New Breed

By Jerry D. Ousley

            Fresh from high school and awaiting summer to be over in preparation of going to Bible college in the fall, I eyed the kids sitting on the wall.  It was the early 70’s and for those who remember, at the corner of Highway 31 and Highway 256 in Austin, Indiana, there was a wall just the right height for sitting.  It had become the local hang-out for kids in their teens and early 20’s.  My heart yearned to talk with them, telling them about Jesus in attempt to get them to come to Christ.

            My desire was very noble and all, but frankly, I was scared, maybe even a bit terrified.  Most of these guys had picked on me in high school.  Because I was small and skinny and because I tried to do the right thing, and got good grades, I was an outcast.  I didn’t fit in with the “popular” crowd, and I didn’t fit in with the “hoodlums” either.  But I knew these guys needed the Lord and so one day I struck up enough courage that I parked my car down the street, walked over to the wall and sat down with them.

            Without doubt they were curious as to why I was there because I was clearly a fish out of water.  Most of them on that day were older than me and didn’t recognize me from high school.  “Who are you?”  “What are you doing here?”  I swallowed the grapefruit sized lump in my throat and spoke up, “I’m Jerry.  I’ve noticed you guys here day after day and I just wanted to tell you about Jesus . . . “ That was all it took.  I heard a snicker from the end of the wall and then one guy who appeared be the leader of them, said, “Oh, I see.  Let me ask you a question, because you say you are a Christian, go to church and live like a goody-two-shoes, does that mean God loves you more than He does us?”  I pondered it over in my young mind.  If I answered “yes” then it made it look like I was better than they were and I really didn’t feel that way at all.  But then, I had come to Christ.  I was doing my best to live for the Lord so surely the answer was “yes.”  Didn’t it make sense that He would love the one who was living for Him more than the others?  I was completely lost for words and so I sat there awkwardly for a few moments and then got up and walked back to my car.  I could hear a few snickers as I walked away but I pretended that I hadn’t heard them.  I had been whipped before I ever got started.

            That became a pivot-point in my ministry because on that day, after leaving and seeking God about it, I learned that God loves everyone equally.  Yes, He loves those who are in rebellion against Him.  He loves those who haven’t come to Him yet.  He loves us all the same.  But there is a difference and that is that when we come to Christ God doesn’t love us more, we have just chosen to love Him back.  I wish I had known that the day I sat on that wall.  Things might have gone differently.  But our Lord uses all situations to teach us and make us better.

            However, there is a bit more to it.  No, we aren’t better than anyone else.  No, God does not love us more than someone else.  But once we come to the Lord, we become someone and something else.  Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”  And again, in Galatians 6:15, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.”  This entire chapter speaks about the change that takes place in us when we get saved.  Yes, we have repented which means that we have changed our mind.  We no longer want to go in the direction of sin but in the direction of Jesus Christ.  Because of our decision we have been saved from our sinful self and are now headed for eternal life in Jesus Christ rather than eternal death in Hell.  We have literally become members of a new breed.  New creations in Christ.

            This doesn’t mean that we will never sin again.  It isn’t a get out of jail free card that means we can now do whatever we want and still be in the grace of God.  But it does mean that we are now a member of the new breed.  Those who repent when they sin.  We ache inside when we have missed the mark and failed God (that’s what the word “sin” means).  We genuinely want to please our Father, God and it hurts inside when we don’t. 

            Members of this new breed want to help others.  We want to exemplify Christ inside of us.  We really want to see others become members of the new breed not because we get rewarded for bringing in new members but because we genuinely want to see others saved from eternal death in Hell.

            We may be hated by others because we want to see them change like we have.  Not change to be Americanized, or to be any other stereotype.  It’s not about who has the largest religion but it is about making others free in Christ Jesus.  It isn’t a racial thing, a white thing or a black thing.  It is for all people regardless of race or conviction.

            If you don’t know Jesus Christ in a personal way, you can.  You may not understand now, you may disagree or even hate me for saying these things.  It is not to make you be something you aren’t meant to be but to be what God made you to be.  I urge you today to make a decision for Jesus. 

            Becoming a member of the new breed doesn’t require any weird initiation or anything like that.  It isn’t a club or a party.  It is merely a decision.  But it is a life-changing decision that, frankly, you will not come close to understanding until you make it.  It doesn’t require you to make any changes right now.  There is nothing you can do to prepare for the decision.  You just make it.  It doesn’t matter where you are.  You can do it right now, right where you are.  Does God love me more than He does you?  Nope.  But as a member of the new breed, I have chosen to love Him back.  How about you?  Are you ready to love God in return? 

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.?  Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.