[04ctd]

Joy Test

1 Peter 1:8 (KJV) "Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:ÔÇØ
Today there are many people that have NO JOY! Worst yet, they proclaim to be Christian, Born Again Believers! Now I ask you, are you one of those Christians?

Let's take the Joy Test to see what your condition is; do you have a smile on your face or a frown? Are you judgmental of others and evaluate other's way of living instead of your own? Do you use your telephone for gossip line and a means of tearing others down instead of using your phone to encourage others or for the proper purposes? Have you started thinking negative about everything? Your job means more to you than you husband or your wife? If you answered YES to any of these questions, and you were being truthful and honest, there is a reason that you have NO JOY and that reason is SIN!

In the book of Job 20:5, there is a powerful scripture that says, ÔÇ£That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?" There is only ONE REASON that a Child of God can have a roller coaster attitude and a negative outlook and that is UNCONFESSED SIN IN THEIR LIVES! Christians need to realize that there is a GOD, and it is not THEM! Although a child of God is persecuted and everything just doesn't always go the way we want them to, THAT IS NO CAUSE FOR a loss of Joy and periods of SADNESS!

When Cain's sacrifice was not accepted by God, Cain was very angry and sad. In Genesis 4:6, look what the Lord asked him, "|And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance fallen?" God did not ask Cain this to find out something He did not know, God knew why Cain was angry and sad, He just wanted to see if Cain knew the reason himself.

I ask you today, do you know why that you are so angry and sad today? If Christians, for just one second will look in the mirror and ask yourself, "If I was a lost person looking at me and the way I am acting, would I be able to see Jesus in ME or would I see somebody that I would not want to be like. I beg every one of you; think about it, it makes a lot of difference!