Pure Church

For your encouragement and comfort--and especially for those who may feel that they are very weak, and doubtful about their position--let me suggest some few simple tests. What are the tests of 'life?' Here are some of them. The Apostle Peter writes, 'As new-born babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby' (1 Peter 2:2). I put it to you in this way. Do you enjoy public meetings for worship? That is not true of the natural man, the non-Christian. Men and women of the world regard such meetings as the height of boredom; and they have no understanding of what is being said. They say, 'What is all that? What does it mean? What has it got to do with me?' And they would never want to hear it again. Does exposition of the Truth in preaching appeal to you? Do you like it? Do you enjoy it? Would you like to know more about it? If you can say 'Yes' to those questions you possess good presumptive evidence that you have new life in you. You may only be a 'babe'; but thank God, you are born again, you are 'in Christ'. Do not be misled by people who would apply the test of mature, adult, fully-grown Christian to a new-born babe. 'The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them for they are spiritually discerned' (1 Cor. 2:14). If you therefore 'receive' these things, though you may be living an unworthy life, you are 'born again.' 'The natural mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.' If you can say honestly that your desire is to know God and to serve Him, you are a child of God. You may be imperfect, I am not excusing you--but you must be clear about this. If, because of your failures, you are made to feel, as I said earlier, that you are not a Christian at all, then your position is such that you ahve to go right back to the beginning once more. Therefore, I say, do not allow any legalist to cause you to doubt your position. The new-born babe desires the 'milk', 'the sincere milk of the word, that he may grow thereby'; he is interested in spiritual things. His understanding may be very small, and very immature; but if he has even a glimmer of light, and if he wants more of it--if he is drawn to the truth, and likes to be amongst God's people--then the statement that 'We know that we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren' applies to him. Those are some of the tests which we can apply to ourselves. The Apostle's assertion is that you cannot be a Christian without a death and a new birth--a 'life'.