What Does it Mean to be a Christian?

Do you belong to a certain religion?  Have you adopted a certain value system?  Is this the measure by which you consider yourself a christian?  Being a christian is about embracing what the Bible says about salvation, mankind and God.

First of all, God is sovereign.  He is before all things, in all things, and He is the creator of all men.  God created us because he wanted to, for the purpose of loving, serving, and fellowshipping with him.  Since Jesus created everything (John 1:3) and he owns and rules everything (Ps. 103:19), then he has authority over our lives and we are obligated to give him, and him alone, all our devotion, obedience, and worship.  God is holy (Isaiah 6:3), and he requires us to be holy as well (1Peter 1:16).

We must have an understanding that man is sinful (1 Kings 8:46), and that we are unable to love, understand or please God in our own way or on our own terms (Romans 3:10-12).  Sin separates us from God. There is also a penalty for sin.  That penalty is death (Ezekiel 18:4).  This is the reason why being a good person will not make you OK with God.

We must also understand that Jesus is both our Lord and out savior.   We already stated that Jesus created everything and owns and rules everything, and that he has the right of authority over our lives and we owe him all our devotion, obedience, and worship.  Romans 10:9 says that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, that you will be saved.  This is the foundation of salvation.  But further than that, Gods law demands payment for sin and Christ's blood on the cross is the payment for your sin and mine (1 Peter 3:18).  Since Christ's death pays the penalty for our sin, he will forgive and save anyone who places their faith in him (Romans 3:26).

Repentance always follows genuine faith.  When you repent, you admit that you are sinful, as God says you are; you confess your sins, and then turn away from your sin (Luke 13:3; 1 Thessalonians 1:9).   Then you will want to actively pursue Christ (Matthew 11:28-30; John 17:3), and remain obedient to him (1John 2:3).  

It doesn't matter that you just believe in God, the bible says that even demons believe in God (James 2:19).  You must love and obey him to truly be his disciple (Ephesians 2:10).  

Excerpts taken from Grace to You website

I remain, in Him,

JT