What You Believe
When I was in college, a friend of mine was working the night shift at a small gas station/convenience store by himself. At around 1 a.m., a man came in wearing a ski mask and holding a gun, demanding that he open the cash register. My friend, whose name was Jim, thought it was me playing a prank. So he started laughing and said, “Yeah right, Scott. Take the ski mask off.”
The guy yelled, “My name isn’t Scott. Now, OPEN THE CASH REGISTER!”
Jim wasn’t convinced, but asked, “Where’d you even get that gun? It looks real.”
“IT IS REAL! OPEN THE CASH REGISTER!” Jim, still thinking it was a joke, reached up to pull the ski mask off what he thought was my head, and the thief stuck his gun up into his left nostril and cocked the hammer. Jim could smell gunpowder and let go of the ski mask, having second thoughts about who he was dealing with.
This time the gunman spoke more softly: “Open the d*** cash register.”
Guess what Jim did? He opened the cash register.
When he believed the gunman was playing a prank, he laughed and joked. When he believed the gunman was real and that his life was in danger, he followed orders.
What you believe makes all the difference in the world.
You are what you really believe. I know, people say they believe a lot of things. But what we really believe shows itself in what we do.
I love the lyrics to the old Rich Mullens song, Creed…“And I believe what I believe is what makes me what I am. I did not make it, no, it is making me. It is the very truth of God and not the invention of any man.”
What I believe is what makes me what I am.
If you analyze all the things you do, you will find a belief system in your head that produces those choices. All of your behaviors are produced by your beliefs. You live the way you live because of what you really believe, not just what you say you believe.
And that was the argument Jesus’ half-brother, James, made when he said, “I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18 ESV).
That’s why learning and understanding the Bible is so important. What we really believe is not just what we profess—it shows itself in how we live. If you say you believe that Jesus is Lord, is that evident? Is that how you live? Or is it just something you say?
Because, what you believe is what makes you—you.