Will the Real Christian Please Stand Up?
- Bethany McLemore
- Jul 7, 2023
- 15 min read
Updated: Oct 17, 2023
Article Contents
What Does God Say Is Real...Truthfully?
How Is It Possible for the Contestants to Deceive Us?
How Do We Ensure We Have Not Deceived Ourselves?
What’s the Takeaway?
References
There was a television game show called To Tell the Truth. There have been several reboots of it over the years. The idea of the game was for one person of notoriety to be presented, whose profession or something else unusual about the person was described. Two other contestants would claim to be the same person and try to deceive the panel. The hitch was that each contestant introduced him/herself as the same person and each attempted to convince the panelists that they were the real person with that name and occupation or story. The two imposter contestants lied about their identity, and the actual person was required to tell the truth. The panelists had to determine which individual was telling the truth and was the actual person described. After the panelists asked many questions of the contestants to try to figure it out, the host posed the question, “Will the real ______ please stand up?” At that moment, the contestants acted as if they would stand, but ultimately the real person stood.
As a child it was fun to try to outsmart the contestants and accurately determine which of the three people was the true person described at the beginning of the show. Some contestants were not very good at lying while others were incredibly convincing. Sometimes the convincing contestants seemed far more likely to be the described person who did the extraordinary thing than the actual person. It is a bit disturbing that there are those around us that can convince us that they are the real deal when in actuality, they are posers like those on the game show.
IMBd 2016
As Christians, we are usually pretty familiar with what ‘a real Chrisitan’ acts like. Typically, they attend church every week and participate in the various services and activities offered by the church. Many church-going believers volunteer on church committees or teach groups of church goers in Sunday School or bible study or Discipleship Training. They sing in the choir or help the Communion/Eucharist Committee to get everything ready for the sacrament, or they arrange the flowers for the altar. Through their efforts the church presents well, looks inviting, and runs according to plan. Because of them the worship experience is smooth and familiar.
When they exit the church, they often get into a car with an ichthus magnet on the trunk. They wear a cross or crucifix necklace or a lapel pin. Bible in hand, they drive off, sometimes to their favorite restaurant for a nice lunch., other times to go home and engage in some mundane activity.
There is nothing inherently problematic about what I have just described. Like other organizations, churches need to complete their functions in efficient and fluid ways. People are necessary to make sure things are in order and that there is a plan of action in place for that. Showing the world that we are a Christian by adorning our cars and ourselves is a sort of testimony. It is supposed to quickly disclose that we are believers of Christ and are redeemed from all the cruddy things we have done or are guilty of by omission.
However, is it possible that we plan and organized the Holy Spirit right out of moving powerfully within our services and studies because he does not wear a watch and so does not know that a significant move of his conviction or love or counsel is too close to the time we are used to getting out for lunch? Is it possible for believers to present a testimony without ever uttering a word or dawning a gold necklace? Do these things tell the truth about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit?
Who Does God Say Is Real…Truthfully?
Scripture is replete with what God says is behavior and character of his true children. The Bible describes what his children need to be like, what they are not to be like, and being his children, what we can expect in terms of benefits, blessings, and promises. As with any true relationship between Father and child, we are promised an inheritance that should be evident in our lives. Much like the outward show of genetics, we should resemble our Father and his First Son, Christ.
There are many traits of a true believer and child of God. What I detail here is not exhaustive.
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Authentic followers of Christ will worship the Triune God in Truth and from our spirit. It is from our own spirit withing that we connect with the Holy Spirit and are aware of his guiding in worship of the Father. When we are doing so, Truth follows suit because the Spirit is the author of truth and will reveal supernatural mysteries and impart understanding.
23 But a time is coming and is already here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit [from the heart, the inner self] and in truth; for the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers. 24 God is spirit [the Source of life, yet invisible to mankind], and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
John 4:23-24 Amplified Bible
Authentic children of God will love God with their entire selves; our will, emotions, thoughts, and will demonstrate his love in us by love other people. When we love God this way, he is our first consideration, he is the One we want to talk to, and he is the One who takes care of us, and he never abandons us. He is our standard of measurement, and he is our ability to meet those standards.
