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The essence of Christianity
Date Posted: 2007-08-14A couple of years ago, I began wrestling with this question: what does it mean to be a Christian? For a period of time, I went through various possibilities in my head and worked on them and then I thought: "what if everyone else has this already worked out and I'm just missing something?"
So I sent an email to a whole slew of people that I knew and respected and called themselves Christians and asked them all the same question: "What does it mean to be a Christian?" "What is the essence of the Christian faith?"
And here's what happened: I got a different answer from every single person, about a dozen of them. Which really blew me away, because then I started thinking about the fact that millions of people say that they are Christians and I wondered how many of us actually meant the same thing when we described ourselves as a (literally) "little Christ."
Some of us have totally devoted our lives to this Christianity thing, but what is it? What, at its essence, does it mean to be a Christian?
Comments
Excellent Question! This is something I've been wondering recently too. And whatever our definition or criteria for a true Christian, I would think it would have to include the Old Testament patriarchs. I've heard many people cite John saying "they shall know us by our love" But I don't think that's uniquely Christian. There are a lot of nice unbelievers in the world that are a lot more loving and compassionate than I am. From my observations, though I think the thing that sets the Christian apart is one simple thing; Believing the promises of God. That's a mold that Abraham, Noah, Adam, Sampson, Job and every other peculiar person of God's assembly fits in to. And if that's the condition, then salvation really makes sense - it's by faith. We are saved by faith - that is to say - our faith in God's promises. And a neccesary extension from that is living your life in a way that reflects you believe everything God has said. You believe sin is sinful and every one dies and then faces judgment. You believe that Christ really did die to save His people, and regardless of you feeling undeserving, He has already done and promised it. You believe God will never leave you nor forsake you. You believe that He is Good and Fair and Just and Righteous. The list goes on and on - both the good and the bad. It may include other things, but at the core a believer must believe!
Posted By: Paul E D on 2007-09-07 07:04:03
