Jesus spoke to people who were fearful, troubled, diseased and sinful! His words brought peace to the tormented, forgiveness to the sinner, pardon to the guilty and healing to the sick and diseased! And life to the dead – both spiritually and physically! Amen.

                   Why I am a Christian

                                                    by Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.

      Bertrand Russell helped strengthen my determination, renew my faith and embolden my resolve for Christ by the statements he made and the books he wrote!  Especially the one titled, Why I Am Not A Christian!

      His death affected me as well!  It occurred on Feb. 2, 1970.  As I studied the eulogies that flowed from the lips of fellow philosophers and the typewriters of journalists, I decided to write this book, WHY I AM A CHRISTIAN!

      It all seemed so ridiculous to me, having read his statements for years, to see his ignominious end.  Russell died at the age of 99, a lost soul going into eternity to meet God all alone away from his fellow agnostics and philosophers, the glare of T.V. cameras and friendly newspaper reporters.

      Bertrand Russell - like all other agnostics and atheists - will have to face Jesus Christ at the Eternal Judgment Bar, like a blithering idiot, trying to explain his silly philosophical bent to the GOD OF THE UNIVERSE AND SAVIOUR OF MANKIND!

      When the news of his death reached me, I immediately prepared a radio message for release across the nation.  It was titled: ‘England's Wisest Fool is Dead’!

ENGLAND’S WISEST FOOL!

       To have had access to the Holy Bible as well as writings of some of the finest Christians of all time - Martin Luther, George Fox, John Wesley, John Bunyan and Charles Spurgeon - and still champion the kind of ideology and philosophy that he did, seemed sad to me.  Especially, since Almighty God had endowed him with a brilliant mind and ample opportunities to develop and illuminate it!

      How could a man live almost a century and reject Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Fountain Head of Wisdom, the Pearl of great price, the Prince of Peace and Giver of Eternal Life?  In order to do so, a person would have to be extremely dull intellectually or blinded spiritually by evil spirits, whose satanic duty it is to destroy men’s souls in hell!

      Since Bertrand Russell was a brilliant man, I deduced that like millions of others across the world, he must have been deceived.  St. Paul writes of Satan "blinding the eyes of those who refuse to receive this gospel...so that they will be damned!" (2 Thess. 2:12)

      

                                              RUSSELL EXUDED HOPELESSNESS!
     Bertrand Russell stated: “The life of man is a long march through the night, surrounded by invisible foes, tortured by weariness and pain, towards a goal that few can hope to reach and where none can tarry long. One by one, as they march, our comrades vanish from our sight, seized by the silent orders of omnipotent death.
      “Brief and powerless is man's life, on his and all his race the slow, sure doom falls, pitiless and dark. Blind to good and evil, reckless of destruction, omnipotent matter rolls on its relentless way. For man, condemned today to lose his dearest, tomorrow himself to pass through the gates of darkness, it remains only to cherish, ere yet the blow falls, the lofty thoughts that ennoble his little day.”

                                      SHAW & WELLS REJECTED ATHEISM!
      Writers H.G. Wells and George Bernard Shaw were brilliant men who had left God out of their lives! They built their beliefs on the sinking, shifting sands of exalted humanism, and their lofty ideologies came crashing down around their ears.

     In the end, both Wells and Shaw wrote of their disillusionment with atheism and the fallacy of their belief in science as a near end-all religion!

     Wells' final literary work oozed of hopelessness and is indeed a testament to the failings of his earlier projections of building a utopian world based on the inherent goodness in mankind! It has correctly been called "a scream of despair." He had given up all hope for the human race!  

      George W. Shaw (1856–1950) winner of 1925 Nobel Prize in literature stated: “I am ready to admit after contemplating the world and human nature for 60 years, that I see no way out of the world’s miseries but by the way that would be found by Christ’s will.”

      What a marvelous testimony to the overwhelming power of the Gospel that eclipses all human abilities and frailties throughout all times and ages!

     He stated: “The science to which I pinned my faith is bankrupt. Its counsels, which should have established the millennium, have led directly to the suicide of Europe. I believed them once. In their name I helped to destroy the faith of millions. And now they look at me and witness the great tragedy of an atheist who has lost his faith."

      Oh, the futility of atheism! Shaw died as a believer in Jesus Christ but I have not found that Wells turned to the Lord in his despair and disappointment! 