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 And Jesus replied to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’ 40 The whole Law and the [writings of the] Prophets depend on these two commandments
True Christians will love others without the limits of eros (romantic and sexual), philia (friendly) or storge (empathic). Agape love is extended to others whether we know them or not, whether or not they deserve it. Agape is a love that transcends what the Flesh knows about love. Agape is deep and rich and is confounding. It does not fade. It is not situational or circumstantial. This love builds our character confuses those who either are not God’s or operate from the Flesh…they believe that if they do not feel it, no one could. This kind of love is patient and kind, it is humble, it does not act on a desire to hurt others or disrespect them in order to save face. It is not boisterous or rude. Agape supersedes the Flesh. Those who truly are intimate with God will grow in this kind of love, and God will do the work; we just have to ask him to.
Love Without Limits
14 Beyond all these things put on and wrap yourselves in [unselfish] love, which is the perfect bond of unity [for everything is bound together in agreement when each one seeks the best for others]. Colossians 3:14 Amplified Bible;
1 Cor. 13; Ps 89; 1 Peter 1:8; Eph. 4:32
Genuine lovers of God will surrender to God and allow him to circumcise the heart (the Flesh). In Jewish tradition the removal of the foreskin of the penis was to symbolically remove all that was an interference to an intimate relationship with God. It is the same with the Flesh of our heart. The Flesh has not been transformed at the moment of conversion. It is the responsibility of the believer to work with God through prayer and obedience to transform the mind, will, and emotions to be in alignment with God’s will and nature. In the Old Testament we see passages about God’s wrath, and we struggle to understand that in juxtaposition to God’s love. But that is not the correct comparison to make. God’s wrath is to be compared with understanding about his holiness and majesty. While he fully loves the Person that he is, and his Character requires a transformed nature vis our surrender to him. We surrender, and he does the transforming.
4 “Circumcise (dedicate, sanctify) yourselves to the Lord And remove the foreskin [sins] of your heart, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will go forth like fire [consuming all that gets in its way] And burn and there will be no one to quench it, Because of the evil of your acts.” Jeremiah 4:4 Amplified Bible
Real Christians obey God. He has our best interest at heart, and he wants to protect us and give us a life that he has planned. This sometimes requires that we not feed our Flesh, but it is for our benefit. What we feed grows. When we feed obedience to God and starve the Flesh, the Flesh gets smaller and kicks up less of a stink when God ask us to do something. The more we mature as a believer, the less we struggle with ourselves because we do not humor the sinful nature. Phil. 2:55-11; Heb. 5:7-10
17 But thank God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient with all your heart to the standard of teaching in which you were instructed and to which you were committed. Romans 6:17 Amplified Bible
Authentic Christians will forgive others and will ask God and people for forgiveness for their own failings and sins. Forgiveness should be a regular aspect of the Christian life, both asking for it and giving it. Unconfessed sin gets in the way of intimacy with God and thus, his blessings. It creates division in relationships and can be used as a tool or opportunity by Satan. God will forgive, heal wounds, and restore relationships is that is his will. Because we are on the same spiritual playing field as other people, we are to extend forgiveness to them. None of us are above the need for forgiveness. None of us are too pious to not extend it; if the Holy God can extend it, so can we.
Forgiving others is to be done as often as is needed, even when the same person repeatedly needs to be forgiven. It is important to remember two things: forgiving someone who has repeatedly wronged us does not mean that we agree with what they have done or that it is okay; forgiveness sets us free from the angst of harboring a grudge.
