Coal or diamonds

People get really down on Christianity by comparing Christians to what they are talking about. Here is the problem, first not all those who claim to be Christian are, and second, Christians are only human. The Bible tells us that ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Even Christians are sinners. It is in our nature. The difference is that Real Christians are being transformed. It is a process and sometimes there are falls or backsliding, but they are working on being more like Jesus. So you see, the real problem here is that you are comparing coal to a diamond. Let me explain. Diamonds and coal have the same basic structure, in fact people can MAKE diamonds From Coal through massive amounts of pressure. The thing is that while a diamond is a beautiful desirable multi-faceted gem, coal is a dirty, smelly, rock that burns. Coal miners would develop Black lung from breathing in coal dust, London was a sooty city until they cleaned up the coal they were burning and still today overexposure to raw coal dust can cause emphysema and lung cancer. There are all kinds of filters and restrictions placed on the power plants that still burn the stuff, and it is useful and cleaner today than it was but it still is dirty stuff in the raw form. Sounds kinda nasty huh? Well guess what THAT is people. ALL people are like coal. HOWEVER Jesus is like a diamond. He shines, he is beautiful, he is something worth having in your life. Trying to see Jesus in the lumps of coal called Christians is to get an unclear picture. Sometimes only God can see the potential in that person. Even through the filter of God’s love and work we still can get kinda ugly! Also it ought to be noted that even though we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior we still make mistakes! But God is working on those who are truly his and some of them are starting to shine with the beauty that comes form that transformation. So the real point there is do you want to stay a lump of coal or do you want to start the process that will make you into something greater. Because, in the end, there are only really two choices. 1. Stay a lump of coal and end up burning in the eternal fires, or 2. Allow Jesus to work in you and in your life, accept him as your Lord and Savior, and start the process of transforming into a beautiful gem that will last forever. Well there you go… that is a nice simile I hope that it helps you to understand. Have a great day.