Answers to Common Excuses

1. "I want to get established in business first. After that I will be a Christian."

This could apply to other things as well - getting married, finishing college, buying a home, etc. But nothing should be allowed to cheat one out of forgiveness and Heaven's blessings. Jesus said, "What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" (Mark 8:36). In another story, a man neglected his soul's welfare. Living in tremendous blessings, he only desired more - he built bigger barns and grew more crops. Jesus stated, "But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night shall thy soul be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?" (Luke 12:20).

More scriptures to use: Matthew 6:33; Psalms 1:1-2; Proverbs 29:25; Mark 10:29-30).

2. "I am not a sinner."

The scriptures state, "There is none righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10). Paul said to the Galatians, "But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe" (Galatians 3:22). And to the Romans, Paul wrote, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).

3. "I have no family to encourage me. I can't do it alone. I am too weak."

A praying spouse, Christian friends, or godly parents are a blessing. But guilt and sin are personal. We answer for no one else's sin, nor do they answer for us. When we stand before God, we will stand alone. God has given you a precious promise, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus Christ said, "I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:20).

Isaiah the prophet stated, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the Lord forever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength" (Isaiah 26:3-4).

Who will keep him in perfect peace? Answer: God. On what condition? Answer: Whose mind is stayed on God - no on problems, failures, or circumstances - but on God. Don't worry, but trust. Trust in whom? Answer: Trust in God. How long does His strength last? for a day? for a week? Answer: In the Lord is everlasting strength!

Jude wrote in his book (verse 24-25), "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever." Paul wrote to the Romans, "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." (Romans 5:6).

4. "I am as good as other people."

Builders use a level and plumb line in their work - they must follow and meet certain standards. We need to live by standards too - not by comparisons. We should not compare ourselves to other people, but to Jesus who alone is sinless and worthy of comparison. A cancer patient cannot claim health because he or she is stronger than the cancer patient in the next room. Jesus told the story of a religious leader and tax collector who went to the temple to pray, "Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted" (Luke 18:10-14).

5. "My sins are too terrible. Jesus would never accept me."

All have sinned. There is no one who is righteous. Therefore Jesus came into the world to save all who would call upon Him. The apostle Paul also thought that he was the biggest sinner in the world. Listen to his words, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15).

Romans 5:7-8 (BBE) states, "Now it is hard for anyone to give his life even for an upright man, though it might be that for a good man someone would give his life. But God has made clear his love to us, in that, when we were still sinners, Christ gave his life for us." Jesus Christ Himself gave us this precious promise, "Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." (John 6:37). The apostle Peter spoke of God's patience and mercy, "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

The prophet Isaiah penned, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD (Isaiah 55:6-8). The psalmist David wrote, "But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth."

6. "Not now. I will later."

Each time a person says no to the Lord, it become easier to continue to say no and more difficult to say yes. The scriptures state, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). The prophet Isaiah warned, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near" (Isaiah 55:6).

Nothing is so uncertain as life. James said in his book, "How foolish it is to say, Today or tomorrow we will go into this town, and be there for a year and do business there and get wealth: when you are not certain what will take place tomorrow. What is your life? It is a mist, which is seen for a little time and then is gone" (James 4:13-14 BBE). King Agrippa was urged by Paul to become a Christian. "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian," he said to Paul (Acts 26:28). But we are never told if he was given another chance.

Recall in point 1 above the man making plans for his future. But God said, "This night will your soul be required of thee." When God created man, He breathed His breath into our being. Each breath we take He holds in His hand, and we don't know which breath will be our last (see Job 12:10; Daniel 5:23; Isaiah 42:5). "Thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust" (Psalm 104:29).

7. "My sins are so small and insignificant."

Any sin separates you from God. Isaiah wrote, "Behold, the LORDÍS hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." (Isaiah 59:1-2).

Any sin ends in death. The wages of sin, no matter how great or how small is death. Romans 6:23 states, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Any sin enslaves. Jesus stated, "Whosover committeth sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34). Romans 6:12-13 states, "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God."

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Have you not knowledge that evil-doers will have no part in the kingdom of God? Have no false ideas about this: no one who goes after the desires of the flesh, or gives worship to images, or is untrue when married, or is less than a man, or makes a wrong use of men, 10 Or is a thief, or the worse for drink, or makes use of strong language, or takes by force what is not his, will have any part in the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you; but you have been washed, you have been made holy, you have been given righteousness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 BBE).

8. "I am too old, and it's too late for me to become a Christian."

There is no age limit on God's grace and mercy (2 Corinthians 6:2). The great prophecy of the end times given by Joel states, "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions...And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered" (Joel 2:28,32).

Deuteronomy 4:29-31 states in the Darby translation, "And from thence ye shall seek Jehovah thy God, and thou shalt find him, if thou shalt seek him with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul. In thy tribulation, and when all these things shall come upon thee, at the end of days, thou shalt return to Jehovah thy God, and shalt hearken to his voice, for Jehovah thy God is a merciful God, he will not forsake thee."

9. "I am trying my best to be a Christian."

It is not trying, it is trusting that matters. A drowning man tries with all his might and still perishes, but trusts in the saving power of another person and is rescued. No work that you can do for yourself can ever substitute in merit for the work that Jesus done for you upon the cross.

Our righteousness is in Christ alone - our own righteousnesses are as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). To try is to fail. James stated, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:10).

10. "I don't believe God would condemn me to Hell."

God loves the whole world, and because He does, He sent His only Son Jesus Christ into the world that whosoever would believe in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel, "Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he would return from his ways and live?" (Ezekiel 18:23).

Concerning Hell, the prophet Isaiah spoke, "Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it. And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled: but the Lord of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and the God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness" (Isaiah 5:14-16).

In Matthew 5:29, our Lord spoke, "And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." Jesus further stated that we are not to fear man, "But rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). In Jesus's parable of the sheep and the goats, He said, "These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righeous into life eternal" (Matthew 25:46).

11. "I am religious."

Paul the apostle said he was a religious man, keeping the laws to the letter. To the Philippians, he wrote, "Even though I myself might have faith in the flesh: if any other man has reason to have faith in the flesh, I have more: being given circumcision on the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in relation to the law, a Pharisee: in bitter hate I was cruel to the church; I kept all the righteousness of the law to the last detail. But those things which were profit to me, I gave up for Christ. Yes truly, and I am ready to give up all things for the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, which is more than all: for whom I have undergone the loss of all things, and to me they are less than nothing, so that I may have Christ as my reward, and be seen in him, not having my righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith" (Philippians 3:4-9 BBE).

Religion consists of an outward show, but does not change the heart. Jesus gave this stern warning in Matthew 7:21-23, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

Jesus received the most trouble from the religious leaders of His day. They kept their own traditions and rituals, even when they clearly violated God's Word. Jesus said to them, "Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men... Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition" (Mark 7:6-9).

Concerning religion, James the apostle wrote, "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this manÍs religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world" (James 1:26-27).

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