“They refused to listen and obey and did not remember Your wondrous acts which You had performed among them; So, they stiffened their necks and [in their rebellion] appointed a leader in order to return them to slavery in Egypt. But You are a God of forgiveness, Gracious and merciful and compassionate, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness; And You did not abandon them. Nehemiah 9:17
21 Then Peter came to Him and asked, “Lord, how many times will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him and let it go? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered him, “I say to you, not up to seven times, but seventy times seven. Matthew 18:21
In 1966 a priest by the name of Peter Scholtes (Wikipedia 2023) wrote a hymn entitled “They Will know We Are Christians by Our Love” The words offer us more of what a true Christian is like characteristically.
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord And we pray that our unity will one day be restored And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love.
We will work with each other, we will work side by side We will work with each other, we will work side by side And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love.
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Peter Scholtes
They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Love lyrics © The Lorenz Corporation
Those of us who are truly followers of Christ will be evident because we will be unified and will seek movement toward reparation and healing. We will be unified by the empowering of the Holy Spirit and will acknowledge that we are one under the Lord we serve. We pray for restoration among other things and seek to work along side of other believers regardless of denomination or creed. In attempting to not alienate non-believers and each other, true Christians will guard each person’s dignity and worth just as God has done. And by this we will show agape love, a love that astonishes human nature and proves the Holy Spirit has done a good work in us. It becomes our testimony.
How Is It Possible for the Contestants to Deceive Us?
The celebrity guest panel on To Tell the Truth were given the task of determining which person claiming to be a particular person actually was the person described at the beginning of the show. Quite a challenge when the genuine person did not always present as if he/she were the correct individual, and the other contestants were such convincing liars. The panel guests had to pay close attention and ask clever questions to try to narrow it down to the contestant that seemed the most plausible, to be the actual person associated with a story. In Matthew 13:25 (Amplified Bible) Jesus tells how a farmer who sowed wheat seed in a field. During the night an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat that looked similar to it. It was difficult to discern the wheat from the weeds until harvest.
Sometimes it may seem difficult to tell the difference between people who are authentic believers and followers of Christ and those who only claim to be. Many of them are amongst us. How do we know the truth about who gave their lives to Christ and who did not? Does it matter?
It does matter because our lives give
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testimony to whom we serve, and there can only be but one that we fully and successfully serve. People need to see authentic examples of a life surrendered to God so that they want what they need…Christ. Those who do not truly serve God but serve their ego and their also give a testimony. So, if those people claim they are God’s but live their lives as if they had never met him, then their testimony damages the reputation of God.
We will be able to tell the truth about who we say we are by the fruit we bear. At harvest, the truth will be known. Christ said (Matthew 7:16-24),
16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
We all bear fruit or give signs of what is important to us and what we hold as priority. How we spend our time, what we spend money on, what we are careful to protect all reveal what we hold the dearest. When that is God, we make time to talk with him, we consider his opinion on things, we worship him with our lifestyle, and we are not uncomfortable to talk about him. Like any quality relationship, when we are his and we love him, it will be obvious.
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Christ continued in Matthew,
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
Matthew 7:16-24 ESV
Jesus said a very sobering thing. Some who claim to know Christ are wrong! He will say he never knew them. How can that happen? If they spoke words of prophesy, engaged in spiritual warfare, or works on behalf of Christ do not those things equate to good spiritual fruit? Not necessarily. Just like the photo above, people can claim to be an orange, be orange in color, and even sit with other healthy oranges, but the rot of their Fleshly urges and actions, or the lack of surrender to God results in a fruit noone wants to have. It is rubbish and will be thrown out.
It is possible to mimic and perform as other Christians do, but it will be superficial and ingenuine because the Power of the Holy Spirit must be moving in order for anything authentic to occur. A person can go where believers go and do some of the things, they do but never surrender to Christ and ask him to save and redeem them. I can swim in the ocean but that does not make me a dolphin. I can sit on a church pew but that does not make me Christ’s. The Holy Spirit gives testimony of who has given their lives to God through Christ, and that testimony is good fruit that springs forth from that which is God’s.
16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. Romans 8:16-18 ESV
We need to surrender to the power of the Spirit and be willing to grow in discernment. Authentic believers will possess discernment and spiritually mature Christians will use it.
