The evidence

[B-A-C]

The night was quiet, a little too quiet if you know what I mean.
I peeked through the blinds to notice the fog, it was thick as pea soup.
That's when the phone rang. I didn't answer it right away, no need to seem desparate,
but in my line of work you can't ignore too many phone calls. It could be a lead,
it could juyst be the break I was waiting for.
The cops had already and gone, that meant the evidence I was looking for was probably
already gone too. I flashed the lobby attendant my badge, I'm not sure why because he
never looked up from the paper he was reading. He simply said "Room 325".
Sure enough there was police tape everywhere. The chalk outlines on the floor told me where
the bodies had been when the police found them. The place still stank of cheap perfume and
expensive cigar smoke, it wasn't hard to come up with a thousand reasons why a girl like
her would've been in a place like this. But why did I care? Dames like her are a dime a dozen,
yet something didn't add up.
It was her brand of perfume I smelled on the sheets, it was her color of lipstick smudged
on them also. The blood stains on the high heels under the bed were undoubtedly hers. I
could get that from the police report. That's when it hit me. There was evidence all around
me. Maybe a little too much evidence. I was thinking, this has to be a setup...

Dime store detective novel mode off:::...

The evidence of being a Christian. What is it? Is it what I say I believe?
Is what I say I believe really evidence at all? How do we know if someone is a Christian?
Because they go to church? Because they believe in God? Or because they have the love of
God within them? Is having that love within them enough? Or does that love have to
manifest itself outwardly to others? If I say I love God, but don't show love to others
is there any evidence of that love? There are things like the 10 commandments that tell
us how to love others, and parables like the good Samaritan, as well as the sheep and the goats
that seem to say that God expects us to love others.

But what if we don't? What if there is no evidence of this love within us? Are we still
a Christian? I was asked once... If I was accused of being a Christian, would there be enough
evidence to convict me? Is there enough evidence to convict you?

The Bible says "All men... will know you are Christians by your love.. ( John 13:25; )

If I never show love, but say I believe in Jesus, am I really saved? ( John 17:26; )

If I never show love, is the Spirit of Christ really inside me at all?

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Can I be saved, without the external evidence of being saved?

We can debate about whether the manifestation of this love comes partly from self-effort
or if it all comes from Jesus. But either way, in the end... there needs to be some
evidence.

I think for some people... this love comes naturally easy for them. It's obvious they
have the Spirit of Christ within them. The fruit of the Spirit is evident within them.
I think others, have a very hard time loving others... maybe for different reasons,
maybe they have been hurt, betrayed, or simply left alone when they needed a friend.
Sometimes this love may take some time to manifest itself. But when it happens, when
a broken heart is healed.... it is amazing. It seems that loving others can heal your
heart even further than when God initially touched it.

We are told over 20 times in the New Testament to "love one another".
John 13:34-35; John 15:12; John 15:17; Rom 12:10; Rom 13:8; Gal 5:13; Eph 4:2; 1 Thes 3:12;
1 Thes 4:9; 1 Thes 5:13; 1 Pet 1:22; 1 Pet 4:8; 1 Jn 3:11; 1 Jn 3:23; etc...

If this is how "all men" will know we are Christians, is there enough evidence to convict us?