      For more than 50 years I have studied the Bible and served in the Christian ministry for five decades, and yet I can say with all sincerity and fairness, that God is reliable and the Bible is relevant! And that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever and humanity’s only hope for time and eternity!

                              CHRIST IS COMPETENT, ABLE, WILLING!

      Without doubt, Jesus Christ is compassionate, able and willing to grant answers to our prayers, even in this dark hour of human history!

      Make no mistake about the fact that the Holy Spirit is actively working today in the lives of all who put their trust in our Lord.  He continues to faithfully call lost souls to turn back to God in repentance and faith, so that they may receive the forgiveness of sins, and eternal life together with those who are redeemed and sanctified!

      For years I have studied volumes of theological as well as philosophical, ideological and scientific journals, and have been strengthened immensely in the faith, even by reading the liberal higher critics who seek to destroy belief in Christ's deity, the bodily resurrection of Jesus and the miracles of the Bible!

      Having researched their writings, I have discovered that when you get all the facts, use the proper hermeneutical approach, taking into consideration the historical, cultural and religious context of any Biblical passage, and diligently searching out the original texts, all apparent inconsistencies vanish like the fog before the sun! In order to come to this conclusion, one must be totally honest!

       I have also discovered that many of the “enemies of the cross” of Christ and His Gospel are mental lightweights, little-learned in spiritual matters, uninterested in ultimate truth, who parrot worn-out slogans and theories of less than intelligent philosophers and ‘fathers of atheism, sadism and perversion’!

     

     My statement to Mike Roberts of CHBC TV will forever be my testimony: "I'm satisfied with Jesus Christ.  God has been far too good to me.  I do not deserve all the blessings He has showered upon my life!"

      I thank Professor Bertrand Russell posthumously for the challenge I received from his ill - prepared and unscientific, anti-Christian statements.

      And I thank the Holy Spirit, Who prompted me to set the record straight on behalf of my good friend and Saviour Jesus Christ, Who is everything He claims to be and more; the Son of the Living God and the sole Saviour of the world.  In fact, in Him we live and move and have our being! (Acts 17:28)

      I had the privilege of debating Charles Templeton - Canada's leading Agnostic - on the subject of the Christian Gospel, on Edmonton's CKER Night Watch a number of years ago.  A scheduled debate on Ray Torgrud's CKY TV Talk Show, Winnipeg, however, didn't get ‘off the ground’ as Templeton was unable to appear.

      On one occasion I asked Mr. Templeton pointedly, "What do you think of Jesus Christ?" He answered, “Jesus Christ is the single most important influence in my life.”  Then I probed, "Is He the Son of God?"  Templeton answered: "No, he is not the Son of God!"  I asked, "Who is He then?" He replied: "A moral genius”. 

      Then I dropped a bombshell: "How can a moral genius be a colossal liar?  For He said, ‘I am the Son of God!’  If He is a moral genius, He cannot be a liar and is therefore the Son of God.”

      For a moment on the other end of the telephone there was a short embarrassing silence, just before Templeton began a rambling defense.  In broadcasting, we call that silence: "The moment of truth!"

      In my heart I pity Charles Templeton, who preached the gospel and together with Billy Graham reached multitudes for our Lord Jesus Christ! When I debated Templeton in 198?, he called himself an agnostic. Fifteen years later when he wrote his last book, Farewell to God, he called himself an atheist!

     

       For many years, I have preached this message to large crowds in our crusades across the world with great success.  Finally, by God's grace I have found the time and obtained the funds, to put it into print.

      In the first chapter, I deal with the subject, ‘What is a Christian?’  In subsequent chapters I give the arguments, reasons and deductions I have arrived at after more than 50 years of dedicated research, study, observation and experience.

            I dedicate this work to young people who are searching for the truth.  May the Holy Spirit graciously allow this book to fall into their hands!  Then may He, the Divine Paraclete open their eyes so they may recognize Jesus Christ for Who He really is, the Son of the Living God!

      I dedicate this book to young married couples and those in middle age, who are so busy with their lives raising children, making ends meet and getting them through college and university, that they have simply left God out of their lives!

      I dedicate this book to the early retirees, seniors, the golden agers and those who are close to eternity! May each one of us take a good look at eternal values and Jesus Christ, the only hope for eternity and Heaven!  Amen.

