This devotional was originally published on February 24, 2017.
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”
— Matthew 12:30
A person who doesn’t confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is an enemy of God and is destined for hell. A harsh truth, but a truth nonetheless.
Some see salvation in three categories:
- Category one consists of those who are followers of Jesus.
- Category two is made of those who are against Jesus.
- Category three, which is the largest category, includes those who are in the middle, who are trying to figure out faith in Jesus Christ.
There is a common belief that those in category three are safe, as long as they stay in the middle. The problem is that category three does not exist. For the unbeliever, there is no middle ground; a decision must be made to follow Jesus Christ. The Bible is very clear that you are either with Jesus Christ, or you are with Satan. Those are the two options. The person who is not a follower of Jesus Christ is, by default, a follower of Satan.
Kayla was a former student of mine. At the time that this story took place, she was in seventh grade, and her older brother was in high school. Kayla came from a difficult home situation and, naturally, had some issues with God and authority. Most of the students at the Christian school where I taught claimed to be Christians. It was a rare occurrence for a student to admit they he or she wasn’t a believer in Jesus. It was actually quite refreshing to have someone admit their true beliefs about God. Kayla was just such a person. She was honest about her faith and what she believed. I enjoyed conversations with Kayla, although it saddened me that she was not a sister in Christ. One Friday afternoon in early spring, the students were busy playing all around the school. Kayla stopped in my classroom to chat, but it seemed like there was something deeper that she wanted to talk about. After discussing some of the riveting topics from my class, I decided to ask Kayla about her personal relationship with Jesus Christ. So, I took her through the ABCs. I asked her three simple questions:
“Kayla, do you admit that you are a sinner?”
She said, “Yes.”
“Kayla, do you believe that Jesus Christ is Lord?” Again, she said, “Yes.”
“Kayla, do you confess Jesus Christ as your Lord?” She said, “No.”
I was discouraged by her final answer, but hopeful that she was on the right path. Kayla also seemed hopeful. She seemed to bounce out of the room with more joy than she had entered with. Before Kayla exited out the door, the Spirit prompted me to make something very clear to her. So, I called out to her and met her in the hallway. As we walked down the hallway, I told her how grateful I was for her honesty and how hopeful I was for her spiritual journey. I was so happy that she was taking her faith personally and really considering the claims of Christianity, but there was one thing that bothered me about our conversation. I felt that Kayla had misunderstood something. As lovingly as possible, I told Kayla that I wanted to be very clear about one thing:
A person who doesn’t confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is an enemy of God and is destined for hell. A harsh truth, but a truth nonetheless.
You could tell that this information shocked and disappointed Kayla. She quickly responded that she was open, she was thinking, she was hopeful, that she was moving in the right direction. I agreed with all of her statements, as I felt the same way, but I informed her that the Bible is very clear that you are either with Christ or you are against him. I confirmed with Kayla that she wasn’t ready to confess Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior, which meant she was against Jesus.
Make no mistake about it: a person who doesn’t confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is an enemy of God and is destined for hell. A harsh truth, but a truth nonetheless.
The most loving thing I can tell you is that you are an enemy of God, but the best thing I can tell you is that you don’t have to stay that way! Today, salvation is offered to anyone who is willing to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.