Copyright 1996 by Doris E. Howie, Fullmeasure Farm, R. R. 1, Gorrie, Ontario N0G 1X0
    E-mail dhowie@wcl.on.ca
    URL http://www.wcl.on.ca/~dhowie
    First publication rights only
    
    NOT GUILTY:  
    Insufficient Evidence
    
    by Doris E. Howie

    If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to 
    convict you?

    Think about it.  What Christian attributes do you have?  Christ left us His 
    peace (John 14:27); does it fill your life?  He sent us His Comforter (John 
    15:26); does He guide your steps each day?  He promised us joy (John 15:11); 
    are you taking Him at His word?

    He told us to love one another (John 15:12), forgiving each other freely 
    (Luke 6:37); to be compassionate (Matthew 18:33); to love God (Mark 12:29); 
    to pray for deliverance from evil (Matthew 6:13).  He advised us not to 
    find fault with others unless we were without guilt ourselves (John 8:7) - 
    and reminded us that there is none good save God (Luke 18:19).

    Frequently we hear people say they can be just as good a Christian without 
    going to church.  They justify themselves by saying that many churchgoers 
    are hypocritical in their actions, having one set of values for Sunday 
    and another for the rest of the week.

    Are you one of the churchgoers they are thinking of?
    
    Because if you are, maybe you should ask yourself whose side you are 
    REALLY on!
     
    "Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost its savour, 
    wherewith shall it be salted?"  Matthew 5:13
    
    A Christian whose faith is not evident in his or her daily life is like 
    salt that has lost its saltiness; but a Christian who lives his/her faith 
    is letting his/her "light so shine before men, that they may see (his/her) 
    good works, and glorify (our) Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16)

    Let's try to draw others to our respective churches by the light of 
    Christian charity and love that shines from our collective faces when we 
    gather to worship our Lord and Saviour.  
    
    Let's live so that there would be plenty of evidence to convict us of 
    being Christians!
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