Cubic Zirconia Christianity

Jerimiah 4:4

“Circumcise your hearts”

We men could have all saved a bunch of money when we proposed, or are going to propose, to our true loves if we had only purchased a cubic zirconia. We would save hundreds, even thousands of dollars, and it would look just like the real thing. Glitter and shine, it would be just like the real McCoy. Things would be great until your true love decided to have it appraised. A trained eye would spot the fake diamond and reveal the truth about the ring. Just imagine the conversation after the appraisal, wow, not a good one.

For some of us, we have purchased a lie. We fell into the trap of the Christian conversion, but instead of sacrificing our all, we end up going the cubic zirconia way. You know, the way that is showy to everyone around you, but inside you know what you are showing off is fake. You said the sinner’s prayer in front of all your church family, and from the outside it looks like your life is being changed, but inside you know you were not ready to really sacrifice it all for Christ. Matthew 16:24-26 says, “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?’”

Remember the rich man who came to Christ and asked what he must do to be saved? Jesus told this man to sell everything he owned and give it to the poor, then come follow Him. He walked away after that moment because he was not ready to sacrifice it all.

Jeremiah records the Lord telling His people to circumcise their hearts. Have you been “in name only” a Christian, or have you circumcised your heart? Do you pick up your cross on Sunday and put it in the closet for the rest of the week? If someone were to mount a case against your life for following Christ, would you have a hung jury?

Circumcising your heart means exactly what Jesus said in Matthew 16, “Deny yourself and follow me.” You may be fooling most of the people around you with your cubic zirconia faith in Christ, but sooner or later the appraiser will come and reveal that what you have been doing only looks like real faith, acts like real faith, and speaks like real faith, but inside you were never sold out at all, just playing a game of Christianity and winning for quite some time. It is time to get the knife out, circumcise your heart, and be sold out. Stop playing the game of Christianity. What will you profit if you gain the whole world and forfeit your soul? In other words, saving money when you purchased the cubic zirconia would seem really foolish when she finds out it was not a real diamond.

Prayer: Father, help us to recognize that we should be sold out for Jesus. I pray for a fresh, new hunger for Jesus and Your Word. I pray for a fresh strength to move forward with Christ and not put our faith under a shade, but let it shine for all to see. In Jesus’ name, amen.