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NASB | Matthew 10:33 "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 10:33 "But the one who denies and rejects Me before men, that one I will also deny and reject before My Father who is in heaven. |
Bible Question:
Can A Christian disown Christ? If not, who does this apply to? Why did Jesus say "My" Father? |
Bible Answer: I know that the answer is "yes". Can I prove this to you at all? No. So how do I know? I know because I have done it. This is not something that I am proud of, and by sharing from my own life, I realize that I open up myself for critique as opposed to just a theoretical idea. However, it is extremely relevant to this post, and perhaps will be helpful for someone, and is therefore worth the risk. I became a Christian when I was a very small child, after talking with my mother. I realized that even though I was a child and was relatively innocent in the eyes of the world, that I was still a sinner in the eyes of God. I also realized that I could not change on my own, but needed God's help. I asked Jesus to come into my heart, and felt an overwhelming sense of peace and forgiveness. I was a different person after that, my life was changed. As I grew up as a child, I quickly learned much ABOUT God. I memorized all the Bible stories, the Apostle?s Creed, etc. I also began to get to KNOW God, by spending time with Him in prayer, and developing a relationship with Him. However, as with many children, I lacked confidence in my salvation. It seemed like every time there was a revival service, or sermon that particularly spoke to me, that I would make another trip to the alter. There I would once again ask God to forgive me on all my past sins (you know, just in case). Finally, when I was almost 11 yrs old, I remember making the last of this kind of trip. Dr. David Seamands had preached a revival service, and I went forward and prayed like all the times before. But this time, God told me (not audibly, but He let me know) that I didn't need to keep doing that anymore. God helped me to realize that I could trust in Him to be faithful to that which He'd committed, me. It was at that point that I was confident of my salvation, because of my confidence in God, and our love for each other. Things continued like this throughout the next five years or so. In fact, one member of this forum spent much time with me at this point in my life, before they moved away. They could attest that I was most deffinately a Christian. But then a drastic change occurred just before my 16th birthday. The catalyst was a Star Trek (I'm still a big fan despite the tragic outcome at this particular time of my past) episode that I saw. It's a long story, but suffice it to say that after a lot of thought and turmoil, I concluded that Christianity was a fraud. For a period of several months, I completely rejected Christianity, and Christ Himself. In fact for a time, I even denied the existence of God at all. This was not just a backsliding, or a period of doubting. I was in a state of complete apostasy. If I died at that point, I know that I would have gone to Hell. Thankfully, God was merciful, and He allowed me to live through that time. Once again I must skip the long story of how I came back to Christianity. However, the end result was that I once again truly believed with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Since that time (nearly a decade ago now), I have remained committed to my relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and I know that the Holy Spirit is in my life, leading me to follow in God?s will. I trust in Jesus as my Saviour (from all of my sin and sins) and my Lord (for my life is not my own, but His to control), and I know that I will spend eternity with Him in Heaven. This is my testimony. This is how I know that a Christian can deny Christ, because I've done it. But praise God that He is merciful, patient, and full of love! I owe my life to Him. For once I was lost, and then I was found, and then I was lost, and now I am found again. Praise His Name forever! |