13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness since he is a child. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those who have Unsplah 2023
their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. Hebrews 5:13-14 ESV
So, the bottom line is that if others cannot tell the truth of who we serve then one of two things has happened. We go through the motions of claiming Christ and may even attend church or sing in the choir but never genuinely surrendered to the Holy Spirit’s urging to accept Christ as savior. The other possibility is that we really did ask Christ to be our savior, but never surrendered ourselves to being made new, being transformed into the likeness of Christ, being fully malleable to the Holy Spirit and empowered by him and instead allow full reign of the Flesh. In both situations, the fruit that is born will be rotten. The world will see a lack of agape, gentleness, forgiveness, respect, and humility. Other than outward trappings of church activity and giving to charity, such individuals look like each other…unsaved.
"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” John 7:24
13 "For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another." Galatians 5: 13-15
How Do We Ensure We Have Not Deceived Ourselves?
We need to ask ourselves and seek honest answers from the Holy Spirit who is the author of Truth.
Are we a new creation? 2 Corinthians 5:17
Are we actively growing in our walk with God?
Do we actually interact intimately with God, keeping in close touch?
Do we conform to Christ’s likeness as empowered by the Holy Spirit? Romans 8:29
Do we compromise so that we seem no different than those who are hypocritical or are not God’s at all?
Do we meet the description of ‘Christ believer’ and meet the reasonable assumptions about what that presents like?
Do we regularly check in with the Holy Spirit to make sure we are obeying God and have not left sin unconfessed? 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Cor. 11:28-31 Amplified
Ask God, “How can I pray so that I am authentic in my relationship with you?”
If you are not sure you have asked Christ to be your Savior, then that is an easy fix for that. Just pray to God which just means talk to him. Tell God that you want him to forgive you of all your sins; ask Jesus to be your Savior and Redeemer and to heal you; ask the Holy Spirit to help you fully surrender to him, to grow you, and help you become more like Christ; Ask God to fully protect you. Then end your prayer by saying, “in the name of Jesus.”
What’s the Takeaway?
Authenticity is so important for Christians. It is authenticity that confirms what we claim to be and how we interact with others is validated. It makes us trustworthy because our testimony holds true to what we know about those who claim to know Christ. It crucifies hypocrisy. It crucifies the Flesh. Authenticity marks believers as true representatives of God and a living witness to his power. Does authenticity equate to sinlessness? No. It equates to surrendered trust in God. Without salvation and full surrender there can be no true intimacy or growth. Your testimony will be that you seem like everyone else…who have never met God legitimately. Scripture is clear; those who do the will of God the Father will be marked as true believers, and the Holy Spirit bears witness to that.
49 And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Matthew 12:46-50 ESV
God’s family obeys him from a willing and loving heart. The fruit of that particular tree will be obvious.
When sitting before a panel of judges along with two other imposters, will we be easily identified as the one who willingly serves God? It is time to tell the truth. Will the real Christian please stand up?
REFERENCES
John 4:23-24. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
search=John+4%3A23-24&version=AMP
Matthew 22:36-40. (2023). In Bible Gateway.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22%3A36-
40&version=ESV
Colossians 3:14. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Jeremiah 4:4. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Romans 6:17. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Nehemiah 9:17. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Matthew 18:21. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Matthew 7:16-24. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
search=Matthew+7%3A16-24&version=ESV
Romans 8:16-18. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
search=Romans+8%3A16-18&version=ESV
Hebrews 5:13-14. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
search=Hebrews+5%3A13-14&version=ESV
John 7:24. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
Matthew 12:46-50. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/
passage/?search=Matthew+12%3A49-50&version=ESV
Glatians 5:13-15. (2023). In Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?
search=Galatians+5%3A13-15&version=ESV
Google Images (2023). https://www.google.com/search?
q=wheat+and+weeds+images
IMDb.com. (2016). [To Tell the Truth Contestants].
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5817158/mediaviewer/rm397967104/
Peter Scholtes. (2023, August 16). In Wikipedia. https/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Peter_Schotles