The Verdict

 Greetings to you all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,

     Matthew 7:18-20  says, “ A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.”

     I recently watched a court trial of a man who was accused of murdering his wife and son.  The evidence was given and the jury deliberated for forty-five minutes to come up with a “guilty” verdict  resulting in  two life sentences to prison.  The evidence given in a trial is considered and then the jury decides if it is enough to convince the accused person of the crimes listed by the prosecutor.

     Josh McDowell wrote a book, “Evidence that demands a Verdict” in the early 1970’s.  It set forth the claims of the Lord Jesus Christ  and it  was hoped that the reader would be able to decide if the evidence supported the claims the Lord Jesus Christ.  In the end, you had to decide if Christ was “a liar”, “a lunatick,” or the “Son of God” and therefore  God Himself.  In this case, we are the jury and must  make a decision in regard to the evidence.  The final conclusion, which has to be based upon the resurrection of Christ from the grave, is that  He is indeed Who He said He was and is. The evidence demands a verdict and the only one that is logical is that He indeed is the Son of God and that the gospel is true and the promises of God are guaranteed by that same resurrection.  In speaking  of evidence, we need to ask ourselves a question .  If we were arrested for  being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convince us?  The above passage is one that  speaks about obvious evidence in regard to trees.  An apple tree produces apples and an orange tree produced oranges and a pear tree produces pears.    I may not be able  to tell a tree by it’s bark or its blossoms, but i can tell a tree by the fruit it produces.  Unfortunately, this same passage goes on to show that there will be a lot of religious people  at the judgment who never knew Christ and Christ will tell them, “Depart  from Me.  I never  knew you.”    There are some pastors who estimate that in reality, a small percentage of people in their congregation are actually saved.  We will not know ourselves this side of heaven, who is and who isn’t saved, but we can see the works that people produce.   Is there enough evidence to convict me of being a Christian.   “Trust and Obey, for  there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to Trust  and  Obey.  Praise God for His Word.