Confessing Christ
By Mark Larson
www.cvillechurch.com
“Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32-33, NASB). Confessing one’s faith in Christ is a requirement a person must meet before a person can be baptized into Christ (e.g., Acts 8:37; 1 Tim. 6:12).
Confessing Jesus as Lord is essential to our salvation (Rom. 10:9-10). However, confessing Christ was never met to be a one time event, restricted to one moment of time before baptism! Confessing Christ is something that every Christian should continue to practice throughout his or her life. For in so doing, it not only demonstrates our faith in Jesus, but it also displays our courage as we speak out for Christ in an anti-Christ world (See entire context - Mat. 10:26-33).
What Does it Mean to Confess Christ?
Confessing Christ is not to be muttered to self, nor should it be limited to the privacy of one’s own home, or only spoken in the company of other Christians! Such circumstances do not require much courage nor any self-sacrifice.
To “confess” Christ means to acknowledge Him publicly, to declare our allegiance to Him openly, and to speak out freely of our faith in Jesus (Mat. 10:32). A true confession of Christ will be done so men may hear, so that the world may know that we are indeed disciples of Jesus Christ! Confessing Christ, just like preaching the gospel, should be shouted from the rooftops! “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops” (Mat. 10:27). Rather than feel any shame, there is an earnest desire for all to know about Jesus!
Furthermore, confessing Christ is not to be equated with mere belief in Him. There must be the courage to vocally and publicly confess our faith in Christ. Faith only is clearly not enough to be one of Jesus’ disciples: “Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God” (John 12:42-43).
Are You Confessing Christ in Your Life?
At work, at school, in your neighborhood, and community, with your friends, family, relatives, and others, are you confessing Christ? Is the confession of Christ a way of life for you? Confessing Christ is not limited to when we are questioned by persecutors, but should be done freely, openly, and regularly as a result of our faith in Christ: “But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, " I believed, therefore I spoke, "we also believe, therefore also we speak; knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you” (2 Cor. 4:13-14). Confessing Christ is something every Christian should want to do as a result of having faith in Jesus Christ. Christians who are not inclined to evangelize or share the gospel with others often are lacking faith or are ashamed or both! (Rom. 1:16).
Don’t Let the Fear of Rejection Prevent You from Confessing Christ.
The parents of the blind man whom Jesus healed were afraid to confess Jesus to be the Christ, lest they should be put out of the synagogue (John 9:22). Lest we think we are above such fears, we would do well to ask ourselves a few questions: Do we keep silent at our workplace for fear of losing our job or valuable employees? Do we refrain from confessing Christ at school for fear of losing our friends or being treated as an outcast? Do we allow fear to hold us back to confess Christ at anyplace, anytime, or with anyone? We must always remember that we are blessed by God when we are excluded or rejected by men for confessing Jesus Christ. Such an experience may not feel like a blessing, but it is! “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and cast insults at you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets” (Luke 6:22-23).
Confessing Christ Is a Proof That We Are Faithful Disciples of Christ!
If we confess Christ before men, Jesus will give us recognition before God that we are true disciples of Christ. More than merely confessing our names, Jesus confessing us before the Father is an official recognition or acknowledgment that we are His disciples! “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32). We have demonstrated ourselves to be Christians, in part, by our confessing Christ. True disciples of Christ confess Christ and thus enjoy fellowship with God: “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also… Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 2:23; 4:15). There is indeed great importance to our confessing Christ. Our fellowship with God depends on it!
Confessing Christ involves more than a mere verbal declaration of our faith, but will also be demonstrated by our obedience to His word. We cannot hypocritically confess Christ and claim to know God and then turn around and disobey Him! “And why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). “They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient, and worthless for any good deed” (Titus 1:16). Genuine disciples of Christ will not only confess His name, but will also walk with Him in holiness (Rev. 3:4-5).
Denying Christ Is an Indication That We Are “Anti-Christ!”
To deny Christ (which is the absence of confessing Him) is to be “anti-Christ!” “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world” (1 John 4:2-3).
Denying Christ also involves denying the teaching of Christ which is also anti-Christ: “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, that you might not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting” (2 John 7-10). A person is anti-Christ when he does not “abide in” or keep the teaching of Christ, which would include the teachings of the apostles who preached His word (Gal. 1:10; Eph. 3:3-5).
Our Salvation Depends on Whether We Confess Christ or Deny Him.
If we deny Christ, meaning fail to acknowledge Him publicly and do not openly speak of our faith in Christ and His gospel, we will be denied before God and thus lose our salvation: “But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:33).
If we confess Christ, we can be confident that Christ will also confess us on Judgment day: “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32).