Acknowledgements:

      To the many preachers, scholars and theologians, whom I have known or whose books I have read and learned from, I say thank you for your great help! I wish to thank the blessed Holy Spirit for His guidance and wisdom in anointing His humble servant in this undertaking!

      In my busy schedule of pastoring, counselling, travelling and writing, He has encouraged me and enabled me to finally get these words on paper. I thank my wonderful wife, Donna, for her love, devotion to God and family and her patience in my arduous tasks of both pastoring and world evangelism!

      And a special ‘thank you’ to my daughter, Betty Farge, who has typed and re-typed the manuscript for this book and many others, for more than a decade.

                                                                     CHAPTER 1:

WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?

      “They were called Christians first in Antioch” (Acts 11:20).

      The word 'Christian' really means 'Christ-like-one'.  Christ Himself was called 'the Nazarene', to fulfill the Scriptures, so some of His followers adopted that name (Matt.2: 23; Is. 11:1). After the Antioch episode, however, followers of Jesus Christ were called Christians, which also had the connotation, 'The Family of Jesus'!

      That's fitting, because St. Paul states that we are of the "household of faith" and "the household of God". (Gal.6 :10; Eph.2 :19)

      For the first twenty years after the birth of the Church, the followers of Jesus were referred to by several other names beginning with 'Maaminim' which was a derisive name given this Jewish sect of believers in Yeshua (Jesus) as Ha Mashiach (Messiah).

     The first believers in Jesus were Jewish! They were called “Maaminim” and comprised a spiritual movement within the scope of Judaism - with their own synagogues - and preached the ‘Besorah’ (Good News) of salvation.

     Dr. H.H. Goldberg states, “Besides the Perushim (Pharisees), Tzedukim (Sadducees) and Essenes, the ‘Maaminim’ - were an integral part of the Temple community and ‘Ha-aam Hayehudi’ (the Jewish people)”.  For the first eight years after the resurrection of Jesus, the ‘Maaminim’ ministered exclusively to Jews.

     The deacon, Phillip, the deacon broke tradition by preaching in Samaria, among that city’s Jewish-extracted, mixed-race population.  Cornelius’ household were the first Romans to accept the gospel - two years later - when ‘Shimon bar Yonah’ (St. Peter) preached to them.

     Rabbi ‘Shaul of Tarsus’, a fanatical pharisee, crusading to exterminate the ‘Maaminim’, met Jesus of Nazareth - in a bright light - on the Damascus Road and was converted.

ST. PAUL MOST EFFECTIVE!

Among the evangelists, he was the most effective in converting the heathen.  Gentile believers became known as Christians and their houses of worship, churches (heb. fem. of synagogue).

     At the Jerusalem Council - A.D. 50, the ‘Maaminim’ accepted gentile believers into fellowship - without embracing Jewish customs and disciples - except refraining from idolatry.

     The ‘Maaminim’ grew so large that in A.D. 90, Gamaliel II called the ‘Yavneh Council’ of rabbis to stem the growth of the new Jewish movement.  It was decreed that a disparaging verse against the ‘Maaminim’ be included in the ‘Amidah’ (central prayer in synagogue service).

     The persecution increased when Rabbi Akiba declared ‘Shimon bar Kochba’ - who led an insurrection against the Romans from A.D. 132 to 135 - the Messiah.  The ‘Maaminim’ remonstrated saying, “There is no Mashiach - except Yeshua”.

     Shimon bar Kochba’s ‘Messiahship’ was later repudiated by Jewish leaders, but the breach with the ‘Maaminim’ remained.  Whatever happened to the Jewish believers?  Why did the ‘Maaminim’ - who continued until the fifth century – disappear?

THE HISTORICAL RECORD EXPOSES ONE OF CHRISTIANITY’S MOST SHAMEFUL CHAPTERS:  THE UNRIGHTEOUS TREATMENT OF JESUS’ FIRST FOLLOWERS AND GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE!  WHAT PERSECUTING JEWS FAILED TO DO - DESTROY THE ‘MAAMINIM’ - PROUD, BIASED AND SPITEFUL GENTILE CHRISTIANS SUCCEEDED BY THEIR HATRED AND REJECTION!

