Are you a thermometer or a thermostat?

I heard Sandy Adams, pastor Calvary Chapel Stone Mountain, use this illustration: a thermometer varies with the temperature around it; it reads the temperature while a thermostat sets the temperature and stays constant.

Are you a thermometer or a thermostat?

I made a profession of faith years ago and was baptized. I read the Bible, sang in choir and taught Sunday School. Was I saved? Nope. I was a false convert. I had the outward appearance, but really I didn’t fool anyone.

I looked like the world for decades because I WAS THE WORLD. 

• I would drop $100 at the liquor store, but not drink in public. I had the appearance of a Christian, but I was numbing myself with alcohol. A real Christian doesn’t do that because they don’t want to interfere with the Holy Spirit’s work in their life.
• I bought a house with a person who I wasn’t married to. A false convert will do that, but a real Christian doesn’t dare do that. The holiness of God is a fearsome deterrent against sexual sin.
• I used bad language like false converts do. Real Christians attempt to tame their tongues. There’s a difference between occasionally letting a word slip and a steady stream of profanity.

I could go on, but you get the point. Understanding the parable of the sower is the key to understanding every parable Jesus told. The good soil produces fruit – a lot of it!

23As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

Matthew 13:23

When I made a profession of faith I wasn’t there yet. I fell away big-time because I was not a good soil believer. That’s not me anymore! Praise God!

How about you “Christian”? Are you living in fear of His holiness? Are you living your life according to the world and its values? Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? You may be able to fool friends, neighbors, relatives, coworkers and even yourself, but you are not fooling God. Not for one moment!

Think that you can live like you are and get around to living for God later? You are one stroke, aneurysm, blood clot, heart attack, drive by shooting, fall or car accident away from meeting your Maker.

Are you ready?