WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A TRUE CHRISTIAN?
To some people Christianity is some religious practice. But according to the bible, there is much more to being a true follower of Jesus Christ than most people realize.
According to (Acts 11:26), the followers of Jesus Christ were first called Christians at Antioch. Why were they called christians? Because they were "followers of christ " they had committed their lives to walk as Jesus did. The term "Christian" is widely used to describe those who believe in Jesus Christ. However, there are many differing ideas as to be considered a true christian. Believers in Christ are generally anxious to be considered true christian, but just is a genuine follower of Jesus Christ? Is there anyway to know for sure?.
Others scriptures explain how a person comes to faith in Jesus Christ and begins this relationship for example:
Ephesians 2:8-9 reveals that a person becomes a christian by faith, not by following a list of rules or good works "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. A true Christian has faith in Jesus as the savior.
The Bible use the word Christian only three times (Acts 11:26 ; 26:28 ; 1 peter 4:16). However, various aspects of Christianity are mentioned abundantly. For example, the apostle Paul state that we should imitate him just like Paul imitated Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). This is an major step in defining a true christian, but there is more.
Roman 10:9 says, "if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the hearth one believes is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. A true Christian is unashamed to say Jesus is lord and believes Jesus was resurrected from dead. The bible gives us additional details, for instance, an individual must be called by God to be considered a true christian. In the parable of the wedding feast, our savior stated that "many are called, but few are chosen" (Mathew 22:14).
The calling has to do with an invitation. Many are invited, but only some answer the call. Jesus emphasized that tax collector and harlots would enter the kingdom of God before those who were often perceived as being righteous in this day. Typically, those looked on as righteous were in reality self-righteous on the other hand, those of low standings are more likely to see their inadequacy and their need to repent of their need to repent of their sins. Generally speaking, they also will be more inclined to appreciate the forgiveness made possible through Jesus' sacrifice (Mathew 21:23, 31-32).
Crucial to understand the bible definition of a christian is the fact that all human beings have been sinners, including ourselves (Roman 3:23). The penalty for sin is permanent death (Roman 6:23). A Christian is one who has come to realize the he or she had been under the death penalty and in need of a savior. A Christian understands that Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price by dying on the cross when he was completely innocent of any sin.
A christian learns just what specifically is sin and what brought the penalty upon them in the first place. Again the world has its own ideas about what sin is or is not but the bible defines sin for us as the transgression of the law of God.
And also a true christian,then, is one who has the blood of Jesus Christ sacrificial death applied to him or to her - but only after having acknowledged and repented of their sins (towards God the father) and accepted Christ as their personal savior. Repentance literally means change of mind and attitude , as well as a complete change of conduct, in repentance one literally turns from the way of sin (breaking God's law) that leads to death and begin walking God's way the true christian way of life.
In order to become a christian one has to be baptized, by full water immersion into the name of the father, the son and holy spirit from Christ and the father by which a person is begotten as a new creation in Jesus Christ (Mark 1:8).
By simply believing Jesus Christ and in his name repenting of sin, and asking God for forgiveness, one comes under God's saving grace. This grace which is so precious, is a free gift from God totally undeserved by anyone. No amount of effort by anyone could ever come close to earning this gift of God's favor. Being a "good person" will not earn you salvation, for God does not owe salvation to anyone! "For by grace you have been saved through faith and this especially is not of your own selves, it is the gift of God" (Ephesian 2:8-9).
Once baptized, and having received the gift of God's holy spirit - what should the newly converted christian then do? can a true christian continue living as before? Does being under grace mean that one can go back and continue practicing what he or she supposedly repented of? Absolutely not! The apostle Paul makes it clear that one is not to continue to live in sin continually transgressing the laws and commandments God. Notice! Romans 6:1-3 "what then shall we say? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may abound?.
MAY IT NEVER BE.
Notice how Paul goes on in Romans six to describe the new life of a true Christian. “Therefore, we were buried with Him through the baptism into the death; so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, in the same way, we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been conjoined together in the likeness of His death, so also shall we be in the likeness of His resurrection. Knowing this, that our old man was co-crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be destroyed, so that we might no longer be enslaved to sin; because the one who has died to sin has been justified from sin. Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has any dominion over Him. For when He died, He died unto sin once for all; but in that He lives, He lives unto God. In the same way also, you should indeed reckon yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God through Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, do not let sin rule in your mortal body by obeying it in the lusts thereof. Likewise, do not yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin; rather, yield yourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God” (Rom. 6:4-13, emphasis added).
In both the parable of the pounds and the parable of the talents Christ makes it clear that once having received a gift from God, one is not expected to sit on it or bury it—but to build on it, to increase it. Christians are to grow spiritually to become ever more like Jesus and the Father. With this goal in mind, the true Christian studies his or her Bible regularly to learn to follow the example set by Christ when He walked the earth in the flesh. In this way, God leads one through the power of His Holy Spirit and creates in each Christian His godly character and the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5).
