Jesus calls, accepts, and sanctifies followers from all backgrounds: fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, drunkards, etc. But we don't stay in these sins. This is what some of us were; those who remain in these sins will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:10). Accepting Jesus is accepting His power to draw us out. Baptism is dying to the old man of sin; the old man of sin is buried with Jesus in baptism so we can come out and live a new life.

These gospel facts call us to examine ourselves to identify whether we are seekers of Jesus, pretenders, or followers of Jesus. We can have patience with ourselves and others if we claim only seeker status. But we are revealed as pretenders if we claim to follow Jesus but are still mired in one of the sins listed in 1 Corinthians 6. We are also revealed as pretenders if we are religious hypocrites who reject seekers based on ongoing sins.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the redeeming blood of Your Son, Jesus. I am washed, I am cleansed, and I am set free. I stand as one not condemned but one liberated from sin and justified by grace. Help me to look with compassion upon those who are still on their journey of freedom. May my life story be a source of encouragement and inspiration, of the life they too can have if they say yes to You today. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Ask the Lord Jesus to show you whether you are a seeker, pretender, or follower and what your next steps are as you move toward greater faith and maturity. Are you a religious hypocrite shutting the door of the kingdom in men's faces? Are you a seeker thinking in error your sins are too bad for God to forgive and cleanse? Are you a religious pretender thinking Jesus has already cleansed you even though you are still in disqualifying sins?