Sermon Illustrations

Old Habits

The French Revolution was tough on nobility. For years the people with money and power in France ignored and humiliated the common people, forcing them to suffer and starve while the noblemen lived in luxury.

With the revolution came payback.

The guillotine was the method of choice for the people’s revenge. During the revolution, many noblemen tried to escape execution by disguising themselves to slip out of the country undetected.

One of them, the Marquis de Condonset, donned the ragged clothes of a peasant and attempted to work his way to the nearest border.

His ploy worked until he stopped at an inn full of real peasants.

The disguised nobleman walked into the inn, sat down at a table, and ordered an omelet made with a dozen eggs.

That wasn’t a smart thing to do in front of a group of people who never would have been able to afford such an extravagant meal.

The nobleman’s mistake ended up sending him to the guillotine.

It’s not easy KEEPING UP APPEARANCES to be something you’re not. Sooner or later, the real you will come to the surface and expose you for what you really are.

This is especially true of people who pretend to be Christians. Sooner or later, the truth will come out.

Becoming a Christian involves being born again-being changed from the inside out. Only when Christ changes your heart can you truly begin to act like a Christian.

You can’t wear a Christian disguise. When you’ve been reborn, your life will begin to show it.

Your actions become the evidence of the change that’s taken place in your heart (James 2:18). Faith without actions is just as phony as actions without faith.

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