My Sermon for Camp

tomorrow I will be leaving for a camp call JIM club (Jesus is Mine).  it is an amazing camp, I'll tell you more when I get back home (this post being kind of last minute), but they want you to come with a chapter of the bible memorized and a short sermon memorized.  I memorized Ephesians 6 and instead of choosing from a list of short sermons I wrote my own, you can see that below.  I just made this post to show you my sermon before I leave so here it is!

Hello everyone.   I have a question, are you a Christian?    Most people I have met would say yes to this question, BUT how many are lying or just think they are a Christian but aren’t not?

For those of you who think you are Christians because you read the bible, well if you read the bible so much show where it says you get salvation that way.

I know that John 3:16 says For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Later in John 3 it says He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.

But nowhere does it say anything about being saved by just reading the bible.  So if you believe that you’re getting to heaven by reading the bible you’re in trouble.      

But I want to be clear; I’m not saying you shouldn’t read the bible.  

Psalm 1 says that we should take delight in God’s word.

so you should read the bible, but it just doesn’t  give us salvation.

For those who think they are getting to heaven because they are good,

Romans 3:23 says:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

It doesn’t get much plainer

For those of you who think they are going to heaven because they pray, go to church, or do good works, well this really falls into the category of those that think they get to heaven because they're good.  If you think about it, it’s just doing good deed therefor trying to get to heaven by being good.

Isaiah 64:6 says:

But we are all like an unclean thing,

And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;

but Hebrews 10:24-25 says:

24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together

And 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says:

Pray without ceasing.

So it is good to go to church, pray, and do good works but, it just doesn’t give us salvation.

For those of you who in your minds are saying “well I’m going to heaven because my god wouldn’t create Hell”   well you’re half wrong because you’re not going to heaven for that reason, and you’re half right because he wouldn’t “your god” doesn’t exist.

The real God would and did make Hell.  He did this because he can’t let sin or sinful people go to heaven so there needed to be somewhere else to go, and that somewhere else is Hell.

Psalm 9:17 says

The wicked shall be turned into Hell, And all the nations that forget God.

For those who think they're going to Heaven because they believe that Jesus died on the cross, well this is an important part of salvation but there’s more to it.

The demons believe.

James 2:19 “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! “

I could go on and on with different examples of ways people think they get to heaven but that would make a very long sermon, so let’s get to the point I was trying to make.  If you believe Jesus died on the cross for your sins and rose from the dead, AND declare him as your lord you will be saved.

There is no other way explained in the whole bible.

Romans 10:9 says “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”  The word that is translated “confess” means to declare with the conviction of a covenant.

So are you a Christian? Is Jesus your Lord? Do you believe in His resurrection? Unless you answered yes to the last two questions, you cannot truthfully answer yes to the first one.

II Corinthians 13:5 says “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.”

So what does it mean to be disqualified? Here is what the Apostle John wrote in I John 3:10 “In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.”

Have you declared Jesus as your Lord and believe in His resurrection? If so, it will show by your practicing righteousness and loving your brother. If that describes you, then you can say “YES, I am a Christian!”