May every Christian maintain their confession of Christ throughout life so that each one will be acknowledged by Christ as one of His disciples on that last day!
www.cvillechurch.com
“Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32-33, NASB). Confessing one’s faith in Christ is a requirement a person must meet before a person can be baptized into Christ (e.g., Acts 8:37; 1 Tim. 6:12).
Confessing Jesus as Lord is essential to our salvation (Rom. 10:9-10). However, confessing Christ was never met to be a one time event, restricted to one moment of time before baptism! Confessing Christ is something that every Christian should continue to practice throughout his or her life. For in so doing, it not only demonstrates our faith in Jesus, but it also displays our courage as we speak out for Christ in an anti-Christ world (See entire context - Mat. 10:26-33).
What Does it Mean to Confess Christ?
Confessing Christ is not to be muttered to self, nor should it be limited to the privacy of one’s own home, or only spoken in the company of other Christians! Such circumstances do not require much courage nor any self-sacrifice.
To “confess” Christ means to acknowledge Him publicly, to declare our allegiance to Him openly, and to speak out freely of our faith in Jesus (Mat. 10:32). A true confession of Christ will be done so men may hear, so that the world may know that we are indeed disciples of Jesus Christ! Confessing Christ, just like preaching the gospel, should be shouted from the rooftops! “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops” (Mat. 10:27). Rather than feel any shame, there is an earnest desire for all to know about Jesus!
Furthermore, confessing Christ is not to be equated with mere belief in Him. There must be the courage to vocally and publicly confess our faith in Christ. Faith only is clearly not enough to be one of Jesus’ disciples: “Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God” (John 12:42-43).
Are You Confessing Christ in Your Life?
At work, at school, in your neighborhood, and community, with your friends, family, relatives, and others, are you confessing Christ? Is the confession of Christ a way of life for you? Confessing Christ is not limited to when we are questioned by persecutors, but should be done freely, openly, and regularly as a result of our faith in Christ: “But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, " I believed, therefore I spoke, "we also believe, therefore also we speak; knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you” (2 Cor. 4:13-14). Confessing Christ is something every Christian should want to do as a result of having faith in Jesus Christ. Christians who are not inclined to evangelize or share the gospel with others often are lacking faith or are ashamed or both! (Rom. 1:16).
Don’t Let the Fear of Rejection Prevent You from Confessing Christ.
The parents of the blind man whom Jesus healed were afraid to confess Jesus to be the Christ, lest they should be put out of the synagogue (John 9:22). Lest we think we are above such fears, we would do well to ask ourselves a few questions: Do we keep silent at our workplace for fear of losing our job or valuable employees? Do we refrain from confessing Christ at school for fear of losing our friends or being treated as an outcast? Do we allow fear to hold us back to confess Christ at anyplace, anytime, or with anyone? We must always remember that we are blessed by God when we are excluded or rejected by men for confessing Jesus Christ. Such an experience may not feel like a blessing, but it is! “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and cast insults at you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets” (Luke 6:22-23).
Confessing Christ Is a Proof That We Are Faithful Disciples of Christ!
If we confess Christ before men, Jesus will give us recognition before God that we are true disciples of Christ. More than merely confessing our names, Jesus confessing us before the Father is an official recognition or acknowledgment that we are His disciples! “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32). We have demonstrated ourselves to be Christians, in part, by our confessing Christ. True disciples of Christ confess Christ and thus enjoy fellowship with God: “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also… Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 2:23; 4:15). There is indeed great importance to our confessing Christ. Our fellowship with God depends on it!
Confessing Christ involves more than a mere verbal declaration of our faith, but will also be demonstrated by our obedience to His word. We cannot hypocritically confess Christ and claim to know God and then turn around and disobey Him! “And why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). “They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient, and worthless for any good deed” (Titus 1:16). Genuine disciples of Christ will not only confess His name, but will also walk with Him in holiness (Rev. 3:4-5).
Denying Christ Is an Indication That We Are “Anti-Christ!”
To deny Christ (which is the absence of confessing Him) is to be “anti-Christ!” “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world” (1 John 4:2-3).
Denying Christ also involves denying the teaching of Christ which is also anti-Christ: “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, that you might not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting” (2 John 7-10). A person is anti-Christ when he does not “abide in” or keep the teaching of Christ, which would include the teachings of the apostles who preached His word (Gal. 1:10; Eph. 3:3-5).
Our Salvation Depends on Whether We Confess Christ or Deny Him.
If we deny Christ, meaning fail to acknowledge Him publicly and do not openly speak of our faith in Christ and His gospel, we will be denied before God and thus lose our salvation: “But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:33).
If we confess Christ, we can be confident that Christ will also confess us on Judgment day: “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven” (Mat. 10:32).
May every Christian maintain their confession of Christ throughout life so that each one will be acknowledged by Christ as one of His disciples on that last day!
posted by Mark E Larson | 2:00 PM
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