Jewish preachers had converted many pagans to Christ.  But after the first century, gentile Christians - who had become dominant - began to persecute their Jewish brethren!

     Church fathers and clergy demanded that Jewish believers renounce their Jewish observances and practices.  They forgot that the ‘Maaminim’ in A.D. 50 embraced them - on the basis of their belief in Jesus - without changing cultures. Now they demanded that the Jews change their customs - as the basis for salvation. (Rom. 11)

     With the rebirth of the Jewish State however, there is also a re-emergence of the ‘Maaminim’, in Israel.

     And since hundreds of thousands of Jews have returned to Israel during this past decade (some of them born again, spirit-filled Christians from South America and Eastern Europe) the Evangelical Christian Church is growing rapidly in Israel.  Praise God!

     Dr. H.H. Goldberg, spirit-filled rabbi of a Los Angeles Maaminim congregation says, “A true Jew is committed to God, to the land of Israel and to the Jewish people.  And many Jews today believe in Jesus as their Mashiach”.

       What is a Christian and who are today’s geuine Christians?

      There are multitudes across the world, who bear the name of Christ, but really do not know Him and are not obeying His Word, because of ignorance, carnality or stubbornness.

      One of the 'tragedies in the Christian Church' is that millions of people in various Christian communions are not born again, even though Jesus said, "Except a man is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God". (John 13:3)

      No wonder Jesus said, "Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?  And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity." (Matt. 7:22,23)

      Our Lord emphasized, "With their mouths they do worship Me but their heart is far from Me.  In vain they do worship Me..." (Matt. 15:9)  Again our Master said, "Why call ye Me Lord, Lord and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46)

      Jesus demanded total commitment and obedience from His followers.  He said:  "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me." (Mark 8:34)

                            JESUS - THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE

      Jesus said, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field, the which when a man hath found, he hideth and for joy selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field".

      Again, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:  Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." (Matt. 13:44-46)

      In the FIRST PARABLE Jesus lays out His demands.  The kingdom of heaven is worth everything if it's worth anything!

CHRIST HIMSELF IS THE PRICELESS TREASURE!  EVERYTHING ELSE IS SECOND RATE AND WE MUST GET RID OF ALL CONFLICTING INTERESTS IF WE WANT TO ENTER HIS KINGDOM!

     

      In the SECOND PARABLE Jesus is setting Himself forth as the Pearl of Great Price.  In order to obtain salvation, which comes only through Christ, we must sell all other pearls and buy the Pearl of Great Price!

      IT'S ALL OR NOTHING! Christ will play second fiddle, to no - one.  He wants to be NUMBER ONE and demands first place in our hearts and lives!  Jesus Christ will not share His glory with anyone.  Our hearts must be burning for Him totally!

      A pearl is a thing of beauty, rarity and great value.  The pearl of great price is the crown jewel, the priceless treasure and the op­portunity of a lifetime!

      Our Master made His position clear, in relationship to each of us: "He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me." (Matt. 10:37)

       A Christian then, is a dedicated follower of Jesus Christ, a Christ-like one and a reflection or imitation of our Saviour!    

      St. Paul stated, "Ye are our epistle written in our hearts known and read by all men!" (2 Cor. 3:2-3)  We are the only Bible some people will ever read!  Christ is the Living Word, the Bible is the written Word and we are to be reflections of that Word, pointing men and women to Christ!

JESUS CHRIST: LIGHT OF THE WORLD!

      He stated, "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12).  He also said, "Ye are the light of the world" (Matt. 5:14)

      As the moon has no light of its own but reflects the brightness of the sun, we are only reflectors of Christ's glory and light.  He is the light of the world and we reflect His glory, grace and light to this world!

      St. Paul admonished: "Be ye followers of God as dear children" (Eph. 5:1).  The Greek gives us the rendering of the following words which refer to our relationship with Jesus Christ, as given in the Pauline epistles!

1) MIMEITAI - means mimic: The old English word for actor.  Christians mimic or act like Him.  WE SHOULD ACT LIKE JESUS CHRIST!

2) TUPOES - means ensamples: Christ is the pattern - we are carbon copies.  He is the original. We are  copies.  WE FOLLOW HIS EXAMPLE!

3) EKSEIKETAI - means echo; sounded out:  We only echo what He has spoken.  We sound out the evangel and bring words of reconciliation and healing to the people in His name!  WE SPEAK HIS WORD!

