Post by Shane Gaydon on Oct 11, 2005 10:33:21 GMT -5
I have noticed that many Christians need to have a verse telling them specifically not to do something before they will submit to it. Even if the verse exists, it better be in the New Testament or they will explain away that it’s been abolished. I’m no Bible scholar so I don’t claim to have all the answers nor do I intend to condemn anyone. I would simply like to express my personal experience.
I was saved by the grace, mercy and sacrifice of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on May 15, 2005. This was an incredible, life altering experience for me and I have devoted my life to serving the Lord and doing everything I can to help save the souls of others.
One of the first things I did after becoming a Christian was trash most of my CD collection. A few examples of what I had been listing to were Slayer, Six Feet Under, Mettalica and Pantera. I felt I could not continue listening to this type of music and be a good Christian. I did not need a verse in the Bible to tell me to get rid of it. I simply felt moved by the Holy Spirit to rid myself of this blasphemous music.
The next thing I did was quit drinking and dipping. I had tried many times to quit these things in the past but I could not. With Christ now a part of my life, I have been able to do away with these things easily. (Philippians 4:13) The Bible has no specific verse regarding tobacco use that I am aware of but I felt moved to quit. Another issue with many Christians is the drinking. The Bible tells us not to be drunkards and to not be drunk with wine but does not specifically tell us not to drink at all. This leads a lot of Christians to “light drinking”. Well, drinking is drinking and the best way to not get drunk is not to drink. With the torn families, shattered lives and many deaths that alcohol has caused I don’t understand why a Christian would want anything to do with it.
I think a very important thing for us to remember is that the Bible instructs us to not be a friend of the world. In fact it says whoever is a friend of the world is an enemy of God. (James 4:4) Shortly after my salvation one thing that I came very close to doing was getting a tattoo. I already have one that I got years ago but I wanted to get a cross or something to represent my new life in Christ. I know many of you that read this have Christian tattoos and I will not bash you because I almost got one myself. I understand the Christians that get them do so in an effort to display their love for God I just don’t think it’s appropriate to use worldly influences to do it. I also went through the same thing when I searched for new music. The first thing I did was search for the hardest, heaviest “Christian” music I could find. I found however that I was simply trying to replace my old music with same type of music with a Christian label on it. I was looking for music that would appeal to my own lusts and desires rather than music that would glorify God. The music I found sounded just like my old music with all the worldly influences. What I was about to do was go from being a tattooed rocker to being a tattooed rocker with a little “Christian” label. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Therefore I feel that a Christian should be prepared to do away with all old things including the things that have these worldly influences.
Remember that we are not of this world but only passing through here for a short time. Our home is in Heaven with our Heavenly Father. Why would we want to resemble a decaying world with so much hatred and violence? My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we should depart from our desires of the flesh and strive to be more like Jesus Christ. The way we look, walk, and talk should not be like the rest of the world but like a Christian. We should resemble our Lord and Saviour and be as Holy as a washed in the Blood redeemed sinner can be.
God Bless,
Shane Gaydon
I was saved by the grace, mercy and sacrifice of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on May 15, 2005. This was an incredible, life altering experience for me and I have devoted my life to serving the Lord and doing everything I can to help save the souls of others.
One of the first things I did after becoming a Christian was trash most of my CD collection. A few examples of what I had been listing to were Slayer, Six Feet Under, Mettalica and Pantera. I felt I could not continue listening to this type of music and be a good Christian. I did not need a verse in the Bible to tell me to get rid of it. I simply felt moved by the Holy Spirit to rid myself of this blasphemous music.
The next thing I did was quit drinking and dipping. I had tried many times to quit these things in the past but I could not. With Christ now a part of my life, I have been able to do away with these things easily. (Philippians 4:13) The Bible has no specific verse regarding tobacco use that I am aware of but I felt moved to quit. Another issue with many Christians is the drinking. The Bible tells us not to be drunkards and to not be drunk with wine but does not specifically tell us not to drink at all. This leads a lot of Christians to “light drinking”. Well, drinking is drinking and the best way to not get drunk is not to drink. With the torn families, shattered lives and many deaths that alcohol has caused I don’t understand why a Christian would want anything to do with it.
I think a very important thing for us to remember is that the Bible instructs us to not be a friend of the world. In fact it says whoever is a friend of the world is an enemy of God. (James 4:4) Shortly after my salvation one thing that I came very close to doing was getting a tattoo. I already have one that I got years ago but I wanted to get a cross or something to represent my new life in Christ. I know many of you that read this have Christian tattoos and I will not bash you because I almost got one myself. I understand the Christians that get them do so in an effort to display their love for God I just don’t think it’s appropriate to use worldly influences to do it. I also went through the same thing when I searched for new music. The first thing I did was search for the hardest, heaviest “Christian” music I could find. I found however that I was simply trying to replace my old music with same type of music with a Christian label on it. I was looking for music that would appeal to my own lusts and desires rather than music that would glorify God. The music I found sounded just like my old music with all the worldly influences. What I was about to do was go from being a tattooed rocker to being a tattooed rocker with a little “Christian” label. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Therefore I feel that a Christian should be prepared to do away with all old things including the things that have these worldly influences.
Remember that we are not of this world but only passing through here for a short time. Our home is in Heaven with our Heavenly Father. Why would we want to resemble a decaying world with so much hatred and violence? My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we should depart from our desires of the flesh and strive to be more like Jesus Christ. The way we look, walk, and talk should not be like the rest of the world but like a Christian. We should resemble our Lord and Saviour and be as Holy as a washed in the Blood redeemed sinner can be.
God Bless,
Shane Gaydon
