Unfortunately over time, the word “Christian” has lost a great deal of its significance and is often used of someone who is religious or has high moral values but who may or may not be a true follower of Jesus Christ. Many people who do not believe and trust in Jesus Christ consider themselves Christians simply because they go to church or they live in a “Christian” nation. But going to church, serving those less fortunate than you, or being a good person does not make you a Christian. Going to church does not make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile. Being a member of a church, attending services regularly, and giving to the work of the church does not make you a Christian.
- A Christian is NOT someone who belongs to a cult that mentions Jesus but does not follow the truths in the Bible – Galatians 1:8.
- A Christian is NOT someone who was born and raised in a Western nation – Galatians 3:28.
- A Christian is NOT someone whose parents were believers and who went to church as a child – Romans 9:6-18.
- A Christian is NOT someone who once said a prayer and then rejected God for the rest of his life – Jude 1:18-19.
- A Christian is NOT someone who thinks Jesus was a good man and did good things, but does not believe that Jesus is God and the Son of God – Matthew 19:17.
- A Christian is NOT someone who believes they must complete certain duties to be saved – Ephesians 2:8-9.
- A Christian is NOT someone who does good deeds – Romans 3:23; 6:23.
The Bible teaches that the good works we do cannot make us acceptable to God. Titus 3:5 says, “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” So, a Christian is someone who has been born again BY GOD (John 3:3; John 3:7; 1 Peter 1:23) and has put faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8 tells us that it is “…by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD.”
A true Christian is a person who has put faith and trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ, including His death on the cross as payment for sins and His resurrection on the third day. John 1:12 tells us, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” The mark of a true Christian is love for others and obedience to God’s Word (1 John 2:4, 10). A true Christian is indeed a child of God, a part of God’s true family, and one who has been given new life in Jesus Christ.
Being a Christian literally means to believe and follow Jesus Christ. Nothing more and nothing less. He, who has ears to hear, let him hear.