EXCEPT YE BE BORN AGAIN!

      Jesus said, "Except a man be born again he shall not see the kingdom of Heaven".  (John 3:3,7)

      Without the born again experience, a person cannot fully please God or understand the things of the Spirit.

      The Baptism in the Holy Spirit further opens our eyes to the reality and relevance of God, in this generation! Jesus said: “…If any man thirst, let him come to Me and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

      “But this He spake of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.” (John 7: 37-39)

      "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.  He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.  But whoso keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him." (1 John 2:3-5)

A CHRISTIAN IS FIVE THINGS:

1)     A Christian is a mind through which Christ thinks.

2)     A Christian is a heart through which Christ loves.

3)     A Christian is a voice through which Christ speaks.

4)     A Christian is hands through which Christ helps and heals.

5)     A Christian is feet through which Christ carries the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

6)     A Christian is eyes through which Christ sees the lost and needy!

7)     A Christian is ears through which Christ hears the call of lost souls!

WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?

By Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D

Preface

       “They were called Christians first in Antioch.” (Acts 11: 26); “....Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.” (Acts 26: 28). “Yet if anyone suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.” (1 Peter 4: 16).

       The word Christian means ‘belonging to Christ; Christ-like-ones’. The early Christians were spoken of as belonging to the ’Family of Jesus’! The first believers in Jesus the Messiah were Jewish and still worshipped in the synagogue, but also met together on the Lord’s Day (Sunday) – that was the day they found the tomb of Jesus empty – and also from house to house!

      They were called ‘maaminims’, a derisive term placed upon them by the Jewish Community. These believers in Jesus as Messiah were as much a part of the religious community as the Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians or Essenes!

      Philip went to Samaria – a spiritually perverted people – with the Gospel, and the entire city believed in Jesus Christ when they saw the signs, wonders and miracles which he did in Jesus’ name! (Acts 8: 5-8).

     When Saul of Tarsus was converted (Acts 9: 17-22), he carried the gospel throughout Europe and Asia Minor with great success! Cornelius and his family were the first Italians to receive Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord and be filled with the blessed Holy Spirit, after listening to the message brought by Peter! (Acts 10: 44–48).

      The Bible admonishes us: “Be ye followers of God as dear children.” (Eph.

5: 1).  The Greek gives us the rendering of the following words which refer to our relationship with Jesus Christ, as give in the Pauline Epistles!

1). MIMEITAI – means mimic: The old English word for actor! Christians mimic or act like Him. We should act like Jesus Christ!

2). TUPOES – means ensamples: Christ is the pattern – we are carbon copies. He is the original! We are copies. We follow His example!

3). EKSEIKETAI – means echo: sounded out! We only echo what He has spoken. We sound out the evangel and bring words of reconciliation and healing to the people in His name. We speak His Word!

       1 Th. 1:8; Rom.18:18; 1 Peter 2: 21; John 10: 27

(1). A CHRISTIAN IS A HEART

THROUGH WHICH CHRIST LOVES!

      “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3: 16, 17).

      St. John declared: “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. We love Him, because He first loved us.” (1 John 5:10, 19).    

      The Church desperately needs to experience the love of Christ which goes beyond description in kindness, mercy and love! Our Lord stated: “A new commandment I give unto you. That ye love one another as I have loved you. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13: 34, 35).

       Without a miracle, it is impossible to love someone like Jesus Christ loved

us! Jesus said: “With men this is impossible, but not with God. For with God, all things are possible.” Mark 10: 27). His great love and mercy toward us makes this possible! “For He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to then that believe on His name.” (John 1: 11, 12).

     Since the fall of Adam and Eve, all of us were born in sin and shapen in iniquity. The Bible states: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”(Rom. 3: 23); “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.” (Rom. 3: 10); “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer. 17: 9).

     Our propensity to sin – sinners by birth, nature and choice – demands that we all be freed from sin’s shackles, if we are to love one another as Christ loved us! And Jesus Christ has provided our release from Satan’s Prison House though His shed blood on Calvary’s cross!

      Here’s how this miracle works: “Therefore if any man be in Christ Jesus, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Cor. 5: 17); “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” (1 John 3:14).

