why the bible emphasises on the need to crucify the flesh and all its desires Galatians 5. We crucify the flesh by drawing closer to God through fastings, prayer, reading the word of God and singing praise and worship to Him. This should become our lifestyle. I’m not saying fast everyday but fast regularly. Prayer,reading the bible and spending time in praise and worship however should be something we spare time for EVERYDAY of our lives. When we draw closer to God through these ways,we’ll find that our desires are to please God, and the desires of the flesh are overcome easier this way. This does not mean you will become a perfect human being,but it means that doing the right things that please God will become easier for you.
So when the Lord gave us the first revelation of hell in early 2012,He emphasised on the need for women to dress modestly, as many were landing in hell for immoral dressing. 1 Timothy 2:9-10.
After the Lord gave us that message, my siblings and I (my elder sister,younger sister,brother and I) burnt anything we thought was not pleasing to the Lord.
After that,our parents gave us money to go and buy new clothes. At that time, we knew that the clothes have to be modest,but we really did not know the modesty required. As a result, we ended up buying skirts that were knee length.
Previously, we would even wear skirts that were above knee length, and we thought buying clothes that are knee length was modest enough and we would hence be seen before God as dressing holy.
Looking back now,I see that dressing like that was living a double life,of trying to please God and the World at the same time, which can not be done. Mathew 6:24 ,“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Revelation 3:16 “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.”
According to human standards, a dress or skirt is considered modest starting from if it is knee length going downwards. However, I learnt that it is not so according to God’s standards.
When I was dressing like this,I started to feel uncomfortable as if the Holy Spirit was not pleased, but again it was hard for me to do what I knew was the right thing to do,because I was scared of what people would think of me if I wore something that was outrightly long e.g ankle length.
This is the fear I am talking about and which I know is still present in many people today. The same fear leads people into thinking that they can compromise in a few areas of holiness and obey majority of what God wants and they will still go to Heaven,which is a lie. This compromise is not just in the area of dressing but can also apply to many other areas.
Many people will wonder how a skirt that is knee length is not modest. This is because when one sits,the dress moves higher up, and part of the thighs become exposed. When one bends, their back thighs are also exposed. One can’t dress like this and think they’re dressing modestly because they’re are only deceiving themselves. It was because of this knowledge the Lord gave me that I decided to start wearing clothes that are not tight fitting and are ankle length.
However, I must tell you that it was not easy for me to become like that,and it was only achieved because I increased my prayer life. That helped me to crucify the desires of the flesh. I stopped taking prayer as a casual thing but as a serious thing that became part of my daily life and also took up fasting regularly. When I took prayer as part of my everyday life,I began to see life for what is really is,a fleeting moment. I also began to see worldly dressing for what it is really is,prostitution in the eyes of God. My desires changed from wanting to please the world to wanting to please God. I became stronger spiritually.
This did not come without its own battles, as persecution intensified to make me comprise as I have shared in some of my posts and will continue sharing. However the more they persecuted, the more I sought refuge in God which made me grow stronger in God and hence was able to overcome.
The secret here is to develop a prayer life as a normal life. You are a soldier of Christ and as long as you are on earth,your life is a continuous battle. You are battling to go to Heaven and Satan is trying his very best to stop you. However, Christ is on your side and you will not be overcome.
As I shared in one of my recent posts,the persecutions to make me backslide have not stopped and it will be the same for every Christian. It is a continuous battle we have to fight, but we are assured of Victory through Christ.
The solution is to pray! pray! and pray!
Aside from this,there is no other way. You have to commit yourself to a lifestyle of prayer as a Christian if you are to overcome.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18,”Rejoice always, PRAY WITHOUT CEASING, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
One can’t go to Heaven if they are living a compromised life because of fearing the world. You have to give God TOTAL SURRENDER. Remember the bible says that God is not mocked. God sees all things hidden and not hidden and He knows in what ways we are compromising to please the world. We have to submit everything to Him in prayer and He will help us overcome.
Like I always emphasise in my posts, One needs to ask for the baptism of the Holy Spirit in prayer because the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin and corrects us when we are going on the wrong path.
Life is too short to please people and eternity too long. Death can come at any moment and that is why we can not afford to postpone our obedience to God to a time we feel will be more appropriate.
Many people do not like to hear sound doctrine because it requires sacrifice. The is however only ONE WAY to Heaven, and it is the Narrow way.
2 Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears”
End
Write a Reply or Comment
You should or Sign Up account to post comment.