       Jesus said: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, He cannot see the kingdom of God...Except a man be born of water (God’s Word) and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” (John 3: 3, 7); Being born again, not of corruptible, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” (1 Peter 1: 23).

(11). A CHRISTIAN IS A MIND

THROUGH WHICH CHRIST THINKS!

     “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…” (Phil.2: 5). Wonder of wonders! We mortals can have the mind of Christ. We can think as God thinks; pure, righteous, holy, kind, compassionate and loving thoughts, which emanate from the throne!

      The Bible says that Jesus - our High Priest – “was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Heb. 4: 15). He never thought an evil thought

nor did an evil deed. He had malice to no-one and was without fear, lust or pride! And St. Paul states that we can have His mind and be like Him!

      The human mind is the devil’s real battlefield and he is a master at deception and trickery! Satan knows that if he can dominate a person’s thought life with foolish fantasies, occult lies or lustful, spiteful, hateful thoughts, he has won! Satan is a liar, deceiver and the enemy of God and man! The good news is that he was defeated by our Lord Jesus Christ’s vicarious death for us and glorious resurrection from the dead!

                                         TEMPTATION COMES THROUGH LUST!

      St. James wrote: “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man: But he is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.” (James 1: 13, 14).

      The mind of Christ is creative, brilliant and understanding! He imparts knowledge, dispenses wisdom and gives life to all who receive His mind! God has given us the ability to pro-create children in our image because He created us in His image. He is Father, Son and Holy Spirit and we are spirit, soul (mind) and body. And because we are so constituted, He gives us the innovation, inspiration and wisdom to concentrate, pray and create things through invention and construction!     

     The mind of Christ does not waver, change or deal in ambiguous terms! There is no double-speak! There are no contradictions! The Bible warns: “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” (James 1: 8).”...not with eye-service, as men-pleasers: but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” (Col. 3:22).

      The mind of Christ is a pure mind!  The Bible says: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Phil.4: 8)

      The mind of Christ is a sound and stable mind! “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of love and power and of a sound mind.” (2 Tim. 1:7). The purpose of the demeaning, derogatory and abusive treatment King Herod and his soldiers heaped upon our Saviour through verbiage and acts were meant to humiliate and harm Jesus of Nazareth physically and mentally!

      When they platted a crown of Jerusalem thorns - the Arabian Nebulae -it was meant to drive our precious Lord insane, but instead of losing His mind through it all, Jesus purchased our peace of mind! He took upon Himself the curse which was brought upon mankind through the fall of Adam! (Gal.3:13).

       The Bible says: “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon Him and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned

everyone to his own way. And the Lord hath laid upon Him the iniquities of us all.” (Is. 53: 4-6).

      A Christian is a mind through which Christ thinks. As our mind assimilates those godly thoughts, we think about people like God thinks about them. Our thoughts then become the will of God for the people, and we begin to work in accordance with His Word, will and purposes!

      St. Paul writes: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” (2 Tim. 1: 7). “But the natural mind receiveth not the things of the spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto Him: neither can He know them, because they are spiritually discerned. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that He may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Cor. 2: 14, 16)

                   (111). A CHRISTIAN IS A VOICE

                   THROUGH WHICH CHRIST SPEAKS!

      Jesus spoke to people who were fearful, troubled, diseased and sinful! His words brought peace to the tormented, forgiveness to the sinner, pardon to the guilty and healing to the sick and diseased! And life to the dead – both spiritually and physically!

      He spoke with great compassion, love, mercy and grace! No man ever spoke like Jesus! His voice of invitation was full of kindness and reassurance! And he rebuked the Pharisees, He spoke with authority and firmness, and when He commanded evil and unclean spirits to vacate their their slaves, the wicked ’hordes of hell’ obeyed immediately!

      His merciful words of invitation and hope also brought strong admonitions against unbelief, false doctrine, hypocrisy and wrong doing!

LET’S LOOK AT SOME OF JESUS’ WORDS!

 PEACE:  “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world

giveth, give I unto thee: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14: 27)

FORGIVENESS: “Jesus said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man accused thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more.” (John 8: 10, 11).

COMPASSION:  “And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, weep not. And He came and touched bier: and they that bear him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up and began to speak. And He delivered him to his mother.” (Luke 7: 13 – 15).

NOTE: This the first intallment. There will be more to follow shortly. M.S.